Please Help Me Buy a Flashlight!

[Ankerson]

I would recommend Elzetta. They are expensive, but they are extremely well made & simple to operate. The discharge rate is pretty flat & they are one of the only few companies that actually put out the lumens they advertise without stepping down.
Another great company is Malkoff. Although I don't own any, all I hear is great things about them too.
Finally there's HDS. Also top notch.
I understand that these three might be out of your price range, but they are solid investments. All three are manufactured in the USA.

Yup, those are higher end lights and they are very good.

[Ankerson]

Oh, I forgot, I do have a Olight I3E EOS keychain flashlight that came FREE when I got one of my SF's.

It's 90 Lumens.... AAA Battery.

[z4vdBt]

A nice new budget light is the FW3A. A lot of light for $50. Got both of mine from illumination supply ( aka illumn.com/, they have links to a couple recommended high drain 18650 batteries linked - Sanyo GA, Samsung 35E ). The aluminum is 4000K Neutral Wite, and the purple is Cool White 6500K. I heard a guy used the Nitecore 25.4mm Filters diffuser and it fit nicely - and it comes in white, red, and blue ( link ).

This is now my EDC as the tri-LED walking beam is a great daily user on my pre-sunrise morning walks.

[ugaarguy]

The Lumintop FW3A is a cool enthusiast toy, but it's not built for duty or professional use. We should also warn folks about how dangerously hot those lights can get with an unprotected, high drain, battery running direct drive to the triple emitters. It's a neat light though.

[Ankerson]

I have a Streamlight ProTac HL 5-X USB LED Flashlight coming to replace my Maglite that was ruined not too long ago. I like that it can use the CR123A's if needed.

I still have my ML300LX's...

The new one is in a whole different world though than the ML300LX, 3,500 Lumens compared to 625 Lumens.

Still nice to have around the 3D's for the LONG run times in a pinch.

[Ankerson]

Got the StreamLight ProTac HL 5-X USB in today.

Charging the batteries now.

It's VERY bright. :eek:

[vivi]

Surefire Sidekick should be here this weekend. Curious to see how it stacks up against my Fenix PD25.

[Ankerson]

Surefire Sidekick should be here this weekend. Curious to see how it stacks up against my Fenix PD25.

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.

[vivi]

Forest and trees my friend. There's more to lights than lumens.

[ugaarguy]

Surefire Sidekick should be here this weekend. Curious to see how it stacks up against my Fenix PD25.

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.

[Ankerson]

Surefire Sidekick should be here this weekend. Curious to see how it stacks up against my Fenix PD25.

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.

[vivi]

You can often find that information on candlepowerforums. They have a graph for the Sidekicks step-down levels in the long 20+ page thread.

http://flashlights.parametrek.com/index.html is another nice resource.

[ugaarguy]

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.

Unfortunately there isn't a single site. You can google reviews and usually find something from an amateur with pretty accurate equipment on Budget Light Forum, Candle Power Forums, YouTube, or sites like Zero Air. The other part of the issue is that all flashlight companies actually do test with lab equipment, but the ANSI / NEMA FL1 standard has some limitations that can be worked around.

[Ankerson]

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.

Unfortunately there isn't a single site. You can google reviews and usually find something from an amateur with pretty accurate equipment on Budget Light Forum, Candle Power Forums, YouTube, or sites like Zero Air. The other part of the issue is that all flashlight companies actually do test with lab equipment, but the ANSI / NEMA FL1 standard has some limitations that can be worked around.

I am aware they do test their own.
That work around is one of the issues I was thinking about.

Shame there isn't a professional testing site like DXOMark that uses the same equipment and has a database.

Would be MUCH more accurate in the end.

I mean they have sites for just about everything else with professional testing.

[Ankerson]

Went out tonight and compared my SF EDCL2-T to the Streamlight ProTac HL5-X..... ROFL Yeah I know.. :D

All I can say is there was a rather large difference.

Not really a far comparison...

