Maglite Solitaire LED or competitor?

[Aloha]

My friend got the Thrunite Ti2 dual mode 3lm/81lm and hangs it off her car keys.  It gets banged around a purse, rattled from day to day handling, certainly not a babied torch.  I think single modes are great as there times when a lot of bright light is needed as well as a very low light mode so for that this dual mode fit the bill for her, YMMV as usual.  This torch is a twist on for 3lm then twist a bit more for 81lm pretty straight forward.     

[Cupboard]

looking back at my post - I'm not trying to say you shouldn't get the Solitaire. I really love my old one and will probably end up getting a new LED one at some point. It was the first proper torch I had.

[Nhoj]

You could always take an incandescent or gas lamp light and convert it to LED pretty easily. It then wouldn't have a chip.

[Quartz]

My Fenix E05 has been on my keys for probably 6 months now.

As someone who has owned a Solitaire, a 2xAA mag, and the e05, what's the beam spread on the e05 like? On the one hand having a more 'flood fill' style would be handy when under desks, but I'm concerned it might suck when trying to see anything more than a few feet away. If you were, say, trying to look across from one side of an attic to the other, would it deliver?

[Quartz]

The plastic was not gasoline proof , apparently.

A lot of plastics and foams aren't, actually. I think it has something to do with them all being hydrocarbon based (like dissolves like?). Same deal with spraypaint and other aerosols.

I´d say, with most of the lights suggested, you are not making any  big mistake even if it should burn out in only 5 years.

It's really a question of hassle.

[Quartz]

You could always take an incandescent or gas lamp light and convert it to LED pretty easily. It then wouldn't have a chip.

Not sure if you're serious or joking, but I want something that's made properly, not a hack job.

[Tofty]

You could always take an incandescent or gas lamp light and convert it to LED pretty easily. It then wouldn't have a chip.

Not sure if you're serious or joking, but I want something that's made properly, not a hack job.

He's not joking, this is what we had to use to give our old solitaires a new lease of life before the LED Solitaire came out:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/15-3-lumens-Bi-Pin-LED-MODULE-FOR-MAGLITE-SOLITAIRE-/111088293135?pt=US_Flashlights&hash=item19dd60d50f
Whether or not you would still consider this a hack job is up to you, it's no different to the Nite-ize drop-in you were running in your Mini-mag 2AA.
If you never owned an original Solitaire however it has little merit.

[Quartz]

He's not joking, this is what we had to use to give our old solitaires a new lease of life before the LED Solitaire came out:

Sorry, when someone talks about 'gas lamp lights' I think of this

[Tofty]

Actually i misread his post, i missed the gas lamp bit.
Most incandescent lights (especially with the standard bulb fitting also found in C/D maglites) can be converted to LED with little effort but a gas lamp might require some serious creative thinking.
There were such things as gas lamps that had a focused reflector for flashlight type beams but the inconsiderate designers often forgot to add such convenient things as battery cavities, wiring and bulb roses so not the cheapest of conversions, even if you don't mind butchering antiques.

[Cupboard]

My Fenix E05 has been on my keys for probably 6 months now.

As someone who has owned a Solitaire, a 2xAA mag, and the e05, what's the beam spread on the e05 like? On the one hand having a more 'flood fill' style would be handy when under desks, but I'm concerned it might suck when trying to see anything more than a few feet away. If you were, say, trying to look across from one side of an attic to the other, would it deliver?

That depends on how big your attic is!
I would say that the beam is better on the E05 than the Solitaire in all respects. Whilst the Solitaire can by focussed it's overall so dim that the E05 wins on all accounts. For close range, I'd say that the E05 and the AA Mini-Mag were fairly comparable (though I always had a problem with a dead spot in the middle of my Maglight beam) but at long range the AA Maglight was better because you can focus it.

