Head lamps

[SoJer]

What do you have and why? ...A light that needs to be charged is useless in an emergency.

I need a lamp that uses regular AAA batteries. ...Standard 3a batteries can be stored for a couple years and be ready instantly.

Well... I've gone thru the plethora of 'cheap' options, and.. For the most part, sure - they're good for awhile, but.. I found that most of the 'plastic-body' ones just weren't worth the squeeze. Now - the 'cream that rose to the Top' - IMO / E - are the following:

- 'WowTac' A2S, ie: https://www.amazon.com/Headlamp-Headlight-Rechargeable-Waterproof-Headlamps/dp/B071HW5XQH/

..Excellent light, Love the 'quick disconnectability' from the headband, 'Smart USB 18650' (no need for a Separate charger) several Helpful 'modes' (ie: 'Firefly' is Great.. and Important to have..) quickly angle-adjustable, etc.. IMO, IF ya can Find one.. Snag it. 👍


re: 'But they Drain / you need to recharge them before use / might be Useless'-concern, well... What I Do, is put a small tab of like 'Post-It note' over the Neg terminal of the Batt - Inside the light-body - So that a 'parasitical trickle-loss' Cannot occur.. I have stored these things (sometimes / in certain Kits..) for a Year+ like that - and Fully expected to find them 'drained' when I went to use 'em, but.. Nope - Hot and Ready to Work.

Since those seem to have 'gone out of Production', tho, a Nice 'runner up', is the O-Light (I know, I know.. 'Chinaware'.. But, at least O-Light does make Solid products.. 👍) 'Perun' / Perun-Mini: https://www.amazon.com/OLIGHT-Headlamp-Flashlight-Rechargeable-Headlight/dp/B0BG116J8K/?

..Same comments: VERY Bright / Multi-mode, Compact, and - though the 'USB Mag-charger' is sort of a 'Pro/Con' design (if you Lose the specialized cable, yer kinda fricked (vs a 'Standard' USB-mini / C, etc) but.. I just ordered 2x 'spare cables' for Any O-Lights, and thus, bada-bing.. 👍

My 'All Time Favorite', though, was the O-Light 'Wave' H16..

..No 'specialized cable' (USB-mini) to recharge, quick angle-to-work, Multi-mode brightness, Batt lasted a LONG time / Kept the charge, etc - but the Best Feature - the 'sensor mode', where you literally just 'wave' yer hand in front of it, to Turn it On / Off.. (but only at a Certain 'speed' - rapid movements / objects going by (ie: tree branch, etc) would Not accidentally trigger it - it is Great. (and, there were a Lot of 'bad reviews' out there, but.. I never had Any of the issues people seem to gripe about, and I've got 3x (from ~2015/16) and they All still work Great, so... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯


Again, IMO, IF ya can find - Snag. 👍 PS - They Do seem to have a 'successor' now EDIT: Links seem to be borked - Just enter the Item #, alone, to find these two if the Links don't work...) https://www.ebay.com/itm/165792241222 ..and a slightly cheaper 1K Lumen one (which is Plenty Bright for most work..) https://www.ebay.com/itm/355573072306 ..and Both look to have the Same Great feature sets (hand-wave On / Off (or just Brightness?) Multi-mode Brightness.. and a built-in Red-LED Option.. At Some point, I'll prolly snag one / report back on 'Performance vs the Promise' 👍

re: AAAs, well.. I hear ya, Sir, but.. IMO / E.. that, Too, must be 'navigated carefully / watchfully'.. Nothing like going to check on One cache of ~ 5yo Batts (with a "10 Yr Shelf-Life Guarantee" that, well.. I'll let the Pic do the talking:

yah.. (and Yes, they Were 'stored properly', cool / dark, etc)

Point being: Non-Rechargeables Can 'bite ya in the butt', too.. (at least 'Ray-O-Vac' Quickly made-good on their 'Guarantee' - Lost about 1/2 of those 2x 30 paks - ended up with 2x 45 paks, Same 'Price' (Coupon value they sent) Deffo gotta keep tabs on Non-rechargeables, too, though..

