EDC - Flashlight Addition Edition

The place for general talk about gun, shooting, loading, camping, survival, and preparedness related tools and gear, as well as gear technology discussion, gear reviews, and gear specific "range reports" (all other types of gear should be on the back porch).
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Weetabix
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EDC - Flashlight Addition Edition

Post by Weetabix »

My EDC has always been missing a flashlight on my body. I have two in the pack that's usually with me. There's one in each glove compartment of each car. Plenty around the house. But not one on me, except the app on the phone.

So, I did some half-assed research. I wanted a something around 2"-3" long and not much bigger in diameter than a AA battery. Too small, and it won't function in my hand well. Anything bigger I wouldn't have with me. I don't like festooning my belt, and big stuff in my pocket gets left behind.

This one looks great: Matchbox Industries MBI HF-R - Great specs, but I don't so much like exotic batteries. Also, not sure I wanted to start off at $88 for the first one. I'd like to start cheaper and see if I a) like it, b) lose or destroy it, or c) burn out the batteries too quickly playing with it.

For cheap, there's this one: Fenix E01 Flashlight - the size is good. The price is good. I like that it's single AAA. Lumens not so great.

Some reviews led me to this one: Olight I3S 80 Lumen - Little? check. AAA? check. 80 lumens - nice! Decent reviews on the clip, plus, you can reverse the clip and use it on a hat brim. Price is acceptable. So I got it.

Brief range report:

It's on the small end of my acceptable range which means I really like it since I want it for pocket carry. I'm a bit afraid to carry it clipped in my pocket because I'm afraid I'll knock it out and not notice. So it's on my key ring. So far, it hasn't bothered me to have it there. I keep my key ring pared down to essentials, so adding it didn't increase my key ring's bulk to a point that it annoys me. Which is a good thing.

Operation: It works like a mini mag lite - Twist ("screw in") the lens to make contact. First twist is low (20 lumens/8 hrs). Two twists is high (80 lumens/35 minutes). Three twists is "moonlight" (0.5 lumens/60 hrs). Cycle through 3 modes twice, and the 7th twist is a strobe. Here's the manufacturer's product page.

I really like this manual of operations. I imagine my decreasing order of need will be Low/High/Moonlight as they've programmed it. I don't expect I'll ever need the strobe unless I'm signalling a chopper from the roof of the Metropolitan Museum during an art heist. The moonlight mode is very low. You can do closeup reading with it at night without dazzling yourself. I took the flashlight out at night into my backyard and lit up the side of the house from 25'. I could see anything I would need to. I haven't tested farther distance.

I have another small flashlight that turns on with a button on the side. Another has the tail click. For my needs, I think the twist lens operation is the best. Tail click would probably be harder to operate given that I have it on a key chain. The button on the side light has only one mode. So, all in all, I think I like this method best given the balance of everything I want. YMMV.

I haven't dropped it or submerged it yet, and I don't plan to. The box came with two additional O-rings. They've very slight, and I expect I'll lose them before I ever need to replace one.

I'd buy it again, and I'd recommend it to a friend.

ETA the photo. Forgot it in the original post.
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skb12172
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Re: EDC - Flashlight Addition Edition

Post by skb12172 »

Surefire in my pocket. A little barrel LED flashlight from Brookstone on my keychain. A good flashlight is always a priority for me.
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Greg
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Re: EDC - Flashlight Addition Edition

Post by Greg »

Very nice. The light I have on my keychain is very similar to the Fenix E01 you mentioned. A bit better made and I paid more for it, but functionally identical. (I once 'lost' it. Turned out I dropped it in the snow near my front door. Replaced it with an identical light in the meantime. Found it a few months later after the snow melted, works perfectly. Now I have 2.)

I've thought about upgrading my keychain light to one similar to yours, but have yet to pull the trigger. That model you bought, that basic design is pretty popular, it's sold under a couple of different brand names and there are a few slightly different versions/updates, with slightly different outputs, some can tailstand/some can't, etc. I like the one you have.

But for using frequently, I like to carry an actual edc light. The keychain light is just for use in a pinch, I find a single AAA light to be slightly too small for comfort. I like a single AA or single 123A light for more serious use. I prefer AA because eneloops (and 10440's are available). When I expect to want a light outside, I'll have a Quark AA Tactical (actually I have the AA and 2-AA tubes so I can configure it however I like). They slightly rebranded, so it's now called a QTA and the 2-AA version is the QT2A.

Moonlight mode is *awesome*. On mine it's .2 lumen which is perfect for finding your way around indoors in the dark with dark-adapted eyes, or checking on someone without waking them up, or reading in the dark without fatigue from the light being too bright. And runtime on moonlight mode is days on a single battery.
Maybe we're just jaded, but your villainy is not particularly impressive. -Ennesby

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Aesop
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Re: EDC - Flashlight Addition Edition

Post by Aesop »

I have never been without, at minimum, a Maglite Solitaire on my keychain since 1994.