The E05 (and I guess by extension the new LED Solitaire) is fine at night for looking in sheds to find where the JCB I'm looking for has been hidden, working out that it's the correct one and seeing what's been left on the front of it, from the entrance to the shed. I don't think you'd have a problem with either the E05 or the LED Solitaire for general walking, peering, etc. type jobs but it wouldn't replace a searchlight. When I've been doing tours at night showing people round, I've swapped for my LD10.

The E05 is as simple as it gets really, you turn the head and the light turns on. It's like the opposite of a Maglight.

[MadPlumbarian]

 Another idea if bumping up to a "AA" is this one, my wife grabbed it when placing an order. Grant it, it's not the best looking one but it had what I wanted, a rear click switch, knurled grip, good STRONG pocket clip(not a wire one) focus lens, a defense bezel, and a high/low output(this came with flash too) now for the down side, the lens looks funky! When focused on narrow beam all you see is a very bright micro chip, and shipping I think it took over a week to two weeks, but for $7 over all, I can't complain, well worth it! JR
Oh yeah another plus, fits perfect in the palm of your hand, kinda like a roll of quarters, just not as heavy,


http://www.amazon.com/FordEx-Group-300lm-Flashlight-Adjustable/dp/B006E0QAFY/ref=sr_1_2?rps=1&ie=UTF8&qid=1371394266&sr=8-2&keywords=led+aa+flashlight

[Gareth]

I will just add that one of the first big brand LED lights I got was a Fenix L0D (now sold as the LD01) and after 5-6 years use it's still going strong.  It's been rather superseded in my affection by bigger, brighter, whiter lights, but there's no getting away from the fact it did many years good service with no issue whatsoever.

Dang, I need to go dig it out now.

 

[enki_ck]

My LD01 is dead. Contact issue.

[Gareth]

Well my red L0D has just gone back on my keyring thanks to this thread.

Sorry to hear about your issue with the LD01 mate.

[Quartz]

When I've been doing tours at night showing people round, I've swapped for my LD10.

Taking this into account vis a vis your shed comment, I'm guessing you consider the e05 to have a useful working range of maybe 10-15 feet?

The E05 is as simple as it gets really, you turn the head and the light turns on. It's like the opposite of a Maglight.

Wait, what? How is that any different? I don't understand.

[Quartz]

Another idea if bumping up to a "AA" is this one,

I'd be ok with a 1xAA if it's really compact, but that looks like a beast
Also, is the beam pattern really shaped like an ethernet jack, or is that just some quirk of the pictures on amazon?

[Quartz]

LD01

People keep suggesting this one, but I don't think it's what I want. I don't really like the med>hi>low switch design. Also, AFAIK, 'hi' only lasts for like 7 minutes before it drops into some sort of half-hi? (I've heard complaints of high-pitched inverter whine too. Most people wouldn't give a smurf about that but my ears are annoyingly sensitive and I have problems with some electronics because of it, so this is all stuff I need to take into account).

[Quartz]

Most people wouldn't give a smurf about that

lol censoring.

[MadPlumbarian]

Another idea if bumping up to a "AA" is this one,

I'd be ok with a 1xAA if it's really compact, but that looks like a beast
Also, is the bean pattern really shaped like an ethernet jack, or is that just some quirk of the pictures on amazon?

Oh it's a beast alright, still not to bad though. And yes the beam pattern is shaped like that while narrow, kinda weird but does its job! JR

[Gareth]

When I've been doing tours at night showing people round, I've swapped for my LD10.

Taking this into account vis a vis your shed comment, I'm guessing you consider the e05 to have a useful working range of maybe 10-15 feet?

The E05 is as simple as it gets really, you turn the head and the light turns on. It's like the opposite of a Maglight.

Wait, what? How is that any different? I don't understand.

with the maglite you loosen the head to turn it on, with most other twist lights you tighten the head to turn them on.

[enki_ck]

When I've been doing tours at night showing people round, I've swapped for my LD10.

Taking this into account vis a vis your shed comment, I'm guessing you consider the e05 to have a useful working range of maybe 10-15 feet?

The E05 is as simple as it gets really, you turn the head and the light turns on. It's like the opposite of a Maglight.

