LED flashlight recommendations

[Bat22]

I've got a shakeable recharging LED flashlight and now I'm considering a battery-powered one. My bros. tell me to just go for a SureFire flashlight. Maybe I'm being cheap but I'm open to less popular alternatives that aren't as bright but still both decent and easy on the wallet. Thoughts or recommendations?

 

[zxcvbob]

I've got a 3-AA Mini MagLite LED flashlight that I bought a couple of years ago at an after-Christmas sale, and I love it. Batteries seem to last forever. It claims to be 3W, but I don't believe it.

I bought a C-cell (don't remember if it's 2 or 3 cells) LED flashlight -- not a MagLite but still a decent metal one -- for my teenaged daughter to keep in her car because it's a little bigger so she won't lose it. It's brighter than my Mag, probably because the reflector is a little bigger (or maybe it really is 3 watts.)

 

[MaterDei]

Nothing beats a Surefire, but they are pricey. I have 3 LED Surefires, the L1, L2, and L6.

Streamlight makes fine lights as well but they are less expensive. You should be able to find something to fit your needs and your budget here, http://www.brightguy.com/manufacturer/streamlight.php

 

[black bear]

A pocket light that is decent and easy on the wallet ($25) is the Ray O Vac Sportsman Xtreme 3 watts (it is available at Wal mart). This light runs on two AA batteries.




If you want a pocket light with multiple settings and with a turbo mode of 225 lumens, check the P3D by Fenix, it is well worth the price of $67.00



For a review of these lights and many others, check my thread:
Law enforcement flashlights, here is the link:
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?p=4336889#post4336889

Best wishes
Black Bear

 

[jhansman]

I can recommend this model, available from Deal Extreme, a great place for affordable, well made flashlights:

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.3607

Need some education in LED (and other) flashlights? Visit: http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/index.php?

 

[Jim Watson]

I have a Fenix L1T - like Black Bear's P3D but shorter with a single AA battery - that is the most useful flashlight I own. I have brighter lights, but the Fenix is so small I can have it in a pocket all the time.

I recently saw a knockoff for about half the price but do not recall the brand.

I think the LED Maglights are about the most light for the dollar.

 

[LTB15J]

I picked up my surefire L6 7 months ago. it's a great light and tough-as-nails (even hammers them). i use it for backpacking, work, etc. Sometimes it will find its way onto my 590. pricey? yes. worth the cost to have one of the finest flashlights in the world? yes!

 

[ocharry]

i just got a sale flyer from cabela's,, and it has a 3w cabela's light in it for $19,,, it's a dead ringer of the ray o vac Black Bear has pictured,,, they say 80 lum in the add,,,when it got here the package says 65,,,,

not bad for $19 bucks

also may want to look at a max fire ,, by brinkman,,, around $20 bucks also

the nice thing about the cabela's or the ray o vac is they use AA bats.

on the night stand next to the bump in the night guns,,,i have a 2c mag that has been converted to 3-123 bats. with a Terralux TLE-6EX LED,,,,,,around 150 lums,,,,, little package and it is a flame thrower in a dark room,,,,,,,14-16 buck for maglite,,,,24bucks for Terralux,,,,,,,,,40 buck and you get a flame thrower and a club if you need it,,,,,,,,you won't be sorry you converted one of the mags to this

my .02

ocharry

 

[conw]

My pick:

http://www.eliteled.com/products/flashlights/olight-t10-q5.html

Similar to the Fenix line P2D Q5, but supposedly a bit more throw (I only have the Olight version)...sturdy, rugged, good battery life, pocket-carryable.

Best bang for your buck in a flashlight, PERIOD:

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.1253

(seriously, these guys are as bright as most $10-25 wal-mart flashlights...)

 

[Bat22]

Thanks a lot, fellas. There are a lot more choices than I realized, and one of them'll definitely be my next light.

 

[litework]

Tiablo MA6
Fenix TK10
Olight high output T20
Wolf-Eyes LEDs
Dereelight CL1H R2
Dereelight DBS V2 R2 (Thrower)
Raidfire Spear (Thrower)
Tiablo A9 (Thrower)


These are cheaper alternatives to Surefire and, IMO, are superior in terms of brightness and function. I don't consider Surefire's two cell lights to be that bright. I still love Surefire's warranty and ruggedness.