Fwiw..
jd

 

[Peanut]

My day pack stays in my truck. I only carry it once a month, maybe. Most of the plants I harvest are within 100yrds of where I park my truck, no need to carry a pack, just a side arm. A few places I go require a long hike and I carry the pack on such occasions. It contains basic emergency medical gear, water filtration, cordage, a fixed blade and hatchet, fire starting kit, rain gear and head lamp. (and a mtn house meal)

Seems a couple times a year I bring the pack in the house to replace items or have upgrades. I always check the batteries stored in the pack while I have it open. Year over year alkaline batteries have proven to require the least amount of time and effort. I've gone a year or more a few times without checking them, never had one lose a charge.

I tried rechargeable batteries about 20yrs ago. They were a continuing annoyance, losing charges or failing out right. They worked fine most of the time but... I simply could not trust them absolutely. In this particular use I need certainty. If I need a light it'll probably be a medical emergency.

I like the Streamlight marsh posted but it uses disc batteries. They are no fuss, no muss but I don't know if they are reliable as alkalines. On the plus side disc batteries take up almost no space and weigh next to nothing. I can carry extra in the pack and never notice so I'm probably gonna go that route.

 

[Hardcalibres]

My day pack stays in my truck. I only carry it once a month, maybe. Most of the plants I harvest are within 100yrds of where I park my truck, no need to carry a pack, just a side arm. A few places I go require a long hike and I carry the pack on such occasions. It contains basic emergency medical gear, water filtration, cordage, a fixed blade and hatchet, fire starting kit, rain gear and head lamp. (and a mtn house meal)

Seems a couple times a year I bring the pack in the house to replace items or have upgrades. I always check the batteries stored in the pack while I have it open. Year over year alkaline batteries have proven to require the least amount of time and effort. I've gone a year or more a few times without checking them, never had one lose a charge.

I tried rechargeable batteries about 20yrs ago. They were a continuing annoyance, losing charges or failing out right. They worked fine most of the time but... I simply could not trust them absolutely. In this particular use I need certainty. If I need a light it'll probably be a medical emergency.

I like the Streamlight marsh posted but it uses disc batteries. They are no fuss, no muss but I don't know if they are reliable as alkalines. On the plus side disc batteries take up almost no space and weigh next to nothing. I can carry extra in the pack and never notice so I'm probably gonna go that route.

Since you like Streamlight, I have several of these:

https://www.streamlight.com/products/detail/sidewinder-compact-ii

They will run on a single CR123A or an AA.

They can be configured to headmount, attached to a pocket or belt or mil helmet or vest.......or whatever you can clip it to.

 

[Peanut]

Since I’ve mention my pack several times I thought I’d give it an endorsement. I have “THE PACK” from Spec-Ops brand.

A great pack I’ve carried more than a decade. Aside from being a little dirty it shows no signs of wear. It can handle heavy or light loads, has pockets within pockets. There’s an optional stiffener with 2 pieces of aluminum flat stock. I use the stiffener insert, helps with heavy loads and keeps the pack open when accessing pockets.

I saw tonight they are a little pricey at $287.95, another $46 for the stiffener. I won 5 of them in a writing contest. Years ago I wrote out my charcoal making process and sent it to Survival blog.com. Mr. JW Rawles sent me $2.5K in prizes. I was shocked that I won his contest, especially since I write so poorly. I had a $1K gift certificate from the Spec-Ops people. Packs were cheaper then so I got 5 packs and a couple more goodies.

Anyway, this is a great pack if you’re in the market. I gave 2 to young family members who needed packs. Have 2 I’ve never used, they still have the tags on them.

https://specops.us/

 

[SoJer]

...I tried rechargeable batteries about 20yrs ago. ...In this particular use I need certainty...

Certainly understand the 'once bitten, twice shy' sentiments Sir P, but.. Fwiw.. "rechargables" have come a Loooong way in 20 yrs.. Today's Lithiums, either Li-Ions or the 'more current' LiPo's, are quite impressive, over those avail. even 10 yrs back (and this is an 'IME' comment' 👍 Might be worth a 'second shot', IMO, but.. That said..

