GadgetTravel
Enlightened
- Joined
- May 18, 2005
- Messages
- 642
Im new here, having been lurking a bit and wanted to thank people for all for all of the useful information I have found so far. I am interested in some suggestions for some lights to try for everyday use and had some specific questions.
I live in suburban NYC (Long Island) and hadnt thought much about flashlights until the blackout a couple years ago and none of the flashlights we had worked. I managed using an HP IPAQ as a light but it obviously left a lot to be desired. After the blackout I bought about 8 Maglites of different sizes and they have served pretty well for occassional use and in some short power outages since.
But I became aware of the more high tech flashlights and this forum by way of a thread on a frequent flyer forum and thought some of those here might have some suggestions for my particular needs.
I travel over 200,000 miles per year (closer to 250 some years), all by plane. Since the blackout I carry a 2AAA maglite at all times. It has come in handy on several occassions, once when a hotel lost power.
As I think about it I have several uses for lights as well as for emergencies.
Uses are
1) looking in briefcases, backpacks or whatever for small objects that have gotten lost
2) Not tripping and breaking my ankle while wondering around some strange hotel room in the middle of the night (the orange Freedom Micro I got last week seems to fill this job)
In less typical situations:
1) lighting an area in the case of a power failure
2) emergency lighting in case of something worse, ie a hotel fire or other nastiness
Then at home I use lights in the yard at night (VERY small yard) and particularly for cooking on the grill. When I am home I often work late but like to cook on the grill so it is often dark. A 2D mag works for this but I am looking for something more high tech and I would be better off with more output over a wider area.
I was thinking of either a combination of an Inova X5 and a good incandescent light for travelling. The X5 doing area and long term area work with the incandescent doing the "emergency" role. Does this make sense? If so what is a good compact incandescent? I looked at the SF E2E and the SL TL-2, both looked very nice but the SF was a work of art. Does the lower output of the SF (compared to the SL TL-2) really matter for most things? Or should I just get a SF A2 and be done with it?
Alternately, if I only wanted to carry one light in the carryon bag maybe a hybrid? I bought a SL 2L Twintask yesterday to try but would be interested in suggestions. I also bought a SL Jr. Luxeon as a backup in my carryon. I was also considering the Nuwai 301 or Q3 to keep in my pocket (with the Photons /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif )
Around the house I was thinking of a SL TL-2 LED. Should be great for the BBQ. I could also throw it in my bag if so moved. Any other suggestions? Or does a rechargeable make more sense?
For someone who thought maglites were the be all, end all, I am a bit overwhelmed by the variety. And can see the addiction arising. At least this addiction may not be quite as expensive as my fountain pen or watch addictions, although my wife is at least getting used to them.....
Can some of you suggest a strategy for me to make some sense of all of this and go with my next few light purchases? Any suggestions greatly appreciated. Thanks.
I live in suburban NYC (Long Island) and hadnt thought much about flashlights until the blackout a couple years ago and none of the flashlights we had worked. I managed using an HP IPAQ as a light but it obviously left a lot to be desired. After the blackout I bought about 8 Maglites of different sizes and they have served pretty well for occassional use and in some short power outages since.
But I became aware of the more high tech flashlights and this forum by way of a thread on a frequent flyer forum and thought some of those here might have some suggestions for my particular needs.
I travel over 200,000 miles per year (closer to 250 some years), all by plane. Since the blackout I carry a 2AAA maglite at all times. It has come in handy on several occassions, once when a hotel lost power.
As I think about it I have several uses for lights as well as for emergencies.
Uses are
1) looking in briefcases, backpacks or whatever for small objects that have gotten lost
2) Not tripping and breaking my ankle while wondering around some strange hotel room in the middle of the night (the orange Freedom Micro I got last week seems to fill this job)
In less typical situations:
1) lighting an area in the case of a power failure
2) emergency lighting in case of something worse, ie a hotel fire or other nastiness
Then at home I use lights in the yard at night (VERY small yard) and particularly for cooking on the grill. When I am home I often work late but like to cook on the grill so it is often dark. A 2D mag works for this but I am looking for something more high tech and I would be better off with more output over a wider area.
I was thinking of either a combination of an Inova X5 and a good incandescent light for travelling. The X5 doing area and long term area work with the incandescent doing the "emergency" role. Does this make sense? If so what is a good compact incandescent? I looked at the SF E2E and the SL TL-2, both looked very nice but the SF was a work of art. Does the lower output of the SF (compared to the SL TL-2) really matter for most things? Or should I just get a SF A2 and be done with it?
Alternately, if I only wanted to carry one light in the carryon bag maybe a hybrid? I bought a SL 2L Twintask yesterday to try but would be interested in suggestions. I also bought a SL Jr. Luxeon as a backup in my carryon. I was also considering the Nuwai 301 or Q3 to keep in my pocket (with the Photons /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif )
Around the house I was thinking of a SL TL-2 LED. Should be great for the BBQ. I could also throw it in my bag if so moved. Any other suggestions? Or does a rechargeable make more sense?
For someone who thought maglites were the be all, end all, I am a bit overwhelmed by the variety. And can see the addiction arising. At least this addiction may not be quite as expensive as my fountain pen or watch addictions, although my wife is at least getting used to them.....
Can some of you suggest a strategy for me to make some sense of all of this and go with my next few light purchases? Any suggestions greatly appreciated. Thanks.