Helmet light recommendation needed

Tuiflies

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So I'm looking for a new light for my snow machine helmet. Something with at least one level around 1000 lm or higher, with ~250 m throw, 1" body diameter, that will actually put out ~1000 lm for around 2 hrs or more. Something with a thermally regulated (as opposed to a timed) step-down would be ideal assuming I would get longer run-times from being out and about moving in the cold. From the research I've done in the past few days I'm thinking something with an 18650 or 21700 battery at the most. Everything with a 26650 seems to be too thick and/or heavy. Ideally it would be in-light re-chargable but that's not a deal breaker. Hopefully around 5" long but a bit longer isn't critical either.

So far I'm leaning towards the Zebra Light SC600w MK IV Plus but it doesn't mention the throw distance. Otherwise the lumens, run-times & size all look good. Too bad it doesn't have in-light charging.

The Nitecore EC23 has 980 lm that only lasted 62 mins (according to BDM82's review) and doesn't have in-light charging.

Olight's Seeker 2 Pro put out over 1200 lms for over 100 mins on high and the first step-down at 650 lms lasted around 2.5 hrs (according to rookiedaddy) but it's on the thick and heavy side and quite expensive here in Canada. I do really like the magnetic charging and I think at 1.1" thick I'll still be able to get it in my helmet mount though.

Maratac's Ultra V2 doesn't mention the throw or if it's thermally regulated and no one's done a run-time test to see how long it will hold 1075 lumens for.

I looked at Armytek, Klarus and Surefire but nothing caught my eye. The Fenix site had way too many options to sort through and no way I could see to help narrow my search so I gave up looking at them.

I have been using a Ledlenser MT10 for a while now but I'm looking for something that will maintain the 1000 lumens for longer as I do more and more night riding.

Anything you guys think I'm missing out on and should have a look at?

Thx in advance
 

Tuiflies

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Sorry should have specified that a headlamp won't fit. I have a mount on the side of my helmet that is made to hold a light with a body diameter of 1". A little above or below will work too though.
 

peter yetman

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You are going to have trouble finding a single cell flashlight the does 1000Lm for two hours on a single cell. It's about physics. Most lights that say they can do it can only do it for a short time if at all.
Take a look at a Malkoff M61HOT, 700 out front lumens as opposed to emitter lumens which many manufacturers use. Maybe 80 mins on a 3500mah 18650 and a 20,000 lux. It's also built like brick outhouse and made in America by the same guy that answers the phone. They have the best before and after sales service in the business.

Here's something to read over your Cornflakes...

https://www.candlepowerforums.com/v...line-Comparo&p=5239146&viewfull=1#post5239146

https://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?460215-Thoughts-on-M61HOT-MD2

P
 
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usdiver

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Op have you heard of Exposure Lights? If not you may want to look them up. They do many different lights for different applications but I d recommend one of their bike lights including mountain bike lights.
 

Dicaeopolis

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Malkoff Hound Dog 18650 meets all your requirements, except it is 1000 lumens for about 1 hour, but then it drops to 650. You should read the description on his site. I have been using the older neutral version for years at work. It is probably about 750 lumens on high, but that's enough for my needs. It has a very useful low and is tough as can be. I have destroyed many a lesser light before I bought it. I don't know if I have ever seen a used one for sale. I bet if you don't like it, you could sell it with ease. I believe you can take the head off and use it in a 3 cell body with 2 AA batteries in an emergency situation and it will run an extremely long time. Someone posted that and I believe I tried it. It is a great light.
 

Tuiflies

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Sorry for the late reply but I've been spending the past few days getting sucked further and further down this rabbit hole. I had a whole reply already typed but when I submitted it there was and issue and nothing got posted. I noticed an "auto saved" msg in the lower right corner but I can't figure out where it saved to and if I can retrieve it.

Anyways, thanks for all those suggestions. They're all amazing lights but the Malkovs are out of my price range and the Exposure lights are even more so.

Ultimately I've realized that I need to re-evaluate my criteria. Originally I thought the MT10 was going to give me 1000 lm for 6 hrs so I didn't realize that was unreasonable until I had the fine print (FL 1 standard and Ledlenser's further discrepancies) pointed out to me. I had noticed the lack of performance in the MT10 but it's still fine for use as a camp light and I'm happy with it as such.

Now, I wonder if you guys could point me in a more reasonable direction. This light is in addition to my snow machine's headlight so it's really for me to be able to see outside of the headlight beam when I turn my head. I will always be using it below freezing temp so can we assume the thermal regulation won't kick in? Really I think my priority should shift more to run-time. What's the most throw and lumens I can get that will last for 2 hrs? I noticed the M61T says it will send 480 lm (OTF), 450' for 1.5 hrs. If there's no thermal regulation, will that be more like 1 hr? Is that the best I can expect? I know there are lights guys use for their helmets but none of them are flashaholics so they don't know what performance they get from them. Still looking at an 18650 with a 1" body diameter.

