My new torch

[Magic919]

Santa brought me an Xtar VC4. Nice charger.

[Jon321]

tenohfive said:

One other option that springs to mind is the Klarus XT12GT:
http://www.klaruslight.com/index.php?m=content&amp...

Welcome to the thread.

Ooh I do like that, haven't looked much at Klarus so that's something to do later. The XT12GT I see features lots of mentioning of one touch this and that, high performance and tactical modes. All things I have no actual need for but will assist in unleashing my Jason Bourneness when I'm out in rural Suffolk walking my small dog. Hence it's now on my wish list so thanks.

[Elderly]

Elderly said:

300bhp/ton said:

This one is Simon, who makes Convoy lights:
https://www.aliexpress.com/store/group/Convoy-Flas...

Ordered a green S2+ from Simon, thanks for the pointers .

Just the question of which batteries and charger to 'invest' in now .

It's just arrived, and rather sooner than expected;
I've not got around to getting a battery and charger yet,
how frustrating is that

[Jon321]

tenohfive said:

One other option that springs to mind is the Klarus XT12GT:
http://www.klaruslight.com/index.php?m=content&amp...
.

Well I bought one of these so thanks for the recommendation.

New to the world or torches so I've nothing to compare it to. However the performance seems fantastic, nifty charging setup with the magnetic usb attachment which doubles as a 10Ln mini torch. On 'turbo' mode it lights up trees on the far side of the field outside my house so it's bright with a decent throw, whether it's hitting the 600m range I've no idea but it seems to be having a good go at it. Reasonable amount of flood lighting too so not all range focused from its light output. All in I'm pleased.

[tenohfive]

Jon321 said:

Well I bought one of these so thanks for the recommendation.

New to the world or torches so I've nothing to compare it to. However the performance seems fantastic, nifty charging setup with the magnetic usb attachment which doubles as a 10Ln mini torch. On 'turbo' mode it lights up trees on the far side of the field outside my house so it's bright with a decent throw, whether it's hitting the 600m range I've no idea but it seems to be having a good go at it. Reasonable amount of flood lighting too so not all range focused from its light output. All in I'm pleased.

Glad your happy with it. I've had to have a serious talk with myself to stop myself ordering it, especially as I recently moved my standard back door torch (a Convoy S2+) elsewhere - justifying another torch purchase. And my garden is nowhere near 600m long.

[FiF]

Aaarrggghh, only Jan 2 and already clicking this thread.

[dickymint]

NordicCrankShaft said:

Just to add and I didn't even realise this until this morning but the heart orch I've posted above has infrared sensors built into the light unit, so you can wave your hand in front of it once to turn it off and on as apposed to clicking through the different light levels to switch off.

Couldn't help but think.............

[Mannginger]

Hey folks, looking for some more recommendations.

Ideally looking for relatively small (single hand sized for example) relatively powerful but not daft (Hiking and emergency power-failure levels) torches. To be stashed int he house mainly but one to be tucked into my ruck-sack in case needed for hiking.

I'm thinking the low-useage levels rule Lithium-ion batteries so anything that can run for decent periods of time without needing batteries replaced will be better. Also if there are recommendations for head-torches with similar properties I'd be interested in those as well and I guess whilst I'm at it - a lantern with similar properties for black-outs would be useful as well

Cheers in advance

[defblade]

Mannginger said:

Hey folks, looking for some more recommendations.

Ideally looking for relatively small (single hand sized for example) relatively powerful but not daft (Hiking and emergency power-failure levels) torches. To be stashed int he house mainly but one to be tucked into my ruck-sack in case needed for hiking.

I'm thinking the low-useage levels rule Lithium-ion batteries so anything that can run for decent periods of time without needing batteries replaced will be better. Also if there are recommendations for head-torches with similar properties I'd be interested in those as well and I guess whilst I'm at it - a lantern with similar properties for black-outs would be useful as well

Cheers in advance

Torches using lithium primary cells (eg, CR123s) are perfect for this as the batteries have a shelf life of 10 years or more. Get on DealExtreme and buy the batteries at the same time as the torches as they're about $1 - $1.50 each rather than £4.99 in your local shop.

Pretty much anything on this page: http://www.dx.com/c/lights-lighting-1399/flashligh...
(I've got a couple of X2000s, they're fine for day to day stuff)

add some http://www.dx.com/s/cr123a?category=400


Or, for a head torch,
http://www.dx.com/p/magicshine-headlamp-strap-oran...
+
http://www.dx.com/p/trustfire-z1-cree-xp-e-q5-3-mo...

would probably work OK.


In general, these lights will be bright enough that if you ceiling bounce them, you won't worry about having a "proper" lantern in a power cut

[tenohfive]

Headtorch - Nitecore HC30. Great light, bought after I found myself (briefly) lost at 3am whilst wild camping on a mountain. (I blame that on the lack of throw offered by my Lenser H7.2 HT, and set out to find something better.)

