28 replies to this topic

[Old Crow]

I've had good luck with this LED headlamp (the lime-green HD Plus model). I like its one-touch-off feature but it takes a bit of mental adjustment. 

 

The headlamp has four light modes, including red.  The trick you have to learn is to decide what mode you want before turning it on.  If you click once, you get red.  If you just leave it alone for two seconds at that point, your next click will turn it off (not advance to the next mode).  That's very handy for preserving your night vision.

 

For the other modes, you click the number of times necessary to get to the mode you want (from OFF).  For reading, I know I click four times for flood-only, then hold down for dimming.   After I'm done reading, one click turns it off.

 

The spotlight is 200 lumens and supposedly good for 70 meters.  I tend to use flood mode most of the time I'm out at night but will click on Spot if I want to look for those spooky red eye reflections out there in the scary woods.

 

The headband is comfortable and I like how far the light tilts out from the battery-pack to adjust the light-angle down in front of you.  Battery changes are easy.

 

I believe I bought mine at Lowe's or Home Depot. About $20.

[Alley-Kat]

My wife purchased the Greenlight Planet - Sun King Mobile. 

While driving we have the solar panel on the dash, then when we camp the light goes into the camper with us.

She uses it on the table, and because it's closer to what she is looking at, it's a bit brighter than my ceiling mounted LED's. It also can charge our smart phones. 

[Bad Habit]

Anytime I go to Harbor Freight during a sale, I pick up a couple of these little 27 led lights, they have magnets so you can stick them to camper jacks, etc.  and/or little hooks to hang them.  Not great but cheap and available enough to have a few.  Some of their sales they will be 2 for 1 at the sale price or free when you buy $xx amount.

[RicoV]

@ Old Crow:  On your 2 folding panel lanterns I'll presume you tried this?  (from another forum's comments):   "It arrives from the factory in 'try me' mode. Remove all batteries and put them back in... no more cutoffs or flashing.  This technique also works when the batteries are going low and begin to flash. Be sure to dim it slightly and the battery life will be extended." 

[Old Crow]

@ Old Crow:  On your 2 folding panel lanterns I'll presume you tried this?  (from another forum's comments):   "It arrives from the factory in 'try me' mode. Remove all batteries and put them back in... no more cutoffs or flashing.  This technique also works when the batteries are going low and begin to flash. Be sure to dim it slightly and the battery life will be extended." 

 

Thanks for the tip, RicoV!  

 

Yeah, I'm confident I did indeed disable 'try me' or 'demo' mode.  I used the first lantern successfully for a few months with no issues.  When it started the odd behavior my first thought was the batteries must be low but new ones didn't help.  I also tried running it with only four batteries (it can use either four or eight) but that didn't change anything.  When I called it in, the customer service person also led me through the demo-disable process yet again and ultimately said the lantern was defective.

 

The second one also seemed to switch out of demo mode OK but failed its first longer test by shutting itself down in about ten minutes.  Subsequent starts sometimes worked, sometimes didn't. 

[craig333]

I finally had to quit cold turkey.

[highz]

Great idea for a thread!

 

I'll kick off with one of the standard items we carry with us.

BD headlamp with red LED option.  Lightweight, both bright and dimmable, with red LED for optimal night sky viewing.

 

This is what I use, too. I used Petzls at work, but after we got a batch with bad switches, I switched to the Black Diamond for my personal headlamp. I'm very pleased with it.

 

When I am backpacking, I wrap the headlamp around a translucent water bottle, with the light pointing into the bottle, and it make a very good diffuse tent lamp.

 

Part of the camping experience for me is enjoying the night. I'm glad to have a headlamp to find my way around, but I'm also glad to turn it off and let my eyes adapt to the dark. I try to avoid lights that are too bright. To be honest, I cringe when I see ads for the super-bright LED flashlights. One flash in the eyes and your night vision is gone for several minutes.

[Lighthawk]

When I am backpacking, I wrap the headlamp around a translucent water bottle, with the light pointing into the bottle, and it make a very good diffuse tent lamp.

 

-----snip----

 

^^Yes!^^  Works in the camper for indirect lighting as well.

[ski3pin]

<snip>

 

Part of the camping experience for me is enjoying the night. I'm glad to have a headlamp to find my way around, but I'm also glad to turn it off and let my eyes adapt to the dark. I try to avoid lights that are too bright. To be honest, I cringe when I see ads for the super-bright LED flashlights. One flash in the eyes and your night vision is gone for several minutes.

 

x2

[takesiteasy]

This goes for me too. I learned as a kid that I could see way better at night without a flashlight once my eyes adjusted to the darkness, which can take some time just sitting in the dark. I passed that lesson on to my kids at a young age. The red light solution came to me much later. We rarely use flashlights unless truly necessary.