Led strobes - or just a blinky bike rear light - are light, cheap, mostly waterproof and run a good long time. And would would be easy to spot at night by searchers & aircraft. What are the plusses and minuses of packing a small strobe in your kit?

Strobes are small and can significantly aid in recovery.

I personally do not see a minus other than weight, and that is not very much.

I carry the ACR Military Distress Marker Strobe, I can get them in my area for around $20-30. They run on AA batteries, and they do not weigh much (about 5 ounces), a little bulky for a pocket kit. They are bright, easy to use and very reliable.

Strobes in the woods are definetly an attention getter.

Most of the higher powered headlamps have a built in strobe function. My personal opinion is spend the few extra dollars that a strobe costs and get a waterproof headlamp with a high lumen output. It would be compact and multiuse. The strobe feature uses little battery power. I've played with my headlamp's strobe feature while camping and it can be seen from a good distance.

I've always planned that Princeton Tec EOS headlamp I carry when out & about outdoors has a blinking mode that is rated for giving blinks of the highest brightness for 116 hours on a fresh pair of AA batteries, so I've always figured I could use that.

The only negative is that it is somewhat directional ... so it would be best pointed at a target. Something translucent and light colored (patch of white t-shirt/underwear?) could make it viewable 360 degrees, but would decrease the brightness.

I also have a red Rescue Laser, but I don't carry it with me on every trip.

I agree on the efficacy of a strobe, but don't carry a dedicated unit. I too have a Princeton Tec EOS which has a strobe function as do several other headlamps. But for EDC, all of our family members carry Photon Freedom Micro LED keychain lights in multiple places (keys, zipper pulls, etc.). The Photons include a SOS mode and carrying several provides redundancy. The Photons are not waterproof however we've soaked them many times and when they dry out they work again. The brighter the better but there is anecdotal news that even the weakest light source can be effective - remember the story of the climber aiming his cell phone display at a search helicopter who did spot it? And we know a flashing source is more effective than a steady light.

My high-end LED flashlights all have a strobe mode, and there's such a flashlight in our two main kits (and one in my pocket, and one in my laptop bag, and so on). I also have a pair of dedicated military-style strobes in our main kits. I wouldn't necessarily buy one but since I already had them I put them in.

What's nice about having dedicated strobes is that you can put them where they can be seen and let them run, without losing your ability to see and move around in the dark.

I am a big fan of the ACR 4F strobe. I carried one for years during SAR operations, using them fairly regularly, and they worked flawlessly to alert choppers and other rescuers to our location. I have also carried them when sea kayaking in a pocket of my PFD. They are great tools, but they are a bit specialized and somewhat heavy for most recreational trips.

A good many lights now incorporate a strobe function, but most of them are not as bright as the 4F. I have an EOS and its strobe is way better than nothing, but it doesn't appear to be in the same league as the 4F. Brighter is better. A good many of the bike units probably aren't bright enough,judging from what I see when out at night.

Okay, confession time -- I like hotlinks.

Not being that familiar with the ACR lights I checked their website and found the MS-2000 Military-Spec Strobe Light is the light mentioned by Montanero; it's the only one that mentions Combat Search and Rescue.

Another option for those looking for something lighter would/could be the Planet Bike Superflash Stealth Rear Bike Light They advertise 1 mile visibility which should be plenty.

You want hotlinks - I give you hotlinks:

http://www.acrartex.com/products/catalog/rescue-and-distress-lights/firefly3/

I didn't scrounge around for links to the 4F;I believe it is no longer in production, although there is a lively commerce in providing updated batteries (usually lithium rather than the original mercury battery).

The equivalent evidently is the firefly 3.

One thought about strobe lights carried for hiking and outdoor use. Chances are we will be more likely to deploy them for some travel incident relative to a hiking trip - indicating your presence while changing a tire on the side of the highway, for instance. I would be interested in the opinions of experts here on the forum - wouldn't a red filter be more appropriate for such highway related use? At close range,the white light of a Firefly 3 or a 4F is likely to be too disconcerting. Opinions?

eGear(maker of the PICO light) makes a strobe that can be worn on a watch band.It is called the GUARDIAN.Run time in strobe mode is 250 hours and one hundred hours in steady on mode.Something the size of a watchband compass and only $12.95 is a no brainer.

BOATMAN
John