Ding! THIS is precisely what I’m trying to figure out. I hope to buy enough initial variety to learn these things and then buy several of the light that fits the needs. Thanks for summarizing the issues!
The more I see here, the more I tend to agree with your thoughts. The S2+ continues to get lots of mentions, so buying several of those may be the starting point. Thanks for sharing your experience!
As mentioned above, I’m discovering that learning where to buy is as important as what to buy. I’m completely clueless about “member negotiated threads,” so plenty of work to do before I can order the stuff I want. Thanks for the keychain idea.
A BLF A6 will do what you are asking for in the first post.
Get that, 2 protected 18650 batteries and a LiitoKala Lii-500 charger.
Once you have the light and charger, you will have a better idea of what you might want next.
Use it for a few weeks and then decide what to spend money on next.
You may want to get a large thrower like the Convoy L6 for the “search a couple of acres”
With $300 to spend I wouldn’t bother with a Convoy S2+. They are fine but the A6 is better. I’ve got a couple of them. I keep one in the car and another in my desk at work. I’m going to try modding them with the A6 driver so that they all have the same user interface.
[quote=ERTD]
[quote=liteyear]
- Updating old 3D & 4D incan. Maglites
- I’m interested in LED technology & new batteries
- Participating in an interesting forum with experts/enthusiasts
- A new interest/hobby for 2018
- Something fun to do with grandchildren
- I’m old. Why not? :nerd_face:
Yep. It’s beginning to look like 2 or 3 of the BLF A6, Convoy S2+, chargers, batteries, some reflectors along with 2 or 3 “specialty” lights will make up my initial orders. Thanks for the advice!
You have been given good advice, some of them might be right in your wheel house, some a little off, but remember: their advice is based on their habits/needs.
Very seldom will 2 different people have the same exact wants, even with flashlights. I started my flashlight journey not too long ago, i was reading these forum threads to try come up with a reasonable understanding as far as what i want/need. What i have found out the last few months (or a year), is that i really dont know what i want until i have something concrete in my hand. After i have played around with a light for a while i realize it should have little more of this or less of that or whathaveyou.
My suggestion is to get cheaper but still very usable lights and “fine tune” it from there.
Youve been getting a good starting point by the members.
I am perfectly happy with:
- Floody light with long run time (4x18650)
- Thrower
- Headlamp, a throwing version and a closeup non-hotspot version for mechanical.detail work in the dark.
- Everyday EDC
My go-to lights are:
BLF Q8
Astrolux C8
Imalent HR20 (headlamp)
Convoy S2/Astrolux S1
Just my 2C 
BTW: i am still getting a small keychain light, just not too sure what, yet.
I am leaning toward a Nitecore tip
Some additional considerations to my comment that I’m not sure you have researched already:
The Astrolux S1/BLF A6 are the same flashlight with different branding, and have a FET driver (does not limit the current, so it gets brighter and hotter, and is limited by the battery and circuit resistance). The Convoy S2+ is extremely similar, and by default it comes with a regulated driver (max current is fixed, defined by the amount of AMC7135 chips on the driver). If you buy the S2+ (either complete os as a host) and put a FET+1 driver (like the one I suggested previously) you get basically the same product, with the advantage of more color options, more parts available for modding. Modding and S2+ can be a nice (grand)father-(grand)kid project, it’s easy to disassemble and see how it works. EagleEye and Jaxman also make very similar tube lights, but I think Convoy has the cheapest (and it doesn’t skip on build quality).
Since you are in an urban setting, the big flooders and throwers are less useful, so a smaller multi emitter lights (like the Emisar D4 or a modded S2+) and a small thrower (any C8 from manufacturers mentioned or Emisar D1 and D1s) will be better starting points. Of course, nothing is stopping you from going for the big guns (hell, I’d get the BLF GT if I had the budget just because it sounds super fun), but for a first wave I think maximizing the fun p/ buck invested is important.
AA flashlights can also be great fun, but I don’t have any favorites yet to make a solid recommendation. Same with headlamps, specially the “L” shaped ones that can be wielded as a regular flashlight. I like having one, but I’m not sure it’s the one I’d call favorite if I tested other models. Skilhunt headlamps are mentioned a lot, but I don’t have any to have an opinion myself
Here’s my recommendation:
Liitokala Lii 500 or Zanflare C4 charger - cheap 4 bay analyzing chargers. These let you test all the batteries you get to make sure they are legitimate, and lets you monitor battery wear over time.
If you think you might want to venture into the realm of 2000+ lumen lights, I would suggest getting Samsung 30Q batteries in button top form. If you plan on sticking to <2000 lumen lights, Sanyo NCR18650GA batteries will give you slightly longer runtimes, at the expense of lower max drain (not an issue if you are looking at <2000 lumens). Can get them from Liionwholesale.com, IMR Batteries, Illumn, or Mountain Electronics.
