Truck Flashlight

S

Shann

Joined
Sep 2, 2004
Messages
5,250
What would be a good truck flashlight. Since its in the truck, size and weight don't matter, but brightness, durability and price do. Lets say $50 if possible (it seems that to get a smaller brighter light, the costs go up fast so I hope I'm not being too cheap to think if miniturization isn't a concern, it would be less costly). Right now I've got an old cheap hardware store plastic body batter and every time I use it the batteries are almost dead because its been sitting there forever.

Probably the big thing is battery storage life, since it might be sitting in the truck for a year until it gets needed and it gets cold in the winter here. I suppose one that you can plug into your cig lighter would be good as a rechargeable, but it would be limiting.
 
Get a Nitrol-G (something like that) form Surefire.
It uses 2 CR123 battery that will be good thru winter and summer for at least 3-4 yrs (at least they do in my truck)
 
One of the Streamlight LED or the Surefire LED. They don't take up much room and are plenty bright.
 
Lowe's had 3W LED MagLights, two and three D cell, at the beginning of hurricane season last year for <$15ea.....got a pair, will get another this year if they have the same deal
 
Whatever you get, get something that runs off of lithium batteries. Alkalines absolutely suck for flashlights, especially for what you want it for. Firstly, they can't power high drain devices well for very long. Secondly, they don't work well when it's cold. And thirdly, well, you know how they seem to love to leak when stored in flashlights for a long time.

You don't need to go with a CR123A flashlight. Something that runs on AAs will do fine. You get more energy for the size from a CR123A, but they're expensive and hard to find if you need them in an emergency. There's plenty of AA flashlights out there for under $50. One thing that I'll suggest that people often don't consider is a headlamp. For example, the FenixHL20 (about $35 if you know where to look). Runs on a single AA, 105 max lumens, plus a medium that lasts several hours and a low that'll last for 2-3 days (literally). And since it's a headlamp, you have both hands free, which is great if you're doing repair work or something. If you need something brighter, there's the HP10 that runs on 4 AAs.
 
Get a Surefire G2 from CPF MP for $30 ish, get a box of 12 CR123A cells and throw it in your car. CR123A cells are usually good for about an average of 10 years(depending on the temperature).

I'd have to disagree with Planterz's comment on CR123A cells being hard to find in an emergency, in situations such as a black out, the AA + D cells will be the first to go out of stock, I doubt many people will be in a rush to buy CR123A cells for their cameras(they'll cost like $5 each from local stores though, but better than having no batteries to buy at all).
 
You might look into something like the Icon Rogue. A single AA light but larger than most 1xAA lights so you still have a nice comfy grip even with gloves. Also you can buy lithium AA batteries so storage is not a problem nor is cold temps.

It is true that CR123s can be more difficult to find, just have spares with you ahead of time. I have a scooter with storage space under the seat, I have a Surefire L2 with batteries in it and 6 spare (= 3 sets) all nicely tucked in a Pelican case.

The suggestions above of the SF G2 are excellent. Not very expensive and it is a superb light.
 
Roger999 said:
I'd have to disagree with Planterz's comment on CR123A cells being hard to find in an emergency, in situations such as a black out, the AA + D cells will be the first to go out of stock, I doubt many people will be in a rush to buy CR123A cells for their cameras(they'll cost like $5 each from local stores though, but better than having no batteries to buy at all).
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That's a good point, but I meant less of a disaster situation, and more of a "Honey, the power is out at home, can you pick up some batteries on the way home?" kinda situation, or it's 2 am, you've got a breakdown, and you need to walk 3 miles to the nearest gas station/phone (and back) kinda situation. Any gas station should have some AAs or Ds, but you're not nearly as likely to find CR123As. In fact, the Circle Ks around here seem to be more likely to have CR2s than CR123As for some reason. And they'll cost you $10 a pop. If you're in an area prone for real disasters (hurricane, earthquake, tornado, zombie outbreak), you should have a stockpile of whatever batteries you might need anyway.

Plus when you use common batteries like AAAs or AAs, you can cannibalize from other things if you need to. TV remotes, digital cameras, childrens' toys, (and adult toys...), etc.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not against having CR123A or CR2 flashlights, I own or have owned many. But for the majority of people it's probably best to stick with common battery types.
 
Surefire G2 (incandescent) or G2L (LED - same brightness but longer runtime)
Cheap, almost indestructible, and bright enough to do Car type jobs, and SD/Tactical type stuff too.

They are pretty cheap (for a surefire) and the lithium batteries will last up to 10 years so it will be good to go when you need it.
My wife's car has one in the glovebox (I carry enough lights on me in my car)

And if you get a light that runs on CR123 cells, grab a bunch of cells from somewhere like light hound and a couple of holders.
Keep some spare cells with the light in the car, and a bunch of spares at home in case you need to use the light in a an emergency.

Personally I have around 20 spare 123 cells at home, and a few stashed in both cars.
Most of my lights are running rechargeable cells, but spare cells don't get in the way, and may come in useful one day
 
I picked up a pair of rechargeable Nebo "highbeam" lights that plug into the 12v power point in my truck for me and SWMBO. small, but decent amount of light (35 lumens). Otherwise, I second the headlamp idea.
Another thought is to store the batteries out of the flashlight - not as instant for use, but no chance of damaging it with leakage.
 
Fenix E21. Two AA batteries, 150 lumens on high and 48 lumens on low. $34.95 shipped. Use lithium batts for best output and cold weather storage.

Jeff
 
Having recently lived through the Tornadoes in Alabama and no power for over a week, I can tell you that cash was king, gasoline could not be pumped with no electricity, batteries were scavenged from remotes and cameras, and people basically lived off the land.

The people with kerosene lamps (Dietz) and various Coleman style camping lanterns were the ones with reliable light. That being said, when power and phone service returned, I bought good quality AA lights. Lithium AA's are easy to find so, buy a pack of those for long term storage.
 
Thanks for the ideas. There was a lot of support for AA and AAA powered lights. I figured that their benefit was size and weight which isn't a factor in a truck light rather than longevity and brightness.

The lithium battery reccomendation is a good idea. Thanks. I have lithium in my Fenix; 3 years old and still the same as new with minimal usage.
 
in my truck i have 3D old maglite (more for a weapon than light), quark 2AA mini in the side compartment and a mini mag in the glove box.
 
Shann said:
Thanks for the ideas. There was a lot of support for AA and AAA powered lights. I figured that their benefit was size and weight which isn't a factor in a truck light rather than longevity and brightness.

The lithium battery reccomendation is a good idea. Thanks. I have lithium in my Fenix; 3 years old and still the same as new with minimal usage.
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AAA really isnt ideal for a bright light. now if it was a tiny flashlight AAA should be fine. if i had to pick one size battery it would be an AA. 3 times more powerful than AAA and widely available.
 
I have a 3W LED 4 D-cell Maglite in the truck between the seats, its bright, durable and can be used for breaking windows and defense if necessary.
 
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