I’m looking for a new AAA keychain light for my car keychain. I currently have a red Preon 1 on my house keychain. I use to have a Fenix LD01 on my car keys, it was a good light. But I gave it to my father a few months ago as he desperately needed a decent light on his keys instead of the sad excuse for a light on a cheap multitool keychain that had to be a fraction of a lumen output. I couldn’t stand watching him struggle to see using it and don’t regret the choice at all. But I am now looking to replace that spot on my keys. I’m looking for light that has only 3 modes lo,med,hi or less would be ok. I do not want strobe etc. I have other lights that have this feature and do not want to cycle through this. The light will used primarily for looking around the inside of my car, putting a key in a lock and similar everyday close up needs. I will be using an eneloop battery in this light as I already have several.
My other lights include Quark X2 AA-2 (also deep pocket carry clip and AA body), Quark X AA-2, Spark SD52, Spark SG5, Tech Lite Lumen Master (found in the basement of a house under construction in 3 pieces)
Any help is appreciated.
UPDATE
I’ve been thinking it over and looking at the wear and tear on my Preon which has been on my main keys along with a bottle opener and a swiss army knife. I’ll be moving the Preon to my car keys and looking for an SS or Ti light for main key ring. They will be able to stand up better to the abuse of that ring. It seems an SS LD01 is a lot harder to find now that I’m looking again. AAA light suggestions that come in SS or Ti would be appreciated.
I own all the ones below and would recommend them as keychain lights:
Fenix E01 (what’s on my keychains because of teenagers)
Blackshadow Eva (1 mode)
Solarforce X3 (1 mode)
Olight I3S
Thrunite Ti2
Fenix LD01 (why mess with a good thing)
I have the DQG AAA in stainless steel and titanium, with the magnetic bottom option I have found it handy to use under the hood of my car at night time as it can just stick to the underside and shine the light where I need it.
The one on my key ring is the stainless steel one as the titanium one just stays in its case at the moment, I may give the SS one to my girlfriend and use the titanium one myself but I’m not sure yet.
I also have a Ti and TiS, the TiS is brighter than the Ti (I don’t have a Ti2 to compare it to) and its also the brightest AAA I own. But the reason I use the DQG AAA is because its a little smaller and the colour matches the rest of my keys/keyring excluding 1 brass key.
I’m still considering the LD01 but would like to get the SS version this time. The anodizing wore off quickly but other then that it was a good light. Still looking at other ones, I think with this one I’ll be looking for an SS or Ti version of the light for durability.
Cool colours and styling but not what I’m looking for in this particular light. Let us know how the performance is on it. Could be a candidate for the next one haha.
While it isn’t Titanium, and eventually the finish will wear off. The finish is stronger than most. It is also flexible on batteries. It is a micro flame thrower when you feed it 3.7 volts! Yeah yeah yeah, it heats up a little. But sure is impressive to friends.
I like to leave the head just a fraction loose. Then all I have to do is put my thumb down on the head and push and it will light up, kinda like a momentary feature. Don’t worry, if it accidentally comes on in your pocket, you will feel it pretty quickly.
I also tricked out the tail area with a glow powder epoxy mix. It fills in nicely and looks good.
The T5s it is stainless steel so it fairs well on a key chain and it is not very heavy.
Features
• High-grade 304 stainless steel construction
• Compact and portable
• High efficiency digital driver circuit
• Maximum runtime of 28 hours in low mode
• Three levels of brightness plus warning signal
• Constant current (not PWM)
• Convenient one-handed operation
• Reverse polarity protection
• Removable stainless steel clip included
• Lightweight design - only 19g (without battery)
Specifications
• LED: CREE XP-G (R5)
• Maximum output: 65 lumens
• Battery: One AAA battery
• Aluminum reflector ensures a balanced beam profile
• Toughened ultra-clear mineral glass with anti-reflective coating
• Constructed from high-grade 304 stainless steel
• Function selection via rotating head
• Waterproof in accordance with IPX-8 standard (two meters)
• This product has attained European CE and RoHS certification
I’m still researching models, features, availability in Canada etc. I haven’t completely ruled out an aluminium LD01, it served me well. I’m still trying to track down an SS version but so far no luck.
It’s worth mentioning that stainless steel or titanium lights can often times have gritty threads, which can be problematic with small twisty lights. Also, SS and Ti will still easily scratch up when carried with keys, for what it’s worth.
Hmmmm that is an interesting point. No one else has mentioned that before for some reason. I didn’t expect it to be untouchable but would have assumed a degree of resistance due to the metal being much harder. Aluminium is a soft metal so it was an assumption with stainless steel and titanium being a lot harder that they would be more resilient.
