Flashlights for 72 hour kits around $40 and under

wildmanh

wildmanh

Part time Leather Bender/Sheath maker
Joined
Jul 9, 2000
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Hi guys, I need to come up with a couple recommendations for flashlights around $50 and under to be used in 72 hour kits.

Requirements:
LED
1 hour+ run time - preferably longer if possible
Accept Lithium batteries (AAA, AA or CR123a)
$50 or less (changed the price and forgot to change the thread tittle before posting)

So far my list includes the following:

Fenix EO1 - $12.50 (going gear)
Fenix E20 - $35.00 (going gear)
Fenix LD01 - $41.95 (going gear)
Fenix TK20 - $53.50 (Going Gear)
Fenix headband light holder - $19.99 (Going Gear)

Inova X1 - $19.50 (New Graham)
Inova X5 - $39.93 (New Graham)

Surefire G2 – $35.10 (New Graham)
Surefire G3 – $53.10 (New Graham)
IPT C7 R/T - 39.95 (KSF)
IPT C8 R/T - 45.95 (KSF)
IPT C9 R/T - 39.95 (KSF)

Coleman Cree XR-E - $24.88 (walmart)

Dorcy lights (Walmart )


What other lights would you guys recommend? This is for a college group that I'm helping put together 72 hour kits. Thanks,

Heber
 
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Surefire G2's run about $35 or so and are pretty good. I'm not sure how the runtime fits into your requirements though.
 
Hammer27 said:
Surefire G2's run about $35 or so and are pretty good. I'm not sure how the runtime fits into your requirements though.
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Hammer thanks for the recommendation. How's the light hold up to banging around in a pack for long periods of time? I prefer LED lights because there is no bulb to replace. But if this light is strong enough (I think it is I'd just like to hear some experiences with it) I'll add it to my list.

Heber
 
I personally think the Going Gear options are the best ones (I also sell iTP, btw). :D

I think I have owned every light on the list, the Inovas multiple times over.

I'd advise going with one that has multiple levels of brightness. On average, most lights will give you about 1 hour of battery life per battery on the brightest level. The ones that have multiple levels will give you more like 20 hours of battery life per battery, which is very useful in many situations. I use the lower levels on my lights far more often than the brightest, especially when my eyes are accustomed to less light at night.

Of the choices there, the LD01 and X1 are the smallest. They both have minimal reflectors, so you will not light up something 100 yards away, but they will be just fine for lighting up anything in your area. The LD01 uses digital regulation, so you will be able to adjust the brightness level to a few preset levels vs. no levels on the X1.

If you want something larger that is capable of putting out more light, the iTP lights are great little flashlights. The ergonomics are awesome, and the adjustable brightness is very useful. Being able to set the brightness instead of sticking with their preset levels is a cool feature that I wish more manufacturers would adopt. Of the two types, I would recommend the T series over the R, unless you have a need for the strobe and SOS functions.

I would say go with the C7T (AA batteries) and maybe the extra body tube for the C8. I don't think I have sold a single iTP C7, C8, or C9 without at least one optional body tube. It's nice that they give you the option to get the tubes to use different batteries instead of having to buy whole flashlights. I wouldn't go with the C9 just because of the cost of batteries, unless you are going to be operating in extreme temps, can get CR123s cheap, or plan on using rechargeable lithiums.
 
I would pick a Fenix over the other ones. As was mentioned it has several brightness levels with strobe and SOS. I has high quality components and better run times than others.
 
rookie4real said:
I would pick a Fenix over the other ones. As was mentioned it has several brightness levels with strobe and SOS. I has high quality components and better run times than others.
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Thanks Rookie4real for your input. The Fenix lights look really good for the money. I'll be trying some out as soon as I can afford them. :)

storl said:
I personally think the Going Gear options are the best ones (I also sell iTP, btw). :D

I think I have owned every light on the list, the Inovas multiple times over.

I'd advise going with one that has multiple levels of brightness. On average, most lights will give you about 1 hour of battery life per battery on the brightest level. The ones that have multiple levels will give you more like 20 hours of battery life per battery, which is very useful in many situations. I use the lower levels on my lights far more often than the brightest, especially when my eyes are accustomed to less light at night.

Of the choices there, the LD01 and X1 are the smallest. They both have minimal reflectors, so you will not light up something 100 yards away, but they will be just fine for lighting up anything in your area. The LD01 uses digital regulation, so you will be able to adjust the brightness level to a few preset levels vs. no levels on the X1.

If you want something larger that is capable of putting out more light, the iTP lights are great little flashlights. The ergonomics are awesome, and the adjustable brightness is very useful. Being able to set the brightness instead of sticking with their preset levels is a cool feature that I wish more manufacturers would adopt. Of the two types, I would recommend the T series over the R, unless you have a need for the strobe and SOS functions.

