Survival light

[Gareth]

Glad to hear you've got yourself sorted.

[ColoSwiss]

Just got the lights in. Loaded both up with lithium batteries. The TerraLUX feels very solid and on high it definitely lights up the basement. It's low setting also does a decent job in the basement.

The high level of the Petzl is about the same as the TerraLUX's low level. Even it's low level seems to be adequate for moving around the basement. The head band feels comfortable for the brief time I wore it; don't know how it would feel after an hour.

[ColoSwiss]

Just tried the lights out in the back yard. The low setting on the Petzl might do for around camp, but I wouldn't want to walk over rough terrain while depending on it. The high setting on the Petzl and low setting on the TerraLUX are much better for movement, while the high TerraLUX does an excellent job of lighting up the back yard.

I definitely like the TerraLUX and am thinking about picking up a couple more, for travel and the house.

[av8r1]

I'm late to the party, but I'll put a big +1 on Lithiums.  I did a practical experiment testing the various kinds of batteries and published my results in a newsletter at mocars.org.

NiMH batteries are the best we've come up with for rechargeable cells, but they still can't beat primaries.  If you're in the field, the ability to reuse the batteries when flat isn't much of an advantage.  NiMH are at their best when they're in constant use; I would recommend using them for your carry light if the manufacturer recommends so.  Led Lenser advises against it, but then again I think they want to sell you their rechargeable lights at 3x the price of the normal ones. 

Lithium primary cells are more ideal for putting in an emergency light and storing away.  They self-discharge slower and don't build up internal gases like Alkalines do, so they don't tend to leak.  They're also the lightest of the common AA/AAA batteries.  Also, Lithium batteries will outlast NiMH on a charge by a pretty wide margin, and it's runtime on a single charge that I want in an emergency light.

One final point:  Eneloops are expensive compared to primary cells, and they're only cost effective if you use them a lot.  If you store an Eneloop away in an emergency light that you rarely if ever use, you're wasting a lot of money.

[NutSAK]

While I agree with most of what you've stated about primary lithiums cells vs. NiMH secondaries, av8r1, I don't consider an "emergency light" and a "survival light" the same thing.  To me, they have very different requirements and uses.

The main difference to me is that an emergency light is one that you would store away in a drawer or vehicle console for short-term emergency purposes.  A short-term power outage of 48-72 hours or less falls under this category.  In this case, I fully agree that lights stored with lithium primary cells are ideal, mainly for the fact that they can be stored safely for 10-15 years.

IMO, a survival light is something that might be used in scenarios that go well above and beyond the requirements of a short-term emergency.  The characteristics that I feel are important for a survival light are as follows:

1. Durability & dependability - for obvious reasons
2. Compatibility with a wide range of cells - Once your "stash" of Lithium AA cells for a particular light are gone, what will you do?  If your light is compatible with a wide range of cells, you can start in on the next "stash", be it lithium CR123s, alkaline AAs, alkaline AAAs, etc.
3. Ability to run 1 cell at a time - Once your stash of cells are gone and you're scrounging for more, you might not find new ones, or cells in pairs.  If your light has the ability to run 1 cell at a time, you won't have any concern over matching cells of equal charge.
4. Compatibility with primary and secondary cells - Once your stash of cells is gone and you've done all the scrounging you can do, what then?  Well, if you have portable NiMH and/or Li-Ion chargers and a stock of cells, you can operate indefinitely.  I prefer USB-type chargers for this because they are easily compatible with 12V systems, solar charging stations, etc.  When the SHTF, even if there is no power, there will be plenty of 12V sources for quite some time.
5. Low-power consumption, high efficiency (low output modes) - I think this is self-explanatory for the most part.  Low and "moon" modes allow for less energy consumption and longer runtimes.
6. Ability to run hands-free - At times you will need both hands in a survival situation

A good example of a light like this is in the picture below:



The (low-voltage) 4Sevens Quark on the right side of this picture meets the above requirements:

1. Durability & dependability - Quality aluminum build with type-III anodize and mechanical switch
2. Compatibility with a wide range of cells: Various bodies allow for any of the following cell combinations

