LED Flashlights.. CREE, Xenon and Luxeon, oh my!

Make sure you get protected, don't want something to catch fire if you overcharge it.

I discovered a small flaw with my WF-600, if you tighten the head to much the light will flicker and turn off. Does anyone know if I can get a replacement tail for a Cree C3? The button thing in mine fell apart and its been sitting on the shelf even since.

 

What about something like this since you want to operate it from the car

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/6-m-CANDLE-L...ryZ16037QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

I have got one of them with 15m candle from repco and its great besides the size.

 

You are better off with a $12 dolphin lantern torch than one of those, I had one and not only was the light output not that great it was heavy and difficult to hold in your hand.

Probably best to go with a HID

 

Oh the irony. I had a 10mill version and it did a reasonable job, but not the best at penetrating through the fence.

I left it in the office once to charge. And yes, IT FUCKING GOT STOLEN!!!!! Next time i'll replace the battery with some C4.

 

I find that having too many different types of batts on DX & KD confusing, I mostly got protected I think, I also got the cheap charger via DX, jakiman does DX sell a car adapter which plugs into this charger so I can charge via dc? Also do you have a lot of problems with KD where items vanish from your cart? It gets really frustrating.

 

Just know the battery size you need. 16340 or 14500 or 18650 etc.
(It's in the format AABBB where AA is diameter and BBB is length in mm)
Then just get the protected ones of them. (They are usually ~2mm longer)

Not sure about DC input charger. There should be one. I haven't looked.
KD's website isn't as well made as DX, so yes, the cart does refresh. =P
I use DX's favourites function for stuff I'm interested. Wish KD had it.

 

I just received my first batch of batteries, 18650's are huge. On KD's site when I choose the battery holder under batts n chargers then that automatically resets my cart and takes me to the cart page.

 

From DX? When did u order?

I'm still hankering to get my order in - Ordered like last Sunday, and paid for the Express postage, but I prob won't see it till later this week.

Hope I get it before I head to the Grampians this weekend. Would be cool to test them out there.

Jakiman - Can you explain the term "primaries" when refering to Lithium batteries? Or jsut point my in the direction of a good source of information? I couldn't find anything on candlepowerforums (easily).

edit: Damn, shoulda googled ages ago - apparently it just means 'non-rechargable'

 

Ordered at DX, my order was split in 2, batteries arrived today and were ordered on the 3rd of Feb!!! 2 items (torch and lantern is pending 2/25) and the wf-600 is still pending!!!!


Lovely, 18650 don't fit the RC-F4, missed the "Powered by 2 x CR123A (3.0/3.6V) note: barrel will not fit any 18650 batteries" >>=[

 

I have just purchased two Fenix T1 Tactical torches. One from an Australian supplier (in that crappy Olive green anodised colour) for work, the other via the fenix-store website (in black). I've got the olive green one and love it. It's super bright (kicks my L2D Q5 premium's ass), nice throw and focus. The only naggy thing is the clip on the body is in the wrong spot, but nothing a bit of elbow grease and plenty of torque can't fix.

I picked the AU one up for $79 (normally $195AU), and the US one for $86 AU (supplied with two batteries).

The downside is that it runs off two CR123A batteries, which as we all know, are insanely expensive in Australia. Thank heavens fenix-store sell them in bulk (you can get 32 for $64ea iirc).

 

Looking at said reviews of torches on DX it seems you can get a decent one for $20. That includes delivery. Not all are good but if you read up you can get some decent ones at that price.

$80 sounds like a nice rip-off but then you did buy it from an aussie supplier who I'm sure marked up the price 3x. As they say there isn't much complication in a torch so it's a risk that usually pays off buying a cheaper one if you doa little research.

 

I'm guessing you haven't used a Fenix torch before ReP0? Having compared several Fenix's with equivalent $20 DX/Kai jobs, there really is no comparison: for a little over twice the price you get much more then twice the torch. I hear T1's are a step up from the regular Fenix line and so probably worth $80 bucks for people who need a tough, reliable, bright torch.

 

Well, Fenix lights are considered quite high quality. So they are more reliable than a cheaper torch and are generally better regulated for bette runtime while maintaining good brightness levels. Fenix lights start at around US$60 so it wasn't really a rip off. (Especially the T1 which costs US$76 even at Fenix-store)

People like myself who just get lighs as a hobby, a super expensive one isn't necessary. hehe. But for thos who needs it for work / field etc, it is generally worth it to get the better ones as they are better made and more reliable with longer lasting / durable components.

BTW, Rexlight 2.1 b002 at kaidomain.com is currently selling at $60 for TWO! That's quite a deal considering they are very close to being as good as the Fenix which costs double the price! (actually, it is better in some aspects such as the useful High/Low 2 mode with a super Low which lasts for around 45 hours!) So I ordered one with my friend. hehe. I'll add it to my review soon. (It comes with HAIII coating so it won't get scratched against my keys in my pocket and has excellent runtime while being very bright)

 

You made my day, i laughed out loud when i saw this

 

Once you go Fenix, you never go back.

Extremely sturdy, waterproof, shock & impact resistant to various specifications & depths, anodised bodies, great torches all round. There are plenty of other great torches out there, but Fenix are hands down one of the best value for money torches around.

Incidentally, the Fenix T1 Tactical has been third party tested to withstand up to 20,500lb of force before being flattened. All that for $86 AU is a pretty good bargain.

 

But for the same price you can probably buy 3-4 DX lights.

 

I'd rather buy one quality light. Just because you can get 3 units of a cheaper 'equivalent' doesn't mean diddly squat.
Anyways, most people buying Fenix buy them for a reason, and it isn't to save pennies and pounds.

 

peronally i have a normal mini maglite 2 x AA then just bought the LED conversion kit works like gold, nice and bright.. and not much wieght difference, batterys have lasted ages, most camping stores have them...

 

BTW, Kaidomain sells the Fenix T1 for US$69.95 shipped.

Anyways, I will continue to buy whatever light that I can afford to include in my review.
It obviously needs to be something which I might use everyday with some nice specs.

 

Just gets better and better.

2

3346 Handheld Cree Q2 3-Mode LED Lantern (4xAA) x 1 Pending
ETA 2/28/2008 $16.00

3607 Romisen MXDL RC-G2 Cree Flashlight Black (1xAA) x 1 Pending
ETA 3/11/2008 $10.90

8672 Aurora WF-600 Q5 2-Mode Cree LED Flashlight (18650/3.6V~4.2V) x 1 Pending ETA 2/29/2008 $38.36-