The "Swiss Army Knife" of Flashlights?

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workinwifdakids
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The "Swiss Army Knife" of Flashlights?

Post by workinwifdakids »

I looked at this old thread that Greg rose from the dead, and it got me thinking: what AA-powered flashlight would you think is most like a Swiss Army Knife in terms of its reputation and price point? In other words, cheap, but takes a beating. Is it still the AA Maglite? Was it ever? If not, then what?
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skb12172
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Re: The "Swiss Army Knife" of Flashlights?

Post by skb12172 »

I like my Mini Maglite, but it actually takes 3 AAA in one of those plastic inserts.
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Precision
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Re: The "Swiss Army Knife" of Flashlights?

Post by Precision »

http://tinyurl.com/fenix-12

This is my new EDC light. Runs on a single AA and it took 4 months of random use to see the dimming from the battery.
Mine is not the 130 lumen model, it has an older LED that is just over 100 lumen on high and the low is a bit more than 8 lumens. I paid a few dollars less. Otherwise, the same thing and at +/- $25...

I should really buy a few more. Perhaps when I land a new job. :)
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Dinochrome One
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Re: The "Swiss Army Knife" of Flashlights?

Post by Dinochrome One »

I vote for the AA Mini-Maglite. Mine is thirty years old and going strong, even has the original bulb. It used to be camo, but that paint has all worn away except in the knurled section. I'd like to get an LED bulb for it like the 3D-cell Maglite.

Remember, don't leave your alkaline-cell powered lights out in a hard freeze.
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Weetabix
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Re: The "Swiss Army Knife" of Flashlights?

Post by Weetabix »

I'm really happy with the Olight i3S Cree XP-G2 LED Flashlight, Black. Looks like I got it in January. The ring/chain/clam clip were crap. I replaced them with a split ring and a tiny s-biner. I think I've replaced the battery once as a precaution more than because I needed to. It's looking pretty worn.

It's bright. The "moonlight" mode, I don't use much, though I probably will this weekend while camping.

I'd buy it again.
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evan price
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Re: The "Swiss Army Knife" of Flashlights?

Post by evan price »

Fenix L1t user here.
Its not the brightest anymore, new models have more lumens. But on one aa battery its great, I don't leave home without it. When I briefly lost it, I got the newer replacement since the L1t is discontinued. Its nice too but I like the original. Luckily it had fallen out of my pocket and rolled under the sofa, not lost while pulling a steering column at the junkyard.
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Termite
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Re: The "Swiss Army Knife" of Flashlights?

Post by Termite »

Being a flashaholic, I have numerous AA models. Dollar for dollar, it is hard to beat the TerraLUX LightStar 300 LED Flashlight, which uses 2-AA batteries. And it comes in various colors.

You can check out the full line of TerraLUX LightStar flashlights here.
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Re: The "Swiss Army Knife" of Flashlights?

Post by Greg »

evan price wrote:Fenix L1t user here.
Its not the brightest anymore, new models have more lumens. But on one aa battery its great, I don't leave home without it. When I briefly lost it, I got the newer replacement since the L1t is discontinued. Its nice too but I like the original. Luckily it had fallen out of my pocket and rolled under the sofa, not lost while pulling a steering column at the junkyard.
I have 2 of those, and still use them. Specifically I have the L1T v2.0 with the Rebel LED and the momentary (sometimes called 'tactical' - in practical terms you can do Morse) on/off switch. 2 modes, switch between them by twisting the head. I like that UI a lot.

I also have a Quark AA Tactical (they've renamed that model the QTA). Similar idea, momentary on/off, 2 available modes you switch between by twisting the head. But each of those 2 modes can be preprogrammed from a choice of 8 or so available levels.

There are lots of other good single-AA LED lights out nowadays. 2 that I don't have but have been considering picking up are the Thrunite Archer 1A and the Solarforce Z2.
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