Guys, I need your help. I want to buy a small yet not tiny LED flashlight (5~6 inches would be fine). I first wanted to buy a mini maglite, but I heard there were better alternatives from companies such as Surefire, Fenix, LED Lenser or Streamlight. What do you suggest?
I would say that any of the offereings with white LEDs and aluminum casings should be quality. All of the brands make quality products.
I have a few Pelican lights, they always work well and are great in wet environments. I have some UK lights too, very bright, light weight and have been quite durable.
Depending on the price range, a great surefire light is the E2D defender ($150). Photon Lights also make some great small flashlights. They sell for less than the surefire lights.
There is a forum called CandlePower. There is so much information about flashlights, your head may explode!! Try this URL. http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/ Happy Hunting!!
check out http://www.blackbearflashlights.com The guy that makes these flashlights is known as watchmaker on http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/ I have the Bear Cub (150 lumen) and Borealis (1050 lumen) in camo
I had a Surefire M3 combat light when I was in the military. You could light up the tops of trees with it. It was uber bright. The one I had wasn't rechargeable and the batteries cost a fortune. It took 3V's and they're definitely not cheap. Later I got a rechargeable that was just as bright if not brighter but cheaper w/ the battery factor. IMHO if you choose a Surefire, lean towards the rechargeable ones. They're great flashlights. Expensive? Sure. But they do work wonderfully!
Surefire makes a really nice one...as does Streamlight. I'd lean towards the Surefire in an LED, and the Streamlight in a halogen bulb. But I'd go rechargeable in whatever I buy.
I need to be able to change batteries, so I can't go with rechargeables. I always carry extra batteries, because it's not always possible to get a break to recharge the batteries when you are out searching for people...
Dear God, I should have not asked. :angry032 I was about to buy a nice inexpensive maglite and now I lean toward a Surefire E2D LED Defender. Now do you guys know where I can buy one? It’s very hard to find in France so I will probably have to have it shipped from the USA.
Actually, this item can’t be exported. http://www.batteryjunction.com/surefire-e2dl-bk-dual.html I’ve found this store, however: http://www.skdtac.com/index.asp?PageAction=VIEWPROD&ProdID=1731
+1 I've been issued SureFire's for years. One of my troops has a Pelican very similar to one of the SureFires I have and I think the Pelican is just as good and much much cheaper! SureFire's are pricey but they are a great light!
Have no fear, the guy whose wife is glad he buys too many razors, creams, soaps and aftershaves because it's nice he has a "normal" hobby (as opposed to flashlights) is here. Do you want multi-modes/brightness? How important is RUNTIME? There are some great (GREAT) one cell lights out there right now, that easily fit in a pocket, but on high power, you might only get an hour (tops). Would you mind not having a "clicky" switch? If you are OK with a "twist" on, your options go even further. How crucial is durability? There are lights out there that are close to indestructable (you pay for it, of course). What beam profile are you looking for? Flooding a room with light? Throwing as far as possible (concentrating the luminous output over a smaller area?), or a nice mix of both? Do you care what it looks like? Budget? Options start at about 25 bucks and go to roughly $1,000. Answer as many of these as you can, and I'll be more than happy to discuss with you.
What I want: 1) LED 2) Variable output 3) Must fit in my satchel (5~6 inches) 4) Will be used in case of an emergency (have to change a tire by night, need to inspect a computer case, guide myself through the house during a power cut, etc.) Oh, and I refuse function without form, which is why I first wanted a Maglite. The Surefire E2D LED Defender seems to fit the bill. It requires two 123A lithium so I’ll probably buy some rechargeable ones. Is is above what I thought I would pay for a flashlight but I don’t mind paying for quality. What do you think?
SHort answer: The E2D Led is a great light. Long answer: THe EsD Led is a great light, you won't regret spending the money for quality. I own one, and it is one of the nightstand "bump in the night" lights. Should anything ever go wrong with the light, Surefire stands behingd their lights 100%. For a light that might serve immediate use duty, though, I choose not to use rechargeables. I stick to the primary surefire lithium batteries. I know they'll be there when I need them. As I alwyas knew that I would use primaries in the light, I never checked if recharageables would work in the light. It is always my opinion that if a light is not getting daily use, primaries are the way to go. They are much more tolerant of being left in any state, as well as temperature tolerant. If you are not using the light every day for long runs, you will get quite a bit of life out of those two CR123 batteries. Lights that get used daily, you don't have to worry about long term storage, and the batteries are kept working, and charging, I use rechargeables. I know how many weeks I can go before rechargeing. My "out the back door with the dog" light runs rechargeables (it is a modified mag light putting out about 800 lumens, that gets about 4 hours of burn out of some low self discharge 10,000mAh D-cells). Or, lights that are usually not used often...My "hey guys check this out" light is a modified mag light putting out 4,400 lumens...it can start fires in dry leaves within a few seconds. It gets roughly 8 minutes of runtime with 13 rechargeables welded together into a pack. Please feel free to ask anything else.
Based on the above, buy a Mag-Lite. With the money you don't spend on an over the top flashlite you can pay for a D3.