head torch?

[ex-member Raikey]

just wondered, is everyones head torch considered the no1 light source when around camp?

i have a cheap Karrimor job, and have just realised how much i use it.

i also have in my bag a Surefire D2 which ,if i,m honest i rarely use, due to short burn time and expensive batteries.

(i have a quick scout around the site before i get in the hammock)

anyway,....

the Karrimor cheapo has broken and,..

i,m very tempted to spend more on the head torch and get a decent one, a Petzl E+lite probably

even thought about swapping the Surefire for one at one point.

how many other members, if we're honest are of the same thinking??

 

[Bodge]

I have a couple of head torches I use, first one is my alpkit gamma which is a great torch but recently I have been using my energizer £5 from tesco one which is bright and lightweight and perfect for mooching around camp. If I need more light I generally have a cree torch about my person.

 

[sirex]

when we started camping / hiking i got 2 petzl headtorchs, one for me and one for the wife. Still use them every time, and we got them a good few years ago now. They were expensive, but id buy anouther immediately if one broke. Only thing i wish they had was a red bulb or filter... There might be one on the market actually, as i think the plastic shield comes off so maybe it can be replaced.

hmmmmmm.... got me interested now !

 

[iamasmith]

Petlz Tikka, very light weight and bright... but I put on the green filter myself because I found that it wrecked my vision when I was walking at night on the moors.

 

[sirex]

Petlz Tikka, very light weight and bright... but I put on the green filter myself because I found that it wrecked my vision when I was walking at night on the moors.

did that come with it ? im pretty sure its the tikka we got, altough i think the new one has a yellow push button, ours have yellow slide buttons ? Pretty sure there wasnt any other filters with it

 

[iamasmith]

did that come with it ? im pretty sure its the tikka we got, altough i think the new one has a yellow push button, ours have yellow slide buttons ? Pretty sure there wasnt any other filters with it

No, you can get a pack of covers 3 in a pack. Spare Clear, Red and Green.

 

[ex-member Raikey]

i know the rule normally to do what works for you,

but i hear about the proud owners of 150 quid surefires etc, but never is the head torch glamourised or droolled over,

for me the balance between asthetics and practicality is shifting

 

[knifefan]

Lots of 5,6,7,8 & 10 led headlamps on evil-bay!! for less than £6 squid - they even come with batteries. The ones that fit on the peak of a baseball cap (£1.99) are good. As usual, the more u pay - the more u pay for the "Brand" not for the performance

 

[charleslockerbie]

Got the elite the other day. Quite inpressed but not had it out proper.

 

[Shewie]

Petzl Tikka for me too, I think it's the army version with the red flip down lens. Got the tiny little e+lite too which is great for sticking in a pocket at night for emergencies. Also got a Fenix which is superb but I prefer to have my hands free most of the time.

Never heard a bad word about the Gammas either, if/when my Petzl packs in I'll probably give one a go.

 

[Col_M]

I have a Princeton Tec Aurora, Black Diamond of some type, I can't remember the name and a Alpkit gamma, so far I like the Gamma the most Although I'm very tempted by the Zebralights

 

[TinkyPete]

I have a fair few torches (easily over 30)

The main head torches I use are my Petzl myo xp (AA battery)
an Petzl elite + great small head torch and works off two cr2032 batteries which are extremely light weight and last ages

main torches I use now would be my cree Hugsby P2 which will work off AA or CR123's but only work it off AA at present which is an extrremely bright light and for less then $15 delivered is not bad.
gerber recon torch for work, small amount of light but then I don't want to give the game away most times.

I have torches which work from square cell 12V batteries through from D cell to AAA, and the small watch like batteries too, I mainly use AA cause
1. they are cheep if you have to buy them, which you can buy almost anywhere including Kenyan flea markets.
2. I can get them through work for free in any warzone we might be, where as AAA are almost impossible.
3. Rechargeables are easy to get and most places you can find a charger if yours breaks or gets lost or forgotten (done that a couple of times)
4. Are light enough to carry without weighing to much.

 

[TeeDee]

Alpkit Gamma's are ridiculously under priced compared to others. Good bit of Kit.

 

[Harvestman]

Just paid £2 in Asda for a basic 9 LED torch, plus a further £1 for enough batteries for 2 torches. It throws out lots of light, and at that price I don't much care if it is robust, or weatherproof, or whatever.

 

[EdS]

Alpkit Gamma, Hope Vision 1 (Vision 4 sometimes if borrowed) and Custom Duo cd351-spot and cd353-side in Petzl Duo body.

The Gamma is just about perfect for around camp use.

 

[British Red]

I got a Petzl Myo XP off a Magikelly group buy a few years ago. Its an older model than the current one but works really well. So much so that a mate who borrowed it to complete the "death march" (100km in 24 hrs) ended up looking like the engine of a train as others with feeble torches fell in behind. He thought it so superior to el cheapo torches that he borrowed it again this year.

I use it regularly for fetching in logs, walking at night over broken country and all sorts.

Have to disagree that you pay for the "brand" - I have a few cheapies that live in the car etc. and they don't measure up in terms of flexibility (flood to beam), performance (light output), design (ability to angle the beam where you want it) and ease of use (having to cycle through bloody silly things like strobe functions etc.)

Red

 

[Nat]

Petzl Tikka with a red lense, been used and abused and squished into the mud by a tank. Alpkit Gamma is my usual on normal trips, underpriced and bloody brilliant piece of kit.

 

[ged]

Yes, a head torch is the first torch that goes in my pack. Others go in as backups, for convenience of hanging, for a big light patch (like a lantern), and for more power. I don't want an excessively powerful beam on a head torch because it's mostly used for close up work, but I want long battery life because it gets used a lot. Fortunately that's one of the rare occasions when two requirements don't conflict.

I agree with Pete about the advantages of the AA size, but I use rechargeable AAA for several torches. I carry a few spares and if I have several torches which use AAA it saves a bit of space and weight. It wouldn't save weight if I were away for long enough to run all my batteries down, but unfortunately my trips rarely outlast my batteries. As I have several torches using the same batteries, the batteries can back each other up as well as the torches. AAA are as easily available where I'm likely to be as AA but if I went anywhere off the beaten track like Pete does I'd rethink the entire thing.

I don't give a monkeys about branding, in fact I tend to shy away from big brands and go for something cheap that does the job and has the right features. Number one on my list for a torch is that the danged thing must NOT switch itself on in my pack. It's nice to have a low-intensity beam to save the battery. Most designers don't seem to have thought that one through very well, I have a torch with three LEDs and the low intensity setting switches on two of them which is downright daft.

 

[Old Bones]

Go for the Gamma, for £12.50 its a steal. Petzel has a great rep, but for wandering around camp, the gamma will be fine.

 

[GoatBoy666]

Have the petzl tikka plus and alpkit gamma, have to say I prefer the gamma. You get 2 gammas for the price of the tikka, its a no brainer...

HTH

goat