Clearly, any Lights that give you 'Both Options' (to be able to use Alkalines, Lithiums (rechargable or not) or Others, at Your discretion - vs a fixed or 'potted' Batt..) certainly are the Best option. 👍

jd

 

[Digout]

If the light still works to your satisfaction then next time your in Walmart, or similar shop, get yourself some 1 inch elastic band and sew yourself a new headband.

 

[Aerindel]

Its 18650s for me. Nothing compares. I have about a dozen rechargeable 18650 base headlamps, all the same basic design, but different 'brands'....you know what I mean, allibaba specials.

They ALL still work, some are about ten years old now, but after years the elastic wears out, luckily you can get new bands and clips too. Although the design has changed a little over the years, the diameter of the main body is the same so same clips work on all

I've been totally spoiled by them.

My CURRENT favorite is this one:

https://www.temu.com/1pc--340-led-headlamp-type-c-rechargeable-18650-headlight-650-lumens-powerful-head-torch-waterproof-emergency-lantern-for-camping-fishing-hiking-g-601099521293960.html?_oak_mp_inf=EIj9w5um1ogBGiBmMmU2ZDllZWRmN2U0OTZhODEyZGQzZjZmMWU3NGI3ZCCthNWHnTI=&top_gallery_url=https://img.kwcdn.com/product/Fancyalgo/VirtualModelMatting/d7307468974aee2eb06084e972889a71.jpg&spec_gallery_id=601099521293960&refer_page_sn=10009&refer_source=0&freesia_scene=2&_oak_freesia_scene=2&_oak_rec_ext_1=MTI5OA&_oak_gallery_order=1151958740,1714811230,1752857409,443650464,608914682&search_key=18650 headlamp&refer_page_el_sn=200049&_x_sessn_id=ao2487j092&refer_page_name=search_result&refer_page_id=10009_1725787621049_rhfib0hous

 

[Peanut]

Worn out strap or not... it was time to upgrade. You folks talked me into the rechargeable route.

I went with another Streamlight, the ProTac 2.0 model. A little pricey at $100, more than I wanted to pay. But, if it lasts as long as my streamlight Argo it'll be money well spent.

It has 3 brightness settings, high, med, low. Low is about 110 lumens and runs for 25hrs before recharging. High is 2000 lumens and runs 2.5hrs on a charge. Med is 650 lumens with 5hr runtime.

It's a little heavy at 10oz, has 2 kinds of straps, i can use the rubber or elastic. The battery has a charge light on it, red or green and can't be over charged (usb-C). Battery can be charged in the unit or out. The housing is aluminum with o-ring seals and fine threads on caps, seems very well made.

 

[Mountain trapper]

I've got several older head lamps, but would like to update to a new LED rechargeable type. I think I'll order one like Peanut mentioned above. That way if I don't like it I'll have someone to blame.

 

[joel]

I've got several older head lamps, but would like to update to a new LED rechargeable type. I think I'll order one like Peanut mentioned above. That way if I don't like it I'll have someone to blame.

I agree, getting the cheap one he had a link too.
Might be a good Christmas gift, too.

 

[Peanut]

Okay, just watched a video then took the protac 2 for a test drive. I had to watch a Utub video because the documentation is very poor. A bottle of aspirin has more detailed instructions. The hlamp has 3 modes of operation.

Taps and Clicks are confusing. Basically a 'Tap' is pressing the button so the light comes on but not so far it 'clicks' and stays on. A Tap must be completed in less than .4 seconds. Won't bore everyone with a poor explanation... if you buy one watch a video. Then the Taps and Clicks make sense. Taps and clicks change modes and setting within modes. Suffice to say...

Mode 1 or default mode. The light setting cycles High-Medium-Low

Mode 2) High only

Mode 3) is the reverse of mode 1. Low-Medium-High

I changed the light to mode 3. When I turn the light on with a click its at the low light setting or 110 lumens. It doesn't blind me like turning it on in high mode. 2000 lumens ruined my night vision. Turning it on in the low setting isn't such a shock to my eyes and doesn't interfere with low flying aircraft. 😁

Tonight I walked through mature timber with no problem on the low setting. At the medium setting I could walk through brush with no problem.

I have no idea why i would ever need the high setting. Maybe to perform surgery or thread a sewing machine while it was running. 🤣 2000 lumens is a lot of light!