Wait, what? How is that any different? I don't understand.

with the maglite you loosen the head to turn it on, with most other twist lights you tighten the head to turn them on.

I wish more lights would be tighten for off. I hate having to loosen and check if there is still contact under pressure.

[Cupboard]

Yes, that.

Usable range - the longest distance I can test it out on inside my house is about 8 metres and at that range the E05 gives a decent light all over my 6 place dining table. Useful = I can work out that it's a can of electrical contact cleaner in the corner rather than a can of something else.

LD lighting modes: mine have all been the same. Tightened head Ultra High > Strobe, loosened head Low > Med > High. The E05 is single mode so that's a bit irrelevant. Also on the subject of irrelevance, if anyone's got an LD01 (as opposed to an LD10) and would like the little tube that allows you to put CR123 batteries in it along with a spare tail switch, give me a shout. It seems to have a different thread to the LD10.

[Quartz]

with the maglite you loosen the head to turn it on, with most other twist lights you tighten the head to turn them on.

A question about this: does the tighten-to-on type have any play? When off/loose, does pressing the head towards the body turn it on? I feel like this system is liable to turn on accidentally if jammed into a pocket with other stuff.

[Quartz]

Usable range - the longest distance I can test it out on inside my house is about 8 metres and at that range the E05 gives a decent light all over my 6 place dining table. Useful = I can work out that it's a can of electrical contact cleaner in the corner rather than a can of something else.

Ok, fair enough. Thanks.

[Gareth]

with the maglite you loosen the head to turn it on, with most other twist lights you tighten the head to turn them on.

A question about this: does the tighten-to-on type have any play? When off/loose, does pressing the head towards the body turn it on? I feel like this system is liable to turn on accidentally if jammed into a pocket with other stuff.

Level of play entirely depends on which light and how well made the treads are.  Some cheap ones are horribly sloppy, good ones will barely move if at all.

As to turning on/off; if you give the head the smallest of turns off then yes, that's possible.  However if you give most of them as little as half a turn then that shouldn't happen.

[stelug]

I have an old Arc with Nize 5 led, a Fenix E05, a Peac lead solution StainlessSteel body, and aLitxPress pen Power100 (supposed to be a German producuction) and have had in past a bounch of Solitaries and other Mags lite (one converted to led about 6 or 7 years ago). While the Mag's long presence on the market is a strong appeal to me (it means "thrustable" in my simple consumer mind) the evidence is alla but the contrary. Only the modded AA is still well working (but from Mag it has only the body). Instead I had litteraly thrown away all the others becasue of insurgin switching problem soon or later. Counterside the E05 AAA and the Arc AAA are still firmly on my edc and had never failed, even if somethime happened to me to forghet them lightning for various hours. In my opinione reliability (just turn and switch one)  is way more important respect any other feature. Because I learned by experience (have been a reporter for long time) that seconds are vital in certain situation. This is also whay I feed all my flashlight only with Litium AAA batteries that are suppose not having voltage dopps and leaking.on the other side the Peak Led and the LiteXpress, are permanetly sitting home. Both are longher than the E05 wich is longher than the old and thrusty Arc, and while the difference in measures are in terms of 1cm 1cm and 1/2 and do not feel the as confortables on pockets.

[stelug]

Ps: 2 mt distance beams comparison, in same order showed on my previous post. Hope it helps

[Quartz]

Level of play entirely depends on which light and how well made the treads are.  Some cheap ones are horribly sloppy, good ones will barely move if at all.

As to turning on/off; if you give the head the smallest of turns off then yes, that's possible.  However if you give most of them as little as half a turn then that shouldn't happen.

OK, that makes sense. Thanks.

[Quartz]

Anyway, this thread is getting kinda long and I think I'm hitting the law of diminishing returns. Between this thread and ones I ran on other sites I have around a dozen models that sorta fit my criteria to look over, so I'm going to call it here. Thanks to everyone who tried to help.

[Cupboard]

Whatever decision you make will at least have been an informed one