How many lumens is actually practical to carry around for an EDC

Some people always say, having more than required is always the best choice because you can always go into a lower output mode which does not hold true for lets say an E01 Fenix. With modern tech we can get 1500 lumens (ZL) in about as small of a light as anyone could ever want and practically use. Has anyone ever needed more than 1500 lumens for an edc? Are these numbers actually useful in practice or are we just carrying around monster lumen pocket torches for $hitz and giggles?

DIPSTIX said:

Some people always say, having more than required is always the best choice because you can always go into a lower output mode which does not hold true for lets say an E01 Fenix. With modern tech we can get 1500 lumens (ZL) in about as small of a light as anyone could ever want and practically use. Has anyone ever needed more than 1500 lumens for an edc? Are these numbers actually useful in practice or are we just carrying around monster lumen pocket torches for $hitz and giggles?

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i can think of a few uses for thousands of lumens, but they are pretty rare
say it;s noon, but you need to look at your car tires, or something under the hood, that is in a deep shadow
your eyes are set for full sunlight
a really bright light can make that scenario work

or you just want to light a whole room with one flashlight

it just depends

i would say EDC is most limited by size
anything bigger than 1x18650 is too big for me
fortunately the manker u11 and the dqg tiny 18650 have 800-1000 lumens which is enough for me

99% of the time it is dark , and you are not looking more than 10 ft ahead, me anyway, and 300-500 lumens in a circle about 2-5 feet wide, is plenty

if you go to the trouble to carry something bigger, then you are always looking for 'uses' for it

maybe your pockets are bigger
maybe you really need to look under cars all day long
maybe you just like a huge, bright light
i can;t tell you


wle

I carry 1,000 lumen PX3 Fury but I think Surefire really under rated that light, or I got a bright one because I have seen Chinese lights that say 1,100 lumens and the SF smokes them. I am EDCing a S1 Baton 500 lumens. Now

Where do I find the ZL? I would like to know more about this light.

LumenKing1 said:

I carry 1,000 lumen PX3 Fury but I think Surefire really under rated that light, or I got a bright one because I have seen Chinese lights that say 1,100 lumens and the SF smokes them. I am EDCing a S1 Baton 500 lumens. Now

Where do I find the ZL? I would like to know more about this light.

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Zebralight sc600FD mkiii plus. There is a review on the forum just recently. Allot of others enjoy the sc600 mkiii (HI) or normal edition as well.

Thank you wle i did not know about either of those two lights mentioned above.

One example is the Zebralight SC63. With it's fairly floody/large hotspot beam, sometimes you need that 1300lm to make up for loss of throw. Not practical to use that all the time in place of a thrower, but it gets the job done as an EDC. And of course, it excels in the other lower modes.

Thanks DIPSTIX, I will look at them. I feel the wallet cringing already.

My Surefire E2d Ultra defender with 500 initial lumens is more than I need! The 5 lumen mode is great for moving around in a very dark area like your house at night.

I carry a SF E1D (300 lm) in the pocket and G2X LE(400 lm) in the bag.
Low modes, 5 lumens for the E1D and 15 lumens for the G2X are what I mostly use, with very little need for high modes.

I carry 2 OLights (S10R & S30R) on me every day.
The S10R is on a key ring and the S30R is clipped in my pocket next to my CRKT knife (on the hip side).
I use the medium beam most of the time. But, having high and turbo are helpful to see further away when needed.
And as it has been noted, high can be useful in the daytime.
There is another thread asking almost the same question, is 1,000+ lumens really needed? For me, the answer is yes.
Modern lights now let us have our cake and we can eat it too

Lateck,

I like zoomies for edc purposes. When needed to compete with sun adapted eyes the spot gets it done and spill setting diffuses all the extra lumens when not a lot of light is needed.
And the Coast HP1 or 7 worked great for me until the voices said "just 1 SureFire" followed by "try those Streamlights" followed by "just 1 more".... so I keep a zoomie here n there for when whatever my edc is don't get the job done.