But I'm happy with the purchase so far. It's a serious headlamp and performed perfectly. Very well made, at 10oz it's built like a tank. Built to last for years of daily use.

 

[LadyLocust]

I just grabbed a couple more. Last time I grabbed the ones that that had the red light and the strobe light and the regular light. I had to click through all 3 to get the stinkin light- so I knew which kind I didn’t want.

 

[Peanut]

Update on the Streamlight ProTac 2. I've used it every night for the past 9 days. I feed the calf after dark, the dog, sometimes investigate disturbances around the farm. Still running on the initial charge but I use it on the low setting. Only once did I need the high setting which probably blinded the poor raccoon in the pecan tree. 🤣 I could see him clearly from 50yrds away.

The 10oz weight took a little getting used too but I no longer noticed it. I'm very happy with the light.

 

[Haertig]

Since posting previously in this thread that I was not in the market for a new headlamp, I now find that I am (or might be). The other night while walking at night with my wife it tripped over a piece of raised concrete sidewalk (a good 2" heave) that tripped me and took me down. And I took the wife down too as I went. I didn't see it. There are street lights around here, but it was a darker area blocked by trees and bushes and I was simply blind while walking through it.

No more of that! It's flashlight or headlamp time now. So I pulled out my old headlamp that I mentioned in this thread - a Petzl Tikinna about 15 or maybe even 20 years old. Still works fine. But very old technology and very dim. Not going to be as much help for walks at night as I remembered it being. I had to really search to find info on the brightness of this ancient headlamp. I finally found it - a massive "23 lumens" on high. Oh wow. Most headlamps these days are 200, 300, 400 or even higher lumens.

I did some testing - walking around with many of the flashlights (not headlamps) that I own of every brightness level known to man. And I surmised that 100 to 200 lumens is the sweet spot for walking in the suburbs at night without looking like an aircraft coming in for a landing. Sure, my 1000+ lumen flashlights lit up the way. And boy, did they. But way overkill for casually walking around on improved terrain.

I have researched many headlamps so far and found that the max lumens they advertise are more or less a joke. They only put out that level for a few minutes, if even that. They they step down to a much lower level due to excessive heat. So really, that 400 lumen headlamp is functionally a 200 or 150 lumen one. You only get those advertised 400 lumens for an exceptionally short period. Which I guess is good if you need that, but I don't. The higher quality headlamps will give you a graph of their brightness over time and that's good info.

Here's an example of a lumen vs. time graph for a Fenix HM23 headlamp:

Gee, that "300 lumen" headlamp doesn't look so great when you only get 300 lumens for a minute or two. I would call the one above a 50 lumen headlamp with some capabilities to go brighter for short periods. And even at the 50 lumen setting, at the two hour point that looks like it will have stepped down to about 20 lumens. About the level of my current ancient headlamp. So their claim of "Up to 300 lumens!" and "Up to 100 hours runtime!" looks pretty bogus. They're not technically lying in their claims, just being pretty misleading IMHO. And this is Fenix BTW, a highly respected light manufacturer.

I don't like the big drop from 300 to 50 in the above headlamp, so that one is out of consideration.

Black Diamond makes an inexpensive one (the "Astro") advertised at three lighting levels: 300 / 150 / 6 lumens. That sounds like a more reasonable light level spread. I'd never use it at its 300 setting (that only lasts for a short time and eats up battery like there's no tomorrow). But that 150 lumen setting, which will drop over time, is right in the middle of my 100 to 200 lumen sweet spot. We have a light worth considering here.

I don't need many features. Forget the silly strobe modes. Forget the red light output - I maybe could have used that back when I was heavy into astronomy, but I have no need for it now. And the fancy flood vs. spot light modes - in general, those might be nice. But my use is for walking on sidewalks in the suburbs. I don't need a spot beam to see 200 yards out in front of me. A wider beam that covers 25 feet would do it.

