Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

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Ankerson
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#61

Post by Ankerson »

013 wrote:
Mon Dec 30, 2019 7:08 am
Ankerson wrote:
Thu Dec 26, 2019 10:00 pm
ugaarguy wrote:
Thu Dec 26, 2019 9:06 pm
Ankerson wrote:
Thu Dec 26, 2019 5:00 pm



Comparing a 300 Lumen light (Surefire) to a 550 Lumen light(PD25)?

I can tell you how that is going to go.

The Surefire EDCL1-T would have been a closer comparison, at 500 to 550 lumens.
Lumens are total light output, and they only tell half the story. We need to know what the candela (cd), or intensity, of each light is. The Wowtac A1 that I linked above has a turbo mode of 550 lumens output, and 10520 cd. My Olight M2R's turbo mode is rated at 1500 lumens and 10,880 cd. The Wowtac A1 has less than half the output, but the same intensity for all practical purposes. In real worled use, the A1 matches the M2R in throw (illumination at distance), but the A1 has a much narrower beam. My Nitecore EC4GT goes even further with a turbo mode rated at 1,000 lumens and 56,500 cd. The EC4GT is a great thrower. The M2R has enough throw for most uses, and illuminates a rather wide area.

Unfortunately, Surefire doesn't publish their intensity data. Nor does Surefire publish how long their lights sustain full output before stepping down. A light only has to sustain a given output level for 30 seconds to be able to say that's what the output is, per the ANSI NEMA FL-1 standard. Olight puts right on the box that the M2R sustains the 1500 lumen turbo mode for 3 minutes, then drops to the 700 lumen high mode. The Wowtac A1 doesn't appear to have any thermal protection and step-down, because its manual simply warns against running in turbo for more than 10 minutes at a time, to protect the LED and circuits.

Interesting there isn't a website that lists the ratings for the flashlights based on actual lab testing instead of manufactures ratings.

Kinda like DXOMark but for flashlights.
Flashlightguide-dot-com has some tests...
Also flashlightreviews-dot-ca

Thanks for the INFO, they do have a lot of reviews etc. :)
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013
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#62

Post by 013 »

Ankerson wrote:
Tue Dec 31, 2019 4:30 pm
013 wrote:
Mon Dec 30, 2019 7:08 am
Ankerson wrote:
Thu Dec 26, 2019 10:00 pm
ugaarguy wrote:
Thu Dec 26, 2019 9:06 pm

Lumens are total light output, and they only tell half the story. We need to know what the candela (cd), or intensity, of each light is. The Wowtac A1 that I linked above has a turbo mode of 550 lumens output, and 10520 cd. My Olight M2R's turbo mode is rated at 1500 lumens and 10,880 cd. The Wowtac A1 has less than half the output, but the same intensity for all practical purposes. In real worled use, the A1 matches the M2R in throw (illumination at distance), but the A1 has a much narrower beam. My Nitecore EC4GT goes even further with a turbo mode rated at 1,000 lumens and 56,500 cd. The EC4GT is a great thrower. The M2R has enough throw for most uses, and illuminates a rather wide area.

Unfortunately, Surefire doesn't publish their intensity data. Nor does Surefire publish how long their lights sustain full output before stepping down. A light only has to sustain a given output level for 30 seconds to be able to say that's what the output is, per the ANSI NEMA FL-1 standard. Olight puts right on the box that the M2R sustains the 1500 lumen turbo mode for 3 minutes, then drops to the 700 lumen high mode. The Wowtac A1 doesn't appear to have any thermal protection and step-down, because its manual simply warns against running in turbo for more than 10 minutes at a time, to protect the LED and circuits.

Interesting there isn't a website that lists the ratings for the flashlights based on actual lab testing instead of manufactures ratings.

Kinda like DXOMark but for flashlights.
Flashlightguide-dot-com has some tests...
Also flashlightreviews-dot-ca

Thanks for the INFO, they do have a lot of reviews etc. :)
Any time.😎
Sorry for the super-late reply.
Also, Happy New Year.
The sword the body wounds, sharp words the mind.
- Menander :spyder:
Ribstabsheart
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#63

Post by Ribstabsheart »

I really like my Reylight Pineapple as a nice EDC, but the D4V2 is my next fancy purchase. Love the emisar D4, and they fixed just about all my qualms with it.
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#64

Post by kennethsime »

Reading through this thread. Does anyone have a recommendation for a Surefire E2D Ultra alternative in the $50 range? :-)
I'm happiest with Micarta and Tool Steel.