For starter lights, I would suggest the Convoy S2+ in Desert Tan, and the Convoy C8 Clear, both ordered directly from the Convoy store on Aliexpress. Would suggest ordering the S2+ in the 7135x6 configuration, and get both in the 3A tint. The reason for these particular models is they come with the improved Biscotti firmware (the Desert Tan model on GearBest only has the old firmware). They will also give you a decent idea of output, beam profiles and form factors, and you can use that information to influence future purpose.
I’d also throw in an Emisar D1 right away, as it will sit between the S2+ and C8 in both size and beam profile.
Edit: One more thing - headlamps. If you want a decent budget headlamp, I’d suggest the Skilhunt H03. Can be used as a flashlight, or put in the headband for hands-free use. Can come in surprisingly handy, as a lot of the times when you need light, you also need your hands free for something else.
Once you’ve got experience with those lights, then you can decide where to go from there.
Want even more output and good runtime? The BLF Q8 can do 5000 lumens, and runs on 4 18650s.
Want tons of output in a tiny package? The Emisar D4 can do around 4000 lumens, and is even smaller than the S2+. Can order the 18350 tube for it if you want something comically short.
Want something similar to the S2+, but more compact and “premium”? Check out the Zebralight SC64.
Want more throw than the C8? Check out the Emisar D1S.
After using the S2+, do you think an 18650 light is too big for everyday carry? Maybe you need to check out 14500 or 16340 based lights.
Lumintop AAA Tool w electronic switch and Nichia High CRI LED, just became available, you have 6 days to join the drop.
Go sign up at Massdrop.com
The price is decent, I just ordered the one with Nichia LED.
fwiw, the pocket clip is reversible, so the light works on a hat, like these:
The short one is a Maratac (comes with a Nichia LED also), available from here
the long one is a Tool (available with a Nichia LED option also), sign up at m4dm4x.com to see the best prices available. They also list a Titanium Tool, seen here on my keys:
for even less money you can buy a black anodized aluminum tool, also available with Nichia LED… (Im strongly biased against cool white and Low CRI)
I use AAA Eneloops, these are not intended for LiIon
For that kind of usage and application a hand held light is going to be totally useless. Unless you can change your car tire, or do general house-repairs with one hand.
Go with a headlamp first, and supplement it with a hand held of your choice. I personally am partial to thrunite and zebralight designs, but there are MANY to chose from. Both have served me very well around the house and on dozens of camp-outs and backpacking trips as my sons boy scout troop coordinator. The Zebralight is almost 10 years old, and pictured with its clip-on mount.
Oh… Don’t knock the harbor freight freebie!! Seriously my son and I have used the blue light shown below on half a dozen camp outs. I have one and so does my son for his load-out. Its been every bit as useful as any high $$$ lantern, and a fraction of the size and weight. Its not water resistant, but I bag it in a small zip lock freezer bag, with a small hole in the corner to run the hook through. In all honesty its been GREAT, and of course you can’t complain about the price. Several of our scouts use them as well and we have not had a single incident of failure. Its resistor direct drive, so just load up some duracell AAA and run them till they die. We use the magnet and stick it onto whatever metal we can find. The back of a Coleman camp stove wind screen works best. The button is firm/hard enough to press and it alleviates accidental turn-on.
Now I’m getting confused… 
And cheap is definitely good.
Yeah, they implemented linear ramping instead of logarithmic, so a 10% diff from 90% to 100% is literally imperceptible, whereas 5% to 15% is night’n’day. It’s bright… bright… bright… dimmer… >blink!<… brighter… bright… bright… bright. I admit that could have been done much better.
’Though I’ve gotten kind of good at “catching” it at the dip to get almost moonlight levels, but sometimes not.
And yeah, I learned the hard way about self-induced blindness. I just close my eyes before the swipe.
I want to stick a 219B in there, too, ’though 4000K or so.
Reading? Honestly, I’d love to stick a nice WW in there. 5D or even 7A/7D. Nice’n’relaxing…
… oh, someone above mentioned having a head lamp flood light and a compact hand held thrower. I agree with this approach. In addition to floody headlamps, I also use a UF-1504 DIY build. Its been awesome, paired with my headlamps and it FAR out-throws the range of my own eye-sight. Its great for those “WTH Was THAT NOISE???” moments… fwiw its usually deer or raccoons romping around the camp. Biggest drawback is pack weight… its heavy. But when zoomed out its wide flooding enough for general purposes.
Convoy L2 is another GREAT affordable, reasonably compact thrower…
http://www.mtnelectronics.com/index.php?route=product/product&path=80&product_id=652
Great advice here. After you play with the first light or two, you will get a better idea of what you want to pursue next. It could be a shockingly bright and small D4, or perhaps a 26650 light for a bit more heft and runtime, a pocket thrower like the D1, maybe a 20,000 lumen light Cannon.
Take it slow.
That being said thank you for this post, it sure has perculated a lot of knowledge learned the hard way.
