Cheap IR Flashlight for a starter?

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[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Cheap IR Flashlight for a starter?

Posted: 3/16/2017 4:46:10 PM EDT

Can anyone recommend a cheap IR flashlight as I get back into NV?

I'll upgrade at some point but would like something cheap to train with/play with for now.

Thanks!

Posted: 3/16/2017 5:22:53 PM EDT

[#1]

Ultrafire UF T20

Solarforce L2

Posted: 3/16/2017 6:03:32 PM EDT

[#2]

Ordered a couple of Solarforce models off Ebay per SOT's recommendation. Going to try later tonight. The price can't be beat that's for sure....

Posted: 3/16/2017 6:12:31 PM EDT

[#3]

I've used the Ultrafire for years with no issues. They are reasonably priced and come in two different Nm spectrums. Lots of them at Ebay..........

Posted: 3/16/2017 6:21:51 PM EDT

[#4]

Quote History

Quoted:
Ultrafire UF T20

Solarforce L2

View Quote

This is what I would do on a budget. To make it even more durable with basic hand tools take apart the tail cap switch and add solder to where the spring meets the circuit board, also adding solder to bulb where the spring meets the models base. This mod will ensure your light will be less prone to breakage under recoil. I've done this mod to .308 and 12ga shotguns using buck and slugs with good results. Although I would not use it for duty/HD unless I didnt have a choice with me being a SureFire/Malkoff/Elzetta snob and all.

Posted: 3/16/2017 6:21:56 PM EDT

[#5]

Quote History

Quoted:
Ordered a couple of Solarforce models off Ebay per SOT's recommendation. Going to try later tonight. The price can't be beat that's for sure....

View Quote

I personally like to put the SolarForce drop-in modules in the Surefire 6P housing because the L2 SolarForce body is so big and heavy. Either way this is a pretty good compact, non adjustable floodlight. Technically the drop-in module is less money if someone already has a P60 compatible housing laying around. They WILL NOT fit SOME of the weaponlights because the heat sinking body is too large. These are a little bodacious so be friendly with your buddies that are in close proximity. If you accidentally point this at them it will completely wash out their image, temporarily blinding them.

At the time these were released there was nothing remotely like them being manufactured by a well known U.S. manufacturer. We have since filled the gap technology wise. There have been some reports of failures from recoil. I primarily use them helmet mounted.

I am interested in feedback from you on these. They don't fill every need but they are a good tool. I wish Surefire made an equivalent because I would trust it more.

Posted: 3/16/2017 6:24:33 PM EDT

[#6]

Quote History

Quoted:

This is what I would do on a budget. To make it even more durable with basic hand tools take apart the tail cap switch and add solder to where the spring meets the circuit board, also adding solder to bulb where the spring meets the models base. This mod will ensure your light will be less prone to breakage under recoil. I've done this mod to .308 and 12ga shotguns using buck and slugs with good results. Although I would not use it for duty/HD unless I didnt have a choice with me being a SureFire/Malkoff/Elzetta snob and all.

View Quote

I still feel a little snubbed that Gene Malkoff does not do any IR for us. I love his white lights. How much work would that be for him?

Posted: 3/16/2017 6:47:43 PM EDT

[#7]

I usa a surefire M952v for focal IR on one side of my helmet and an ultrafire for diffuse iR. Both combined do really well. Look for either the 3 watt or 5 watt ultrafire on amazon.

Posted: 3/16/2017 9:08:59 PM EDT

[#8]

The Ultrafire sounds like what I want but I do have a couple 6P's kicking around that would work with the SolarFire.

Which Nm spectrum is recommended? I'll be using it with a PVS-14 in mostly heavily wooded areas.

Thanks for the quick replies!

Posted: 3/16/2017 9:46:44 PM EDT

[#9]

I use 940Nm with my gen 3 14s with no issues. The 800Nm series should work with most gen 1 units, but will show glow to the naked eye...........

Posted: 3/16/2017 10:03:04 PM EDT

[#10]

If you can get a surefire M1 I'd do it. Usually in the $100 range and you'll have use for it after you upgrade

Posted: 3/17/2017 1:00:35 AM EDT

[#11]

Quote History

Quoted:
I still feel a little snubbed that Gene Malkoff does not do any IR for us. I love his white lights. How much work would that be for him?

