Here’s my criteria.
It must have battery(ies) in the back to balance the weight… no separate battery packs on the waist or battery in the light itself.
It must not be a tiny spot thrower with a dimmer ring of light. Flood with a center hot spot would be ideal, but a floody would be okay.
I’d prefer it be a 2x18650 or a 1x18650. I have several AAA LED headlamps and don’t want another.
Run time should be more than 90 minutes.
It will be used only outdoors.
It must go dim before finally going off. I don’t want to be on a trail and suddenly have my light blink off. I need some warning.
Budget is under $40.
I’m looking at these lights, but I’d prefer to buy from one of our sponsors.
Hi, my first question would be: are you sure you need all those lumens to trail run?
I trail run with a ZL H502w on my waist to illuminate the path right infront of me, I keep it on med (50lm/7.5h) which is plenty for open spaces especially when there is some moonlight.
When it gets more technical or in woods I also turn on the ZL H52w which is on my head (restrapped so the silicon holder doesn’t dig in my forehead and with an extra overhead strap… No prob with bouncing around), this one also on 50lm/7.5h.
This way I have much flexibility of use, and 2 different light sources producing the needed shadows for a more 3d understanding of the terrain.
Both lamps are very light and each one uses 1 AA. If needed each one can give more than 250lm for almost 1h (the H52w will boost 500lm with a lion battery)
Before buying the ZL I was using one of the stylish q5 310lm on the belt and a generic cheap 3aaa led lenser copy headlamp.
Coast HL8.
It cost me £52, so it’ll be around 60-70$ abit more than you want to spend but it is worth it, it’s a spot to flood light, with 344 lumens and well over 19 hours run time, and on low the 66 lumens is 80 plus hours. Both levels have plenty of throw and flood is good up close and pretty far away too, and the best part is it uses 4 AA’s.
I don’t need nearly that many lumens as the lights in my post, but I doubt if those lights put out even a third of their claimed lumens.
I want a light with the battery in back for balance so that eliminates the Zebralights. My experience with lights with the battery and light in front is that once the headband stretches a little, they are hard to keep in place and hard to keep from bouncing. I already have 3 AAA LED headlamps, including a Coast clone. I’d like a little more light.
I really like the idea of having a second light on the belt for a 3D effect. I’ll try that to see what it’s like. Thanks for the suggestion.
One thing to keep in mind about the balance issue: If the unit on the forehead is over 3 oz and protrudes too far, it’s not gonna matter how balanced the weight is with the rear. It’s gonna feel floppy no matter what.
A low profile, front only headlamp like a Zebralight H600 works great with a non-elastic headband like the Nite Ize. You can have 4oz or a little more on your forehead with a non-elastic headband and still have it feel secure. I’m not necessarily recommending the H600 because I think it has some issues, price being one of them. I’m just using it as an example.
Both of those lights you linked are huge, get a smaller light with a battery in the light and you won’t need for it to be counterbalanced with the batteries in the back. A Zebralight with a AA battery is super light in weigh and would put out plenty of light for running. You can get the Nitecore HC50 for less than $45, a super flooder and lighter than the lights you linked.