I also put in my vote again for the blf a6/astrolux s1 as a great first light workhorse. In my opinion it is slightly nicer than the s2, so unless you are modding I would go for the A6. I particularly don’t like the metal switch on the s2… It feels clunky to me, but some on here love it.
I appreciate your comments, Dman7777. This post has shown me just how generous and knowledgeable the folks here are. The advice has been sound and gives me direction for the first order or two as well as some fun things to try down the road. It helps to have flashlight advice when you’re headed down a blind alley! :smiling_imp:
One thing you mentioned was navigating group buys. Those are difficult sometimes because it’s not up to us as consumers when things will go on sale. For me, I subscribe to people like Trevi_Lux MadMax and Bilakos so I can scour their pages for deals. There are others you can subscribe to and maybe some people can suggest some more since I’m not a pro. With group buys it’s not an exact science and though the price is right the shipping usually takes a month or so. Not a dealbreaker but something to keep in mind. If you don’t see the item you want on a particular site you can always direct message some of those deal people and they might be able to find you a code to use at checkout.
For quicker service try checking out MtnElectronics for well-modded lights and SUPER fast shipping. Like if you have an itch for a modded light you’ll have it in your grubby hands in 4 days tops. And that’s what he does best IMO, provides lights that are more pricey than Gearbest but quality is perfect, made in USA and shipped fast to you. Plus he can max out an ordinary light and has more options on tints, emitters etc.
For batteries I recommend Mtn Elec, Illumn, Liion, as reliable sellers. Sometimes costs a bit more than GearBest or Banggood but there’s a peace of mind that you know the batteries are good quality.
Finally let me direct you down another rabbit hole/resource in Reddit. r/flashlight is another great place to view pics and read thoughts on new flashlights and ask questions about all things flashlights. I’m not directing anyone away from BLF; it’s just another fun place to be a flashaholic. They’ve got their own feel but the sidebar is full of helpful links to help flashlight newbies and experts alike.
This forum is probably the safest place on the planet to ask anyone about flashlights, though. You can search the threads for your question to see if someone has already asked but even if you simply start a thread with your question and it’s been asked before they’ll still be super nice to you. It’s what this place does best. I’m still a noob by many standards but I’m a lot smarter because of this place. So ask away like you’ve done here and welcome!
Sales, sales, and more sales.
The longer you can afford to wait, the better prices you’ll get.
Fasttech usually has sitewide sales around various holidays, like 15% off and such (not counting the always-good BLF discount). Use the volume discount (price-break at 3 of the same, more at 5 of the same) when possible.
GB has almost daily flash-sales for this and that, but you need to sit on the listings and hit them fast when they’re announced. Ditto for those who provide discount codes like Fin17 and Bilakos13, among others. The better the deal, the faster they expire or run-out. Eg, you can pay 35bux regular price for a Zanflare F1, but get a 20-25buk flash sale price for 200 units total, which’d run out fast. Or possibly a discount code for 13bux or even 10bux which runs out in minutes after going into effect. Plus, no matter how many are available, you’re limited to 1 per account, so you’ll not be able to get 4-6 at the flash/coupon price.
Then there’s Banggood, AliExpress, etc., that have their own sales. Eg, I went kinda crazy on 11.11 on AX, knowing full well that lots of “sales” are just a few % off, but hey, every little bit counts.
Think of it as buying toilet-paper at the supermarket. If you need it now, you’ll likely pay full price. But if there’s some super-sale, you can stock up on a 6mo supply if they’ll let you. You’ll just have to wait for that particular brand/price/etc. to go on sale… whenever.
Well said, Illumenated, and thanks. I’ve been so focused on looking a lights that learning about these suppliers is taking a back seat. I made one attempt last night at Gear Best and apparently fumbled in trying to use their codes. I’m still eager to find these deals that have allowed people to say, “I got it for $6.99 with a code.” I visit the site and see $29.81 :person_facepalming: Over the weekend, I intend to figure out 1) what I’m going to buy right now and, 2) where/how to buy it. If deals like $30 items for $6 are really out there, I’ll start waiting and watching. If the real discount is 20% or less, I may give my first order to a reliable supplier and keep moving. Again, I appreciate your comments!
Thanks for this, Lightbringer. I’m about to narrow my list and get ready to buy. I’ll have to make a decision about getting some hands-on with a couple of lights at whatever prices vs. holding out for the discount codes/sales/coupons. Just having the heads up that this is the way these deals get found is worth a lot. Also, I liked your suggestions about reflectors, TIRs & tints earlier. That was a big help.
Lots of lights have been listed already but I’m going to add the Acebeam L30.
It’s simply the best light in my collection and has the latest tech in flashlight: 20700 battery, XHP70.2, is super bright and the driver they put into this thing is amazing.
Btw Skip the Convoy C8 and get the D1S.
And get the best all around, easy to use charger: Xtar VP2