Flashlight recommendation.

Steel130

Steel130

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Sep 17, 2010
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Hey guys. I have been looking at the Surefire GPX Pro flashlight and really like the high output it gives with the option for a secondary low power out put. But before I drop that kind of money on a flashlight I was wonder if you guys had any other suggestions. Let say in the 100 dollar range.
 
Hey Steel, my main preferences in LED lights is Fenix but there are other great manufacturers like 4Sevens, LumaPower, NiteCore. I'm done with buying Surefires. Sure they're great lights but I don't put my lights through the levels of abuse that would probably warrant buying a SF. I've been using Fenix almost exclusively for the last 5 yrs and have no complaints.
Check out CandlePowerForums in the LED sub-forum and do a bit of reading and you should find something that suites your needs.
Take into consideration the type of batteries you want to use (AAA, AA, C, D, CR123, RCR123, CR2, etc), number of modes or output levels, ergonomics, size, use (spot vs flood).
For EDC I mainly use the Fenix PD30 Q5, LumaPower IncenDio V3+, Nitecore EX CR2, iTP EOS A3. My backup lights include the Fenix PD31 which takes rechargeable 18650 batteries as well as 2x CR123.

Happy hunting!
 
Thanks Natural Mystic I will start doing some reading. Someone else suggested Fenix as well!
 
I actually dig something that you could easily replace the battery, say AA.

StreamLight Nano light (Powered by 4 alkaline button cells)
Nebo Super Csi LED Flashlight w/ Laser (3 AAA batteries )
NEBO LUMA50 (1AA batt)

All of the above doesn't break the bank and probably fulfilled your needs. I have SF Nitrolon LED 240 lumens and another Lego set at 600 lumens but CR123 batt price here is killing me!
 
You're welcome Steel. Regarding Jay's comments about the CR123s being expensive, I have to agree. To get around that I buy my CR123s in bulk from stores like Battery Junction where you can get them for between $1 and $2 each which is a fraction of what you'd pay at retail. That's also the reason I also have a few lights that work with rechargeables like the RCR123 and 18650. I just bought extra batteries which I keep charged and in my EDC bag.
 
Malkoff MD2 is another option and you can also upgrade any 26mm SF light (P, C, G, Z) with a malkoff dropin.

Fenix and 4sevens makes some nice lights at a good price but surefires are in a different league.
 
Also check out Zebralights, my main edc light (SC51) is a 1xAA with a 200 lumen output, six levels and a 16 day runtime on the low setting.
 
By the way. What is a store you would trust to buy a Fenix light from?
 
I bought the TK11 from knifeworks quite a while ago. I have never had any problems with the light and has served me really well. It is incredibly bright and I have only had to replace the batteries once. Since then, I have given various Fenix flashlights to friends and family, all of whom loved their lights.

I am sure there are plenty of places to buy Fenix - Knifeworks worked out really well for me. Here's a link to the one I got (not sure if it was the R2 edition or not) http://www.knifeworks.com/fenixtk11creepremiumr2editionmax240lumens.aspx

Good luck!
 
Yep I think I've bought all my Fenix lights from 4Sevens. 4Sevens (David) was originally a dealer for Fenix lights. He probably became their biggest US dealer and then started his own 4Sevens brand of lights.
 
I have a AA. Nightcore that I like a lot. Outperforms the z2 surefire I have by a long shot and has been through the wash a couple of times. Nothing like opening the dryer to get your laundry and being blinded. :D
 
+1 for Surefire.
My WHOLE family carries Surefire and we have yet to find a problem.
And CR-123s are incredibly cheap compared to "A" batteries...not to mention they last A LOT longer.
Bought one Fenix (TK-15) for my bro and it fouled up after one week. (Lower-output stages began failing)
 
I won't be buying another Fenix. My first one died within the warranty period. 4 months later the dealer simply replaced it rather than send it back to China for service as Fenix had directed. Terrible experience.
 
I had pretty good luck with Fenix and I would definitely recommend the Quark line by 4Sevens. I think the tactical interface they offer is great.
 
I know nothing about flashlights and got my first "nice" one today. It's a Streamlight Strion LED. No clue if it's actually a nice one or not but so far I've no complaints.
 
notos&w said:
I won't be buying another Fenix. My first one died within the warranty period. 4 months later the dealer simply replaced it rather than send it back to China for service as Fenix had directed. Terrible experience.
Click to expand...

Sorry you've had a bad experience with them but I wouldn't let one bad one spoil it for you. I've been buying and EDCing Fenix lights since they were introduced around 1996 and have never had a bad one. I probably have about 8-10 various AA and primarily CR123 models.

Again, they won't necessarily compete with Surefire but bang for the buck you can't beat Fenix or 4Sevens. Surefire builds a tank of a flashlight but they were lagging behind in LED technology way too far. I'm not sure how they're doing lately because I've stopped buying them. If you need a flashlight for your line of work (EMS, Police, etc) where your life could depend on your light then yeah a Surefire might be the more reliable option, but for the average person wanting a regular EDC light that doesn't need to take extreme abuse then I think Surefires are probably overkill. You need to spend way too much money to get comparable light output and I don't think Surefire makes a light of comparable size to the PD20. The closest I've seen is the E1 Executive which I have an old incandescent version of and it only puts out something like 15 lumens. I paid about $100 total to import it from the US about 9 years ago. I had to get it as a special order because I couldn't find anyone in Canada selling them at the time.
 
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