I would say go with the C7T (AA batteries) and maybe the extra body tube for the C8. I don't think I have sold a single iTP C7, C8, or C9 without at least one optional body tube. It's nice that they give you the option to get the tubes to use different batteries instead of having to buy whole flashlights. I wouldn't go with the C9 just because of the cost of batteries, unless you are going to be operating in extreme temps, can get CR123s cheap, or plan on using rechargeable lithiums.
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Storl, I was hoping you would post. Thank you for the recommendation for the C7T. It looks like a great little light. I'm thinking about buying a C7T and a C8T for my self in the near future. I really like my Inova X5 but think for $5 more the C8T is the way to go.

BTW I'm compiling this list for my church group. I'm on an Emergency Preparedness committee and my job is to help the college students in my apartment complex be prepared for emergencies. Thats one of the reasons why Price is an issue, I want my fellow students to have quality lights at an affordible price.

If anyone knows of some good lights avaliable at K-Mart, Wal-Mart, Target and the like, feel free to post them. Thanks,

Heber
 
I would suggest a Fenix LD10 instead of the LD01, even though it's just a couple of bucks more than $50.

Consider the comparison:
-----------------------Brightness (lumens) -------------Runtime (hrs)----------
LD01 ----------------10/27/80---------------------------8.5/3.5/1---------------
LD10 ----------------9/47/94/120-----------------------34/6/2.2/1.5-----------

As an EDC light, the LD01 excels, but the LD10 uses the highly available AA battery, and will give you up to 34 hours of light. Plus, it doesn't use PWM for brightness regulation, so the lower modes will not flicker (if you're sensitive to that sort of thing). It also has the strobe function, that works wonders for signaling people. Finally, you can purchase a 2xAA body for the LD10 and double your runtime (for the lower modes) while increasing the brightness to nearly 200 lumens for the turbo mode.

For a bag, I think it's a much better light. That being said, you can't go wrong with any of the Fenix lights.
 
wildmanh said:
Thanks Rookie4real for your input. The Fenix lights look really good for the money. I'll be trying some out as soon as I can afford them. :)



Storl, I was hoping you would post. Thank you for the recommendation for the C7T. It looks like a great little light. I'm thinking about buying a C7T and a C8T for my self in the near future. I really like my Inova X5 but think for $5 more the C8T is the way to go.

BTW I'm compiling this list for my church group. I'm on an Emergency Preparedness committee and my job is to help the college students in my apartment complex be prepared for emergencies. Thats one of the reasons why Price is an issue, I want my fellow students to have quality lights at an affordible price.

If anyone knows of some good lights avaliable at K-Mart, Wal-Mart, Target and the like, feel free to post them. Thanks,

Heber
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http://www.walmart.com/catalog/product.do?product_id=10196618

AAA batteries
115 lumens
6hr run time

I have one and its surprisingly bright
 
wildmanh said:
Thanks for the information! That light is definantly with in a college students budget. :thumbup:

I've seen Victorinox flashlights in a bunch of kits recently. Where does one find them and how much do they cost? What are the specs?

Heber
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It is physically impossible for a 3xAAA light to output 115 lumens for 6 hours.

115 lumens requires about 500mA of current into a Q5 cree. Assuming that each AAA battery has a capacity of 750mAh... the efficiency of the battery carrier is 95% due to resistance, and the efficiency of the circuit is 80%, the total capacity of the battery set will be 1710 mAh. At 500mA, this will power the light for a maximum of 3.42 hours. Even assuming that the efficiency is 100% (which it never is), there's still only enough energy to power the light for 4.3 hours.

Therefore, it is clear that the runtime is GROSSLY inflated. It is highly likely that this light (being a 4.5V system) will NOT be current regulated, and will begin to dim within minutes of being turned on. I have a lot of experience with cheap Chinese lights, and what you will likely get is a light that will be bright for 30 minutes, will dim to below 50% within 1 hour, and will be equivalent to a minimag or less from 1hr to 6hrs.

On the other hand, the nicer lights (which includes the better Chinese lights like Fenix and Olight) are current-regulated, and will retain their brightness during nearly the entire runtime. Furthermore, Fenix states their runtimes as being until the 50% brightness point.
 
