Another EDC flashlight thread (with poll!)

[Clip]

Hey guys,

Looking to add a flashlight to the pile of stuff that goes in my pockets each day. The need came about when we lost power one day at work and it got awful dark in the office, real quick. I used my phone's flash as a flashlight but that's like using your key as a knife.

So a loose set of qualifications the light has to meet:

Needs to take one AA/CR123A/14500/16340 cell
Needs to be small as possible so as to be unobtrusive in the pocket
So-called 'moonlight modes' appeal to me, around 0.1Lm
Really bright modes have their uses too, like impressing friends

90% of the time this light will be on low or medium, so I'd like it to have an LED that is possibly high CRI or at least neutral instead of white/bordering on blue. Price isn't too much of and I'd like to see a ridiculously bright mode for the same reason I buy knives with extreme steels. Not that I'll ever push them to the limits, but it's fun to carry around.

I've found five lights that seem to fit these qualifications, three with a twist/magnetic control ring and the fourth a simple push button. The ring seems like an intuitive feature, but I've heard it does drain some power on low settings unlike a traditional switch. Zebralight seems to have fought back with an intuitive user interface though.

I've added a poll to get opinions on these four lights, but I'd like to keep the choices narrowed down if possible. Let's hear your thoughts!

Sunwayman V11R
http://www.sunwayman.com/html/products/201203/87.html

Sunwayman M11R
http://www.sunwayman.com/html/products/201202/79.html

Niteye EYE10
http://www.niteyelight.com/product/?type=detail&id=58

Jetbeam RRT01
http://www.jet-beam.com/links/pro/rrt01.aspx

Zebralight SC80c (or SC80w)
http://www.zebralight.com/SC80c-AACR...-CRI_p_85.html

[BigBill5953]

I'd take a look at a Fenix LD01. It comes with a clip that I find very useful for clipping to my back pocket instead having it sitting loose in my pocket.

[sharpguitarist]

Hey Clip,
I have a photon light attached to a necklace that I wear. Its with me always. It's come in handy more times than I can count.
The pocket light that I carry is a Coastal brand aa, that I bought at Auto zone for @ $12.99.
It puts out 50 lumen and is suspended from the top of my rfp with a clip that I made. An o-ring at the top of the clip makes for very easy removal when I need the light.
Later,
Don

[Blerv]

You're typicially going to get penalized for high CRI in lumens. With rcr123 or imr16340 voltage you can get quite bright. I have a Hi CRI Peak Logan that does about 200 (maybe a tad more) on a hot charge. The advantage being a ton of modes from sub-moonlight to max with a twist.

I don't know much about Sunwayman but adore Zebralight's UI.

[Clip]

Thanks for the thoughts guys. Billy, the ones linked have clips as well but I'll probably be carrying it 50/50 in pocket/clipped.

Blake, that's what it looked like based on Zebralight's SC80 specs. In your opinion, is the high CRI worth it? From what I've read it shows things with a more natural color balance.

[Blerv]

I adore high CRI because frankly the average 150+ lumen edc is bright enough for everything you would want. Plus they are extremely bright compared to the average light your friends would have. My average use is .01(or less)-50 lumens. High CRI are often warm too so they look almost incandescent and not quite as snazzy as the cool whites to the unlearned. They are softer on the eyes though.

I have a neutral Macs Custom (sst-50) which is about 500 out the front. Frankly tho the Zebra and Logan are used more. Low modes and control, IMHO, are the most useful. If you want a scorcher I would get a cool white in a cheap p60 host and run it off am IMR 16340. I can PM you details but about 6-700 lumens for $50 and a tactical bezel.

Edit: sorry, to answer I have the SC51w and wish it was high CRI. IMHO anything over 100 lumens is blinding in a dark room and ZL has the UI to beat but haven't experienced the others. If you don't mind the tint you could always get a XML like those mentioned. The SC600w (Zebralight) is the smallest 18650 battery I know of, 600-700 lumens, moonlight and neutral tint.

[bdblue]

My EDC used to be a Fenix P1 which is their first single-CR123 light and uses a Luxeon LED with just one intensity setting. Current P models are much brighter for the same battery. I had a lot of Streamlight, Nuwaii and Pelican 2XCR123 lights that are now obsolete due to current lights with Cree LED's so I bought myself a new Fenix PD32 2xCR123 light. It is very bright and smaller than some of my older lights. It fits in my jeans pockets just fine but with all of my other EDC stuff I needed a smaller light so I bought a Fenix LD01 for that. The LD01 has very good output for a small light and is very small, barely larger than a single AAA battery.

[Pockets]

I EDC an EagleTac D25C Mini with a twisty switch, although the newer, brighter one has a clicky switch. It does 209 OTF on high for up to an hour on one CR123. When you turn it on, it starts on low and gets brighter with each twist. It has a bunch of extra, flashy modes as well.

[The Deacon]

My needs and preferences are different, so my choice probably wouldn't work well for you, but the light I carry, when I carry a flashlight, is a Fenix TK11.

[Blerv]

I took some quick iPhone pics to demonstrate a Cree XP-G High CRI compared to a Cree XP-G neutral white. The XP-G High CRI seems quite warm and prob in that 2700-3700k range. The Rebel LED used by Zebralight is quite a bit cooler (quoted 4200k) which is likely the reason it has decent lumen output.