The prospect of being in the act of using the plumbing facilities at 4AM in the interior of a very dark hospital when the next 7.0 earthquake hits, and having to navigate out is a strong motivation.{Nota bene that when the earthquake is in close proximity to the hospital, like say just about under it, the back-up generators do a lot of things, but generating power isn't one of them.} Every time I was sitting in the hospital thinking room, noticing the clocks all stopped at 4:31, for the next 6 months, it kind of drove that lesson home.

I'm also partial to handfuls of the $3 3/4"x3 1/2" multi-LED lights from Harbor Freight, because they do what they're supposed to, every time, and they're cheap enough to put them everywhere and not give a damn if one turns up missing. I have three tackleboxes in my working on set first aid kit, plus two jump bags, plus a backpack with my personal toys for the day, so on average, I have maybe 5-6 of the things nearby on productions, and at least 2 of the really nice Petzl Tactikka Plus headlamps for hands-free working lights.
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Weetabix
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Re: EDC - Flashlight Addition Edition

Post by Weetabix »

Greg wrote:But for using frequently, I like to carry an actual edc light. The keychain light is just for use in a pinch, I find a single AAA light to be slightly too small for comfort. I like a single AA or single 123A light for more serious use. I prefer AA because eneloops (and 10440's are available).
Bigger is surely better, but knowing myself, if it's bigger I won't have it with me.
Aesop wrote:I'm also partial to handfuls of the $3 3/4"x3 1/2" multi-LED lights from Harbor Freight, because they do what they're supposed to, every time, and they're cheap enough to put them everywhere and not give a damn if one turns up missing.
I have piles of those, too, but... where did the damned things wander off to? I find if I have lots of something, I can never find one. But if I have the one of something, I can find it.
at least 2 of the really nice Petzl Tactikka Plus headlamps for hands-free working lights.
Hm... Next purchase to leave in the backpacking pile?
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Greg
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Re: EDC - Flashlight Addition Edition

Post by Greg »

Weetabix wrote:
Greg wrote:But for using frequently, I like to carry an actual edc light. The keychain light is just for use in a pinch, I find a single AAA light to be slightly too small for comfort. I like a single AA or single 123A light for more serious use. I prefer AA because eneloops (and 10440's are available).
Bigger is surely better, but knowing myself, if it's bigger I won't have it with me.
If something roughly the size of a roll of nickels is too big for you.... It won't weigh much more than your keychain light and also has a pocket clip. It's just easier to use, higher output and with longer runtime. ;)
Maybe we're just jaded, but your villainy is not particularly impressive. -Ennesby

If you know what you're doing, you're not learning anything. -Unknown
Sanity is the process by which you continually adjust your beliefs so they are predictively sound. -esr
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HTRN
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Re: EDC - Flashlight Addition Edition

Post by HTRN »

My everyday flashlights a cheapo I got off Amazon for five bucks.
HTRN, I would tell you that you are an evil fucker, but you probably get that a lot ~ Netpackrat

Describing what HTRN does as "antics" is like describing the wreck of the Titanic as "a minor boating incident" ~ First Shirt
Greg
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Re: EDC - Flashlight Addition Edition

Post by Greg »

HTRN wrote:My everyday flashlights a cheapo I got off Amazon for five bucks.
Sometimes that can work out, it's very hit-or-miss. It's basically the same no-name generic Chinese bulk filler that you can pick up for cheap on sites like DealeXtreme (aka DX).

Some of that really is hopeless junk. And some of it actually seems to be pretty much the same stuff that gets branded labels on it and sold for 10x the price, just without the label. YMMV.
Maybe we're just jaded, but your villainy is not particularly impressive. -Ennesby

If you know what you're doing, you're not learning anything. -Unknown
Sanity is the process by which you continually adjust your beliefs so they are predictively sound. -esr
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HTRN
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Re: EDC - Flashlight Addition Edition

Post by HTRN »

Well it got over a thousand four star+reviews, and I needed something to fill out the order to get free shipping... :lol:
HTRN, I would tell you that you are an evil fucker, but you probably get that a lot ~ Netpackrat

Describing what HTRN does as "antics" is like describing the wreck of the Titanic as "a minor boating incident" ~ First Shirt
Greg
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Re: EDC - Flashlight Addition Edition

Post by Greg »

HTRN wrote:Well it got over a thousand four star+reviews, and I needed something to fill out the order to get free shipping... :lol:
Oh yeah. I'm probably going to do the same thing at some point. But it's still like rolling the dice. ;)
Maybe we're just jaded, but your villainy is not particularly impressive. -Ennesby

If you know what you're doing, you're not learning anything. -Unknown
Sanity is the process by which you continually adjust your beliefs so they are predictively sound. -esr
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