1st impressions, Shiningbeam "Caveman"

LED Flashlights – General Info Multiple AA / 14500 Flashlights
1

Well ok, everyones first impression is what a stupid name.

But once you get past that, it's a very nice light. Just got it today, no time to post images or beamshots. Like the other couple of lights I've gotten from SB, the fit and finish is excellent, and it comes with an extra tail switch, O-rings, lanyard, holster, and has a pocket clip pre-installed. I usually remove pocket clips, but this one is unobtrusive and looks like it would mar the finish if I tried to take it off.

This fits my current trend in flashlights, and that is (1) powered by readily available over-the-counter AA batteries as well as Eneloops, and (2) nicer than the really cheap budget lights, but still in the $40-60 range. This one was $41 with the CPF discount.

Beam: floody and bright, 3 modes, no blinkies. LOW throws a beam like a normal 2D houshold flashlight, but bigger brighter hotspot; it can easily light up several large rooms. MED will light up your backyard, HIGH will easily light up your neighbor's backyard as well. This light is not a thrower, and the hotspot sort of melts into the spill.

Did I mention it runs on 2 x AA? Which makes it a little longer (at 6 1/2 inches) than a P60 style light, but narrower as well.

It has a FORWARD clilcky installed, which is nice if you just want a 'burst' on, without a full click.

User Interface; once it is clicked on, it remembers last mode, and you can cycle through the modes by a brief twist of the headpiece. This type of UI also has a "trick" method to change beams. Rather that twisting the head all the way tight after selecting the mode, leave it just a hair looser than totally tight. Then you can change modes by just using your thumb and forefinger to pull the head back toward the tail, and that pressure will change modes. Even a slight pressure laterally against the head with your thumb will change modes if you have the tightness set correctly. But if you do that, accidentally bumping the head will also cause an immediate change to the next mode.

Fit and finish: excellent all around. Has 7 cooling fins that are in the head and are tapered to give it a nice appearance. The emitter is centered properly, threads are square and clean, with just the right amount of lube, tailswitch was tightened correctly from the factory.

Only one CON I can think of, it does NOT tailstand; the forward clicky sticks out from the body and does not allow it.

I'm curious how long it will run on LOW on 2 AA batteries. Supposedly puts out about 7 lumens on LOW.

I like the light, it is a quality piece at a decent price that uses batteries I can find anywhere and store for 5-7 years if need be. Now if they would only give it a better name...even CaveFire would be better than Caveman.

But if you are a spelunker, this would be the perfect light to carry with you, so maybe that is where it got its name.

2

I just knew this light would be a good one .

3

Looks like the price went up a couple of bucks since I ordered mine last week.

4

Did you get the neutral ?

5

I got the cheaper one, the XM_L T5 rather than the T6

There is a CPF review here

6

I love the "caveman" name. Just reminds you of really old civilisation times where people were still using flames to light up and living in caves!

7

8

That is a great looking light! I just wish I was a fan of the 2xAA format. I will have to get one someday and rethink my fandom. That may just be the light to do it.

9

I have a lot of single AA lights, this is my first 2xAA light. It is not at all awkward in terms of size, a real surprise to me. I like the way it handles and how easy it is to slip it into a pocket.

10

Got mine today. It's a very nice light. Can't wait til dark to give it a good test.

11

Great! I'd love to have your expert comments :)

12

Did you get the T6 or the T5?

13

Great light, +1 on the bad name...anything would be better, even the Blaze 2AA or anything at all.

Id be kind of embarrassed to take it out with that big Caveman font on it :(

14

To tell you the truth, I really like the name.

OK, I have had time to do some testing now. Battery life if just as good as my Klarus P2A and Jetbeam BA20. On freshly charged Duracell 2450s I got a solid hour and 45 minutes without noticing any dimming. At 1 hour and 55 minutes it still hadn't stepped down to a lower mode but it was not near as bright as it was when the batteries were fresh.

It has a great beam and tint is a little warmer than either my Jetbeam BA20 or Klarus P2A but not as warm as my Quark AA2 Tactical. The light is quite a bit larger than the Jetbeam or Klarus in body diameter and head diameter. I could almost use this light in a 1" weapon mount. Its a very solid light and the finish is very well done. It's one of the nicest looking lights that I own. Knurling is almost perfect IMO and it's about my favorite light to hold.

LED is very well centered and I don't notice any annoying tint. I bought the XM-L T6 which is listed at 290 lumens instead of the T5 which is listed at 270 lumens. The T6 costs about $5 more than the T5 for some reason but I really like cool white lights. My ears are bad but I don't notice any noise on the lower modes.

Throw is just about the same as the Klarus or the Jetbeam but it has more spill. I love the simple UI and the three modes are great. Some might want a lower low mode but at 8 lumens it's about right for me. The medium mode is listed at 130 lumens and I would prefer it was a little lower. Maybe somewhere around 80-90 lumens. But this isn't a big complaint and much better than some of my other lights with preset modes.

I get a little more ceiling bounce than my other 2xAA lights. The Caveman doesn't tail stand which I wish it did. I made an adapter to make it tail stand out of this. http://www.4sevens.com/product_info.php?cPath=297&products_id=1879 I got this with my Quark and it's useless as a handle. I cut the center part off so I have the two rings remaining. I slipped one over the tail cap and I can either move it forward out of the way or move it back so the light will tail stand. Another advantage to this setup is that when I'm working on something and I need two hands, it's common for me to hold the light in my teeth. With this rubber over the tailcap, it's much more pleasant to hold the light in my teeth.

The pocket clip is very solid. The head of the light is easy to turn to change modes. Clicky feel is good, not too hard or too soft. Light comes with a holster, extra clicky, lanyard, O rings and extra rubber button cover.

All in all, it's an excellent light and I'm sure it will be my favorite 2xAA light.

15

Thats a really good endorsement, especially since you have a lot of other 2AA lights to compare it to.

Glad you like the light, enjoy.

16

Hey JohnnyMac. If you haven't used a 2xAA format light, you will probably be very surprised when you do. If you have been using a 18650 or cr123 light, you really need to go to a 2xAA format to approach the output with AA batteries. They are surprisingly bright, they throw fairly good and have usable spill, they are small enough and light enough to easily EDC and price is usually affordable.

I got better output and performance than I expected when I got my first 2xAA light. My first 2xAA light was a Quark Tactical. I wanted to see if the Jetbeam or Klarus compared to the Quark. I was happy to find that they had more output than the Quark and only cost 2/3 as much. Now goinggear.com has the Klarus ST20 for the same price as the P2A and the BA20. If you use this code you will save an additional 10%. ggcpf10

17

For those who don't like the Caveman name on the light, you can turn the pocket clip to the place where it mostly covers the Caveman printed on the light.

18

Seriously, caveman reminds me of outdoor / cave exploration, of testosterone, of our primitive need for lights and so much more...A GREAT flashlight name....

19

I like the name, don’t like clips, do like protruding forward clickies but don’t like fins around the head.
It seems like a nice light however.

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+1