I don't need built-in rechargeable either. So I'm looking at a AAA light that will work with NiMH or Alkaline. I don't need the power of Li-Ion. I already have a ton of AAA Eneloops and a good charger. Yeah, I will have to take the batteries out of the light to charge them, but I don't really care about that. I've probably got a dozen+ of the batteries now so I can swap out a freshly charged set in seconds. Plus, a built-in rechargeable usually means that when the battery eventually gives up the ghost you have to go buy a whole new headlamp. This is not a problem for heavy headlamp users, but for me, I'll probably keep the headlamp for another two decades so I'd prefer it to run on standard, easily replaceable batteries.

So, ... my headlamp quest begins! So far I am leaning towards that Black Diamond Astro. I looked at the updated version of the Petzl Tikinna that I have the older model of, but ruled that one out for several reasons. The battery replacement door is reportedly atrocious to remove. The headlamp doesn't have a lockout to prevent it from turning on in your pack. It doesn't remember your last mode setting so it always comes on at full brightness. Etc, etc, etc. My friend has and recommends the Streamlight Enduro Pro. I played with his. It has a lot of features and is very cheap. Only thing is, it's kind of big. But for $20-ish you do get spot, flood and red light. I haven't been able to determine if it will run on NiMH yet. But it's definitely larger than the Black Diamond offering.

One last thing that I am considering ... do I really want a headlamp in the first place? They are great when you are working by yourself and need your hands. But for walking in developed areas, usually with other people, you do have the problem of shining the stupid light in their eyes every time you look their way. A handheld flashlight would remedy that concern. And I already have ten bazillion of those in every imaginable lighting level, quality level, size, weight, feature list, etc. So I'm leaning towards the cheaper headlamps, if I end up getting one, simply because I'm not quite sure that I really need one. I just want a new one now. Especially since learning that my ancient one is an anemic 23 lumens - no wonder it didn't work well in my testing.

 

[Peanut]

Since posting previously in this thread that I was not in the market for a new headlamp, I now find that I am (or might be). The other night while walking at night with my wife it tripped over a piece of raised concrete sidewalk (a good 2" heave) that tripped me and took me down. And I took the wife down too as I went. I didn't see it. There are street lights around here, but it was a darker area blocked by trees and bushes and I was simply blind while walking through it.

No more of that! It's flashlight or headlamp time now. So I pulled out my old headlamp that I mentioned in this thread - a Petzl Tikinna about 15 or maybe even 20 years old. Still works fine. But very old technology and very dim. Not going to be as much help for walks at night as I remembered it being. I had to really search to find info on the brightness of this ancient headlamp. I finally found it - a massive "23 lumens" on high. Oh wow. Most headlamps these days are 200, 300, 400 or even higher lumens.

I did some testing - walking around with many of the flashlights (not headlamps) that I own of every brightness level known to man. And I surmised that 100 to 200 lumens is the sweet spot for walking in the suburbs at night without looking like an aircraft coming in for a landing. Sure, my 1000+ lumen flashlights lit up the way. And boy, did they. But way overkill for casually walking around on improved terrain.

I have researched many headlamps so far and found that the max lumens they advertise are more or less a joke. They only put out that level for a few minutes, if even that. They they step down to a much lower level due to excessive heat. So really, that 400 lumen headlamp is functionally a 200 or 150 lumen one. You only get those advertised 400 lumens for an exceptionally short period. Which I guess is good if you need that, but I don't. The higher quality headlamps will give you a graph of their brightness over time and that's good info.

Here's an example of a lumen vs. time graph for a Fenix HM23 headlamp:

View attachment 164618

Gee, that "300 lumen" headlamp doesn't look so great when you only get 300 lumens for a minute or two. I would call the one above a 50 lumen headlamp with some capabilities to go brighter for short periods. And even at the 50 lumen setting, at the two hour point that looks like it will have stepped down to about 20 lumens. About the level of my current ancient headlamp. So their claim of "Up to 300 lumens!" and "Up to 100 hours runtime!" looks pretty bogus. They're not technically lying in their claims, just being pretty misleading IMHO. And this is Fenix BTW, a highly respected light manufacturer.

I don't like the big drop from 300 to 50 in the above headlamp, so that one is out of consideration.

