Hi everybody,
I am brand new to this. I stumbled onto this sight looking for knives and realized I already carried around alot of the stuff you reccomend for day to day. Very interesting information here. I am just starting to realize how important it is to be prepared and will be assembling my kits soon. What flashlight to you think would be best for a kit. Is the Shurfire one of the best brands to consider. I have maglights, pelicans, and a browning now. But I have a thing with lights, knives, and multi tools................thanks for your thoughts

This site has a section on flashlights look there.

Lee

The first response to your type of question is always: "what are you planning on doing with it?, what is important to you? runtime, brightness, availablity of batteries..."
Flashlights are a whole sub-discipline/obsession/moneypit unto themselves.
check out:


Candlepower forums
flashlightreviews.com
led museum

P.S. Goodluck and hide your wallet.

Marc

That question is like asking which model of SAK is best or which cakiber is best. It bouls down to which one works for the situation or person.

Surefire's are good in their place.

If you want to light up the world you might want one of those multimillion candlepower rechargable spot lights.

If you want to just light up a small corner an led like a Photon.

A 6 D cell maglite will give a tremendous amount of light and act as a billy club. But is hugh and heavy. You are unlikely to carry it for very long.

Generally a good rule of thumb are AA maglite is about the standard maximum size for most kits.

Led's don't quit match the shear light out put of standard bulbs or high power bulbs. They do have the advantage of being much more power effecent and are more rugged.

A good compromise is the multi-bulb headlamp LED units. Good battery life and adiquate light output. Many of the multi-bulb outfits can adjust the number of LED's lit at anyone time so you can adjust the amount of light for the current use. That way you can conserve battery life as most of the operating time you will not need the maximum light available.

It is a balancing act between the weight and amout of light output. Also the longer the batteries last the fewer spares will be needed for the same period of time. Remember those spares quickly add up to weight and bulk.

The "best" flashlight is the one that is most useful to you AND you carry all the time. My personal fave is the Maglite Solitaire - with a mod. The stock bulb is too wimpy for any meaningful use. However, if you replace it with a Tektite LT-3 LED replacement module, its output rivals that of the original AA maglite. Sure - it's a $23.95 upgrade, but it is worth it considering how much light and battery time you squeeze out of that tiny package. Mine rides in the pocket on the side of my TREO 650 case. It is also a great pocket flashlight.
Tektite LT-3

I'm no authority on flashlights, but have played with several. I won't buy non-LED lights anymore, but I just can't justify spending more than $50 or so on a flashlight right now. My needs are related to hiking/camping, walking through unfamiliar areas at night, and lighting up my work area while outdoors. I don't need to blind people 100 yards away. So, here is what I've found works well:

EDC - Ritter customized Photon Freedom - amazingly bright for the size; love the bulb collar.

Carried in my bag - Underwater Kinetics 4AA LED in yellow - bright enough to light up my work area; operates one-handed; runs on regular AA alkalines; non-rolling; bright yellow makes it easier to find; unscrewing the head "locks out" switch.

Headlamp: I like the Princeton-Tec Aurora - 3 LED's; 3 brightness settings plus several flashing modes; light weight; provides a nice flood for my work area --- I also have Princeton-Tec's EOS headlamp. Nice and bright, but the beam is a bit too concentrated for my taste.

I also like the Princeton-Tec Impact XL, but it is turned on by screwing in the head - that means I need two hands to turn it on and that is frustrating at times.

Rock River 1.5W LED Lantern (from Target) - a nice LED lantern for only $20

Avoid the Rock River 1.5W 2C LED light from Target. It looks like a spotlight (bright moon-like circle of light - I don't care for it).

I've also been reading great things about the Rock River .5W LED 2xAAA flashlight at Target

For reviews go to http://www.flashlightreviews.com .

A good flashlight-related forum is http://www.candlepowerforums.com .

Ask youself what you plan on using it for and where. Then try to standardize on one type of battery to make resupply easier. My standards are AA and CR123A's. Since I travel the subways alot, I need a strong light. Also, a strong light is a force option (blinding). Here is what I have:

On me: Streamlight TL-3, Streamlight 3AA 1 Watt Luxeon Tasklight. (Carry extra CR123 batteries as these things go out on you without warning when they run out)

PSK: Princeton Tec Yukon HL (1 watt Luxeon head lamp with 3 secondary LED lights)

B.O.B (sits at home and never sees daylight unless I check on the status of the equipment) 3 LED rechargeable light with built in hand powered crank.

Well, everybody has their opinions. I'll give you mine.

Assuming that are on a reasonable budget, here are the ones that I would look at:

1) Arc AAA light. Perfect keychain light. Around $30 or so. Or, you can get the Gerber Infinity for around $25 or so. The Infinity is dimmer and bigger, but will give you one heck of a run time from one battery.

2) Photons are also good for a keychain, but they take expensive button cells. The lights are cheaper and easier to find, though.

3) Streamlight TT lights. They have xenon bulbs for bright use, and LED's for dimmer, but more efficient running. So you get the best of both worlds, and they are in the neighborhood of $30-$40 or so. I have the one that runs off of a pair of 123 cells, but they come in AA, C and D sizes too.

4) Headlamps are also useful. My favorite is the Princeton Tec - Eos. My local sporting goods store has them for $40. Very nice.

5) If you want a Surefiire, the most affordable one is the G2 Nitrolon. Nice and bright, and only $35 or so.

6) Target has a nice LED lantern using a single LED for around $20.

7) I really like my Princeton Tek Attitude, but ther are other lights that will work equally well. Look at the Underwater Kinetics - eLed and the Streamlight 4AA LED lights.

My list was made with lights under $40 in mind. There are also some great ones in that category that I missed. If your budget will allow you to go up to $100 or so, then a LOT more nice lights open up. For only $250 or so, you can have the very best. One place that I like to buy lights from is http://www.brightguy.com. You can also try http://www.batterystation.com/led_flashlights.htm .

But as others have said, one thing that you might want to do is to choose one or two types of batteries, and stick to the lights that use those. I like 123 cells and AAA cells.

The selection of lights is so great right now, and the quality is so good, that it is hard to choose a bad light (as long as you stick to known name brands).
Note that I am not affiliated with any of these companies that I have mentioned.

surfires are a great brand .. another brand you might take a look at is the streamlights.........

can you tell us for what purpose you'r using/going to use for, how much you want to spend, type of battery, want high powered lights of are less powerfull ones good enough, what size, do you need a momentarily switch, do you need a, for what kind of kit and so on. I could name a few good flashlight bardn and models, no problem. I'm just not sure that it is what your looking for.

i recomment a visit to www.flashlightreviews.com to look for what light fits your need.