On low-medium brightness just to get a good feel on color comparison. Prob 50ish lumens. I have the Zebralight S51W (on left) which is "neutral" but pretty close (4500k) to the 80 High CRI version from the same company. On the right is a Peak Logan 123 High CRI.


The next two pictures show a variety of lights with XP-G High CRI LED's but different optic/reflector sizes. The smaller the head (relative to the LED) the floodier the beam. Put a XP-E R2 in a large head and it throws like crazy, put an XP-G R5 in a Preon and it's almost all flood.





From left to right: Veleno Customs 40DD, Peak Logan 123 (on IMR), Dereelight C2H/Javelin Hybrid (P60 head w/ IMR), Macs Custom SST-50 EDC- Please disregard.




Beamshot of 40DD. Notice the almost all flood.



Logan 123 with an IMR16340. Pretty dang bright and comparable beam to a Quark or Zebralight flashlight without a turbo head.



The Dereelight with a P60 sized drop-in has a huge reflector. More spot, less flood.


Cruddy pictures but hope it gives another perspective on throw vs flood and neutral (or cool) vs High CRI/Warm.


Cheers,

[nullity]

I vote the Zebralight SC80 because of the brightness control interface, high-cri option, and the ability to take AA and cr123.

If you use your lights outdoors, high-cri should be of interest to you. I have trouble judging distance with a low-cri LED, especially in thicker foliage.
Also, if you choose Zebralight, their high-cri LED has a cooler color (4000K) than most high-cri LEDs (~3300K).

The SC80 is at the top of my list, and I don't make poor choices...

[Clip]

Guys, thanks for all the input. Blake, appreciate the beamshots. That Logan 123 looks like an interesting light. Null, now that you mention it I have been bugged by the cool output on my current flashlights and how it affects depth/color.

[phillipsted]

I'm a Four Sevens fan myself. I've got several of their lights and really like their durability, features, and performance.

TedP

[WMR]

I started with a Fenix LD01 but found it got pretty hot if left on for a few minutes. I now use a Fenix E15. The battery is a bit more costly but I like the size.

[Blerv]

I started with a Fenix LD01 but found it got pretty hot if left on for a few minutes. I now use a Fenix E15. The battery is a bit more costly but I like the size.

Almost all lights these days will get hot if left on max brightness, especially if not held by a naked hand. Your blood acts as a heat-sink and actually keeps the light cooler. Aluminum lights dissipate heat the best but still warm up quick if left on high sitting on a table.

There are exceptions. Lights with larger heads or extremely robust heat-sinking (like heavy customs) can blast out tons of light on high and remain cool for a very long time. With various modes and the average powerhouse EDC's runtime it's not a huge issue; most folks don't go full power for very long.

[NoFair]

I have a V11R (high CRI) with an extender so one can use any of the cells listed in your post (if you bore out the extender a bit you can also use 17500 li-ions). Great light and not too expensive, warmly recommended

For long term use (hiking etc.) I prefer larger lights (mostly Surefires)

[JD Spydo]

When I got 2 of my Surefires replaced that got stolen from me a while back I was totally blown away with how the Surefire E2d Defender had improved.

They went to an LED setup on the newest rendition of the E2d Defender and the price was so high I just about passed on it.

Well to make a long story short the guy who was replenishing what I got stolen told me to just go ahead and get the unit I wanted to make me happy.>>> and boy did it make me happy.

The Surefire E2d Defender is now my most favorite flashlight by a long shot. For it's size it's one helluva flamethrower. I even like it better than my Surefire L7 that I also got replaced. The L7 is one of the bigger Surefire LED units that runs on "rechargable" batteries. And it's a very respectable, dependable unit.

But this newer E2d Defender is truly the very best flashlight on the market for it's size that I've found. Oh I'm going to check out some of these other units that you all are talking about and I'll probably add one of the more less expensive units to my arsenal.

But the Surefire E2d Defender is my ultimate favorite until I see someone come out with something better.

[FroOchie]

I'm a Four Sevens fan myself. I've got several of their lights and really like their durability, features, and performance.

TedP

I'm with Ted, I have the Preon P2 R5 and a Quark AA2 that I use in my bug out bags and they're really high quality impressively bright little lights.

[MachSchnell]

I'm a Four Sevens fan myself. I've got several of their lights and really like their durability, features, and performance.

TedP

Yea, I have a preon 2 and got one for my dad for Christmas. They're great and mighty powerful and a little bit thicker than a pen. Went swimming by accident with it and it still worked, I even turned it on and left it in the shallow end for a few mins... dried it off and it was also dry inside, and it still works to this day . Only quarrel is that when it is carried in pant pockets it sometimes turns on. Not bad for a $40-$45 light.

[FroOchie]

Yea, I have a preon 2 and got one for my dad for Christmas. They're great and mighty powerful and a little bit thicker than a pen. Went swimming by accident with it and it still worked, I even turned it on and left it in the shallow end for a few mins... dried it off and it was also dry inside, and it still works to this day . Only quarrel is that when it is carried in pant pockets it sometimes turns on. Not bad for a $40-$45 light.

I never really EDC'd my lights, though they've always been available since I keep one in my car and one in my get home bag. Since this thread I figured it out and like you said, I find the light turns on inadvertently which is annoying. I can't find a new tail cap so instead I just unscrew it a bit and then tighten it when I have to use it.