What torch would you recommend?

[tenohfive]

Waspy1 said:

These are £5.82, about as cheap as you'll find for 120 lumens.

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/kinghon-1aa-cree-q3-w...

I'm wary of buying another Cree given how poor I've found the build quality on the P4.

[crackthatoff]

Waspy1 said:

Not easy to meet your requirements.

Your mate's P14 puts out 200 lumens.

The Fenix TK41 puts out 800 lumens and uses eight AAs BUT costs £112.95.

http://www.flashaholics.co.uk/fenix/fenix-tk41.htm...

The Solarforce M6 puts out 550 lumes and costs $99 (£62) but that includes batteries, charger and car charger, however the batteries are not AAs but rechargeable Li-ion 18650s which are a bit larger than AAs (and last longer). These are the same batteries as used in your laptop.

http://www.solarforce-sales.com/product_detail.php...

Edited by Waspy1 on Friday 9th September 08:00

FFS !!!! Why is it that I have no need whatsoever for a flashlight but I'm seriously considering ordering one tonight?
Ill definitely need to hide the debit cards tonight after I hit the bacardi.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZce7ZE5j1g


Looking good... any others people recommend for 100 nicker?

[Cabinet Enforcer]

tenohfive said:

I'm wary of buying another Cree given how poor I've found the build quality on the P4.

Cree just make the LEDs in the torch, the P4 is a type of LED, the rest of it is usually some generic Chinese tat. You won't get anything decent for a fiver, as the LED chip costs nearly that much.

[attym3]

15 years old and still going strong, just been upgraded to LED and had a new on/off button. A lot of the torches on here look like they would break if you even showed them the floor let alone threw them at it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ytnu0fE2Ca8&fea...





Or if you do need brightness speak to this guy


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkkU0UO3sek&fea...

Edited by attym3 on Sunday 11th September 21:29

Edited by attym3 on Sunday 11th September 21:32

[Waspy1]

attym3 said:

15 years old and still going strong, just been upgraded to LED and had a new on/off button. A lot of the torches on here look like they would break if you even showed them the floor let alone threw them at it!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ytnu0fE2Ca8&fea...





Or if you do need brightness speak to this guy


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NkkU0UO3sek&fea...

Edited by attym3 on Sunday 11th September 21:29

Edited by attym3 on Sunday 11th September 21:32

Surefire torches are tougher than Maglites, but they are not cheap.

I like Maglites but their light output is not great.

I have two 2X D cell Maglites (both with Li-ion rechargeable cells), one has an 3W LED bulb conversion from: http://www.thetorchsite.co.uk/TerraLUX_LED.html

It puts out a claimed 180 lumens, which is about the max you are going to get without mounting the LED in a solid aluminium heatsink......like my other Maglite:

This has been converted by a custom torch builder in the States using a Cree XM-L T6 putting out 1000 lumens.

Here is the thread:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php...

Here is the torch:

[Waspy1]

tenohfive said:

I'm wary of buying another Cree given how poor I've found the build quality on the P4.

Like Cabinet Enforcer said Cree don't make torches, just the LED

I have to say I think you are asking a lot for 5 quid, if you up your budget to 10 quid then you will find loads of torches at Dealextreme etc.

But if it's quality you're after, you are going to need to spend more from a UK supplier like Flashaholics: http://www.flashaholics.co.uk/

You can't have quality on a tiny budget I'm afraid.

[rhinochopig]

Waspy1 said:

rhinochopig said:

On the topic of lumens. Some quoted figures are the rating of the chip and others, such as lenser, quote the lumens measured from the torch. My P14 is - objectively - only slightly less bright than my 700 lumen Dealtimeextreme cheapo torch. The usable range of the P14 is about double that of the DTE torch.

Rhinochopig,

I know you like LED Lensers, but one of the reasons they have a long range is because they have an aspherical lens.

This comes at a cost of lack of spill.

