I’m going to start doing more outdoor stuff soon camping, being outside at night, pretending I know what I’m doing and I realized I don’t actually own a real flashlight.
I thought a flashlight was just… a flashlight. But after scrolling here for a minute I’m realizing that was very naive of me.
I found a Fenix Pd something online and it sounds cool, but I don’t even know if that’s a good pick for just basic camping and being outside at night or if that’s overkill or whatever.
I want something that’s good quality, bright enough to actually see a lot (not just a sad little circle of light), and reliable when I’m out there. Beyond that, I genuinely don’t know what matters. Lumens? Throw? Flood? I feel like I’m reading a different language.
If you were explaining flashlights to someone who knows nothing and just wants something solid for camping and general “being outside in the dark” situations, where would you even start?
by LiveAd9751
3 Comments
I’d recommend starting here: https://zakreviews.com/arbitrary-list.html
Fenix is an excellent company in my opinion. On the pricier side but the construction quality is impeccable and the interface simple. I think the light you picked should do you good, if it’s the actual item shown in the picture then it’s actually a bundle of two lights, both of which are excellent. (also, Fenix lights have an R at the end to indicate if they’re rechargeable or whether they require you to charge the batteries separately so keep that in mind!)
For a more general crash course on stuff, a lot of the lights talked about here are shipped from china so if anyone recommends you something from say Sofirn or Wurkkos bear in mind that unless you’re willing to pay a markup it’ll ship from china and take a week or more to get there.
**Throw** refers to the range of a light, usually accompanied by less **Flood** which means a more diffused and wider spread. **Lumens** is the most general measurement of output, I’d say anything over 1500 is already enough to wow most people that aren’t experienced in lights.
I’m not too versed in actually recommending a random selection of lights so I’m hoping someone else can jump in there, but the ol’ reliable I’ll mention regardless, if you don’t mind shipping times.
Wurkkos FC11C, somewhat floody and very general purpose useful beam profile both for medium ranges and close up stuff like reading. USB-C charging, a really fair price and super versatile interface once you get used to it.
Hope this helps 🙂
I think the pd36r is a little too powerful for your day to day average Joe. It doesn’t have a lockout and gets hot enough to start fires. Maybe consider saving money and buying something like the ld30. Little more compact and cheaper.