"Again, with the implication that there's a psychological need. I've explained the actual uses. Thanks for the chat, good meeting everyone, I've gotta go find that Surefire event." Chaosmagnet gets up, shoulders his backpack, and moves towards the exit.

"Chaos magnet, before you go," the MAG-LITE girl asks, "what is the runtime of the Titan Plus?"

"Jeanette," Dr. Ross says, "we are here to reduce our dependence on flashlights."

"My second MAG-LITE has a runtime of eighty hours. I want to know if there is a more efficient flashlight."

Jeanette Isabelle

Thanks, I just came for the coffee. [walks to the back of the room to freshen his cup]

I am willing to change as long as things actually improve, but fewer lights is not necessarily an improvement. I'm not sure why folks think I need help with my flashlight addiction; when I look around the room I see a need to catch up.

That said, I'll be retiring my Fenix L2T soon. I have a Surefire 6P clone with 650 lumen LED that will fill the coyote spotting role. I'm keeping the Fenix L1D, but since the Thrunite TN12 can cover both Low and High output requirements, it will serve as back-up for both of the other lights. So I'll be down to three lights for my morning walks. See, change is good.

The coffee is good too, who made this ... oh, yeah, that would be me

Jeanette follows Russ to the coffee. Before she pours herself a cup of Joe, she turns to Chaosmagnet. "Want some coffee before you leave?"

She helps herself to the decaffeinated coffee and fixes it they way she likes it: extra cream, no sugar.

Jeanette Isabelle

Chaosmagnet stops and waits through this exchange. "The Titan Plus is a keyring flashlight topping out at 300 lumens. On low mode it runs only for seven hours, so not as impressive as it might be in that department."



Chaosmagnet smiles. "No, thank you, I come pre-caffeinated."

Jeanette nods in response to Chaosmagnet's latest comment and looks to Russ. "I really don't see a need to catch up simply because others have more flashlights. I'm not saying this because I have three flashlights. If we were talking about first aid kits, some may say I'm a bit obsessive; that's because building first aid kits is a hobby of mine."

Jeanette Isabelle

That's a subjective judgement; the need to acquire more flashlights is not determined by others having more flashlights, but it does tend to imply that I may not have a flashlight addiction. I'm not seeing the number of lights I have as a problem and I may continue to get additional lights.

Jeanette thinks about what Russ said. "Three flashlights may not be considered a problem according to your logic." She approaches the group with her cup of coffee. "Doctor, briefly you focused on my MAG-LITE PRO. May I ask why?"

"You said you bought the MAG-LITE PRO for no other reason than because Mag Instruments was discontinuing the MAG-LITE PRO." Dr. Ross answers. "Did you feel you would miss out if you did not hurry up and get the MAG-LITE PRO?"

"Yes." Jeanette answers.

"Have you been in a situation where you missed out on an opportunity because, for whatever the reason, the timing did not work out for you?"

"Yes." Jeanette answers.

"You didn't like that feeling, did you?"

"I didn't."

"You made sure you'd never miss out on an opportunity again. Did the MAG-LITE PRO satisfy your expectations?"

"Not really. It was a bit of a let down."

"Are you willing to let go of it?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"Doctor, we're not talking a plastic flashlight from a dollar store that may or may not work. This is a MAG-LITE. As evident by my first MAG-LITE, the lamp will stay on even as it bounces on the concrete."

"So you place value on it?"

"Yes, of course. If you want to buy it from me at fair market value, you can have it. Or, if I know someone who really needs a flashlight, he or she can have it. I'm not tossing it away as if it were some $1 disposable flashlight." Jeanette returns to resume her conversation with Russ. "For the sake of discussion, I have two flashlights. As the doc put it, I still have my first MAG-LITE because I'm holding onto an accident that happened years ago. Therefore, a person may have an issue with as little as two flashlights so numbers really don't mean much."

Jeanette Isabelle

Outside of the "Stories" bounds: IMO, 5 are needed because there is no single ideal flashlight for everyone and everything has been produced so far. But see my 3D printing thread for a possible solution I'm researching. However, I would disagree on a mandatory EDC flashlight backups. A good EDC flashlight should not require a backup. It must be virtually indestructible and warn the user about its power source depletion well in advance (or allow quick and easy battery replacement with an EDC or widely available spare - that's what I prefer; I plan to make a shell for my EDC 1xAA with the spare AA compartment integrated).

Okaaaay... Since I have no problem carrying four flashlights, I certainly don't see an issue with someone having two or three. If someone has a single light that fills all their needs I'm okay with that, it's a subjective call.

OTOH, if you decide to purchase a fourth Mag-Lite or a light from Fenix, 4Sevens, Nitecore, Thrunite or one of the many other quality lights on the market, I would not think it unusual for you to either keep the Mag-Lite for use or box it up and store it away (just in case). IMO you don't have a flashlight problem. I'm not sure any of us have a flashlight "problem".