There are dozens of torches that'll do the job you're describing, but for cheap and cheerfulness but with a decent brand attached you can't go wrong with Convoy. S2+ are a more floody profile (they've still got a bit of a hot spot) or the C8 - if you can live with the oversized head and a bit more weight, with less flood - offers a hell of a lot of throw.

The S2+ isn't exactly expensive but if you want to shave a few quid off the price below drop me a PM, I ordered one a couple of days ago using a code that I think is still active:

http://www.gearbest.com/led-flashlights/pp_44144.h...

Alternatively a cheap and cheerful Ultrafire WF501B will probably be fine.

Either way I'd seriously consider a cheap smart charger like this one:
http://www.gearbest.com/chargers/pp_424662.html?wi...

For a fiver plus the cost of however many 18650's you need it's a very economical route.

[klmhcp]

DELETED: Comment made by a member who's account has been deleted.

I think you might be surprised at how easy it is to operate an advanced torch.

[schmunk]

The biggest single improvement you could make is to swap your 3x AAA batteries for 1x 18600 Lithium Ion battery (plus a charger, and possibly an adapter sleeve, if you don't have one with the torch).

From memory, a typical torch is quoted at ca. 150 lumens with AAAs and 900 lumens with a LIon battery. That's quite a hefty difference to brightness.

Details of what to buy are given in the preceding couple of pages of this thread. It'll cost about £25 for two batteries (i.e. including a spare) and the charger, delivered from your friendly Hong Kong retailer.

After that you're looking at hot-rodded and multiple-cell torches to get any brighter.

[Nigel_O]

I bought one of these at the weekend, hoping that the advertised "600 lumens" would be roughly accurate

http://www.homebase.co.uk/en/homebaseuk/ultimate-b...

The intended purpose is as a decent roof-hanging light inside a tent at LeMans, instead of hanging LED inspection laps from various parts of the tent.

However, after 12+ hours of charging, there's a very feeble flicker of the LEDs and then nothing - seems I've managed to buy a dud.

Has anyone else bought one and does it look anything like the claimed 600 lumens?

I'm almost tempted to take the body apart and see if there's a dodgy connection in there, or if the inevitable cheap Li-ion battery can be replaced with a heavier duty item

[tenohfive]

I think he means 18650 batteries.

And it's worth signing up to the email newsletter of Gearbest/Banggood etc - they spam like crazy, and not everything is a bargain - but there are certainly a few to be had.
Also worth a mooch through this section too if you're interested in acquiring 5 times the number of lights you originally intended:

http://budgetlightforum.com/forum/marketplace/comm...

It's pot luck what comes up but around 60% of my torches have come about because of a bargain in there.

[richtea78]

I know what I want but not what they are called. Inch long oval key ring with a torch in it, flat with a single led. Had it for years and lost it but want another one. Any help please?

[defblade]

richtea78 said:

I know what I want but not what they are called. Inch long oval key ring with a torch in it, flat with a single led. Had it for years and lost it but want another one. Any help please?

http://www.torchdirect.co.uk/general.html

http://www.torchdirect.co.uk/inova-microlight.html

https://www.google.co.uk/#q=flat+keyring+torch

[Drive Blind]

richtea78 said:

I know what I want but not what they are called. Inch long oval key ring with a torch in it, flat with a single led. Had it for years and lost it but want another one. Any help please?

I've had one of these for over 15 years. Still going strong.

Dalvey



edit to add - the keyring/keychain bit has been replaced a few times but the important bit still works!

Edited by Drive Blind on Tuesday 3rd January 23:45

[richtea78]

None of them are exactly what I had, I tried googling first but that didn't work either.

The innova ones look similar, might get some of them, but it was more rounded than that one

[jimmyjimjim]

Ok, I'm sure it has been covered on here to some depth before...but it's probably outdated (as was the info I found on various forums), so let me ask this question: I have a couple of D cell maglites that I still use as I don't have much need for a torch, except of course, for when I do. So they live in a drawer in the kitchen and get fed a diet of D cells as and when needed (very infrequently*).

So, what are my best options for upgrading a 4D and 6D maglite to led - both for keeping the D cells or replacing them with something more exotic?

I'm thinking keeping the D cells should lead to a relatively cheap drop in solution, and replacing them should allow a truly comic beast of a torch? And something in between being what I'd probably go for...

Your suggestions please gentlemen.

* a look at the 4 cell torch show batteries dated 2004 and 2013. Still works for its purpose.

[Polarbert]

I'm going camping soon and thought about one of these: https://www.amazon.com/WindFire%C2%AE-Waterproof-A...

I never expect it will actually be 1800 lumens but do you chaps think it looks alright?