Posted: 5/25/2013 5:33:30 PM EDT
|
I'm looking for reliable yet economical LED flashlights. I bought several of these a couple of years ago for family and friends. I kept several for placement around the house and in my vehicles. None of these were intended for daily use but for stand-by in case of emergency or intermittent need. They have been a major disappointment. Many have experienced faulty switches or LED failures. I checked with some of those who received these as gifts and they've also experienced some type of failure to about half of the units.
I'm looking for a similar size light to replace the Streamlights but again prefer to have something compact, reliable and inexpensive enough so several units can be purchased. Any ideas? |
|
Well...... if they are just for around the house and car ive loved a certain type of cree led ive been buying for awhile now. They run 5-7 bucks each on ebay and amazon. Very bright and built well here is the link. http://www.amazon.com/FordEx-Group-300lm-Flashlight-Adjustable/dp/B006E0QAFY/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1369534111&sr=8-2&keywords=cree+led
If its for more of a life safety device then i would do nothing less then a polytac. |
Take a look at the Raoyvac "Indestructable" 2AA cell light -
It's rugged, bright (100 lumens), has a nicely-focused beam that "throws" well, and also has a battery-saving 18 lumen mode. Costs $14.95 at Home Depot (including a pair of Rayovac alkaline batteries). Personally, I'd probably replace the Rayovac batteries with Duracells (have seen too many Rayvacs leak). |
|
Quoted:
Take a look at the Raoyvac "Indestructable" 2AA cell light - http://img59.imageshack.us/img59/7702/rayovacindestructable2a.jpg It's rugged, bright (100 lumens), has a nicely-focused beam that "throws" well, and also has a battery-saving 18 lumen mode. Costs $14.95 at Home Depot (including a pair of Rayovac alkaline batteries). Personally, I'd probably replace the Rayovac batteries with Duracells (have seen too many Rayvacs leak). Quoted for truth! I bought a few. Stacked them away and kept one on the night stand. Same batteries it came with 6 months ago. I use it every night on high setting to go check on the turkeys and chickens. Still as bright as day one. Dropped it on concrete a few times at night - fumbling with keys and such, and still going. I want to try one of the new D-Cell versions! |
|
Quoted:
I'm looking for reliable yet economical LED flashlights. I bought several of these a couple of years ago for family and friends. I kept several for placement around the house and in my vehicles. None of these were intended for daily use but for stand-by in case of emergency or intermittent need. They have been a major disappointment. Many have experienced faulty switches or LED failures. I checked with some of those who received these as gifts and they've also experienced some type of failure to about half of the units. http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSnuNwIDx6es19UxIjaYLiWy2aBEEmHFg8wdkuNtWNoHAMrC6NI I'm looking for a similar size light to replace the Streamlights but again prefer to have something compact, reliable and inexpensive enough so several units can be purchased. Any ideas? damn, i have one of them that has been in several structure fires, chewed on by the dog, beat around by the kids and it still works fine. i have had it so long the rubber has actually started to deteriorate and it still works 100%. |
|
I picked up two of these ant costco for 29.00 ........hell of a light for 15 bucks a piece .......every bit as bright as mt streamlight led hp stinger ..........with wider and adjustable beam from spot to flood............dont know how reliable they will be tho but so far they are a gem
http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/51YP3tQ2BvL._SX300_.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.amazon.com/Electric-Lumens-Performance-Flashlights-2-Pack/dp/B00B7PMFLE&h=271&w=300&sz=24&tbnid=rasKm8ZSewgbaM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=100&zoom=1&usg=__zemSIDetVhbX1kMq-89xoyMTFjo=&docid=aeonSj0t2War6M&sa=X&ei=bx-iUZnaHojm9gS3pIHQAg&ved=0CFQQ9QEwAg&dur=912 |
|
Quoted:
Quoted:
Take a look at the Raoyvac "Indestructable" 2AA cell light - http://img59.imageshack.us/img59/7702/rayovacindestructable2a.jpg It's rugged, bright (100 lumens), has a nicely-focused beam that "throws" well, and also has a battery-saving 18 lumen mode. Costs $14.95 at Home Depot (including a pair of Rayovac alkaline batteries). Personally, I'd probably replace the Rayovac batteries with Duracells (have seen too many Rayvacs leak). Quoted for truth! I bought a few. Stacked them away and kept one on the night stand. Same batteries it came with 6 months ago. I use it every night on high setting to go check on the turkeys and chickens. Still as bright as day one. Dropped it on concrete a few times at night - fumbling with keys and such, and still going. I want to try one of the new D-Cell versions! Love mine. It's pretty much exactly what a utility flashlight should be. Cheap, bright and rugged with no exotic batteries. FYI during Sandy AA batteries were available in abundance while D and C batteries were nonexistent. |
|
Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
Take a look at the Raoyvac "Indestructable" 2AA cell light - http://img59.imageshack.us/img59/7702/rayovacindestructable2a.jpg It's rugged, bright (100 lumens), has a nicely-focused beam that "throws" well, and also has a battery-saving 18 lumen mode. Costs $14.95 at Home Depot (including a pair of Rayovac alkaline batteries). Personally, I'd probably replace the Rayovac batteries with Duracells (have seen too many Rayvacs leak). Quoted for truth! I bought a few. Stacked them away and kept one on the night stand. Same batteries it came with 6 months ago. I use it every night on high setting to go check on the turkeys and chickens. Still as bright as day one. Dropped it on concrete a few times at night - fumbling with keys and such, and still going. I want to try one of the new D-Cell versions! Love mine. It's pretty much exactly what a utility flashlight should be. Cheap, bright and rugged with no exotic batteries. FYI during Sandy AA batteries were available in abundance while D and C batteries were nonexistent. That's one of the reason I'm slowly getting rid of my 123 powered stuff. I know they are more powerful etc, but the batteries are super difficult to find in my AO. That and I have oodles of rechargeable AA's. |