Top four in rotation: K390 + GCM PM2, ZCarta Shaman, Crucarta PM2, K390 + GCM Straight Spine Stretch.
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Ankerson
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#65

Post by Ankerson »

kennethsime wrote:
Sat Jan 18, 2020 11:16 pm
Reading through this thread. Does anyone have a recommendation for a Surefire E2D Ultra alternative in the $50 range? :-)

The least expensive I can recommend for a serious flashlight would be the Streamlight ProTac HL-X.
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#66

Post by kennethsime »

Ankerson wrote:
Sat Jan 18, 2020 11:36 pm
kennethsime wrote:
Sat Jan 18, 2020 11:16 pm
Reading through this thread. Does anyone have a recommendation for a Surefire E2D Ultra alternative in the $50 range? :-)

The least expensive I can recommend for a serious flashlight would be the Streamlight ProTac HL-X.
Thanks Jim!

I went with a $20 Olight 13T EOS and the $14 WOWATAC A1 for now. We'll see how they do!

I walk my dog every night and even though she has a light on, and I usually have a headlamp, drivers in this neighborhood just don't take notice. Wanted something to give them an extra "heads up" when needed. The Surefire E2D Ultra is probably my perfect EDC flashlight, but I want to be sure I'll actually carry one every day before I commit.
I'm happiest with Micarta and Tool Steel.

Top four in rotation: K390 + GCM PM2, ZCarta Shaman, Crucarta PM2, K390 + GCM Straight Spine Stretch.
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Ankerson
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#67

Post by Ankerson »

kennethsime wrote:
Sat Jan 18, 2020 11:48 pm
Ankerson wrote:
Sat Jan 18, 2020 11:36 pm
kennethsime wrote:
Sat Jan 18, 2020 11:16 pm
Reading through this thread. Does anyone have a recommendation for a Surefire E2D Ultra alternative in the $50 range? :-)

The least expensive I can recommend for a serious flashlight would be the Streamlight ProTac HL-X.
Thanks Jim!

I went with a $20 Olight 13T EOS and the $14 WOWATAC A1 for now. We'll see how they do!

I walk my dog every night and even though she has a light on, and I usually have a headlamp, drivers in this neighborhood just don't take notice. Wanted something to give them an extra "heads up" when needed. The Surefire E2D Ultra is probably my perfect EDC flashlight, but I want to be sure I'll actually carry one every day before I commit.

Yeah Surefire is really the ticket.

I don't recommend anything other than Surefire and Streamlight personally.

I have the Surefire EDCL2-T and EDCL1-T.
ugaarguy
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#68

Post by ugaarguy »

kennethsime wrote:
Sat Jan 18, 2020 11:16 pm
Reading through this thread. Does anyone have a recommendation for a Surefire E2D Ultra alternative in the $50 range? :-)
Olight M2R Warrior is $90. It's made in China, but mine has been dropped on concrete from chest height and is still going strong, so if it isn't as tough as Surefire it's darn close. In reality it's probably every bit as well built. The M2R has a better clip, uses an included 18650 rechargeable battery, and has a better feature set than any Surefire. It's very close in size to a Surefire E series as well.
kennethsime wrote:
Sat Jan 18, 2020 11:16 pm
I walk my dog every night and even though she has a light on, and I usually have a headlamp, drivers in this neighborhood just don't take notice. Wanted something to give them an extra "heads up" when needed. The Surefire E2D Ultra is probably my perfect EDC flashlight, but I want to be sure I'll actually carry one every day before I commit.
All the more reason to get an M2R. Run it on the 250 lumen "medium" or 700 lumen high constant on through the side switch. Then the tail switch will give you access to 1,000 lumen momentary / constant turbo. Or you can do a quick reprogram (hold both switches at the same time for about 2 seconds) to get 1,500 lumen momentary turbo / momentary strobe on the tail switch. The tail switch always turn the light on in the selected turbo mode selected whether it's off, or over-riding a lower output that's been selected on the side switch. Drivers will pay attention when fire up a 1,500 lumen strobe pointed down at the ground.

I carried Surefire lights doing maintenance in Iraq while in the USAF. I still have several. I mostly carry Olights now.
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kennethsime
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#69

