please help me choose a light for basement utility

hi all. i am looking for something i cannot seem to find.
i want a light that is somewhat small. about the size of a 1d at the biggest. it must put out at least 100 lumens. it must have at least 4 hours runtime. it must have a lithium type shelf life. it must have hot clean white light. it must be somewhat reasonably priced. it must be at a local retailer.
does something like this exist, or am i dreaming?

on the other hand i would settle for more or less an e2e(maybe even twice that size) that has a 4 hour run time.

thank you.

do you truly need 100 lumens for basement utility?

i can get buy with the twin task 2x123 but i really would feal more comfortable with twice that light. the reason i am looking for shelf life and run time in a 100 lumen light is to replace 2 lights with one. a light i can use whenever i need it and also count on it in an emergency. if (god forbid) the basement was filled with black smoke 100 lumens would cut better than 60. also i find that the twin task the scorpion or the e2e do not light the fuse box in the dark to my liking. my eyes are ok i just feal safer in a big dark room with stuff all over in an emergency with as much light as possible. on the other hand a 5 pound light can be a hinderance in an emergency and certainly does not work its way up inside a furnace duct if necessary.

yeah you're right.
i'm gonna go into research mode for a little bit.

Edit:
the info in this thread might lead to something. Klaus' G2 fix sounds interesting..
the problem is the runtime. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/help.gif

blindedbythelite, thank you for your intrest in my plea /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

haha

how about the Streamlight TL3 xenon and lots of extra lithiums?

check it out on Quickbeam's review site @ www.flashlightreviews.com

and check this thread out.. the blue lines indicate a measurement similar to lumens, and the red line indicates the lights throwing ability..

thats the whole problem. i want something that size (maybe fatter around) that can get 4 hours on the batteries. because having to change batteries when you really need light is bad news. not to mention surefires battery deal doesnt really work out for me. so that leaves $22 worth of batteries to get every so often. it is not that i am actually going to use it anywhere near four hours. i just want it to fire up after i have used it 30 times for 5 minutes each. the tl3 led fits the bill. although, i really dislike the blueish light when i am trying to concentrate on something. it tends to give me a headache. plus these lights are $100. i really want to spend less than $75. i may have just thought of something that does not exist for whatever reason. unless i get a rechargeable and leave it sitting in the cradle all the time. but to my knowledge constantly recharging those with not much use destroys them. is this true?

actually i just thought of something. if i am willing to settle for led, is there a light that has mulitiple led's and runs off of 4 or 8 aa's and is that bright? if so maybe with lithium aa's it would get that kind of run time?

heh, i dunno
it sounds non-existent to me..

altho there might be a modded light somewhere that could perform near your specs..

i'd check this thread frequently to get some other ppl's input..

Re: please help me choose a light for basement uti

Basically you're asking the impossible. Any small 100 lumen light is going to use around 10 watts of power. That means 4 hours of runtime will need 40 wH of power. That is about ten CR123's and you can't fit that many in the size you're describing.

If your basement is full of thick smoke, worry about your lungs more than your flashlight. Don't worry about 4 hours of runtime. Get out as fast as you can and call the fire department.

The TL3 is a good light, bigger than a D cell but has about 100 lumens (the 175 lumen manufacturer spec is a fantasy) and a nice tight beam. Runtime is about 1 hour. I'd say go for it. Or just get a PT Surge and make a point of checking the batteries once a year, around new years' day or around your birthday, or whatever, instead of worrying about shelf life.

Re: please help me choose a light for basement uti

actually the pt surge is perfect if aa lithiums last as long as 123's. it says 3-5 hours run time. it is 7.5 watts! does anyone make a light like this out of aluminum?

a couple of other things i am wondering. streamlight claims 105 lumens out of the tl2. bs? also brinkman claims 105 lumens out of the legend lx. what is it really? i actually like the legend lx but brinkman seems to have discontinued it? it is no longer on their site and wally world no longer has it around here.


i really thought of what i'd like to do here! what is the smallest (decent quality) anodized aluminum light that will house 8 aa's? as i remember the 2d mag won't do it and it is too big for me anyways. if i put that much power in a light like this will i have to order a glass lense?

thanks.

Re: please help me choose a light for basement uti

I was thinking that the Surge is the closest thing to your specs... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon3.gif

Also I think Texas Tactical Supply has a Streamlight Stinger in your price range... rechargable and I don't think it would damage it to leave in the cradle (although I don't own one so I can't know for sure).