• AAA
• 10440
• AA
• 14500
• 2xAA
• CR123
• 16340
• 17670
• 18650

3. Ability to run 1 cell at a time - All cell types above can be used as single cells
4. Compatibility with primary and secondary cells - Alkaline primary cells, Lithium primary cells (AAA, AA or CR123), Li-Ion, and NiMH cells can all be used.
5. Low-power consumption, high efficiency (low output modes) - The Quark has many available outputs, including sub-lumen levels, all with efficient regulation of all cell types.
6. Ability to run hands-free - 4Sevens have headband and prism kits that work very well for hands-free situations.

[enki_ck]

Well said, Terry, and I agree that the Quarks are ideal for such a purpose. Reason why i have one in my car emergency bag.

It's priced 3x above what Karl had in mind though.

The Gerber Infinity and the ITP A2/OLIGHT I2, 47s Mini AA series is also good for such situations as they can work on AAAs too even without an adapter.

[NutSAK]

It's priced 3x above what Karl had in mind though.

The Gerber Infinity and the ITP A2/OLIGHT I2, 47s Mini AA series is also good for such situations as they can work on AAAs too even without an adapter.

   I wasn't suggesting the Quark to the OP, I was really just being verbose in the point I was trying to make--that an "emergency" light is not necessarily a "survival" light.

The Quark was just an example I used, because it has all of the qualities I find important.  There of course are many other lights that fullfill a number of those qualities--some less expensive, some more.

[av8r1]

You put way too fine a point on it, NutSAK.  I, for one, only have one set of survival/emergency/whatever gear, because I'm not clairvoyant enough to know if I should bring the good stuff or the REALLY good stuff.

Also, a 1xAA light will pretty much handle your concerns, especially paired with a AAA->AA sabot.  I'm not worried about CR-123 compatibility.  You'll never find those batteries in a place devoid of AA/AAAs.  The ability to find flashlight batteries in my environment is why I spurn CR-123 lights like I spurn herpes.  Show me a TV remote or wall clock that runs on CR-123s. 

And I'll still hold that--if you're putting away the light for an emergency/survival/priority/urgency/kind of important/oh god oh god/critical/disaster/godzilla situation--the battery you should store IN the light itself should be a lithium primary cell.  Best shelf life, least likely to leak/corrode/damage the light, best run time, lightest in weight.  Even with your super fancy "runs on anything" flashlight, I wouldn't store anything but lithiums in the light.

[firiki]

Thread necro. I thought I'd chime in as this is a very interesting topic, for me at least.

I can't afford to test many lights so I consider every one I have as a potential life saver, since the light I have with me is the one that's going to be used anyway. In that sense, I like to think of the lights and cells I buy as investments waiting to pay off. This is also why I am all for making knives and lights combos, because this way -supposedly- I'll be getting better value when needed.

In general, I like to keep things as simple as possible and this applies to flashlights as well despite there being many things to factor in -wants, needs, cell supplies, built quality, unexpected factors. A light can fail or get lost, batteries can fail or be scant. My solution to these problems is to have at least two lights using different but commonly available cell sizes of the most profitable flavour.

The simpler things are, that much less can go wrong. That's a firm credo of mine. It's also why I love the Fenix E01. Single mode, very simple switch, durable, with very useable light. I've packed one in my SHTF bag along with 5 lithium primaries. In the worst of cases these should last me around 3 days of continuous use.

Granted, being very floody the E01 is adequate for illuminating areas nearby and can be used as a base camp light but it doesn't allow for planning one's next move due to its beam's reach. That's why I've included a Fenix LD22 in the same bag along with 6 lithium primaries. In the worst on cases these should last me around 3 weeks of continuous use on the lowest setting. I love the LD22's low setting, with my eyes adapted to night vision I can see clearly enough with it to maintain a fast walking pace though unknown (but not inhospitable) terrain if needed and I can always swift to a brighter setting if need be. After three weeks, if no contact with civilisation is to be made then I'm probably doomed anyway.

All this preparedness talk makes me realise my SHTF bag is incomplete. I need a sedative now