Headlight recommendations please

[R3XXY]

Can anyone recommend a good headlight please. I have an Olight Perun 2, but the battery would discharge itself when not in use, from new. Now it won't charge at all, even with a brand new battery. It has been nothing but a pain in the bottom.
The most important criteria for a replacement are: build quality, good battery life, and a universal charging port.

I know there's one that is popular that kind of looks like one of those lamps that you would see on a coal miner's helmet, but I don't know what the make or model is.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Nice65]

looks like one of those lamps that you would see on a coal miner's helmet, but I don't know what the make or model is.

Could it be the Sofirn HS21 you’re referring to?

Sofirn HS21 Headlamp — 2200 Lumens 3-in-1 with Rotary Switch & Gesture Control

The Sofirn HS21 is a 2200-lumen 3-in-1 headlamp with spot, flood, and red light. Featuring a rotary switch, gesture control, USB-C charging & IP66 waterproofing for camping, hiking, and work.

www.sofirnlight.com

Very good light, my most used although I wouldn’t want to run with it. Has a neutral white flood, a bright white spotlight, a flood/throw combination, and red light accessed by a twist of the rotary switch. Also has a gesture control so passing a hand across the sensor changes brightness (optional).

 

[R3XXY]

That isn't the one I was thinking of, but it looks pretty good. Thanks.

 

[Watch-keeper]

I like nite core nu20 but they may not be available anymore.
Its small and light has a rechargeable battery is very water resistant has a little cover over the switch to stop accidental activation and is bright enough for everything i need to do.
My lad has a black diamond headtorch that runs on 3 AAA batteries which is very good to but I'm not sure which model it is.

 

[stonepark]

Sofirn HS10 for small and lightweight to the larger HS45.

Sofirn Headlamps

 

[66jj99]

Under £9 for an HS10?! Absolutely bonkers. These are fantastic.

"Wurrkos" brand make to similar standards and also worth checking out

 

[hughtrimble]

Could you be thinking of some of the chunkier Petzl or LED Lenser models perhaps? Often a battery pack on the back with a larger lamp up front. Batteries on the back can reduce wobble against a comparable all in one unit (battery and lamp up front combined, all weight right up there), but does make it less comfy to use when e.g. lying down in bed, or even sitting against a tree whilst resting.

Something I've only recently begun to appreciate more is a warmer light, especially in the 2700-3000K range. Much more towards the yellower/orange end and so much nicer on my eyes in the dark rather than the whiter neutral or cool ranges. Worth looking into what you prefer, if you're in the market.

 

[Dan00001]

I have quite a few head torches. I have a LedLenser H8r and HF6r core, both are fantastic torches. My favourite though is still the Sofirt HS20. It has 2 bulbs, one flood and one throw. The flood is superb for reading a book, or reading a map. One feature I really like is that the bulbs have individual on/off buttons which I have found especially useful on navigating exercises where I can have the flood bulbs permanently on on medium, and I can flick the throw on if I want to have a quick glance further into the distance, and then turn it back off again so I'm not blinding everyone I look at. I just find it a bit easier and quicker than adjusting the focus on the LedLensers. It's all metal and very good quality, it has a usb-c charging port but the 18650 battery is also removable so you can charge in a battery charger and/or carry spares, and it's relatively cheap to buy.

 

[FerlasDave]

You might be put off because it’s a made in china product but hear me out! …I work underground at a Welsh slate mine sometimes 9+ hours a day scraping my helmet on the roof and getting dripped on constantly. They supply head torches but they’re all so old and knackered theres barely any point, so I thought I’d try my own for a certain project which required a decent light.

I’ve had these two years now and they’re still going strong. I rotate them around so one is always charged and on my helmet and I’ve actually bought two more, one for each of our cars. USB rechargeable, water resistant, and multi functional. They do everything they need to do.

Amazon.co.uk

 

[Dan00001]

You might be put off because it’s a made in china product but hear me out! …I work underground at a Welsh slate mine sometimes 9+ hours a day scraping my helmet on the roof and getting dripped on constantly. They supply head torches but they’re all so old and knackered theres barely any point, so I thought I’d try my own for a certain project which required a decent light.

I’ve had these two years now and they’re still going strong. I rotate them around so one is always charged and on my helmet and I’ve actually bought two more, one for each of our cars. USB rechargeable, water resistant, and multi functional. They do everything they need to do.

Amazon.co.uk

I looked at those and thought at that price they'd be great to stick in backpacks/jacket pockets for emergencies, and then I saw they currently have an offer on, 13.69 for 2 down from 17.99

Amazon.co.uk

 

[Nice65]

Something I've only recently begun to appreciate more is a warmer light, especially in the 2700-3000K range.

This is definitely a consideration, and one that manufacturers (some like Sofirn and Wurkkos) are listening to. The Wurkkks HD10 is available in 4000K and the Sofirn HS21 floody beam is a nice neutral warm 4000K also. 4000K is a happy medium between candle/incandescent bulb, and the nasty cool white light of most headtorch emitters (which are typically in the 6000K-6500K range).

