Posted by ClementRSedona Yeah thats a nice light! but we are talking about flashlights! Of course we can build a 1 million lumens light out of a bunch of leds chips or wathever but the feat is to make it compact transportable and durable! I was not trying to make a lumens war lol. There is probably someone that owns the MS18 here, he would be the king lol. Imo if it does not fit in your pocket or at least in your backpack it's useless for exploration. My big light was a pain in the ass to carry but they were not selling same power/flood pocket size light back then.

I was just joking man lmao.

I am waiting for battery technology to advance a bit more. I hear they're coming out with lithium Glass, or sodium glass batteries soon with larger capacities than our current technology. Once that happens I'm about to build a beast of a lantern out of an 85 watt Compact fluorescent lamp. Maybe a bit lower wattage. I'm wanting to build a good omnidirectional light source. I could do it with LED's but something about a plasma light source is just more interesting to me.

An 85 watt CFL would emit about 5000 lumens of omnidirectional light. Would be good for lighting up dark basements and what not.



That MS18 is a beast. I bet you could cook an egg with that!

Posted by MercuryVapor I was just joking man lmao. I am waiting for battery technology to advance a bit more. I hear they're coming out with lithium Glass, or sodium glass batteries soon with larger capacities than our current technology. Once that happens I'm about to build a beast of a lantern out of an 85 watt Compact fluorescent lamp. Maybe a bit lower wattage. I'm wanting to build a good omnidirectional light source. I could do it with LED's but something about a plasma light source is just more interesting to me. An 85 watt CFL would emit about 5000 lumens of omnidirectional light. Would be good for lighting up dark basements and what not. That MS18 is a beast. I bet you could cook an egg with that!

Yeah that thing must be incredible in person.

Cant wait to see where those battery will go too.

I really dig anything with high CRI n decent tint around 3500-4000k.

Lately I've been loving my S2+ with 219 sw35 emitters running on a qlite driver. I also have a FW3A with SST20 emitters with 1/4 minus green film. I like that light, but it's a bit floody for tunnels, however nice for lighting up a scene.

I'm looking to get a right angle light from zebralight eventually. Probably the H600c. That'd pretty much round out my kit I think.

I explore w a skilhunt H03. Great angle light, decent tint, runs on 18650s, comes with straps to use it as a headlamp. Very versatile, and probably one of the best bang-for-your-buck budget flashlights, and being able to use it as a headlamp is great for ladders and such.

Currently eyeing a zebralight or a wizard pro once I have the extra money to spend on flashlights.

Been using a Armytek Elf C2 for awhile. Works well as both a primary light and as a stationary photography light, given the magnet that is attached to the bottom. Uses an 18650 which can be recharged via USB. It comes with a headlamp strap, though I've not needed it yet.

Used to use a Fenix FX-PD35TAC. Thing has some great throw but the diffusion is poor enough where it has become a situational light for me.

Have 2 black diamond headlamps. Think they output 375 lumens on the brightest setting. Theres also a battery level indicator on the side which is a nice feature. I also use some generic led flash light with a focusable beam.

Nice, I also use the streamlight Protac HL-5 mostly as a blunt weapon if I need it but also to do a very quick scan of an area. Its a VERY solid flashlight and I'm happy to see other people using it.

Otherwise I use a Black Diamond Storm headlamp the entire time, usually with red light only.

Edit: After reading the other posts, some of you are madlads with batman signals for the cops to come straight to you. So many lumens exploding out of every open crevice of an abandoned building is absurd but its your criminal background not mine

My camera mounted neewer led panel does the trick for most scenarios, then I carry a smaller fenix.

I had a Streamlight Protac mounted on my helmet for years as a backup to my headlamp. Unfortunately it disappeared after I loaned it to a friend. I need to find a replacement for it. For us, a helmet mounted backup is important. Having a headlamp failure while hanging on a rope 75' above the ground and 50' to the top is a dangerous situation. Trying to use a handheld light in that circumstance is a problem since we use both hands in rope climbing or rappelling.

My other flashlight is an OLD SolarForce L2P running off of an 18650 battery. It was a classic in its time, but the company has now closed down. It's been through months of camping, hundreds of mines, and is still going strong.

I have so many headlamps as I've upgraded and experimented through the years. My primary lamp is custom built by a friend in England. My primary backup is a Zebra flood headlamp that runs on 18650.

In general, I would suggest settling on a battery size, then purchase all your lights to use the same battery. It greatly simplifies battery management since every light uses the same size. Those who use their lights frequently should really choose rechargeable batteries. When I first started underground exploring I decided on CR123A batteries. After a couple of years I realized that the ongoing cost wasn't worth it and I retired those lights, moving to the 18650 format. Now that most quality lights are rechargeable, it's not as big of a decision factor when selecting a light.

My kind of exploring benefits from bright lights, especially when photographing or shooting video underground. Some of the chambers are huge and difficult to light. Super bright lights are a benefit when looking down deep shafts trying to decide whether we are going to drop a rope and rappel down.