I'm a bit of a flashlight addict. I highly recomend the Nitecore line. You can get them here https://www.4sevens.com/product_info.php?cPath=93&products_id=708

The EX10 is my keychain light. It is extrememly high quality and affordable. It's a better flashlight than any of my Inovas, or Surefires or the like in the same size and is made really well. It uses one CR123 battery. It has a digital dimmer so you can dim the light anywhere from 100% max to 1% Min. Instead of having two or three settings this thing literally has 100 brightness settings. And the Min setting will last for around 65 hours. And a light that is about the size of a 12ga shotgun shell that will toss out 145 lumens for nearly two hours running on only one battery impressed me to no end. I've beat the crap out of mine and it still runs like a champ. It's a little more expensive than what you're looking for but it's well worth the consideration.
 
What kind of emergency are you preparing for? If there's a power failure I'd rather have a cheap Dorcy that gets 12 hours of light out of a single AAA, plenty bright enough to read by, than anything that's only going to last an hour no matter how bright it is.

On the other hand if you hear a noise off in the woods and you want to see if it's a bear or what, that's when you need a bright light.
 
If there is a Target near you... They started putting all the old tactical Energizer lights on clearance a few weeks ago. I grabbed several of the 2 AA models at 6 and change and then 3 and change. I'd estimate at least 3 hours of bright light with them. They were in luxeon 1 and the rebel emitters. Worth checking out your nearest store although I think probably most would be out of stock.


Considering the kit is for college kids, most likely they'll be indoors and not out and about exploring. Really, an Inova x1 puts out an amazing amount of light when its completely dark. Battery lifetime is good too. Or a Fenix E01. Both can be had for under $20.
 
wildmanh said:
Storl, I was hoping you would post. Thank you for the recommendation for the C7T. It looks like a great little light. I'm thinking about buying a C7T and a C8T for my self in the near future. I really like my Inova X5 but think for $5 more the C8T is the way to go.

BTW I'm compiling this list for my church group. I'm on an Emergency Preparedness committee and my job is to help the college students in my apartment complex be prepared for emergencies. Thats one of the reasons why Price is an issue, I want my fellow students to have quality lights at an affordible price.

If anyone knows of some good lights avaliable at K-Mart, Wal-Mart, Target and the like, feel free to post them. Thanks,

Heber
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The department stores have some nice lights, for sure. You will get CREE LEDs, just not the best and the brightest and usually no current regulation. WalMart does have a series from Duracell that looks pretty nice and have multiple levels, but I haven't bought any myself, so I can't say for sure if they are good or not. I'm sure CPF has a million posts on them.
 
I second the NiteCore recommendation, i have the D10 and its amazing. the easy to use UI has 100 levels of brightness from 3 lumens up to 145, with lithium primaries you can get 1.5 hours on high, and some of the tests on CPF show over 100 hours on lowest setting, which still provides enough light to see where you're going or read a book in the dark. read up on the D10 at 4sevens, its worth the extra 9 bucks.

edit: the D10 runs on a single AA, while the EX10 runs on a single CR123, also their newest model the EZAA is coming out very soon, its a simple twist-activated single AA light with 2 settings, low (15 lumens for 20 hours) and High (130 lumens 1.5 hours). I like to buy from 4sevens because they back their fenix and nitecore lights with a lifetime warranty through their website, and shipping is free.
 
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For a 72hr kit, definitely go with a light that has variable output and a long running low. Like suggested above, the Nitecore EX10's a great choice since it uses a single CR123A with a shelf life of 10 years. The new R2 version can put out 145 lumens for almost 2 hours!
 
Sevorius said:
I like to buy from 4sevens because they back their fenix and nitecore lights with a lifetime warranty through their website, and shipping is free.
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I think 4sevens is the only place you can buy Nitecore. I read somewhere they have an exclusive American Distributorship. Even if they weren't, they're great folks and take care of their customers.
 
Gents, thanks so much for the help. If you think of other lights for a college students 72 hour kit please feel free to post.

So far I have 12 flashlights $50 or so and under on my list. After all your input I've found a few lights I might want to get my self. :thumbup:

Heber
 
wildmanh said:
Gents, thanks so much for the help. If you think of other lights for a college students 72 hour kit please feel free to post.

So far I have 12 flashlights $50 or so and under on my list. After all your input I've found a few lights I might want to get my self. :thumbup:

Heber
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Another option if these kits must be inexpensive, is the good old Fenix E01. Yes it's dim relative to something like an LD10, or even LD01... however, these lights are UNDER $20, and can use regular old AAA batteries (remember - the high output lights require Energizer lithium cells or NiMH rechargeables to get anywhere NEAR their runtime) to get ~10hours of undimming light.
 
Infi-del said:
I think 4sevens is the only place you can buy Nitecore. I read somewhere they have an exclusive American Distributorship. Even if they weren't, they're great folks and take care of their customers.
Click to expand...

They do have the exclusive North American distributorship, but there are several dealers for Nitecore out there that get their product from 4sevens.
 
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