Relative flashlight novice here, so please abide my ignorance. I don’t have a vast collection of flashlights like most of you. I do have a 25-million candlepower spotlight, and it’s very bright, but it’s bulky, so I’m considering a flashlight that’s extremely bright (flood and throw combined, though throw distance is more important to me), relatively inexpensive (under $200 all-in), and user-friendly (i.e. requires little expertise, as I don’t have it).
So, I have done some looking around on this forum and others, and I’m intrigued by the following three (one of which is not an LED; I hope that’s OK to post here):
-Trustfire x100
-ThruNite TN32
–85W HID Xenon Spotlight 8500 Lumens Flashlight
As I understand it, the Trustfire and Xenon HID light are China-made (isn’t everything? |( ) and vastly overstate their lumens. Also, as to the HID, it’s less user-friendly because it overheats and doesn’t last as long on a charge. Are those impressions right? Both of the aforementioned can be bought at aliexpress.
I saw the TN32 compared to various other lights somewhere, and was very impressed, especially since it’s “only” 1700 lumens. It’s a bit more expensive than the other two.
So, does anyone know how these three lights compare? Are there others that are brighter for under $200? I know there’s this one called The Torch, but that seems dangerous. I don’t wish to set things afire with a flashlight.
My suggestion would be to pick up the TN31vn from THIS thread.
It will out throw both the TN32 and the X100 easily. That price will leave you with enough change to buy a very decent charger and high quality Panasonic cells to go with it. If you don’t already have some.
I suggest either the Trustfire X100 or this http://www.gearbest.com/led-flashlights/pp_80245.html the Trustfire TR-S700. Both have 7 leds with the TR-S700 having the newer XM-L2’s and a shorter overall length. Both run on 26650’s so in that area I’d recommend the Keeppower 5200’s.
What’s the actual throw distance your after? If you can settle for ~800m (instead of >1km) you should consider the TN35 or K40M (MT-G2 lights). They’ll provide an excellent amount of throw (tho not quite on par with the TN31/32) while still offering plenty of flood and total lumen output.
Also consider the TK75 (note this is a multi-emitter light but still manages excellent throw by shear power). The TK61 is another top tier thrower (and modded becomes one of the very best money can buy) but with reduced overall lumens and a very tight pencil beam.
The lights you picked are very different. You say you may be after throw, but if you have one of those old “spotlights”, you may not really be after throw past what many of those old spotlights can do anyways. It really depends on what you want to use it for, and if you actually want to USE the light or just turn it on occasionally and show it off like most people… the Tn31 suggested above has a long pencil beam that is not really very useful at all for real life use unless you have some need to see very long distances in the dark. Those kinds of extreme throwers are actually very annoying to walk around with, and you end up having to put it on very very low so you don’t accidentally shine strong light focused .5 to .75 mile away on someone/some thing, and everything it shines on close range becomes a blinding small point of light. Occasionally when I don’t mind packing much weight on a hike in the dark I’ll take it and use it to spot deer and coyotes in the distance, but that’s rare, and I take another light to actually use for walking around with.
The 100x type light I’d predict you really want based on the “old spotlight” or the TR-S700, they both are a combination of a floody wall of light with a little throw. It should also produce more than double the light of those throwers, but it illuminates a larger wide area. x100 is going to be very long and heavy though, if you are like me you and if you aren’t hiking with it in any case, you wont mind the weight too much, but many do. Another alternative would be if some of the guys here are selling a J19 that is modded soon…should be good combo of throw and flood.
Thanks for the insights, all. B42, you may be right. I suppose I’m looking for a more practical, easily carryable version of the spotlight I have. The spotlight is absolutely plenty bright, but it’s unwieldy.
Totally agree with B42.
The only throw-capable flashlights i have are zoomies, and i zoom them either to play in the fog or to point something without disturbing people in front.
I will strongly recommend floody light, triple LED is a good option.