Headlamps

[2die4]

I got tired of the cheap dollar store and Harbor Freight headlamps so I've been researching headlamps for the past couple of days and am amazed at all the variants. I settled on the Gerber Bear Grylls model and a Princeton Tec "Byte." A couple of factors such as cost, warranty, USA made. batteries, and dual use (different lenses) was what sold me. I may return the Gerber and get a Princeton Tec "Fuel"

Anybody have experiences with the brands I have purchased? What brands/models do you use and swear by?

[bacpacker]

I have several Petzel headlamps and swear by them. My newest one is a Tikka Plus. 70 Lumens out and decent battery life.

I love headlamps, keep your hands free for more important task typically.

[2die4]

I have several Petzel headlamps and swear by them. I've been looking at a few Petzl's The lamp seems chunkier than the Princeton's. I got to handle one up close, next time I go to REI.

[bacpacker]

I have an old one (don't remember the model) that I've had for 25 years or more. Still works great and taken a beating over the years. It has a incandecent bulb and eats up the batteries pretty quickly. Our newer ones have LED's and do much better on batteries.

I have no knowledge of the Ptec brand or others so I really can't compare them. If they work for you, I say they are just fine.

[Gunfixr]

I got some awhile back. I wanted both white and red LEDs, and hopefully all-weather use.
I got some I ordered or got at Bass Pro, and they're alright. Getting from white to red is by pushing buttons to go through settings, which I'm not fond of, and not listed as even "water resistant".
Then I found a Princeton Tec "Tactikka". White LED in several brightnesses, with colored lenses that just slide over the lens. It comes with red, blue, and green, but the unit only holds one at a time. That was fine, I was only interested in the red. Also listed as water resistant.
I like it so much I got a second one.

[2die4]

I just picked up a Princeton Tec "Byte". I am impressed with it so far. I must say, the compact size of it was really comfortable and stayed firm to my head as I wrestle my dog down to clean her ears. That little 50lb beast is tough.

[izzyscout21]

I've got a Petzl Tactikka and a Surefire Saint Minimus. Both are great lamps.

[MegaCPC]

I have a Black Diamond Nightray LED that I like. 2 settings of brightness (2 or 5 LED). Takes 3 AAA batteries which I like. I've had it for a few years and only remembering changing the batteries once. Get's used on night hikes and bike rides for me.

It's not REALLY bright, but it's plenty of light for bombing a trail on my bike at midnight.

http://i210.photobucket.com/albums/bb146/megacpc/Black_diamond_nightray_zps2de6d37f.jpg (http://s210.photobucket.com/user/megacpc/media/Black_diamond_nightray_zps2de6d37f.jpg.html)

[LUNCHBOX]

I agree with Bacpacker....they are nice headlamps and costs are not to bad either.

[sigma pete]

Not sure whether it's made in the USA or not but this one from Energizer is awesome. My son and I both use ours for occasionally for caving and frequently for camping. It just keeps running and running on lithium batteries. The 100 lumen intensity kicks ass and it's not that heavy of a unit, especially for being a metal cover not plastic. Lifetime warrantee too, but I can't speak for their customer service since I've had no reason to use it in the 3 years that I've owned mine.

My only complaint is actually a positive/purposeful design feature. There's a green LED strobe light on the back (battery pack) so that the person behind you can see where you are while caving and it works well for finding it when fishing out from the bottom of a backpack. On the flip side, it's so bright that I have to disconnect the battery pack at night because it lights up my hammock tarp so bright that I can see a flood of green with my eyes closed. Makes it kind of hard to sleep that way.

http://www.energizer.com/flashlights-lighting/flashlights/headlight/Pages/ultimate-3aa-led-headlight.aspx

http://www.energizer.com/SiteCollectionImages/cutups/Ultimate/ultimate-3aa-led.png

[Taz Baby]

We seem to have this thing about collecting headlamps where ever we go. So far we have them from, Home depot, Lowe's, Northern Tool, Harbor Freight and yard sales(love those yard sales). But The best one so far is from Home depot. The battery lasts longer. Even when DH goes into WalMart with it on and wonders why people are looking at him funny. Have had mine for 2 yrs and only changed battery 1 time so far, and yes I use it.

http://www.homedepot.com/catalog/productImages/400/cd/cd5d8613-8ecb-4b84-84d0-4f4352b5a0f9_400.jpg

[bourneshooter]

I have headlamps from Princeton Tec and Black Diamond. Both are American companies and make quality kit. Princeton Tec is trying to be the leading edge on the market of head mounted lighting and doing a good job at it.

[Gunfixr]

I ran across mine yesterday, it is a Petzl.

[The Stig]

I've got an el'cheepo Coleman one from Walmart. It was fantastic when I had to do emergency repairs in the attic during Hurricane Issac last year.

Need to invest in a better one however.

[bourneshooter]

Check out your local REI or similar. They should have Princeton Tec, Black Diamond and Petzl on the shelf you can get some hands on play with.

I'm a big fan of them as you can't use a handheld utility light as a headlamp, but for generic use, a headlamp can be used as a flashlight. I keep one in my EDC backpack as well as on the nightstand for if/when the power goes out.

[Gunfixr]

Bass Pro had the Petzl Tactikka.

I am not unhappy generally with the cheaper ones, except for a "tactical" field use. For that, when I want a red light, I want a red light. I don't want to have to cycle through three or four different brightness's of white light to get to red. The Petzl simply has a red filter that you slide over in front of the light when you want red, and then just turn it on. It actually comes with red, green and blue filters, but I was interested in red for night time operation. You can only mount one filter at a time, and it just slides back and forth.

[idahobob]

Petzl Tactikka Plus from here:

http://www.backcountry.com/petzl-tactikka-plus-headlamp

I use 'em a lot and really like them. They run on AAA batteries and they are so light, I really do not notice it on my head. Also has a red flip up/flip down lens.

Bob
III