Best Flashlight

[Easykeeper]

Great information xtrema and TJ.  I've got a nice Surefire I bought about ten years ago and get tired of moving it from the nightstand to my pack for every hunt.  

I think a PD32 UE is in my near future...    

[xtrema312]

Easykeeper, these lights are technology and like all technology, things change fast.  10 year old lights generally don't compare to new stuff.  Also Surefire was way head of the pack back then and you paid for it.  Things have changed a lot.  

One of the nice things is that many times it appears you can upgrade or modify your lights if you have a good working light and just want to upgrade the output, beam profile............  A lot of times you can get a drop in unit to make a big difference in your old light.

[dingas]

Thank you guys for your responses.  Eye opening.  And very informative. I do like that led has no dark spot in the center (where I am usually looking). Kentucky TJ, those pics you showed and the video link you sent me were great! I think I need to invest in a better light. I will confess the light I use most is an led headlamp my niece gave me for Christmas a few years ago made by everready I think. Great for setting up camp in the dark or climbing into the stand.. I like the red lights on it too.

The link to the video TJ sent me is

 

Skip to 4:00

[olddogrib]

I just sprung for the Eagle Tac D25C2 as an upgrade from a perfectly adequate Surefire that has less lumens.  I liked LB_hntr's suggestion of the Fenix headband w/ clamp that holds your flashlight and got one of those too.  I've been a proponent for years of getting into my stands in total darkness, but one of my buddy's has a trailcam pic of a sow black bear the size of a VW bug w/ 2 cubs, so I'm rethinking that practice. The SF has a flip-up attachment w/red lense and may become my new entry light.  I figure at least I'll have enough light to make positive ID that I was "kilt by a bar".  It may even solve the problem of how to make a hands-free follow-up shot with a bow after dark, so I can appease all the folks that gave me grief over my post inquiring about NC's new sidearm carry law when blood trailing, lol!

[KentuckyTJ]

Alright, here is the reason my search began. This is my 5 year old Browning 6v Xenon regular bulb light that was very good in its day.

 

Now here is the beam next to the new light. The Browning uses two CR123 batteries which the new light runs on as well. Same batteries look at the technology improvement in 5 years. The run time on the Browning is about an hour. I would guess the lumens of output at around 60. But here is the great improvement in 5 years. Lumens and run times of the new light.

Burst - 740 lumens, runs for 1 hour
Turbo - 400 lumens, runs for 2.6 hours
High - 140 lumens, runs for 7.25 hours
Medium - 40 lumens, runs for 27 hours
Low - 9 lumens, runs for 130 hours

 

[woodchucker]

I just thought I'd put my 2 cents in.....

All that I have read here concerns small, light weight, very brite flashlights.

I work for the RailRoad & I inspect RR passenger cars for a living. I do the Daily CDMI (calender day mechanical inspections) every night,year around, in all kinds of weather. 1,000s of peoples lives depend on me qualifying a "safe train" for morning service. Being the Senior Car Insp. one of my jobs is to train the new car insps when they are on "OJT". I tell them, "get your light, and let's go walk some trains"...

I have seen EVERY possible light come out of thier tool bag over the years!!! Simply put, they just don't git it done..... Batterys die anywhere from 10 mins to 2 hours into our inspections. A light starts out bright as day, and is pretty much giving up the ghost & dim as a nightlight by the time we get around the train & back where we started. When I want a light... I want a LIGHT!!!!!

I use a 6volt Heavy Duty hand lantern. I get them for free, and the batteries too. I get at LEAST 3 weeks out of a 6volt battery & usualy change my battery the 1st of every month. By then, It's starting to get noticably dim. After the trainees use my lantern for awhile, they soon get one of thier own!!!

I have a 6volt lantern that I bought, in my truck. If I need a light to track a deer, I back out, go to my truck & get my lantern. I want a light that lights up the woods!!! With a beam that will easily shine 50yds or more!!!!! You can NEVER have "too much" light...

Just one Old Woodchucker's opinion.....

[KentuckyTJ]

Woodchucker,

Will you post a photo or your lantern for us?

[olddogrib]

KTJ,
Great info, I was going to do a similar compare/contrast with my outdated Surefire and the new ET D25C2, but it was an early Christmas present to myself and I promised the house "Ways and Means" committee that the only way I'd open it early is if I lose a deer!  So that means you have to do the real blood trail comparison. Get some from the butcher, we can't wait on the deer to cooperate, lol. Folks, I was an early skeptic also, but if you haven't seen LED lately, you're going to be pleasantly surprised!