View Quote

I couldn't agree more. If Gene would make something like a M952V I'd be first in line to buy one. I'd also like to see him build a pistol light.

Posted: 3/17/2017 4:59:08 AM EDT

[#12]

I missed a Surefire M1 a week or two ago and kick myself.

Most UF-T120 models on EBay don't mention if they're the 940Nm model or the 800 series.

I found a UF-120 940Nm model on Amazon but by the time you add the battery it's $65 which makes me think of just going to a quality light to begin with. Any thoughts?

Posted: 3/17/2017 9:30:57 AM EDT

[#13]

Quote History

Quoted:
I personally like to put the SolarForce drop-in modules in the Surefire 6P housing because the L2 SolarForce body is so big and heavy. Either way this is a pretty good compact, non adjustable floodlight. Technically the drop-in module is less money if someone already has a P60 compatible housing laying around. They WILL NOT fit SOME of the weaponlights because the heat sinking body is too large. These are a little bodacious so be friendly with your buddies that are in close proximity. If you accidentally point this at them it will completely wash out their image, temporarily blinding them.

At the time these were released there was nothing remotely like them being manufactured by a well known U.S. manufacturer. We have since filled the gap technology wise. There have been some reports of failures from recoil. I primarily use them helmet mounted.

I am interested in feedback from you on these. They don't fill every need but they are a good tool. I wish Surefire made an equivalent because I would trust it more.

View Quote

Everything in context here, but for $32. that thing is pretty damn impressive!

A little overcast last night and their was very little ambient light. It flooded about a 2 acre field/shooting range area nicely covering more than the FOV of the 14.

I forgot to bring another IR flashlight to compare, but this easily beats my Streamlight with IR filter on it by a large margin.

I'm not a huge fan of using a boatload of IR, but this light is definitely going in the Pelican cases with the PVS14s.

Thanks SOT! Great recommendation! I'm always looking for lower cost options cause customers are always asking about stuff like this that won't break the bank. Much appreciated!

Posted: 3/17/2017 10:38:21 AM EDT

[#14]

Quote History

Quoted:
I couldn't agree more. If Gene would make something like a M952V I'd be first in line to buy one. I'd also like to see him build a pistol light.

View Quote View All Quotes

View All Quotes

Quote History

Quoted:

Quoted:
I still feel a little snubbed that Gene Malkoff does not do any IR for us. I love his white lights. How much work would that be for him?

I couldn't agree more. If Gene would make something like a M952V I'd be first in line to buy one. I'd also like to see him build a pistol light.

I'm not even asking for anything that fancy - just some P60 and MagLite drop-ins with single outputs. All he should have to do is switch the LEDs and tweak the current limiting diodes.

Posted: 3/17/2017 10:45:36 AM EDT

[#15]

Quote History

Quoted:
I missed a Surefire M1 a week or two ago and kick myself.

Most UF-T120 models on EBay don't mention if they're the 940Nm model or the 800 series.

I found a UF-120 940Nm model on Amazon but by the time you add the battery it's $65 which makes me think of just going to a quality light to begin with. Any thoughts?

View Quote

I think there is a general marketwide cost to "upgrade" the Ultrafires to 940nm. I got an 850nm for $16. If you want to go cheap then I would get the 850nm and upgrade to something better later. I wouldn't break my back trying to get the "perfect" UltraFire light. When I'm building on a budget, I stay on budget. When I'm trying to get the performance, I leave the budget behind me. I try to not mix the two very much. I do make exceptions.

Posted: 3/17/2017 12:01:07 PM EDT

[#16]

Quote History

Quoted:
I think there is a general marketwide cost to "upgrade" the Ultrafires to 940nm. I got an 850nm for $16. If you want to go cheap then I would get the 850nm and upgrade to something better later. I wouldn't break my back trying to get the "perfect" UltraFire light. When I'm building on a budget, I stay on budget. When I'm trying to get the performance, I leave the budget behind me. I try to not mix the two very much. I do make exceptions.