Black Diamond makes an inexpensive one (the "Astro") advertised at three lighting levels: 300 / 150 / 6 lumens. That sounds like a more reasonable light level spread. I'd never use it at its 300 setting (that only lasts for a short time and eats up battery like there's no tomorrow). But that 150 lumen setting, which will drop over time, is right in the middle of my 100 to 200 lumen sweet spot. We have a light worth considering here.

I don't need many features. Forget the silly strobe modes. Forget the red light output - I maybe could have used that back when I was heavy into astronomy, but I have no need for it now. And the fancy flood vs. spot light modes - in general, those might be nice. But my use is for walking on sidewalks in the suburbs. I don't need a spot beam to see 200 yards out in front of me. A wider beam that covers 25 feet would do it.

I don't need built-in rechargeable either. So I'm looking at a AAA light that will work with NiMH or Alkaline. I don't need the power of Li-Ion. I already have a ton of AAA Eneloops and a good charger. Yeah, I will have to take the batteries out of the light to charge them, but I don't really care about that. I've probably got a dozen+ of the batteries now so I can swap out a freshly charged set in seconds. Plus, a built-in rechargeable usually means that when the battery eventually gives up the ghost you have to go buy a whole new headlamp. This is not a problem for heavy headlamp users, but for me, I'll probably keep the headlamp for another two decades so I'd prefer it to run on standard, easily replaceable batteries.

So, ... my headlamp quest begins! So far I am leaning towards that Black Diamond Astro. I looked at the updated version of the Petzl Tikinna that I have the older model of, but ruled that one out for several reasons. The battery replacement door is reportedly atrocious to remove. The headlamp doesn't have a lockout to prevent it from turning on in your pack. It doesn't remember your last mode setting so it always comes on at full brightness. Etc, etc, etc. My friend has and recommends the Streamlight Enduro Pro. I played with his. It has a lot of features and is very cheap. Only thing is, it's kind of big. But for $20-ish you do get spot, flood and red light. I haven't been able to determine if it will run on NiMH yet. But it's definitely larger than the Black Diamond offering.

One last thing that I am considering ... do I really want a headlamp in the first place? They are great when you are working by yourself and need your hands. But for walking in developed areas, usually with other people, you do have the problem of shining the stupid light in their eyes every time you look their way. A handheld flashlight would remedy that concern. And I already have ten bazillion of those in every imaginable lighting level, quality level, size, weight, feature list, etc. So I'm leaning towards the cheaper headlamps, if I end up getting one, simply because I'm not quite sure that I really need one. I just want a new one now. Especially since learning that my ancient one is an anemic 23 lumens - no wonder it didn't work well in my testing.

I don't have sidewalks to consider but... 110 lumens (25hr runtime) is fine for my needs. I have no trouble missing the cow pies in a corral at night. (can't count the flies on them 🤣 ). My streamlight is professional grade, a little heavy but with 2 higher brightness settings when needed.

Speaking to alkalines... it's what I recently went shopping for but I discovered that almost all lights are rechargeable these days. Especially if I wanted a quality service light.

I found a few low end units still available that used alkalines, $25-$40 range. Those might suit your needs perfectly. I needed something suitable for searching for livestock in the woods while raining while also good for light duty use.

Let us know what you find.

 

[Haertig]

I found a few low end units still available that used alkalines, $25-$40 range. Those might suit your needs perfectly. I needed something suitable for searching for livestock in the woods while raining while also good for light duty use.

Our needs are very different. I can't say that I've ever had need to search for a cow, at night, in the rain - but I imagine overall brightness, long beam throw, waterproofness, super solid reliability, and a very stable grip to your head would be of high value. For that high brightness and long beam throw, you're going to want rechargeable lithium batteries. Built-in ones, while maybe not replaceable, may give you the best power to size/weight ratio, which is a good thing. Everything is a trade off.

All the above is good if you need it, but my use is different. If it's raining, I'm very rarely going to pop up with "Hey, let's go for a walk!" And if my headlamp goes out I'll just pull out the extra handheld flashlight in my pocket that is part of my EDC gear. I don't need a firm grip on my head because I'm not going to be wrestling cows home (I guess that's what you do with them when you find them in the dark).

I gotta admit, an old guy tottering down the sidewalk in suburbia does not need cutting edge headlamp technology. So I'll settle for cheap instead!