At any rate, thanks for any help you guys can give. I'm feeling further from a decision now than when I started. It seems nothing's ever simple when you really look into it. (should have taken the blue pill).:confused:
 
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usdiver

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Tuiflies
I understand the concern regarding budget but often on eBay you can find pretty good deals on second hand even new sometimes. I let go a £350 bike light for about a hundred cause I wasn't using and now I find I may be going back to where I bought it ....

For the runtime you mentioned vs output if you do a little research on the specs I do think it would suit your purpose well. These lights are made for being battered and in harsh conditions and environment.
While saying that I m in no way trying to sell their brand and I don't work for em Nor am I getting anything out of it however these lights are very impressive for there size and well worth at least looking at.
 

Tuiflies

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I agree completely. The Action1-9 looks great (and it specifically says it will run the full 1000lm for 4hrs) but it may be a bit thick (prob using a 26650 I'd guess). The Axis Mk7 looks good too and I'll definitely keep an eye out for them but 180 GBP is still near $300 CDN.
 

usdiver

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You looked on eBay? Often the gear like exposure if you know what you are looking at you can do better than that.
 

Tuiflies

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You looked on eBay? Often the gear like exposure if you know what you are looking at you can do better than that.

Searching for specific lights resulted in an Axis Mk6 for $200 and Action1-9 for $285. Definitely better but still too much.
 

Tuiflies

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I think after another day of searching that something using a 21700 is going to be the way to go. For a very minimal increase in form factor there seems to be a dramatic increase in performance. The Fenix PD36R looks like it will maintain 800 lm at just under 200 m for just under 6 hrs without any thermal regulation. The data chart doesn't show the run-time graph but the previous PD35 V2 does and in both cases the Turbo has an * regarding the thermal regulation but the High modes do not. I'm going to keep searching a bit more but unless anyone can suggest something better, this is definitely the way I'm leaning now.

Anyone have anything comparable for me to check out?
 

XTAR Light

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Have you checked over a flashlight with 950 lumen, but its runtime is more than 2 hours?

XTAR Warboy flashlight may fit, and is equipped with IPX8 level water resistance.





*Admin Note: Manufacturer Advertising within regular forums and threads is prohibited. Please restrict your advertising to your dedicated sub-forum in the Manufacturer Forum.
 
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peter yetman

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Have you checked over a flashlight with 10000 lumen, but its runtime is more than 2 hours?

XTAR Warboy flashlight may fit, and is equipped with IPX8 level water resistance.


I think you mean 1000Lm not 10,000.
So it does 2+ hours on Turbo with no stepdown?
Honestly?
Can you tell us the current draw on Turbo, please?
P
 
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Tuiflies

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Have you checked over a flashlight with 950 lumen, but its runtime is more than 2 hours?

XTAR Warboy flashlight may fit, and is equipped with IPX8 level water resistance.

It needs to be a handheld style because the mount is on the side of my helmet below my ear. Some of the other XTAR lights look pretty good but I've pretty much decided to get a 21700 powered light since it will fit in my mount and the run-times are so much better.
 

peter yetman

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I think you mean 1000Lm not 10,000.
So it does 2+ hours on Turbo with no stepdown?
Honestly?
Can you tell us the current draw on Turbo, please?
P
It's OK I found the answer on here from this thread....
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?412819-Nitecore-HC30-vs-Xtar-H3


Xtar will only stay on its brightest for 30-40 minutes, it will then reduce output to save battery. This way Xtar managed runtime of almost 3 hours. However not at full output. I would guess the output after 40 minutes to be 80% of full turbo output.

P
 

Lumen83

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Curious if this will be used while general trail riding or for some other application? How bright are your headlights? Will the headlamp be visible over those? Keep in mind that this may confuse/affect the vision of oncoming riders if used on a trail.
 

Tuiflies

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I'll likely use it all the time at night unless I'm just making a short hop home or something. On and off trail and returning from fishing mostly. None of the lights I've looked up so far will be too bright when in general use. Some of the Turbo modes could be but they only last for short durations. My headlights are not super bright but some of the newer sleds are very bright. Also, there are very few riders up here (let alone riders at night) and helmet lights are becoming more popular. It's not a practical concern.
 

Illum

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"~1000 lm for around 2 hrs"

thats difficult for a couple reasons.... you might need a separate battery back at that point... and then there's thermal considerations. The smaller the light the quicker it will heat up. The faster it will heat up the faster the driver will roll back the current to protect the battery and LED.

Last time I needed to mount a light on my hard hat that can't accommodate a conventional headlamp I mounted a Magpul 1913 Picatinny rail section with a single screw and a coupe fender washers. Used a nylon washer to add enough tension before mounting a spare TLR-1 on it. Something small with a 1000 lumen high mode could work, but I doubt you'll need 1000 lumens all the time.
 
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