The 10 quid torch mentioned by defblade above acheives the same thing by using an aspherical lens.

I have a Lenser and very good it is but it can't compete with my powerful XM-L with a regular lens for throw AND spill.

I know this and for me the lens design of the lenser is one of the reasons why I like them, as it confers a number of useful advantages (for me anyway). Let me explain.

First I know there are other torches that produce a brighter beam, with better throw AND spread - I have a £500 L&M HID light that uses a custom reflector and is simply incredible in both useful distance and arc of spill, and it will run for 6 hours on its custom LION battery, I also have a modded LED D Cell maglite that manages to offer almost the reach but with much better spill. But both these are not as good as work lights (for me) for a number of reasons.

There are a number of requirements that I have when selecting a professional torch, which for me the lenser balances well. These are:

• Purchase cost - Lensers are reasonable priced so I'm not worried about breaking it. Even the most rugged lights are going to break if dropped 50 feet off a cliff face for example.
• Build quality - Lensers take a beating and keep working. Out of the 20 or 30 torches and head-lights that I know people own in the MR team I've never heard of one fail.
• Weight - the lower the better.
• Power source - AA cells, as it means I can keep sets of fresh cells in my pack (and my GPS uses AAs) and never worry about them being dead when I need them - even the newer eneloop type cells do drain over time and their temp range is not as good as disposables.
• Beam pattern - A narrow focused beam is incredibly useful when out with others as it reduces the risk of dazzling them - the reason I stopped using my HID light as others said it kept dazzling them. The other benefit of a tighter beam is better illumination distance whilst using less power so the cells last longer which is vitally important if you're out all night. Besides if I want a broad beam pattern I just slide the lens. And this is the key factor, the lens means you can have a cheap torch, which uses little power, and weighs very little.

I don't pretend that lensers are the best torch out there - they're not at all - but they are better than the snobs on CPF would have you believe - most of whom only ever use their torches in their gardens to take beam shots where lumen willy-waving is all important - the number of ROP maglite threads standing testimony to this. But what they do very well is produce reasonable torches that hit a sweet spot of weight, cost, run time, and importantly reach.

Yes you can improve on any of those criteria - and I have about 5 or 6 other torches and headlights - which all do something better than the lensers I have but with that always comes some negatives.

[moleamol]

Mr Pies said:

moleamol said:

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/skyray-s-r5-cree-xpe-...

I have one of those with a charger and 2 batteries bought from Dealextreme. It really is good.

Does it come with the charger and batteries?

No, the batteries and charger were an extra £7 or so for 2 Trustfire 18650 batteries and a charger. The build quality of the torch is pretty good it has to be said.

[grenpayne]

Waspy1 said:

Here is the torch:

Nice black gloves. Are you in the middle of a job?

[andy_s]

Surely for a practical 'under the bonnet' torch you'd be better off with a head torch and have both hands free.

I know the lock neutralisation people prefer a small one partially encased with a rubber biter and hold it in the mouth, but that's just tradition...

[Mr Pies]

moleamol said:

Mr Pies said:

moleamol said:

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/skyray-s-r5-cree-xpe-...

I have one of those with a charger and 2 batteries bought from Dealextreme. It really is good.

Does it come with the charger and batteries?

No, the batteries and charger were an extra £7 or so for 2 Trustfire 18650 batteries and a charger. The build quality of the torch is pretty good it has to be said.

Have you got a link for the charger and batteries by any chance? That website is a nightmare!

[Arif110]

While this soapbox is still extant...

I will add to watch out for fully electronic switch systems for a glovebox torch, as they have a 'parastic drain' (standby current). This can range from 'acceptable' (5 years to drain batteries with zero torch use), to unacceptable (1 year, IMO). They do have significant other advantages, and the parasitic drain doesn't matter if it's a torch you use fairly often, or at least seasonally a lot.