View Quote View All Quotes

View All Quotes

Quote History

Quoted:

Quoted:
I missed a Surefire M1 a week or two ago and kick myself.

Most UF-T120 models on EBay don't mention if they're the 940Nm model or the 800 series.

I found a UF-120 940Nm model on Amazon but by the time you add the battery it's $65 which makes me think of just going to a quality light to begin with. Any thoughts?

I think there is a general marketwide cost to "upgrade" the Ultrafires to 940nm. I got an 850nm for $16. If you want to go cheap then I would get the 850nm and upgrade to something better later. I wouldn't break my back trying to get the "perfect" UltraFire light. When I'm building on a budget, I stay on budget. When I'm trying to get the performance, I leave the budget behind me. I try to not mix the two very much. I do make exceptions.

The Ultrafire comes in 940Nm. You just have to look closely at the listings to find which one you want. Worth mentioning though is that 940Nm doesn't work well with Gen 1 and 2 stuff. That said, the 940Nm Ultrafire works great with my Gen 3 stuff, and not bad with some of my Gen 2+ stuff. Good item for the money!

Posted: 3/17/2017 12:16:58 PM EDT

[#17]

I use one of these mounted to my helmet:

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01AJ6H9RQ?tag=vglnk-c102-20

It's not really 5W, I think it's like 500mW, but it's been very good for me. I have an 850nm version as well, and it produces more light, but animals can see it, and it does produce a very visible glow if you're in a dark room.

Posted: 3/17/2017 1:41:33 PM EDT

[#18]

Quote History

Quoted:
I use one of these mounted to my helmet:

https://www.amazon.com/Zoomable-Infrared-Flashlight-Hunting-Torch/dp/B01AJ6H9RQ?tag=vglnk-c102-20

It's not really 5W, I think it's like 500mW, but it's been very good for me. I have an 850nm version as well, and it produces more light, but animals can see it, and it does produce a very visible glow if you're in a dark room.

View Quote

That's not bad for $10. I've never really seen 850nm in person. Is it really that bright to the naked eye? I know it'd hard to find a picture online since everyone uses digital cameras nowadays so it make it 10 times brighter than it really is.

Posted: 3/17/2017 1:49:19 PM EDT

[#19]

It looks like a little red LED like on a TV or something. And no, it's not really that noticeable, I'm just being picky.

However, the 850nm is visible to animals. Deer will look up and stare at it just like they do with a normal flashlight. They don't do it with 940nm, and I get about the same throw. The 850nm is a lot brighter under NV, but it borders on unusable brightness at times. It reflects off trees and leaves a lot more than 940nm and there's a lot more splash.

I could try to remember to take a picture with my phone of both side-by-side.

Posted: 3/17/2017 3:17:43 PM EDT

[#20]

Quote History

Quoted:
It looks like a little red LED like on a TV or something. And no, it's not really that noticeable, I'm just being picky.

However, the 850nm is visible to animals. Deer will look up and stare at it just like they do with a normal flashlight. They don't do it with 940nm, and I get about the same throw. The 850nm is a lot brighter under NV, but it borders on unusable brightness at times. It reflects off trees and leaves a lot more than 940nm and there's a lot more splash.

I could try to remember to take a picture with my phone of both side-by-side.

View Quote

Hey thanks for the info. I jumped on getting a 940nm IR light just now. I've read countless reports from people saying animals do and don't react to 850nm but I saw a video of a fox jump up real quick when the guy turned on his 850nm IR lamp when he was hunting. Hopefully the 940nm works well with my Gen 2+ device.

This is what I actually got on the bay. Hopefully it works well. The plan was to mount it to my helmet once I can acquire some affordable/in stock rail setup.

Posted: 3/19/2017 1:09:58 PM EDT

[#21]

I just got my 940nm IR flashlight in the mail this morning. Shipping was fast as hell as I ordered it this past late Friday afternoon. It said it wasn't suppose to be here until this coming Thursday. Anyways it's a nice cheap little IR light. Sturdy enough that I won't worry about dropping it and busting it on day one. It will be helmet mounted by the way and I can confirm that it works very well on my Gen 2+ device. I'm assuming it'll be even brighter if I got a 850nm IR light.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Cheap IR Flashlight for a starter?

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