How should a beginner spend $300?

LED Flashlights – General Info
41

Whether you get any lights that take AAs or AAAs,


DO NOT 

use alkaleaks for any extended amount of time, unless you want the light to get ruined.

They’ll leak, and next time you try to change the battery, you’ll find it fused inside the battery-tube caked in salt-ick.

I ruined a really nice OrcaTorch AAA that way, which were discontinued, but luckily was able to get another one while I screwed with the ruined one, drilling out all the caked-in ick.

The head works, but the tail/tube where the battery sits, has the “switch” at the deep end, and I have yet to fix that to get it to work properly (like I said, the head still works fine).

42

The S2+, 20mm TIR, and 4C tint is a gift from God. Trust me on this.

All you need to do is select the beamwidth. 30° should be a decent compromise, but the 60° is perfect for close-in work (again, lighting up the path in front of you, looking through a dark room (nice flood of light, no more pencil-beam of bright light in an otherwise dark room), etc.).

4C is just warm of bright sunlight, like a bright sunny day. The 4C S2+ with reflector gives a fried-egg beam that I was convinced was not a 4C, but much warmer, like a 5x or even warmer. In a way, I was right, as the hotspot was much warmer/yellower, and the spill was more cooler/bluer. Mix them together and you get 4C perfection, which is what the TIR does.

It’s about 4300K to 4500K, just warm of neutral without being too yellow. To me, even 5000K (around a 3C) looks rather “cool” to me. :smiley:

43

I can’t recommend anything to you since I am new here too, only flashlights I have since couple weeks are BLF Q8 and Utorch UT01 and another 13 flashlights are on its way to me, just because of this forum, you have seen my introduction topic about it.

The only thing I can advise to you is, keep your eyes on this part of the forum: BLF User Negotiated Deals
It saved me a lot of money, every day someone has a nice deal or group buy, your $300 will be $450 worth over time. Normally I buy things from Aliexpress because it is cheaper than BG or GB, but with these discounts on the forum, Aliexpress is not even close to it. Therefore I am really happy and thankful, to find this forum with knowledgeable people on it.

44

Thanks so much, SpAwN. This is really helpful. Beyond learning what to buy, I’ve been clueless about the best/cheapest places to buy. I’ll start watching this list for the discounts, coupons, etc. Great help!

45

There’s lots of great advice in this thread.

My recommendations:

  • Buy slowly - get one light at a time so you get a chance to really enjoy it. My biggest problem withe the hobby is too many lights (knives, pens) and not enough opportunities to use and enjoy them.
  • You didn’t mention whether you were interested in modding, but if you find you prefer neutral to cool white you’ll eventually start seeing lights you want, but only if you can immediately do an emitter swap.
  • No matter how fancy the lights in your collection are, sooner you later you’ll want a Convoy C8 and S2+, if only to use as a reference point.
  • Headlamps are incredibly useful, and it’s worth having one in the car and one in your house even if they’re just cheap ones. When you’re changing a tyre in the middle of the night you won’t be overly concerned about the tint.
  • If a light has an optional shorter tube, get it! Stick the 18350 tube on a BLF A6 or Convoy S2+ and it’s a whole new light.
  • AA/14500 lights are great - you can get amazing output from a small light with a 14500, or a longer run time with good output from a Ni-MH AA, and in a pinch you can use supermarket alkaline AAs (but never leave them in there!).

The only specific recommendation in this thread that I disagree with is the Boruit RJ02. Sure, it’s pretty good value for if you get it for $7, but I find the UI incredibly annoying and the output doesn’t justify the size. There are lots of alternatives that are popular on the forum (e.g. Skillhunt), but I haven’t used them. I find the Nitecore NU 10 CRI adequate for my needs.

46

Wow OP. I wish I would have thought of asking this question a couple of weeks ago when I first found this site. I am glad you asked because there is a lot of good info in there for me.

47

My two favourite lights:

Convoy L6: Around $60 give or take with coupons. Solid, reliable and somewhat of a work of art and it puts out a max of 3850 lumens in a good way.

Nitecore EA81: $70 if you look around. The EA81 runs on regular AA batteries and puts out 2150 lumens on turbo mode. Unless something new has come along, it's the brightest AA flash light on the market.

48

A bit of reading here told me that lights that interest me are roughly $25-$100. Chargers, batteries might be $25-$50. To get a decent sampling of LED tints, flashlight styles/types, etc., I estimated $300.

I won’t necessarily spend that if discount codes & sales allow me to buy the right mix of lights for less.

49

Hi.

I use a XTAR VC4 Charger.
Panasonic or LG. 18650 \26650 Battery’s
Plus a coupla Laptop battery packs for givaways.