Post by kennethsime »

ugaarguy wrote:
Mon Jan 20, 2020 10:50 pm
kennethsime wrote:
Sat Jan 18, 2020 11:16 pm
Reading through this thread. Does anyone have a recommendation for a Surefire E2D Ultra alternative in the $50 range? :-)
Olight M2R Warrior is $90. It's made in China, but mine has been dropped on concrete from chest height and is still going strong, so if it isn't as tough as Surefire it's darn close. In reality it's probably every bit as well built. The M2R has a better clip, uses an included 18650 rechargeable battery, and has a better feature set than any Surefire. It's very close in size to a Surefire E series as well.
kennethsime wrote:
Sat Jan 18, 2020 11:16 pm
I walk my dog every night and even though she has a light on, and I usually have a headlamp, drivers in this neighborhood just don't take notice. Wanted something to give them an extra "heads up" when needed. The Surefire E2D Ultra is probably my perfect EDC flashlight, but I want to be sure I'll actually carry one every day before I commit.
All the more reason to get an M2R. Run it on the 250 lumen "medium" or 700 lumen high constant on through the side switch. Then the tail switch will give you access to 1,000 lumen momentary / constant turbo. Or you can do a quick reprogram (hold both switches at the same time for about 2 seconds) to get 1,500 lumen momentary turbo / momentary strobe on the tail switch. The tail switch always turn the light on in the selected turbo mode selected whether it's off, or over-riding a lower output that's been selected on the side switch. Drivers will pay attention when fire up a 1,500 lumen strobe pointed down at the ground.

I carried Surefire lights doing maintenance in Iraq while in the USAF. I still have several. I mostly carry Olights now.
Thanks for the recommendation! That light looks really nice. I ended up getting two cheaper lights, and I really like the little Olight I picked up. The build quality is fantastic for $20, feels rock solid and the size is just right to clip into a pocket or drop into the bottom. On top of that the 180 lumens is quite bright! Today was the first day carrying and it gave me a little bit of extra confidence!

I'm not sure I'll carry the larger WOWATAC I picked up. While I like that it's rechargeable, and quite bright, it's a bit big for my every day carry. Definitely something I'd rather throw in a backpack, or maybe just take on late-night walks. If I stick with the flashlight game I'll take a serious look at that Olight M2R, or maybe a Fenix PD35 before thinking about a Surefire again.
I'm happiest with Micarta and Tool Steel.

Top four in rotation: K390 + GCM PM2, ZCarta Shaman, Crucarta PM2, K390 + GCM Straight Spine Stretch.
ugaarguy
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#70

Post by ugaarguy »

kennethsime wrote:
Mon Jan 20, 2020 11:07 pm
ugaarguy wrote:
Mon Jan 20, 2020 10:50 pm
kennethsime wrote:
Sat Jan 18, 2020 11:16 pm
Reading through this thread. Does anyone have a recommendation for a Surefire E2D Ultra alternative in the $50 range? :-)
Olight M2R Warrior is $90. It's made in China, but mine has been dropped on concrete from chest height and is still going strong, so if it isn't as tough as Surefire it's darn close. In reality it's probably every bit as well built. The M2R has a better clip, uses an included 18650 rechargeable battery, and has a better feature set than any Surefire. It's very close in size to a Surefire E series as well.
kennethsime wrote:
Sat Jan 18, 2020 11:16 pm
I walk my dog every night and even though she has a light on, and I usually have a headlamp, drivers in this neighborhood just don't take notice. Wanted something to give them an extra "heads up" when needed. The Surefire E2D Ultra is probably my perfect EDC flashlight, but I want to be sure I'll actually carry one every day before I commit.
All the more reason to get an M2R. Run it on the 250 lumen "medium" or 700 lumen high constant on through the side switch. Then the tail switch will give you access to 1,000 lumen momentary / constant turbo. Or you can do a quick reprogram (hold both switches at the same time for about 2 seconds) to get 1,500 lumen momentary turbo / momentary strobe on the tail switch. The tail switch always turn the light on in the selected turbo mode selected whether it's off, or over-riding a lower output that's been selected on the side switch. Drivers will pay attention when fire up a 1,500 lumen strobe pointed down at the ground.

I carried Surefire lights doing maintenance in Iraq while in the USAF. I still have several. I mostly carry Olights now.
Thanks for the recommendation! That light looks really nice. I ended up getting two cheaper lights, and I really like the little Olight I picked up. The build quality is fantastic for $20, feels rock solid and the size is just right to clip into a pocket or drop into the bottom. On top of that the 180 lumens is quite bright! Today was the first day carrying and it gave me a little bit of extra confidence!

I'm not sure I'll carry the larger WOWATAC I picked up. While I like that it's rechargeable, and quite bright, it's a bit big for my every day carry. Definitely something I'd rather throw in a backpack, or maybe just take on late-night walks. If I stick with the flashlight game I'll take a serious look at that Olight M2R, or maybe a Fenix PD35 before thinking about a Surefire again.
Send me a PM Friday and remind me to take a picture or two of my M2R next to my Wowtac A1. I also usually EDC an aluminum body i3T, because I have too much other work stuff in my khakis to carry even the M2R. But the M2R is my night stand and dog walking light. Fall of 2018 for the Christmas shopping season Olight did a run of the i3T in solid copper, and I managed to snag one. That's a very solid little light with a nice heft. Do you have rechargeable AAAs for your i3T?
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#71