[woodchucker]

Sorry TJ, after all my years here, I still haven't got this "picture posting" thing figured out,LMAO!!!

Anyway, A stop in Lowe's, Home Depot, or just about any Hardware store, will give you several possibilitys. EverReady & Rayovac make a bunch of them. Most nowdays come with a "battery pack" that holds 4 D-cell batterys. Take it out & get a 6volt.(but don't throw it away! Nice to have as a backup in case you can't find a 6volt) It's basicly a BIG Heavy Duty "flashlight" with a handle on it!!!

[xtrema312]

For woodchucker the big needs are run time and a lot of flood light.  That is best done with a large reflector and a big battery or a lot of larger cells.  I can see where a fancy little narrow beam high output light would not make it, but not all LED lights fit that description.  It will be interesting to see what can be done in a new light to fill his type of need.  We have a couple of the 6V lights up at the farm new ready to go so i can maybe get a comparison this weekend to my Eagletac, that should be here today.

I had to stop at Wally-world on the way to work so stopped in to take a peak at a couple light items. Fist off other than Maglite LED's there is nothing but junk there and that is about the same thing I have found most other places.  I have to get on the net to find decent stuff.

The Maglite 3D LED will do 131 lumen for 79 hours.
The Maglite 4D xenon will do 9x (someplace between 93 and 97, I didn't write it down)lumen for 9.5 hours.  

I can't say about the black hole in the LED maglite, but if that is not there, then add that to about 40% increase in output and 800% increase in run time, plus longer throw on the LED.  We are still talking 3D vs. 4D. I think that is a good comparison to the two light source types in the same light body, that a lot of use have used in the past or still use.  That is a huge jump in performance to me, but I don't know about the light color for tracking.

[KentuckyTJ]

Another benefit I see with these new small LED lights is when walking in to a stand in the dark of morning. I can switch it to 9 lumens which is plenty to light up my way and is barely visible to anything with the light pointed down at the ground. Oh yeah it will clip on your hat bill as well so you don't have to hold it and they are waterproof.

[KentuckyTJ]

Woodchucker,

Is this what you are talking about?

 

[The Vanilla Gorilla]

Every time I see the big 6v lanterns that woodchucker is talking about, I think of my grampa drunk, beating his coonhounds with those big flashlights every time they treed a possum or ran a deer. They could sure take a beating!  (Both the flashlight and the hounds)

I really like my Petzel headlamp. I used to have a Surefire but every one I got just burned thru the batteries as quick as I could change them.  I'm gonna look into the Fenix lights soon.

[woodchucker]

WOW!!! Thanks TJ! That's about it, just a plain old 6volt lantern...

However... I didn't know you could get/convert them to LED!!! NICE!!!!!      

[Whip]

You guys just cost me a bunch of money I had no intention of spending.   :rolleyes:
I had no idea I needed a new Fenix light until I got to reading this thread.  Can't wait for the next blood trail      :D

[Gator1]

Joe

I'm with you looking at the Felix as well

Pd32ue

       

[KentuckyTJ]

Haha, sorry guys. I to am itching to see how it does on a blood trail. I fear the next doe that comes by is in trouble if its an evening hunt. I plan on taking photos of the difference it makes with this new light compared to some older ones.

[kenn1320]

Just went thru all the pages, lots of fenix fans. I'm going to begin my search for a new head lamp. The one I have now is awesome, a cabelas or something like that. Has single white bulb(I never used) and 3 green bulbs. You could go single white, single green, dual green, or triple green. I love the green for walking in/out. If the white bulb wouldn't have burnt out, I would still be using this light. The problem is if you don't have it on off, it soaks the batterys(3 aaa) and you don't know it's on. Also the push button gets bumped in my pack fairly easily and turns on and soaks the battery's. Nothing worse then getting ready to climb down in the dark and find out your light is dead. Thank goodness for my cell phone. Lol

[Dan Adair]

TJ, thanks for the follow up.  I had a local shop order me a PD32UE, I haven't got it yet.

[elkken]

I just received my " wifes " new security gift, the Fenix PD32 UE .... I can just say " let there be light " ... OMG is this thing bright, and that's in the day light. Won't be dark for an hour or so and then I can begin to scare the neighbors and spot light some jets going into Sea-Tac airport.