|
Quoted:
Fenix. They range from $20-$150 Great quality and performance. Yep. Now I carry one of those little CR123 Fenixs -in each front pocket [2 of em in my pants] Use them all the time. Prolly 20-30 times this evening alone. Here's a trick for them and some others. ***If want to save bats and keep a low profile walking, etc, I screw the head almost to turning on and squeeze it for brief bursts of light, like walking on a trail or something. Be sure to always back the head off on these when you stick them back in your pocket. Batteries are horrendously 'spensive if you buy them at most retail outlets. I look for qty's of 100 or so of Rayovac or Surefire or other quality brands and buy in bulk for little $$$ each. Also, the lithium bats have far greater performance when it's cold out and are smaller and lighter to carry. Important to know if you depend on them. |
|
Quoted:
Fenix. They range from $20-$150 Great quality and performance. I came here to say this. I've got a bunch of them from the just stupid huge TK-75 down to the tiny sizes. Also the JetBEAMs are nice - I have a few of the RRT01 and they're wonderful. Of course you can get cheap UltraFire two cell lights in white, UV, and IR for cheap at Deal Extreme. |
|
Another fan of Fenix here. I've stopped going for inexpensive, it ends up costing me more every time. I've got a few O lights and fenix, no issues with them. I've also got a little four sevens that is pretty nice. The initial cost is higher so far I haven't had to replace any, just add more as I had to replace "cheap" lights that failed. There are other brands that are good in the same general price range, the Fenix in particular just tend to fit my needs and preferences. The key was getting away from buying inexpensive ones designed for household consumer use and moving to lights meant for more serious users. You can spend just as much, but like most industries, the industrial/commercial model is built to last a lot longer than the consumer model. Businesses calculate ROI and watch their bottom lines on equipment purchases. They also tend to buy in larger numbers, so burning one customer means losing more sales.
From lights to computer gear to firearms to power tools, if there's a product line for consumers and a product line for professionals it almost always pays to get something from the professional line if you care about long term use. eta: good choice on those E21's. Check out the rechargeable AA's too. Even if you don't use the lights that much it pays off, and you'll find that you use them more when you know it's not costing you batteries all the time. Amazon is a good source, so is Battery Junction (their prices fluctuate, so price match with Amazon). I keep a couple extra sets for my lights and just rotate as needed. If I use a light much, or it's been a few months and I think of it I'll swap the batteries for a charged set. Ditto any stored with the light in a bag. I'll rotate through those through the light and replace each set with charged ones. My run time per battery charge is lower than a good regular lithium, but it's not that far off either, and I can swap them out without significant waste if I even suspect I might need a full charge. |
|
+1 on Fenix's. Pick the model and price point that suits your need and you'll be good to go.I have a bunch of different Fenix models and all have been A+!
For long term storage I highly recommend Lithium based batteries. Either buying Energizer Ultimate Lithiums in AA or AAA or going to a 123 based light. You can mail order quality 123 cells for less than $2ea. Alkalines in general have a nasty habit of leaking and destroying contacts and making a general mess of things. Especially in situations where a device is stored for a long time, in extreme heat, or not checked often. |
|
Quoted: I'm looking for reliable yet economical LED flashlights. I bought several of these a couple of years ago for family and friends. I kept several for placement around the house and in my vehicles. None of these were intended for daily use but for stand-by in case of emergency or intermittent need. They have been a major disappointment. Many have experienced faulty switches or LED failures. I checked with some of those who received these as gifts and they've also experienced some type of failure to about half of the units. http://t2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcSnuNwIDx6es19UxIjaYLiWy2aBEEmHFg8wdkuNtWNoHAMrC6NI I'm looking for a similar size light to replace the Streamlights but again prefer to have something compact, reliable and inexpensive enough so several units can be purchased. Any ideas? Costco (if you have one) has a three pack of LED flashlights for $28 or so. Some of them are really good. The "Cree" brand one I got works great, and it's been banging around on my laptop bag backpack (outside, in a little pouch) for 2 years now. 250 lumens on high, low mode, and strobe mode. I have given up on getting "A good" flashlight and just get 3 or 4 that work most of the time. Even some of the real cheap ones have most of them still working.
|
|
Quoted:
Costco has a three pack of LED flashlights for around $20 that work pretty well. No power regulation, so bright trailing off to not bright, but if you use rechargeable batteries it will help A LOT not bad tho.. If you want some cheap lights to sprinkle around, I just picked up a small 40 lumen LED at lowes for 2.95 yesterday, single AA, aluminum body, rubber seals - seems like a good cheap light to have handy in each glove box, in a gear bag etc.. if you want something better, that you can rely on, you may want to consider a jetbeam or something of that nature. I used to say Fenix, but then I have had a spate of failures of their more recent products lately so I really consider them JUNK at this point, and wouldnt recommend. |
|
Quoted:
Take a look at the Raoyvac "Indestructable" 2AA cell light - http://img59.imageshack.us/img59/7702/rayovacindestructable2a.jpg It's rugged, bright (100 lumens), has a nicely-focused beam that "throws" well, and also has a battery-saving 18 lumen mode. Costs $14.95 at Home Depot (including a pair of Rayovac alkaline batteries). Personally, I'd probably replace the Rayovac batteries with Duracells (have seen too many Rayvacs leak). That's pretty cool looking, and probably Kid proof  there goes $15 
|