LED Flashlights & Headlights

[RU Kidding]

Have any of you tried the Led Flashlights or headlights for nighthikes or general use? I've been using a single Led flashlight for a while & like it a lot. Not much illumination but the Led will last for thousands of hours & the batteries are supposed to last up to 20 times longer. I've been considering a multiple Led flashlight or headlight & wondered about actual experiences from you. :
Randy in Phx.

[joebartels]

Neal & Fritz have some kind of headlamp. We even got a spammer on this thread

http://hikearizona.com/dex2/viewtopic.php?t=57


I was interested in this a couple months ago. If you're into electonics you can make your own super light cause none seem powerful enough to me. Actually, you need to be good at working with fiberglass too.
Super LEDs come rated in (dang I forget)
Anyhow the highest rated ones cost about $3 each at Fry's electronics. You'd need to find a better bulk rate on-line cause that's too much.
For reference, a NightRider Digital bike light system uses 20 super LEDs on their brake light. It's very bright. Cost $50. (unfortunately it's Red)
Fry's has a 5 LED flash light for $35. It's aluminum and built like a tank. It just doesn't seem well designed though. Each LED is recessed individually and not reflected. I figure they know from computer statistics but it just doesn't seem right.



They are becoming popular. Construction barries are starting to use them. The city busses use them as brake lights. I believe the stop light at 1-10 & Ray uses them too. However, there was a news story about accidents due to poorly luminated city bus brake lights a few weeks ago. So evidently, not good enough for daylight.

[BoyNhisDog]

Go for the PrinceTech Attitude. It is a 3 LED flashlight that takes four AAAs and it is bright and smooth. It reportedly lasts 150 hrs but I don't know. I have not had mine burn out the batteries yet. They also make headlamps but I don't have any experience with them.

[azhiker96]

I have a Black Diamond headlamp. It has 4 superbright LED's and will light up to about 30 feet of trail. The only downside was the trail looked funny when I wore it. I finally figured out it was a lack of shadows. When the light source is right next to your eyes you don't see shadows and that causes some loss of depth perception. I carry it in my hand now and it works great. I plan to make a clip to clip it on my belt. It's supposed to get about 130 hours of burn time from 3 AAA batteries. I haven't timed it but I'm still on the first set of batteries and it's been on a dozen night hikes and two overnighters. We played cards for about 3 hours using this as the light source one night. You could build your own if you wanted. A reflector is generally not needed since LED's are very directional. Most list a viewing angle of 20-30 degrees. Check out http://www.kingbright.com

[joebartels]

This is true! If you look really close with a magnifying glass you can see an itty bitty concave reflector inside the LED. That's pretty cool!

[joebartels]

Yes I realize I'm a geek and I'm boring everybody, but if you're looking to project a super light...

Turn your oscilloscopes off already!

This guy has THE ultimate L.E.D. page

http://misty.com/people/don/ledx.html

I found it from this supplier
http://www.superbrightleds.com

[azhiker96]

Great Links Joe, Thanks. One of Don's pages says to not put LEDs in parallel. However, I checked my Black Diamond and found those 4 LEDs are in parallel with each other and there's one series resister (4.7 ohms). I was thinking of adding a small photocell to charge it during the day. Then I could use NiMH batteries and never have to worry about charging them. It would be automatic as long as I attach it to my pack during the day. Here's a link about charging batteries, http://www.national.com/appinfo/power/files/f7.pdf

[azhiker96]

Speaking of recharging. Folks who take cell phones, GPS, blenders, etc. into the woods might be interested in solar battery chargers. http://www.siliconsolar.com/solar_battery_chargers.htm

[joebartels]

They can be in parrallel as long as each one has it's own resistor.

If Black Diamond is parrallel-ing off one resistor then it's a design flaw. Minor though, basically if one of the LEDs doesn't perform as well the drop voltage changes and the resistance isn't high enough for the other 3. They do this to save three cents. On a million units that's a savings of $30,000 (aka, one "sweet" bonus check )

[azhiker96]

Black Diamond may be betting on the natural longevity of LED's and the public's relative inexperience with them. Most LED's I've seen are quoted at 100,000 hours which is just over 11 years of continuous use. If their poor design drops that by a factor of 10 they still have a product that's likely to get dropped, stomped, chewed, or lost before the first LED blinks out. Hey, you can get tail lamps for your car now. I've seen them on a lot of 18 wheelers. It's a great advancement for safety IMHO. I had the smallest Jack-O-Lantern on the block when I was in college. I bought one of those tiny pumpkins, the ones that are just bigger than a golf ball. After carving it I used an LED and some watch batteries to light it up. It looked pretty cool sitting on the TV.

[Daryl]

My headlight of choice is the black diamond gemini. It has LED mode and a high beam mode. One set of batteries will last 1000 hours in LED mode or 7 hours on high beam mode.
LED mode is perfect for night hiking and the high beam works great when looking for something or when extra light is needed.

I think it's just over 5 oz. a little heavier then the LED only options, but the high beam option is worth the extra weight. Also, the batteries sit on the back of you head so it balances nicely on your lid.

[nealz]

Neal & Fritz have some kind of headlamp.

On overnighters in camp I use one Microlight velcro'ed to the underside of my ballcap bill. It works dandy in camp and for reading but it's too easy to 'over walk' the single light beam on the trail.

-Nealz

[Larry Bolton]

I use a 2 AAA batterywith 1 LED (Princeton Tec; Blast) that is very bright. I also just bought my son a Petzl Tikka which uses 3 AAA and has 3 LEDs. Very bright and weights <3 oz with batteries. For the weight, brightness and durability it can't be beat.

[joebartels]

On Squaw Peak these LED lights have taken over in the pre-dawn hour. Looked like a Duracell commercial this morning.

Not as popular with the evening crowd. The same hike last night saw maybe two.

[AK]

i have a petzl tikka. i've used it on night hikes, camping, working on my roommates car. pretty much whenever i need light, hands free. it gives off a nice glow onto the trail ahead of you and lasts for hours. its super lightweight that you hardly notice it. so far its been around 50 hours without a battery change. if you need a good trail light, led is the way to go!

[Glitter]

I bought a Petzl Tikka for my first Grand Canyon trip back in November and have'nt changed the batteries yet. It's pefrect for night hiking or setting up a tent in the middle of the night.

[scottmackey]

Here's my vote as well for the Petzl Tikka ... think is PERFECT for backpacking. Hell, I've even used it when I'm out with AZGF at night and those guys are suprised my little LED performs as well as (or better than) their bulky, heavy and uncomfortable head-spotlights that they have.

[mountain goat]

I have to agree, LED head lamps are the way to go. Bright, light and last a long time.

[youngboy]

what about the princton tec aurora? it was half off at popular the other day, a great steal. anyone else use one?

[Rongway62]

I've got a headlamp that is an LED/Halogen combination. The LED is great for map reading, slow hiking at night, or tent activities. A second click on the power switch shifts to halogen and is great for when you need more light. I picked up mine (Black Diamond Gemini) at REI and find it much better than single bulb units.