Posted: 7/26/2009 7:14:22 PM EDT
| I need to get a light that I will carry around in my gearslinger bag (i ride a bike most of the time) that would be transferred to my BOB if the time arises. I think I need something relatively small, LED, etc. etc. I imagine it will be a surefire, but any recommendations would be appreciated. I'd like to get some good bang for my buck. Thanks |
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I need to get a light that I will carry around in my gearslinger bag (i ride a bike most of the time) that would be transferred to my BOB if the time arises. I think I need something relatively small, LED, etc. etc. I imagine it will be a surefire, but any recommendations would be appreciated. I'd like to get some good bang for my buck. Thanks What are you looking for in terms of battery type? AA? CR123A? Are you looking for more of a utility light or a backup tactical light? |
| just a utility light. I don't really care about the type of battery. I do want to shine a bright light but I would also want good battery life. I think that i've read that there is a surefire model that just about everyone uses. I think that I would want a tail click model. I am not really up on lights so excuse my vagueness. |
| Well the E1B from surefire is pretty popular , it is a pretty good little light. It uses the surefire TIR optic, so it has a pretty tight beam hotspot. I have one and I like it. Another light thats pretty good, IMO, would be a nitecore D10, it runs off a AA, (for the best results though you need to use a rechargeable). |
At around 60 bucks, you would be hard-pressed to find a better light than the Fenix PD20. Maximum output is 180 lumens, and yet the lowest brightness setting will give you around 35 hours of run-time from a single CR123 battery - all in a package that is only a tad larger a 20 gauge shotgun shell.
Note that every brightness setting is regulated, so the flashlight doesn't get dimmer as the battery discharges. This is an important distinction from other brands (including some SureFire models), which only produce their rated brightness with brand-new batteries. |
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The ubiquitous Surefire you mention is probably the G2 nitrolon model.
I currently use a G2 LED as one of my duty lights. Great general purpose light, very good run time. Worth the extra $$$ for the LED version, but I find the incandescent model very valuable as a backup. I really like the E1B. It's my plainclothes or off-duty light of choice. Compact, bright, 80lumen / 5 lumen output, very durable, no-snag and comes with a belt clip that works ok with dress belts. Had a few G3 lights, and I guess they don't make a lot of sense. Definitely a waste in LED model, as the G2 has *longer* run time with the same LED head. Go figure. Incandescent G3 is noticeably brighter (100 lumen) than G2 (60 lumen), but poor run time. G3 incandescent not much brigher than 80 lumen LED. Might as well get the G2 LED. |
| I would also look at the malkoff, http://www.malkoffdevices.com/, MD2, it is upwards of 200 lumens with the M-60, good battery life, you can also select from a variety of dropins for it if you would rather have less light and more battery life, (that also work in any of the surefire P-60 compataible lights, like the 6-P or the G-2, G-3) or just buy a complete light. |
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Look at the surefire E2L
-dual output light -pocket size -batteries are cheap from brightflashlights.com(an industry partner here who also sells the surefire line at a great price) -with a good mix of low and high output use the batteries last forever -lockout tailcap to stop it from getting turned on while rattling around in a gear bag -lithium batteries can sit for years and still work -I use my daily in all sorts of abuse exposed to all sorts of impacts and chemicals with out failure I upgraded to it from my E1L and never looked back - E1L is a great light but it can't touch the E2L. I feal the E2L is the work horse of the surefire line. |
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At around 60 bucks, you would be hard-pressed to find a better light than the Fenix PD20. Maximum output is 180 lumens, and yet the lowest brightness setting will give you around 35 hours of run-time from a single CR123 battery - all in a package that is only a tad larger a 20 gauge shotgun shell. http://img160.imageshack.us/img160/5737/fenixpd20.jpg Note that every brightness setting is regulated, so the flashlight doesn't get dimmer as the battery discharges. This is an important distinction from other brands (including some SureFire models), which only produce their rated brightness with brand-new batteries. This light outperforms every surefire mentioned in this thread. It will out shine most on output alone, but absolutely kills them all on battery life due to the low power setting. This is the most versatile light and the smallest of the those mentioned. I have several of the older versions and they are really great lights. One of the Fenix lights is with me 24/7. |
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I like the G2 led or the E2D led for general use from Surefire. I know they are marketed as more tactical kinda lights but they are pretty useful all around. For fixing things at night (like on my bike) I like one of the light weight headband lights, like the ones at REI. Two hands free to use tools, fiddle with food prep, administer aid (heaven forbid)
For a hand held the 2 brightness levels definitely makes for a more useful light but I haven't been really happy with the switches in the ones Ive used. I don't like having to click out a special Morse code to get to the setting I want, for example. (Not talking about the Fenix...I've never used that one) |
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If you want to use AA batteries instead of 123 cells the LD series is nearly identical to the PD series in the Fenix line, with almost identical output and runtimes. However you have better rechargable options in AA while retaining the ability to use lithium primaries. You get a slightly slimmer and slightly longer light in AA vs 123... but a 1xAA will still fit inside your fist without sticking out.
A Fenix will run over 70 hours on low in a 2 cell version and 34-35 hours in a single cell version... I use the low setting 90% of the time. A single cell Fenix can produce 120-180 lumens on turbo for 1.5 and 1 hour respecitvely (AA and 123). The dual cell versions have a max putput of 180-220 lumens and can use a 94-117 lumen high setting (the one below turbo) for 5 and 4 hours respecitvely (AA and 123). A Fenix is a better utility light IMO vs a Surefire. Multiple levels and better efficiency wins vs a better "tactical" user interface. I use a 180 lumen Gladius for my "tactical" handheld on my duty rig and a Surefire on my handgun. |
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If you want to use AA batteries instead of 123 cells the LD series is nearly identical to the PD series in the Fenix line, with almost identical output Unfortunately, maximum output of the single AA version is 120 lumens - That's significantly less than the 180 lumens of the single CR123 version. It's true that CR123s cost more, but they last a long, long time in this light (since the medium-brightness settings are more than adequate for most jobs). I've replaced mine only once in over a year of using the light dozens of times every day. |
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I used to recommend the Fenix lights for most people, but there is a new line of lights out there called Quark. The quarks have a slightly nicer interface, and general features that make them just a bit nicer than the Fenix lights. Quarks tactical line is nice in that you only have 2 settings to deal with, but you can program those settings yourself.
Check them out at 4sevens.com (4sevens also has great customer service). look under "4sevens lights" to find the quark series. Another good brand to check out is Eagletac. Most eagletac lights give you 2 modes, twist the head to change modes. I have of the P10A2w (takes 2 AA batteries), and it is great. This is by far my favorite light. |
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I love this light, especially for the price. I have 5 of them now.
g2 |