As above.
Budget up to around $100.
2 x 18650 for run time, preferably mounted on the back of the head band.
Max lumens around 800-1,000. I realise this will only be for a limited “turbo” or similar mode of a few minutes.
More floody than throwy. A flood to throw zoom would be really handy but I don”t think any of the better brands make one & I have only seen cheap Chinese lamps with this ?
The Fenix HP30 is a contender except for the fact that the battery pack is belt mounted. Has any one tried mounting the battery pack on the head band ?
I am also looking at the Fenix hp 25r as it has separate flood & spot leds but it is only 1 x 18650.
Looking further into the HP30 by reading some reviews I think that it is to “throwy” for me & where as the original HP30 had a flip down diffuser (obviously to make the beam floody) the new version does not have a diffuser nor do Fenix make a diffuser that fits it.
The HP25r does not have the run times I am after but I wonder what would happen if I replaced the single 18650 battery pack it comes with with a 2 x 18650 parallel pack which would basically double the run times ?
Would it still work fine or are there some electronics in the original pack that if removed would mean that the lamp didn”t work ?
I know that I will lose the battery level indicator & USB charging functions but I am not concerned about them as they are features I do not require.
Still looking 
Ole’ buddy, I know these just run on 1 x 18650… but you might wanna take a look anyway & at least think about it.
I have the Nitecore HC50 and it is amazing. My favorite headlamp by far.
The Nitecore HC60 is there most recent offering and I have one on the way. :person_facepalming: … :money_mouth_face:
They may not fill your need, but you might want to look at them………… 
any reflectored headlamp can be made more floody with dc-fix film diffuser, or with scotch, satin tape. Aspherical headlamps are naturally heavier than reflectored lights due to the glass. Any specific reasons why you prefer head mounted cells?
The headlamp is for fishing where I need both hands free.
I need good light immediately in front & around me most of the time but the ability to see a reasonable distance in front of me when playing fish & for other things.
A flip down diffuser in conjunction with a throwy lamp would be ok but affixing film onto the lens would be no good as I would lose the throw option.
I want a 2 x 18650 lamp for run time as I do not want to be changing cells with wet, cold & slimy hands.
Power is needed (lumens wise) as water absorbs light like a sponge unlike solid surfaces which reflect quite a lot of light.
After a lot of searching it looks like none of the big name brands make a head lamp like what I am looking for.
I have had several cheap Chinese head lamps that do have the features I want but they all suffer from the same problems, namely they fail due to poor materials & construction & no water proofing (obviously they are nowhere near the claimed output having lattice bright leds & poor circuitry/drivers).
However when working they have met my needs but they cannot be relied upon & I have had another one die on me recently hence this thread.
I have an Olight H35 Wave which beam & output wise is reasonably good (I don”t like the “wave” feature but it can be turned off) but I haven”t been able to get on with the battery pack being belt mounted or going in a pocket as I have found that the cable gets snagged.
It looks like I will be making something up to mount the battery pack on the head band unless there is a lamp out there that I have missed.
Also whilst I am working on modifying the Olight I think that I will see if I can bring back to life my old Fenix HP10, a 4 x AA battery headlamp with a throwy beam but flip down diffuser.
This lamp was left on my boat with Duracells in it & unfortunately when I went to use it I found that the cells had leaked & destroyed the battery box :person_facepalming:
I personally use an armytek wizard oro, I believe it has an xhp 50 warm tint led.
The flood is so smooth, and the color is easy on the eyes with good color. It can be had below your 100$ mark.
I have swam fresh water with mine in the past. It gets daily use.
Only down side for you is it is only 1 18650. BUT seems efficient on the low modes. Very durable as well. I trust this light
What kind of run time are you looking for?
Throw distance??
Normal night trip is around 6-8 hours so say around 8 hours on a medium setting of around 250-500 lumens on flood with the odd burst of say around 800-1,000 lumens for a few minutes at around 50-75 metres probably no more than 30 minutes in total.
The above are obviously only rough figures.
The zoomable Chinese lamps I have used are probably only maybe 400 lumens at a guess but having around a 90 degree flood & being able to zoom in fairly tightly to illuminate 50-75 metres are ideal in that respect.
The Olight H35 I have has a nice tint being NW & is pretty floody & just throws a reasonable distance because on high it is 1,500 lumens.
If a light had either flood to zoom or a throwy beam but with a flip down diffuser it need not be anywhere near the lumen output of my Olight.
My broken Fenix (see this thread Advice from you modders please) is only 320 lumens max but having a throwy beam & a flip down diffuser worked well, albeit lacking a little run time.
OK, thank’s for that info. :+1:
Good luck in the search.