[RustyIron]

Generally, I'm a big fan of the Chicom flashlights that you can buy online for well under twenty bucks. UltraFire is a name that comes to mind. I like the single-mode versions that offer just off and on. I don't have time to screw around going clickey-clickety-clickety to get it to light up. They work fine, and if I drop one and it explodes into a hundred parts as it hits the concrete below, I'm not out much. I have these all over the house. If the lights go out, there is a flashlight nearby. If there's a ruckus with the dogs out back, there is a flashlight nearby. For the price of a single Streamlight, I can have half a dozen import lights distributed around the house.

With that said, the Chicom flashlight that I use for work had the plastic membrane break on it last week. I've been using the light daily for about four years. It still works, but a craftsman with tools that he loves does better work. I decided to treat myself to one of those fancy Surefire Stilletos that I've seen in the ads. I've been using it for a couple days, and it's made me happy. The bright setting is bright... best suited for wandering through the forest at midnight. The medium setting is good for doing generic work without blinding yourself. And the low setting is perfect for doing close-up work. The size is a little bigger than a regular pocket knife, but it still clips to your pocket nicely. The shape is flat, like a knife, so you can lay it on a surface and prop it up, without having to worry about it rolling away. Price on Amazon is about a buck ten, considerably more than a Chicom light, but the Stilleto makes me happy. And you can't really put a price on happy.

[SF Native]

Was buying led can lights for the house a while back and talking to the guys at the lighting supply. They mentioned that not all led’s are built the same. Longevity is heavily reliant on heat dissipation and the plates that they use to disperse the heat. Cheap led’s have thin plates and don’t last long. I’m thinking flashlights are the same. You get what you pay for. Might not know it for a while though.

[Ankerson]

Was buying led can lights for the house a while back and talking to the guys at the lighting supply. They mentioned that not all led’s are built the same. Longevity is heavily reliant on heat dissipation and the plates that they use to disperse the heat. Cheap led’s have thin plates and don’t last long. I’m thinking flashlights are the same. You get what you pay for. Might not know it for a while though.

Yeah, you get what you pay for.

I have replaced all of the important lights with LEDS in the house.

The main light in the garage is now one of those large Corn light bulbs, a 5,000 lumen.

I have plenty of LED lanterns for when the power goes out also.

[Ankerson]

Generally, I'm a big fan of the Chicom flashlights that you can buy online for well under twenty bucks. UltraFire is a name that comes to mind. I like the single-mode versions that offer just off and on. I don't have time to screw around going clickey-clickety-clickety to get it to light up. They work fine, and if I drop one and it explodes into a hundred parts as it hits the concrete below, I'm not out much. I have these all over the house. If the lights go out, there is a flashlight nearby. If there's a ruckus with the dogs out back, there is a flashlight nearby. For the price of a single Streamlight, I can have half a dozen import lights distributed around the house.

With that said, the Chicom flashlight that I use for work had the plastic membrane break on it last week. I've been using the light daily for about four years. It still works, but a craftsman with tools that he loves does better work. I decided to treat myself to one of those fancy Surefire Stilletos that I've seen in the ads. I've been using it for a couple days, and it's made me happy. The bright setting is bright... best suited for wandering through the forest at midnight. The medium setting is good for doing generic work without blinding yourself. And the low setting is perfect for doing close-up work. The size is a little bigger than a regular pocket knife, but it still clips to your pocket nicely. The shape is flat, like a knife, so you can lay it on a surface and prop it up, without having to worry about it rolling away. Price on Amazon is about a buck ten, considerably more than a Chicom light, but the Stilleto makes me happy. And you can't really put a price on happy.

Could have gotten some Maglite's, they are high quality, could get some C-Cell or D-Cell models, 625 Lumens for the 3 Cell D ML300L(X) as an example.

They are good to have around as they just work and they aren't expensive, very long history of dependability.

One or 2 higher end full size lights aren't really a bad idea either, ones that are much higher power, something over 1500 lumens or more, like 2500 Lumens. Streamlight and a few other offer high quality ones that aren't all that bad cost wise.

[013]

Surefire Sidekick should be here this weekend. Curious to see how it stacks up against my Fenix PD25.

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