Post by Bloke »

kennethsime wrote:
Mon Jan 20, 2020 11:07 pm
it's rechargeable, and quite bright
Image
A day without laughter is a day wasted. ~ Charlie Chaplin
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#72

Post by Wartstein »

Bloke wrote:
Mon Jan 20, 2020 11:38 pm
kennethsime wrote:
Mon Jan 20, 2020 11:07 pm
it's rechargeable, and quite bright
:p :p ... and you certainly forget it's in your pocket... ;)
Top three going by pocket-time (update March 24):
- EDC: Endura thin red line ffg combo edge (VG10); Wayne Goddard PE (4V), Endela SE (VG10)
-Mountains/outdoors: Pac.Salt 1 SE (H1), Salt 2 SE (LC200N), and also Wayne Goddard PE (4V)
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#73

Post by kennethsime »

ugaarguy wrote:
Mon Jan 20, 2020 11:27 pm
Send me a PM Friday and remind me to take a picture or two of my M2R next to my Wowtac A1. I also usually EDC an aluminum body i3T, because I have too much other work stuff in my khakis to carry even the M2R. But the M2R is my night stand and dog walking light. Fall of 2018 for the Christmas shopping season Olight did a run of the i3T in solid copper, and I managed to snag one. That's a very solid little light with a nice heft. Do you have rechargeable AAAs for your i3T?
I will! That'd be a great comparison to have. I will say that I really like the look of the Olights better than the Fenix lights; the lines seem a lot cleaner and it seems there're less frills.

I haven't picked up rechargeables yet. I bought a 48-pack of AAAs from Costco a few months ago and have been going through those for my TV remote. I'll probably pick up some rechargeables once those run out.
I'm happiest with Micarta and Tool Steel.

Top four in rotation: K390 + GCM PM2, ZCarta Shaman, Crucarta PM2, K390 + GCM Straight Spine Stretch.
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kennethsime
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#74

Post by kennethsime »

Bloke wrote:
Mon Jan 20, 2020 11:38 pm
kennethsime wrote:
Mon Jan 20, 2020 11:07 pm
it's rechargeable, and quite bright
Image
I mean it's not THAT bad, I could throw it in a pocket for sure. But don't want the sit at my desk with it.
I'm happiest with Micarta and Tool Steel.

Top four in rotation: K390 + GCM PM2, ZCarta Shaman, Crucarta PM2, K390 + GCM Straight Spine Stretch.
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#75

Post by Bloke »

kennethsime wrote:
Tue Jan 21, 2020 8:36 pm
I mean it's not THAT bad, I could throw it in a pocket for sure. But don't want the sit at my desk with it.
I’m sure it’s a great torch, Ken. :cool:

I just get bored and mischievous, is all. :D
A day without laughter is a day wasted. ~ Charlie Chaplin
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kennethsime
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#76

Post by kennethsime »

Bloke wrote:
Wed Jan 22, 2020 1:18 am
kennethsime wrote:
Tue Jan 21, 2020 8:36 pm
I mean it's not THAT bad, I could throw it in a pocket for sure. But don't want the sit at my desk with it.
I’m sure it’s a great torch, Ken. :cool:

I just get bored and mischievous, is all. :D
All good, I laughed quite a bit. :-)
I'm happiest with Micarta and Tool Steel.

Top four in rotation: K390 + GCM PM2, ZCarta Shaman, Crucarta PM2, K390 + GCM Straight Spine Stretch.
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#77

Post by willc »

The Olight and the Wowtach are actually pretty good choices for edc flashlights.
I have a little Olight i3e that has been on my key ring for a few years.

For my bigger lights for walking I usually go with an Emisar D1S or my Astrolux FT03, both these lights have a nice dim moonlight mode and with a couple button clicks I can see a couple football fields away.
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#78

Post by z4vdBt »

Just got my PakLite 9V light. Low and medium - you can just see the recessed, three position black toggle switch on the white GITD (glow in the dark) light head - L low, R med, center off. Got the warm white LED - nice little light. Developed for a Pacific Crest Trail trek.

Image
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#79

Post by 013 »

z4vdBt wrote:
Sat Feb 01, 2020 3:10 pm
Just got my PakLite 9V light. Low and medium - you can just see the recessed, three position black toggle switch on the white GITD (glow in the dark) light head - L low, R med, center off. Got the warm white LED - nice little light. Developed for a Pacific Crest Trail trek.

Image
Sweet. I've always wanted one those.
The sword the body wounds, sharp words the mind.
- Menander :spyder:
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Re: Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

#80

Post by Michael Janich »

Dear bostavan:

Welcome to the Spyderco Forum.

Stay safe,

Mike
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