Abby Normal

I like to use a NoCry rechargeable spotlight for draining. Sure, not one of the well known brands, but it was only about $40 from Amazon. It's incredibly bright (1000 lumens) with a nice focused beam - and waterproof, which is a huge plus when I'm exploring tunnels with more than a couple inches of water. The only downside is that it's far too large to fit in a pocket.

For exploring buildings, I either use an old Coleman headlamp or a generic mini flashlight that's probably about 200-300 lumens. Yeah, I should probably upgrade...

I found my go to light on the side of a road lol. Its a light & motion urban800 bike light. Its 800 lumens and can fit in the palm of your hand. The only potential downside is that its rechargeable only.

I pretty much always use my ThruNite Archer, because it's reliable and small. I also like to take a cheap Home Depot light with me as backup, if I'm going somewhere like a drain. Sometimes I bring my 3D led MagLite, because I like how it feels in the hand.

Generally use my Coast HP14 as my primary flashlight, although I also carry a Coast HP7 (with the red lens filter on it) as my discrete light.

Also have a Coast HL7 headlamp for general use.

I have a couple of EagleTacs, Acebeams, Convoys, Olights, Solarforces, a Streamlight, and some UV flashlights. All of them high CRI except for a few. 18650 or 21700 batteries is the way to go. I've seen ArmyTec mentioned in this thread, but they have no warehouses in the U.S. and charge a whopping 30 dollars shipping to the U.S. Screw them!

Flashlights!!

My favorite flashlight for exploring has been and probably always will be the ThruNite TC20. It's the best well rounded light I have in my opinion. Between moonlight (firefly as they call it) 0.5 lumens and turbo 3800 lumens, you can never go wrong. It's the light I feel most comfortable handing my friends where they won't get confused.

I usually pair this with the ThruNite Catapult V6. It encompasses all my throw light needs. I always toggle between the two.

Sometimes I'll replace the TC20 with the Acebeam E70 or Sofirn SP36. Both are fantastic. The SP36 is especially great if you want a lot of power.

One weird light that I am a fan of is the Nebo Mycro Headlamp. Randomly found it while picking up something for work... decided to buy it. Best idea. It clips perfectly onto baseball caps, and has saved my butt a few times.

Whoa! some of you lot have really got pro flashlight setups!
I've had the same cheap Varta LED torch for ever. No idea how many lumens.
It's bright, cost me $12, and is basically bulletproof. Also it's not sold as waterproof, but I've dropped it in water more than once and its still kicking.

I also have a Maglite that takes 2 D cells. It's bright AF but honestly it's a pain in the arse to carry because it's so big and heavy. Fun to light up stuff a few hundred metres away though.

I see a lot of tiny, blindingly bright LED flashlights these days, anyone got any recommendations on something like that?

I've never understood elbow flashlights. How are you supposed to hold them?
-like a spraypaint can?
-like a club gripping the farthest end from the light?
-like a regular flashlight but with the light aimed toward the ground?

If you want a car high-beam on your head invest in this tank

https://www.ebay.c...=711-127632-2357-0

I like to use either a small Petzl headlamp, or if I need to light up a space I use my Maglite Mag-Tac that runs on CR123 batteries. Only downside to that is that when those batteries die you better hope you either have a backup or you'll really be in the dark. Because when those batteries die they just die completely. One thing I do like that I use personally but would love for the group I explore with is a identifier light so that we can see each other and know that they are part of the group and not someone else. What are everyone's thoughts on Nightcore lights

I like flashlight too !

I often do long hikes so I mainly buy smalls flashlight (single 18650)



From left to right (sorry for the potato picture)
1. Skillhunt H04 modded with a samsung LH351d emiter. (cheap yet effective)
2. Emisar D4V2 sst-20 4000k. A high cri hot rod, 3000lm from of flashlight of this size is impressive.
3. Zebralight H604w. When you need a flood light but want sharp shadows.
4. Convoy S2+ with 8x7135 and a XPL-HI. I wanted the smallest thrower (without any clumsy big reflector). This is it, 200m of throw in a small form factor.
5. Emisar D4V2 Nichia e21a 3500k with floody optics. Great all around flashlight for inside.
6. Noctigon KR4 Mule SST-20. A high cri 5000k mule to flood big rooms. 5k lumen from a single 18650 !
7. Good old armytek wizard. Nice build quality, the tir optic is great, not so great tint but the magnet is strong and I use it a lot.

I also have a zebralight SC64w (not pictured) wich is a all time favorite and a Nitecore NU30 which have terrible tint and beam patern but it's so light I forget it's on my head

Posted by taragon Lately I've been loving my S2+ with 219 sw35 emitters running on a qlite driver.

Best tint and color rendering LEDs, they are getting hard to find. The E21A is not bad tho.

Posted by taragon I'm looking to get a right angle light from zebralight eventually. Probably the H600c. That'd pretty much round out my kit I think.

Yes. Those are the best, if only they had a magnetic tailcap, they would be the ultimate flashlight.