I’ve been using one of the Coast 6 LED headlights when I work on lights, but I really hated how fast it drained the 3xAAA batteries, so I’ve been looking for a 3xAA headlight. I just got one of the “Rayovac Sportsman Xtreme” ones from Amazon:
and it’s not bad. It’s 3xAA, and has modes (H-L-M-Strobe), but the beam is kind of strange… a smallish, bright center spot, and kind of dim rings.
From looking at it, it looks like they use a rather large diameter TIR lens with a “hole” in the front.
Does or has anyone here had this light before? If so, has anyone modded it to improve the beam?
Overall, it works pretty well for close-up work, so the beam isn’t terrible, but I’m curious if it’s possible to improve.
It seems to me that 3xAAA lights usually drain their batteries too fast. They were popular before drivers could up the voltage. For light use, look for lights that use larger alkalines, for regular use try trustworthy 18650 lithium ion cells and a reliable charger. If economy is not a major issue use 3V lithium disposable cells.
3AAA is usually more than enough for a light duty headlamp. On mine, high is rated at 100 lumens for 3 hours but for me, the low 36 lumens for 15 hours is almost always more than adequate.