 

[66jj99]

They're quite good also in having models with "high CRI" /90+ emitters - a real help in distinguishing colours & textures under torchlight

 

[slowworm]

Personally I prefer the whiter, less yellow, light. It may be because I tend to use them for working or it could he just my preference. I bought one of each of the Sofirn HS10 for a little over £8 each to see which I prefer.

I like the HS10 for home use, the battery doesn't last that long but for the price I have a couple and can pick up a charged one if needed. Good for redundancy.

I also have the twin flood & spot light Sofirn HS20 (SFT40 version for about £20) which I find very useful and it would be the one I would take out with me if I only took a single torch.

 

[FerlasDave]

I looked at those and thought at that price they'd be great to stick in backpacks/jacket pockets for emergencies, and then I saw they currently have an offer on, 13.69 for 2 down from 17.99

Amazon.co.uk

Exactly what I figured. I’m forever losing headtorches as it’s an item I use so infrequently but always like to have one nearby, so swapping one from bag to car to workshop is asking for trouble when I do need one.

 

[66jj99]

Just bought four, to do just that total: £36.

An amazing deal. Thanks for the link




Btw regarding the HS10 run-time: Two weeks use during the moot was done with a single charge.

-I found walking about didn't need much more than the lowest setting. This also meant night vision was preserved

 

[ged]

Can anyone recommend a good headlight please. I have an Olight Perun 2, but the battery would discharge itself when not in use, from new. Now it won't charge at all, even with a brand new battery. It has been nothing but a pain in the bottom.

Your experience with an Olight is a bit surprising to me as I've had very good service from Olight products. Maybe it's worth contacting the supplier about i?

The most important criteria for a replacement are: build quality, good battery life, and a universal charging port.

Well OK you said universal charging port but I'm going to mention my Fenix HL50 anyway. Mine is pretty old now (and I don't even know if they still make them) but it's the one I've settled on after trying quite a few. It's comfortable, which is important to me, it's simple, which is also important to me (I think it has three brightness levels, and I only really use the lowest one) and it uses a single AA cell (it can use a CR123 but I don't bother) which lasts for weeks with fairly regular use even if it's a cheap rechargeable from Aldi that's ten years old.

I know there's one that is popular that kind of looks like one of those lamps that you would see on a coal miner's helmet, but I don't know what the make or model is.

Thanks in advance.

You might be thinking of a Petzl. I've got a couple kicking around somewhere but they don't see much action. They have filament bulbs! I guess I could look for LED replacements. The real miner's headlamps had a huge battery pack that you carried on a belt on your waist. Ask me how I know that.

 

[EdS]

What Budget
Size
Power

 

[Herman30]

You might be put off because it’s a made in china product

Chinese make good torches, take Fenix as an example.

 

[Longstrider]

I'm sure you'll be swayed by hype and statistics and buy something expensive and heavy with a 5 billion lumen beam you could cook on but why ? Unless you plan on running pell-mell in the pitch dark you really only need to see 10 feet. If it's truly dark then it's amazing how little artificial light you need to function perfectly well. I'd strongly recommend buying a head torch with a red light option. Not only does this greatly negate impairment of your night vision after you turn it off, but it's far more subtle for those around you.
The best head torch I ever owned was a cheap little Ever Ready model from B+Q (about £7 IIRC) It ran on 3 AAA batteries and had a switch that went one way for white light and one way for red .. end of. None of this all too often encountered problem of "I used it on 'Low', but then had to click through Medium, High, Flood, Spot, Strobe, Can-Can, Foxtrot and Cha Cha Cha* to turn it off again !"
I used it mainly for gralloching deer that I'd shot at last light, then lighting my way back to the vehicle. 3 AAA batteries lasted Lord knows how long in it. Certainly more than you'd need in a fortnight under canvas unless you are completely nocturnal. If adding a spare set of 3 AAA's to your kit puts you over-weight I pity you ! It survived knocks and bangs as well as complete soakings (and subsequent drying out on the radiator). The only thing that killed it was being driven over by a Discovery on a concrete farmyard when I accidentally dropped it in front of my mates motor
All in all, do you need 5 billion lumens, 27 different modes and a rechargeable battery ? Probably not, but I bet that's what you buy

Oh, just one other thing .. Shine it where you like but NOT in peoples faces when in conversation. I've seen a couple of head torches 'accidentally' end up on the fire as a result of this happening.

* TBH I'm yet to come across a torch with all these functions, but if it doesn't already exist it probably soon will as some manufacturer decides that they'll be the new best selling gimmick

 

[Dan00001]

Agreed you don't really need a lot of lumens, but 2000-3000 lumens or more is quite common on torches now. It doesn't mean you have to use all of those lumens, though. Most of my Sofirns are adjustable between around 5 lumens or so up to their maximum.