deranged_coder
Enlightened
Hi folks,
I have been seeing several threads recently about people lamenting the loss of their flashlight(s) and people offering tips and tricks on how to avoid losing them. This is my attempt at pulling all of those tips and tricks together, and to solicit more feedback / ideas on how to avoid losing our prized possessions.
(1) Do not EDC it. This should be quite obvious already but still bears mentioning. If you have an über-rare, impossible-to-find flashlight and you would feel like going postal or possible go suicidal if you lost it, then to do not carry it around with you on a daily basis. Bring it out on special occasions only and when you do carry it, follow some of the other tips and tricks mentioned so that you minimize the risk of losing it.
(2) Use a holster, ideally one with a positive fastening to secure the flashlight. Possible downsides to this would be that the positive fastening would make it difficult to quickly deploy the flashlight in an emergency situation. Also, some people just do not like to carry stuff on their belt.
(3) Keep it in a pocket that can be securely closed. Examples would be zippered pockets or pockets with a flap that can be buttoned down. However, some flashlights may be too difficult to comfortably carry in a pants pocket or just will not fit. And of course, you will have the inevitable "is that a flashlight in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?" comments.
(4) Clip the flashlight to your pocket, purse, bag, etc. This all depends on your confidence that the clip will be able to secure the flashlight (some flashlight clips may feel quite flimsy), what you are clipping it to (the clip on my Surefire E2e is so firm that I have difficulty clipping it to the thick material of my jacket) and if you feel the clip lets you carry the flashlight the way you want it (e.g. bezel up vs. bezel down).
(5) Use a lanyard. There are many different variations on this theme but at its very core it involves using some cord to secure the flashlight to you. Some want them to be very secure. Others recommend that a lanyard must always be able to break away i.e. flashlights are replaceable, loss of life or limb is not. Others would even recommend using a retractable lanyard system like the Gear Keeper, for example.
(6) Slip a small piece of paper with your contact information into the battery compartment. While admittedly this does not prevent loss, it does increase the chances of your flashlight making its way back to you in case you do lose it.
I personally use a combination of the above. I normally have several flashlights with me at any time, a couple in holsters, another couple in my cargo pants pockets and another one in my inner jacket pocket. I keep another flashlight in my EDC bag. All of them have break-away lanyards attached to them which I put together using some cord, split rings, lanyard hooks and ellipse toggles. And they all have a little slip of paper inside the battery compartment that has my name, telephone number and email address.
So anyway, that is what I have done. I am sure the people here have some more ideas on what to do to avoid losing your flashlight so please, share your wisdom with the rest of us. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bowdown.gif
I have been seeing several threads recently about people lamenting the loss of their flashlight(s) and people offering tips and tricks on how to avoid losing them. This is my attempt at pulling all of those tips and tricks together, and to solicit more feedback / ideas on how to avoid losing our prized possessions.
(1) Do not EDC it. This should be quite obvious already but still bears mentioning. If you have an über-rare, impossible-to-find flashlight and you would feel like going postal or possible go suicidal if you lost it, then to do not carry it around with you on a daily basis. Bring it out on special occasions only and when you do carry it, follow some of the other tips and tricks mentioned so that you minimize the risk of losing it.
(2) Use a holster, ideally one with a positive fastening to secure the flashlight. Possible downsides to this would be that the positive fastening would make it difficult to quickly deploy the flashlight in an emergency situation. Also, some people just do not like to carry stuff on their belt.
(3) Keep it in a pocket that can be securely closed. Examples would be zippered pockets or pockets with a flap that can be buttoned down. However, some flashlights may be too difficult to comfortably carry in a pants pocket or just will not fit. And of course, you will have the inevitable "is that a flashlight in your pocket or are you just happy to see me?" comments.
(4) Clip the flashlight to your pocket, purse, bag, etc. This all depends on your confidence that the clip will be able to secure the flashlight (some flashlight clips may feel quite flimsy), what you are clipping it to (the clip on my Surefire E2e is so firm that I have difficulty clipping it to the thick material of my jacket) and if you feel the clip lets you carry the flashlight the way you want it (e.g. bezel up vs. bezel down).
(5) Use a lanyard. There are many different variations on this theme but at its very core it involves using some cord to secure the flashlight to you. Some want them to be very secure. Others recommend that a lanyard must always be able to break away i.e. flashlights are replaceable, loss of life or limb is not. Others would even recommend using a retractable lanyard system like the Gear Keeper, for example.
(6) Slip a small piece of paper with your contact information into the battery compartment. While admittedly this does not prevent loss, it does increase the chances of your flashlight making its way back to you in case you do lose it.
I personally use a combination of the above. I normally have several flashlights with me at any time, a couple in holsters, another couple in my cargo pants pockets and another one in my inner jacket pocket. I keep another flashlight in my EDC bag. All of them have break-away lanyards attached to them which I put together using some cord, split rings, lanyard hooks and ellipse toggles. And they all have a little slip of paper inside the battery compartment that has my name, telephone number and email address.
So anyway, that is what I have done. I am sure the people here have some more ideas on what to do to avoid losing your flashlight so please, share your wisdom with the rest of us. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/bowdown.gif