Posted by metawaffle the minimum is extremely feeble - just right for the modern nocturnal trespasser! ... moonlight (0.2 lumens!) mode.

Sorry to hijack this thread, but do you know of any other lights that have a similar "moonlight" / very dim mode?

Posted by argonian nerd

Crazy cat lady.

Posted by digital_me Sorry to hijack this thread, but do you know of any other lights that have a similar "moonlight" / very dim mode?

That's a good question. I did come across some other lights with low lows mentioned when I was looking for information on the Quark, including the following (which I don't really know much about other than that they're all probably quite expensive )

- Novatac EDC 120T (claims 0.3 lumens low)
- Ra Clicky (claims 0.3 lumens low)
- Nitecore D10
- Liteflux LF2XT
- Spartanian II


The problem I found, though, is that I crept around on Monday night using my super-dim light to remain inconspicuous, but the guys I was with still had their comparatively bright headlamps and torches, which rendered it a bit pointless.

Posted by metawaffle The problem I found, though, is that I crept around on Monday night using my super-dim light to remain inconspicuous, but the guys I was with still had their comparatively bright headlamps and torches, which rendered it a bit pointless.

But you could still play ninja!

This is why I like having the red option on a small LED torch- harder for anyone on the outside to see while you're shuffling through steam tunnels and lower levels of buildings near windows at night and easier for you to not blow out your retinas when you have to rapidly shut your light off and still fumble about in the pitch dark. I hear the main reason it's used in the military is for this latter reason- not so much the 'hard to see' aspect (which I have found, despite science, is debatable) but that it's easier to recover your natural ability to see in the dark and plow ahead when not blasting a white light in front of you.

Posted by hydrotherapy easier for you to not blow out your retinas when you have to rapidly shut your light off and still fumble about in the pitch dark ... it's easier to recover your natural ability to see in the dark and plow ahead when not blasting a white light in front of you.

What is really important is the perceived brightness of the light. Red happens to be perceived as dimmer than white or other colors (like cyan) so it's used because it's easiest. But a very dim white light would conceivably work as well. The test of whether a dim light (to preserve night vision) is working as it should is to check if you're seeing only in grayscale. This means that your night sensitive rods are seeing, not your color sensitive cones.

Also, rhodopsin, the pigment responsible for activating your night vision takes about thirty minutes to fully regenerate after being photobleached. So a dim red light would help by not bleaching it again after exposure.

That information was great, and I will be testing out the 'greyscale vs color' rods thing asap, as I'm always looking for news ways to bumble around in the dark and not be seen. Thanks!

Posted by hydrotherapy That information was great, and I will be testing out the 'greyscale vs color' rods thing asap, as I'm always looking for news ways to bumble around in the dark and not be seen. Thanks!

Thread necromancy! I find that using a red LED is dangerous to my health. The monochrome red light (completely different than a red-filtered incandescent bulb) hides all the details like "That's a wet wooden board" or "The concrete there is slimy." Dim white lets me see, any red LED makes me step on things I shouldn't.

Maybe we play in different areas of possible death (SUPER THREAD NECROMANCY) but I am usually fine with my red LED. If I ever have a question on something, I normally shield my excessively bright white LED wee flashlight with my fingers and direct it at the spot in question.

I'm yet to die and explore fairly regularly, so I consider this okay thus far.

Posted by hydrotherapy Maybe we play in different areas of possible death (SUPER THREAD NECROMANCY) but I am usually fine with my red LED. If I ever have a question on something, I normally shield my excessively bright white LED wee flashlight with my fingers and direct it at the spot in question. I'm yet to die and explore fairly regularly, so I consider this okay thus far.

I'm working on a $0.30 fix for any LED flashlight that's too bright. It should be reversible, although the easiest way to do it involves sliding a resistor between the battery and spring. Kind of a pain to switch it back and forth y'know?

I just have problems seeing with monochrome light. I can't focus on blue LEDs except by deliberate effort, and then everything else is out of focus.

Posted by AnAppleSnail I just have problems seeing with monochrome light. I can't focus on blue LEDs except by deliberate effort, and then everything else is out of focus.

I find Blue LEDs difficult to look at.