Need a decent flashlight:

I had my 1000 lumen 3D custom built by a machine shop in California.

 

Costco sells some good stuff, but their flashlight buyer loves multi-mode. I'm guessing he's a desk jockey gadgeter. I like the switch to do either on or off, not interested in other settings or light shows or "tactical" whatever that is. My tactic is to light something up when I need to, then turn it off. Got a bunch of their "5 presses to shut it off" lights idling in a drawer, been meaning to look up how to make them single mode.

Meanwhile, one of these that someone gave me is the one I reach for every time. It's small, bright enough with a AA so I can recharge it and keep spares handy, but it lasts a long time on one. The zoom is more useful than I thought it would be, lots of times a bright unfocused flashlight will blind me back if it isn't directed.

I don't know which specific model it is, no label on mine, they sell different lumens, but for $4 one could have a collection cheap...http://www.gearbest.com/led-flashlights/pp_149858.html

 

Anyone get these big things?

Sometimes thought they would be nice when hunting for trailers or when I'm coming up to customers with their signs away from the road in the dark lol. Haven't bought one, but think about it sometimes when I see them.

 

I had one of those, it was great. But the battery finally went bad.
So I bought the Stanley Fat Max, its a little bit smaller , but it's an LED and 10 times brighter.

 

I actually just bought my first high-quality flashlight this week. It is the Olight S30R Baton III. It was pricey (about $80), but was worth it in my opinion. I got a chance to test it out this week and am really happy with it. Here’s a video showing them putting it through hell, including running it while submerged in water, deep freezing it, dropping it over and over, and running it over with a truck.

It is rechargeable, has 1050 lumens max, multiple brightness modes and strobe (but also the ability to be strictly a simple on/off light), and a magnetic tailcap (for attaching it to the underside of a car hood, for example). It is small enough to fit in a pocket, and mine even came with a little belt holster for holster types. It also comes with an 18650 rechargeable battery and charger, unlike many other higher end lights which require you to buy a separate battery and charger to get them up and running.

I'm really happy with it. I think I even made some drivers jealous the last few nights. One of the guys I work with immediately ordered one after trying out mine. Check it out.

 

https://www.amazon.com/Streamlight-...345&sr=1-20&keywords=Streamlight+rechargeable

I use this flashlight. Its made for firefighters because it cuts through smoke. Super bright, i can light a trailer up and see the number on it from 50 yards at night.

They have rechargeable battery packs and 12v accessory adaptors from the cig lighter.

Its very durable. I mean very f'n durable. The shell is hard plastic and its completely waterproof.

It has a ring on the back and a clip for hanging it. Niether the ring or clip are cheap either. They withstand a beating as well.

I wont ever use another light.

It is pricey, but worth it in my opinion. Ive had mine since i started driving commercially 5 years ago.

A full recharge will hold over a weeks worth of use and i do a lot of d/h primarily at night.

 

I've had one of these for a little over a year. My son gave it to me for Christmas. Great flashlight!

Recharges with a micro-usb like your phone uses.

I like it because it's magnetic and super bright. I stick it to the DOT bumper when backing in to docks in the dark.

 

These lights also go by the brand names G700, Shadowhawk X800, Atomic Beam, and others. The flashlight nerds consider it a scam, saying that the pictures showing its power are made with the person holding one of those larger spotlights. Since you only see the silhouette of the person, they could be holding anything. The same light can be had on Amazon for $7 here: https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01EFUI96W?psc=1
Check those out before spending any real money on well-marketed too-good-to-be-true items.

The reason I got into this subject is because my dad gave me a bunch of similar types of lights after falling for both the scammy, as seen on TV ones as well as the super-cheap equivalents. I discovered that not only were they differently branded versions of the same thing, but also that the battery capacities were also greatly overstated. There are 18650 batteries coming from China that have impossible mAh capacities listed on their labels (3600mAh is the current maximum and they'll say 5800 or whatever).

People into this sort of thing have tested and even weighed those batteries only to find they weigh 25% less than all of the legit types. Some have even disassembled them to find out they were actually smaller batteries inside a larger tube filled with powder, with wires to extend the contacts out to the ends.

This kind of stuff is dangerous because bad Lithium ion batteries have been known to explode and cause house fires. Be sure to research those products beyond their own advertising. When in doubt, you can find the nerds at www.candlepowerforums.com and www.reddit.com/r/flashlight .

 

Hands down, for reliability... dont go with anything but a MagLite. In my experience nothing better. The new LED one ive had for about 2 years and no battery change yet... Used almost daily... Got an extra set of batteries in the box tho just incase...