Re: please help me choose a light for basement uti

I wonder if you've considered the Blaster Jr. by Elektrolumens? I don't have one, but the Blaster II is well rated by Quickbeam, and the description of the Blaster Jr. on the Elektrolumens site seems to meet your needs in terms of price range, run-time, use of AA cells in a D-cell body, etc. I'm not sure how bright it is, but it may come close in that area. I'ver ordered a FT-3C, but don't have it yet.

http://elektrolumens.com/4_SALE/For_Sale.html
"Blaster Jr. This flashlight is the same as the Blaster III, but is only 1 'D' cell size. Uses a special 3-To-D battery holder, which holds 3 AA batteries, but is the same size as a D cell battery. Lasts 8 to 10 hours on a set of 3 AA batteries."

Re: please help me choose a light for basement uti

Seems to me that for basement duty, a brighter flood with soft spot would be better than a more focused beam. How much throw do you need in a basement? Besides, escaping in an emergency would be much easier with a flood than spot (barring your roomful of black smoke). Would you consider a multi 5mm light like a Dorcy 8led-2C, or Steamlight 7led-4AA? Nuwai also has a 10led-4AA two stage light. Very bright, inexpensive (comparitively, under 40), runtime beyond your specs... and a nice beater for getting bonked about in the chimney, etc. Not 100 lumens, but maybe that isn't as important. Moving slowly through attic/basement/garage environment benefits from a flood. Does for me.

Re: please help me choose a light for basement uti

Nitebrite, 1 hour 2x123 lights like the TL2 put out about 60 lumens. The 100 lumen rating is either BS or is a measurement purely of the bulb output and not of the whole light including lens and reflector losses. Surefire and Arc have accurate lumen ratings and everyone else's are exaggerated. Also, the Surge's claim of 3.5-4 hour runtime is also exaggerated; it will still be lit after that much time, but will be very dim. Try 2 hours of regular brightness. Lithiums might last longer but I'd worry about the bulb popping too early because of lithium's higher voltage.

I think the Surge is your best bet. They are fairly cheap and reasonably lightweight. Anodized aluminum really doesn't gain you anything. If you're worried about the Surge's runtime, get two of them and just switch lights instead of changing batteries. Two Surges will weigh less than one aluminum light. You can also hang a smaller light (like a coin cell keychain light) off each Surge's wrist lanyard, so you can change the Surge's batteries in the dark if needed.

Re: please help me choose a light for basement uti

thanks for all the ideas guys. this is what i decided to do:
i got a dorcy 4xaa led aluminum light. i took out the led and put in a xpr103. i put in lithium aa's. for $26 this thing is another great bargain i thought of. i think. it is more than bright enough, well over 60 lumens i'd say. what do you think my run time will be? is the bulb going to pop way to early? do the li-aa's run any longer in this? i like this light even though it is machined like crud. so if i need a different bulb in there please recomend.

thank you.

Re: please help me choose a light for basement uti

The XPR103 is a 3 cell bulb. Yes with 4 lithium AA's it will probably pop pretty fast. Try a 4 cell Magnum Star bulb.

Re: please help me choose a light for basement uti

i have ran it for half an hour already. to see if it can handle it. it still works and doesnt seem to have dimmed much at all. i got that bulb on purpose to overdrive it.

would an hpr52 be good in this? i would think that an hpr52 or 4 cell bulb will not be nearly as brite and will kill the batteries right away. or is it the other way around?
the hpr52 is rated at higher candlepower than the xpr103, but i thought overdriving the bulb will make it much brighter than it's intended spec? right now if i shine this on the wall and shine a legend lx next to it i cannot even tell the legend lx is on. it throws over 300 feet and has a ton of spill. if the bulb doesnt go poof this is just what i wanted and for 26 bucks!

Re: please help me choose a light for basement uti

I don't remember what an hpr52 is. Expect your XPR103 to pop pretty soon. It won't go dim, it will just pop and stop working. If you're ok with that, then great. Just keep some spares on hand, and a small light that you can change the bulb by.

Re: please help me choose a light for basement uti

the hpr52 is a 6v.(5.2) high output lantern bulb. it is very bright in an eveready lantern. i imagine it would exhaust the batteries in this light pretty quickly. i may have found batteries for this that will have longer run time and less chance of popping the bulb. the energizer alkaline e2 aa's have 3150 mah as opposed to 2900 in the lithium e2's. the alkaline version holds it's mah down to .8v. i think the discharge curve may be better for the lithium aa's though. in a search of this forum someone else has had good luck running the xpr103 with 4 aa's. i think it works this way because the output of 4 aa's is more equal to 3 d's. i am just guessing at this. so far it has ran an hour. i only intend to use it for short periods anyways. i didn't mean i needed 4 hours run time all at once. i was looking for reserve. i will go try the hpr52 right now.