Tatical Flashlight

[igsr96]

My two cents...

A "P" Series Fenix light for about $40-70. Either one or two cell 123A and you have your choice of click-on/off or turn-on/off. The P3D you were looking seems cool. 200 lumens on Turbo mode! Then spend some money for a charger and some rechargeable batteries. "Guilt free lumens."

One caveat with rechargeables; if the voltage is greater than 3v, the Fenix light will be forced into running in Turbo mode. That means you won't be able to use the lower outputs. So if you want to use rechargeables and use the lower outputs, you'll need a battery like this.

Or you can also check out Novatac for $110/$150 depending on output. It eats any rechargeable battery you can throw at it and you can still use the lower output settings.

That said, I have the Fenix P2D and the predecessor to the Novatac, the Arc 4+. The Arc is my EDC and I'll use the P2D for a bike light. I like the Arc as my EDC because I don't have to worry about which battery I put in. Have some old batteries from your 6P or whatever? Throw it in the Arc and there's probably enough power to run it. The output settings for the Arc allows for stupid low to "Ow, my eyes." It's waterproof.

I use the Fenix for a bike light because Turbo mode = 135 lumens.

Dang, didn't mean to ramble on. HTH.

[edsel6502]

I use a Blackhawk gladius. Its an LED light and it makes thing bright.

I got mine from LApolicegear.com i think if you look around they are in the $150 to $180 range.

For a daily carry I carry a fenix p3d

[CalNRA]

I have owned and still have most of the following Surefires:

G2
6P
E2e
E2D
E2L
E1L
M3T
L1 Cree
L4
M6
A2
C3
9P

the ones I carry are an L4 and an L1

The incans are nice but always seem to die on you at the wrong time. If you don't use the lights all the time I would go with a C3, it has a clip and packs a decent amount of light.

The U2 Ultras are great, but the new G2L with the Seoul emitter will eat the U2 is value, reliability and ease of operation. the U2 is a great light to have as an all-around light.

If you feel like also look into Novatac lights. Great stuff.

the Fenix lights are made in china, if you care about the American economy at all.

[maxicon]

Brightness is a tradeoff, especially in enclosed spaces.

I've got a variety of lights, and am testing a pair of G2s right now - one with the P60 lamp (65 lumens, 1 hour runtime), and one with the P61 lamp (120 lumens, 20 min runtime).

The 120 lumens is dramatically brighter than the 65 lumens, but when testing it in the house in the dead of night when waking up, it's just too bright, and it dazzles me, especially in hallways and reflected from half-open doors. Even the 65 lumens tends to do that, but I adapt more quickly to it, and quick bursts are much more manageable.

If this is for a house tactical light, too much brightness can be a liability by wrecking your night vision quickly and thoroughly. If it's for out in the field, with wide-open spaces and more ambient light, more is often better.

For reliability and runtime, LED is clearly tops, but I agree that the lower contrast caused by the bluish tint is a problem. It's a lot harder to see the fine details and colors, especially where there's a lot of jumble and chaos, in my experience.

If it were me, I'd get an inexpensive but good quality version of each and try them out to see which works better for you. You can never have too many good flashlights - I have half a dozen G2s and Scorpions, and keep them in the cars, by the bed, and in other strategic places.

[M. Sage]

Will you be able to light-adjust after a few seconds and be able to open your eyes fully without blinding?

A few seconds? I shouldn't need it on for that long. Only long enough to identify, (maybe) yell and fire two or three times.

But yeah, you can adjust in a few seconds, but your night vision would be ruined. If you plan on having it on long enough that your eyes will adjust, close one eye. It'll stay adjusted to the dark.

[BigRich]

Here's another place to look. I have several lights from Wayne and they are excellent.

http://www.elektrolumens.com/

[N6ATF]

A few seconds? I shouldn't need it on for that long. Only long enough to identify, (maybe) yell and fire two or three times.

But yeah, you can adjust in a few seconds, but your night vision would be ruined. If you plan on having it on long enough that your eyes will adjust, close one eye. It'll stay adjusted to the dark.

A bottle of rum for ye mighty pirate! Arr...