Also - on light output. Fenix and others are now adhering to a more honest and common code for describing light output - this code being the ANSI standard. ANSI figures always look 'worse', because for one they demand that light output is measured 'OTF' (Out-The-Front), versus at the emitter - akin to the difference between power at the roadwheels versus flywheel. Also, I believe that they also have to cite an output as measured after two minutes of the device being turned on - as many torches peak at start-up, and never manage that output again for the rest of that session of use.

'Lux' versus 'Lumens'. Something can put out tonnes of Lumens of output - but low Lux. Something can output really high Lux - but low Lumens. Something can do both. Essentially, 'Lux' is a measure of the 'brightest spot of light achieved', and Lumens the overall light output of the device. E.g. a car headlight will output tonnes of Lumens - but a smaller torch may be able to shine out a tight spot of light brighter than any patch of the headlight's beam pattern.

Just my random penny's-worth!

[Waspy1]

Mr Pies said:

Have you got a link for the charger and batteries by any chance? That website is a nightmare!

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/digital-li-ion-18650-...

[moleamol]

Waspy1 said:

Mr Pies said:

Have you got a link for the charger and batteries by any chance? That website is a nightmare!

http://www.dealextreme.com/p/digital-li-ion-18650-...

You will also need a converter for the charger, I think that was around £1.70 from ASDA.

[Globs]

grenpayne said:

Waspy1 said:

Here is the torch:

Nice black gloves. Are you in the middle of a job?

I just want to know how he got into my reading room!

[tenohfive]

Waspy1 said:

Like Cabinet Enforcer said Cree don't make torches, just the LED

I have to say I think you are asking a lot for 5 quid, if you up your budget to 10 quid then you will find loads of torches at Dealextreme etc.

But if it's quality you're after, you are going to need to spend more from a UK supplier like Flashaholics: http://www.flashaholics.co.uk/

You can't have quality on a tiny budget I'm afraid.

Fair enough. The actual 'torch' bit - i.e light - is perfect, and bloody impressive for the price. Even the outside is fine - the switch always works, and they've been dropped and lobbed with no problems. The only problem is that it's loose inside so it cuts in and out (and generally needs shaking every few seconds to get it working again.) I thought for a couple of quid more I'd be able to get something without the loose connections.

I'll have a nosy on Dealextreme and see what I can find.

[steveo3002]

sorry for the slight hijack..can anyone reccomend any modest upgrades to a 6 cell mag , i like its size but the performance is poop

[magpie215]

steveo3002 said:

sorry for the slight hijack..can anyone reccomend any modest upgrades to a 6 cell mag , i like its size but the performance is poop

Look up ROP mods on http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/forum.php

The mod is basically 6X hi capacity D cell nimh rechargeables a replacement bulb and aluminium reflector and a glass lens is all that is needed...totally transforms the torch you will not be dissapointed

[tenohfive]

magpie215 said:

Look up ROP mods on http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/forum.php

The mod is basically 6X hi capacity D cell nimh rechargeables a replacement bulb and aluminium reflector and a glass lens is all that is needed...totally transforms the torch you will not be dissapointed

I've just remembered that I've got a 6D knocking about somewhere. I've had a look on those forums and there is plenty of info but it's all pretty technical and over my head, so I can't find a list of parts in laymans terms (or exact part numbers that I can google.) I've done a fair bit of googling but with no joy.

Anyone able to point me in the right direction?

[Waspy1]

steveo3002 said:

sorry for the slight hijack..can anyone reccomend any modest upgrades to a 6 cell mag , i like its size but the performance is poop

There is simple bulb upgrade for £13.95 from here:

http://www.thetorchsite.co.uk/TTS_3_Watt_Cree_Torc...

This is a 3 watt Cree LED that puts out 180 lumens.

I have one in an old Maglite and it is a huge improvement.

Very simple to do.

Your 6 cell torch means that it is 9 volts and the specs for this bulb are 3.5 to 9 volts.....so happy days.