 

[ZeSpectre]

I'm a known flashaholic and very fond of high end lights but I do have to agree with black bear that the new Ray-o-Vac light is pretty damned nice (see my review on it here)

Or if you really want info, Go over to the "Candlepower Forums"
Copy this "Flashlight Recommendation Checklist"
Post your answers

You'll get more recommendations than you can shake a stick at.

 

[Ringer]

I like my Surefires. I also have several Fenix lights that are quite nice. Available in lots of configurations with multiple options for battery type.

Definetly check out the Fenix Store.

 

[hso]

Good advice to check at candlepowerforums.

Used to be that Surefire, Streamlight and Pelican were all I'd recommend. Now there are scores of options.

 

[NVMM]

Amazon has some lights on sale,
http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=amb_lin...&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=340032301&pf_rd_i=507846

 

[highorder]

www.lighthound.com has anything you might need, and John is great to do business with.

 

[ydarb]

check out led lenzer's

made in europe, led lensers use three tiny aaa sized batteries, possibly the cheapest to buy. the light from these torches is very very good and gives in excess of 50 hours continuous light..

 

[jlbraun]

Seconded on the 3 watt Rayovac. Waterproof, indestructible, 2AA powered, runs forever, $24.95 at Wallyworld.

 

[another okie]

I just bought that little Fenix. It's the same brightness as my 2 123 battery Surefire, but smaller and using a cheap battery. It also has a strobe mode, which is kind of neat, and another mode where you get brighter with every touch of the button.

 

[Schuey2002]

I have a 1W and a 3W ROV. While they are a nice buy for the money, they are no SureFire. Whenever I want something that I know won't fail on me, I always reach for one of my SF's.

My favorite around-the-house beater light is still the Streamlight 4AA Luxeon. They are fairly bright for an "oldschool" 1W LED light. They have excellent throw, a nice clickie, and are well built. Plus, you can pick up one for a reasonable price, say $25-35..

 

[Realbigo]

I really thingk that the Mini Maglite w/ the LED upgrade and tail cap switch is the way to go. The A&N store in my area sold a well made LED Pocket light that takes AA,for a decent price but since they closed, I havent had any luck finding others. I am an advocate for the AA lights because as great as the SureFire's, Streamlights and the like are, If things go real bad, are you likely to be able to find more of there unusual batteries? Tons of othe products use the AA and can be scavenged for them

 

[Jim Watson]

Friend of mine bought a Ray O Vac at cheapmart based on my report from this thread.
He likes everything about it except the twist switch. Is there a replacement click switch of the right diameter and thread for this light?

(I would have bought one except I won a Surefire at the IDPA State.)

 

[Guncrazy45]

I'm surprised that nobody has yet mentioned the Palm Blaze

I've got a few of these, and have been very happy with their performance.

 

[MIL-DOT]

In order to usefully recommend something, it would help to know what price limit you've set,( no point recommending Surefire if your limit is set in stone at $40.)
Also, how you intend to use it? :
-General household/ power-outage light
-Car light
-bedside,bump-in-the-night light
-bedside sneak-to-the-bathroom-without-waking-the-significant-other light.
-SHTF/Zombie attack light ( hey, it could happen !! )
- Check the yard 'cause the dogs are barking light.
- EDC (everyday carry light)

You see,there's lots of different intednded uses, some covering many needs, some not. For instance a nice pocketable EDC ain't what you want when checking for prowlers outside, but photon-cannons like a Dereelight or Tiablo are so big you'll never have them in your pocket when looking for the keys you dropped. See what i mean? Give us some parameters.

 

[TimboKhan]

I bought one of the 1 watt Sportsman Xtreme lights from Wal-Mart, and I have to say that thus far I am pretty impressed with it, enough so that I might purchase one of the 3 watt versions just to have it around. I really think that they are a pretty good bargain for what you get at the price (under 25 dollars). I won't go so far as to say that they are "better" than my Surefire, but I am a big fan of the fact that they accept normal AA batteries as opposed to the harder-to-find lithium batteries of the Surefire.