How many lumens? Probably less than most folks works for me as I focus on the beam for certain tasks knowing for example 175 lumens from pencil lead beam of a Maglite will light what needs lighting for the scenario that one serves while 325 floody lumens will be plenty for other tasks. Sometimes 2 or 3 lumens from a bedside table light. That'll be in the carry bag when travelling.

So basically the answer varies as much as each individuals reasons for carrying a flashlight as an edc.

EDC ability varies. If you work in a trade or have a utility belt your ability to carry a larger light everyday is better than someone who works in a warehouse or even someone who works in an office.

With today's tech you can EDC at least 120L in an AAA sized light, 200L+ in an AA sized light, 18650 1000L+...any of which is more than enough for any task needing light.

For my EDC, I haven't needed more than 100 lumens. But it's nice to have more in reserve.

My Olight S1's 80 lumens is plenty bright for 99% time. But the high/turbo and the moonlight has come in handy.

LeanBurn said:

200L+ in an AA sized light

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which models? i am mostly interested in 1xAA flashlights, but specs are hard to understand these days

Due to limitations of actual practicality, during the day, for my absolute minimum carry I am down to 3,100 lumens for edc: Acebeam EC50vn. And Olight S2 Baton, for another 1000 lumens.

Nighttime, out and about: TK75vnQ70 Driver VnX2, 16,700 lumens.

Cekid said:

which models? i am mostly interested in 1xAA flashlights, but specs are hard to understand these days

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Olight S1A comes to mind. The astrolux SC puts out way more than that (with a 14500) but the head is bigger

I find 200 ish lumens covers my EDC uses, keeping it small but i have options up to around 3000lm from compact 18650 lights. So i can carry 3000 practically if i need to, if i want the run time at that output then i need to jump up some sizes like mr buff states.

I find the 16340 and 18350 sizes more practical generally, but lights like the s2+ triple and princeCvn give a compact 2000+ output if/when needed(former in 18350 size even more so)

Cekid said:

which models? i am mostly interested in 1xAA flashlights, but specs are hard to understand these days

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Thrunite 1A V3, Thrunite T10 with 252L...there are a few...some like the ThruNites come in neutral white LED tint as well.

One important factor in answering this question of what is practical is the physical capability and on-person storage capacity of the flashlight user. Speaking as a person who has a complex commute to work and plenty of body pain issues, there is a lower limit to the weight I can carry compared to many others. I'm always looking at compromises between what I'd like to carry and what I can carry. So, I'm always looking at single AA and single CR123 lights for EDC use.

And there's the limit on what we can wear to carry our lights and batteries. I don't want to carry my good lights in a bag and leave them out in my workplace, for fear they'll be stolen. Bags get snatched often, where I live. So, my lights must fit in a relatively small bag or pouch I can wear in my office environment without drawing too much attention. I also will keep a light that is less expensive and less difficult to replace in a coat pocket, but not the really good lights! So, what is practical depends very much on what one can carry.

DIPSTIX said:

Some people always say, having more than required is always the best choice because you can always go into a lower output mode which does not hold true for lets say an E01 Fenix. With modern tech we can get 1500 lumens (ZL) in about as small of a light as anyone could ever want and practically use. Has anyone ever needed more than 1500 lumens for an edc? Are these numbers actually useful in practice or are we just carrying around monster lumen pocket torches for $hitz and giggles?

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I have a ConvoyS3 500lm NW, It rarely comes off the med(200lm) setting, also have a thru-nite T30s 650lm It also rarely comes off the med(150lm) mode, think It's more an Individual need...and $hitz and giggles personally I've yet to be In a spot where I thought "I wish my flashlight was brighter" I find my current lights more than enough for EDC....but It doesn't mean I haven't thought about getting a 1,000lm fire starter through

wle said:

maybe your pockets are bigger
maybe you really need to look under cars all day long
maybe you just like a huge, bright light

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Maybe you have severe night blindness. That's me.
I would say 800 lumens is my lower limit for max output for my EDC.
I carry a Zebralight SC600-III at all times, and H1 (1300 lumens) and M2 (32 lumens) are the most used modes for outdoors and indoors respectively.