Spec me an LED Torch

Good call Aod - my Quark AA Ti is still one of my favourite carries.

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Bad news is I seem to have lost my Quark AA2 tactical :-(
 
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Still, I've got my Sunwayman V10r Ti... That'll have to do...

Ah dammit - you've made me want a new flashlight as well now - and I was doing so well!

Fortunately for me they all seem to be sold out!
 
That's a currently-not-available Quark Pro AA (with CR123a head) in Ti mrk.
The light has a couple of slots cut in it for lanyard and removable pocket clip, and I think amigafan has added the trits himself.

The currently available Quark light has almost all the same slots available if you wanted to have a go, flashaholics carry them (but they're all out of stock and they only have the old XP-G, not XP-G2 versions) but you can buy them directly from foursevens.com and they ship from the states for free :D

B@rt and some other chaps on CPFMP sell a variety of trits and the optical adhesive (norland 61, UV-curing) needed to attach them securely :)
 
Have been looking at the AmpMax batteries against the AW ones and there is a big difference in price. Are the AW generally regarded as the best? Recently got an OLight led and am just waiting for a 2x18650 magazine for it before I commit to batteries. How are these AmpMax ones?
 
HKJ reviewed them on his website, they look like the standard Panasonic 3400mAh cell with protection circuit.
http://lygte-info.dk/review/batteries2012/AmpMax 18650 3400mAh (Black) UK.html

The AW cells should be more durable as they have a protective steel plate on the negative battery terminal, the cheaper cells like the Ampmax just use the bottom of the protection circuits PCB.
The AW cell might have a better protection circuit but that's hard to quantify, I'd say the Ampmax cells will be totally fine.
 
Ive read the last few pages but am a bit lost.

Whats a good reccomendation for a torch + battery + charger in the £25-30 range? Something suitable for dog walking and usual diy stuff.

Nothing crazy, 2AA maglite kind of size?
Does that budget put me in no mans land? Something cheaper thats just as good, or up it to 45-50£? Don't want to go ott, but something that'll ladt.
 
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One of the nicest lights I've come across in that price range and size is the Shiningbeam Caveman. It runs on regular AA batteries for convenience, and works even better on NiMH AA rechargeables for added savings if you use it a lot.

I'd get that, use it with regular alkalines and if you find yourself changing batteries all the time, get some Eneloops/equivalent and a charger.

I've got the Caveman and other than finding it a little too big to carry all the time (hence my new little light I posted above), it's perfect. Well thought out modes, good runtime and excellent UI and build quality.
 
One of the nicest lights I've come across in that price range and size is the Shiningbeam Caveman. It runs on regular AA batteries for convenience, and works even better on NiMH AA rechargeables for added savings if you use it a lot.


Thanks for the mini review, possible to get from a UK supplier?
Is this worth double the price: http://www.torchdirect.co.uk/nitecore-mh-series/nitecore-mh2c-led-torch.html
I think I like the sound of this one better now.. http://www.torchdirect.co.uk/explorer-series/nitecore-ea2-led-torch.html Seems to have a better UI and more intuitive.
 
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That's a completely different kind of torch, running from a single 18650 rechargeable Li-ion battery like the one it comes with, it can't run on 2xAA batteries. Whether it's worth the extra cost, that depends on whether you need the additional brightness, and part of the increased cost is the included cell, wall-charger and built-in charging functionality.

Personally I wouldn't say it's worth the extra, I have a couple of lights that are that bright and I hardly ever have occasion to use them, they're far to bright to use indoors unless I need to light up the entire room by shining them at the ceiling, and they're too big to carry about on day-to-day stuff. If you're going exploring you might need the extra brightness possibly, but 250+ lumens is still plenty bright enough for 90% of needs.

The caveman is only available from Shiningbeam themselves, but fortunately they are US based so you don't have to fear the dreaded "my thing didn't arrive, halp" email rigmarole. I've dealt with them a fair few times and have never had any issues, their CS seems to be excellent.
 
Well you say completely different I say it's a torch? ;)
But of course bow down to your superior knowledge :) Ican see the difference, and compared to what I'm using now am sure the brightness difference will be amazing!
I prefer the explorer version currently, Would ordering the Caveman from the US leave me just as open to getting hit by import tax as the Nitecore from a US seller ( and try and dodge the UK markup on them?)
 
Yes, of course they're both still torches, but given their different POUs I'm inclined to not group them together.

The Nitecore EA2 is effectively the same as the Caveman albeit with a different UI, I'm sure it'll work well for almost anything you put it to. Remember, 250 lumens is enough to light up the side of a house at a hundred feet or keep a significant swathe of forest nicely lit for night-time exploration.

In the moderately-more-expensive-than-£30 vein, here are some alternatives to the EA2;
http://www.flashaholics.co.uk/fenix/fenix-e25.html
http://www.flashaholics.co.uk/fenix/fenix-ld22.html
http://www.flashaholics.co.uk/sunwayled/sunwayman-r20a.html
http://www.flashaholics.co.uk/thrunite/thrunite-neutron-2a.html
http://www.flashaholics.co.uk/eagletac/eagletac-p20a2-mark2.html
http://www.flashaholics.co.uk/eagletac/eagletac-d25a2-clicky.html
http://www.flashaholics.co.uk/olight/olight-t25-xp-g2.html

There's nothing wrong with the Nitecore but choice is always nice. All of these are good, reputable brands and should all work pretty much as well as any other for your use.
 
Many thanks for the links, one thing i didn't want to do was buy a lemon, bit wary of that with so many choices! But think we'll be ok now :)
I know its splurging a bit, but really tempted by the nitecore explorer one, just seems right, and comes with decent batteries too ready to charge.

But not made a final decision yet!
 
If you get the Nitecore I'd get it from flashaholics, I've ordered from them and spoken to them many times and have always had great service and support from them :)
 
I'm no expert, but I would recommend Fenix. My first decent LED torch was a Fenix L1T (1xAA) and they're my preferred brand.

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This is my first and has been my work torch for several years. It's been dropped countless times and survived dunkings in concentrated Sodium Hypochlorite and Chlorine Dioxide solutions.
 
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