Torches.
After going through the initial Cheep. Cheep ones everybody starts with… Chuckle.

I ended up with a coupla UltraFire 65 AA Battery Torches for walkabout in home. ($4.50 the pr DEL.)
2 x Factory. Clear and Grey. Convoy S2\S2+. (18650’s) for Back yard. ( 1 x Free 1 x $23.50AUD)
Ultrafire C8 XPL hi. ($14.40)
a Divers “ELFELAND+ (4 yrs now.in and out water. on boat) 3 x XM-L2 with 2 x 18650 batt’s. ($16 del)Never missed a beat so far.
An UNnamed? dual head XM-L2 with 1 x 26650 batt. ($18)
1 x SkyRay King (Can). 9 x XM-L2 chips. 4 x 18650 Pansonics.
$36.50.
They ALL give more range than MY old eyes can se. with plenty of spread.
And lastly.(Pressy from Granddaughter.)
a IMALENT DN35.\ 26650 for $65 on coupon.
THAT one is my all round lamp for pretty much everything nowadays.
Walking to pottie. out in boat with long beam.
Does it all.
Switches a little (bloody) hard to find in dark. A blob of marine epoxy on each one makes it easy as.
Lights up a house on opposite side of valley. A GOOD 450\500 mtrs away as crow flys.

I go out with a few blokes . 76yr old. old caravanner).
400 members in our chapter alone. we all carry torches.
some with cheapies like me. some with real exxy ones.

It seems to be. that the NOT CHEAP but not exxy torches. seem to give same quality of use as the exxy ones. without the $$$ costs.
“It’s a NAME thing mainly, methink’s.”
The KLARUS owners seem to have a LOT of problems with theirs??. Skyray and Ultrafire seem to give good value for money.

50

No surprise, but I gotta disagree with your disagreement. :smiley:

I love the ’02 (they should start paying me for my “endorsements” :smiley: ). Yeah, the UI can be annoying if you’re always jiggling it, but I usually dial it down to as close to minimum as I can catch it, and leave it. After that, probably 95% of the time it’s just off/on, and that’s it.

With the wide-angle TIR, it’s perfect for anything I do with it. Even just doing a puzzle when ambient light isn’t bright enough, the ’02 fills in nicely. Grubbling through boxes, bags, drawers, cabinets, just sling it on and go.

Output is limited, but runtime is nigh forever. Seriously, if I charge it once per month, it’s a lot. I don’t go caving or whatnot, so that works out fine for me.

And for 7bux? No brainer… I bought a bunch thinking they’d be “disposable”, but am still banging on my first one no problem.

No one’s saying to have a bunch of ’02s as your only headlamp, and if you want a 1000lm Skilhunt, hey, go crazy. But you’d be silly to not get 1 (or 5) ’02s to play with, for when you don’t need 1000lm.

51

$300 will take you a long way if you are willing to wait and selective in what you are buying.
I just went down this path about a month ago.
Highly recommend Liitokala 500 charger for 25$.
Few of 18650 high quality batteries $6-$7 each = $40
18350 battery = $7-$10
Astrolux S1 = $25
Convoy S2+ = $10-$15

Then, wait few weeks, use them extensively to see what you like and what should be different. I have only purchased S1/S2+ because I like the form factor. It easily fits into the pant pocket, backpack, glove box etc.
Still searching for the next light and every day something new pops up on BLF….I don’t care about flood and looking for something with throw. So, will purchase something with S1/S2+ form factor but larger reflector like Emisar D4 or a C4.

But honestly, the two that I have purchased so far work well for my needs and are better than junk available at local stores. One exception is the AA based worklight I purchased from Costco:
http://www.promierproducts.com/Promier-COB-LED-Wide-Beam-Jumbo-Pen-Light-with-Pocket-Clip_p_240.html
Magnetic base, Strong clip so that flashlights attaches to pant pockets and pretty bright. Overall well construction.

It is a slippery slope, hold on to the edges :slight_smile:

52

It is true. Purchased a Coast flashlight ten years ago that came with alkaline batteries. Used the flashlight for three days. Day four found that alkaline batteries leaked and ruined the flashlight.

53

Well, I can’t disagree with your disagreement with my disagreement. :wink: You’re right about all of the RJ01’s good points and I don’t think you can do better for $7.

My issues are probably a matter of personal preference. I think the ramping is poorly implemented - it’s slow to start, but then ‘bounces’ back too quickly when it reaches the end; I always manage to temporarily blind myself with the reflection off my hand when I use the IR feature :person_facepalming: ; and I prefer a NW emitter for things like reading.

54

For the purpose as described above I really dont care about UI of RJ02 - on & off, combined with that IR switch…more than enough as far as I am concerned, and there is actually more than that

I do have one (minor) remark tho: the thread on the example that I have is not so smooth, pieces tend to be loose too. My impression is that manufacturing process is not that precise

55

My list pick would be :

- Lumintop Tool AAA Nichia or Jetbeam µ

- Thrunite T10 AA or L3illumination L10C Nichia

- Olight S-mini 16340

- Emisar D4 18650

- Convoy C8 XP-L HI 18650

- Noctigon Meteor or BLF Q8

- 2*26650 (Liitokala 50A are good)

- A dozen of 18650 (Samsung 30Q flat top + button top)

- Liitokala Lii500 charger

- Ikea Ladda or Eneloop or Amazonbasics : AA + AAA (4 of each)

- Thorfire S70S or Convoy L6

  • a headlamp (Skilhunt H03 but a bit heavy) really an useful format IMO

Since you live in urban area, maybe don’t invest too much in big flooders and far throwers.

Small EDC sized lights with good aesthetics and nice UI would please you more and be more useful.
My favortie brand for e-switch compact lights is Olight. Same UI in all their models, just pick one that please you (S-mini, S1A, S2R, S1R)
I’ve reviewed all their products for 2 years now, and yet my EDC isn’t an Olight.
Why ? While e-switch UI are super practical for quick access to moonlight or Turbo they aren’t that intuitive when I have to lend a flashlight.
So I EDC a Thrunite T10… but you’ll have to find IF you want to EDC a light, and WHAT kind of interface you like.

If you begin to like custom lights, 300 bucks won’t even be enough for some models so beware of the addiction !
I started 5 years ago with a Convoy S2 host, Nanjg105 6*7135 driver and 4C XM-L2 just to see how good was a cheap flashlight and now my collection is 60+ lights…

In any case, pay attention to :

- UI (how much modes ? blinkies ? how low is the low mode ? does the turbo have a stepdown ? does it have thermal regulation ?)

- rear clicky, electronic side switch ? both ? twisty ?

- tint/CRI/type of emmitter

- battery format

  • size (will it be in a jeans pocket ? jacket pocket ? a bag ? on a shelf ?)
56

I would suggest to do something similar to what I did (but more frugal):
Start with lights that are as cheap as possible, but not cheaper. Figure out what style suits you the most then go deeper in that direction.
This way you won’t spend $$$$ on lights are are superb, but not for you.
My suggestion for the start:

  • Lii-100
  • 4*button top 30Q/HG2/VTC6 (good for about any 18650 light)
  • S2+ (not sure which variant)
    • additional SMO reflector
    • a couple of TIR lenses
  • C8 XP-L HI
  • optional: Boruit RJ-02
  • optional: some zoomie (which?)
57

‘Boruit RJ02 headlamp — Hands-down the most useful light I have for “doing stuff”, whether it’s grubbling around in bags or a cabinet, when you don’t give much thought to holding the light with one hand and grubbling around one-handed with the other. Having both hands free is a breath of freedom you can’t appreciate until you experience it, and then you’ll NEVER want to go back. They’re <10bux each, so get 4-5 of ‘em. Seriously. Built-in charger, so all you need is a usb cable and you’ll never even have to open it up.’

I totally agree with you. I use mine almost every day for the same reasons you do, around the house/garage/shed. I don’t need or want mega lumens for that.
I love how you can dim it to how you like, it’s not over bright, the head strap is good as is the finish, I like the ir on/off feature too and finally it is very cheap. What more could you ask really?
There is a newer version with 2 leds, sadly it has lost the ir function.

58

Get a Q8 and 4x30q batteries. It will ruin a lot of lights at 3x the price.

59

Let me suggest a keychain light. Though I have many flashlights, I find myself using this the most:
Nitecore Tip

You can get them for around $15 from our member negotiated threads like this one from member Trevi_lux. Even if there aren’t current offers, you can PM these members for discount codes

Reasons I like this light:

- Bright! 300 Lumens (220 Lumens if you choose the high CRI option)

- Tiny, carry anywhere

  • Integrated battery and usb charger; no need for separate battery / charger
60

Great advice! I suspect - to scatter some lights around the house - I’m going to find a particular light & buy 4-6 of them. To start, I’ll buy a sampling of the highly recommended lights. Right now I’m seeing things like, “you can pick this up for $9.” When I visit the suppliers I see $23.96. So, my next challenge is learning how/where/when to buy flashlights and accessories. Thanks for the tips.