Headlamps

[Mark Walker]

We have 2 older Petzls. One with only 2 bulbs and one with 4. They work fine.

 

[David Loy]

Like Brian Miller, I’m a Zipka Tikka guy. I like how compact it is particularly when not in use. Slips into a pocket well, usable in hand as a flashlight, and plenty bright for walking a trail. On my second now maybe 20 years later. Think I loaned out #1.

 

[tkww]

I like the PETZL ACTIK CORE 450. I use it on night time trail runs, in camp and coming off the water in the evening. It comes w/ a rechargeable battery and you can us 3- AAA batteries as well. max lumens gives me about 2 hours and the low and mid settings go for days. It does have a red light and has been water resistant/waterproof through quite a few rainy runs. They run about $70 and I think it's worth every penny.

I too ended up with an Actik Core recently. I like it for all the reasons above. It does have a couple of quirks. One is that it always turns back on at the lowest power setting. (Or if you were using the red bulb, it turns back on in red.) I actually like it, as that's how I use the headlamp most of the time--lowest power. But it does slay me that they don't just have it turn back on at whatever brightness setting it was last used at. The other quirk is that it doesn't flip (angle) down as much as I'd like. It really should have one further click. Not a big deal for most things, but it's not very convenient for eating.

 

[Bruce Baker]

I have Princeton Tec Vizz (420 lumens) that I like. The one thing I like about it is that there is a screw that can be loosened/tightened to adjust the swivel head.

I also have two Petzel Tikka Plus (160 lumens) headlamps, but it looks like they are no longer made. The swivel head is ratcheted and I do not think it has as wide a range as the Princeton Tec.

Looks like Petzel still makes the Tikka and the amount of lumens has been increased to 300.

 

[Joe H]

I have two of the nicer BD's and every time I reach for them the batteries are dead due to them inadvertently turning on in my fishing backpacks... Otherwise
I have about a half dozen cheaper Energizer 400 lumen models in my work trucks and camping totes and they always perform flawlessly, even after a year or more without checking the batteries.
FWIW I'm thinking the Black Diamonds will be replaced by the E's by next month.

 

[GOTY]

@Creatch'r

 

[Bowbonehead]

I've been using a storm 400 around camp and its been great..... no issues with it turning on by itself and have carried a zipka in my fishing kit for years hard to beat for a fishing headlamp ......

 

[Greg Price]

I have a 4 aaa battery Black Diamond that REI recommended about 7 years ago. I use it for fishing adventures. Summertime I use it for walking creek beds or woods after sun down. Winter in the salt. The two smaller LEDs are used for walking non technical surfaces and replacing flies.

The Big LED is great for charging glow in dark flies for night use on Puget Sound Beaches. It is also great when in the woods and i want a little more reach to see those wild beast eyeballs peeking at me.

For work, camping and around home use i have a couple of cheap Eveready headlamps that i love. My first model broke, so i just taped around the seams and has been fine for over 6 years. I keep it in the cab of my former work van for all non fishing related items like washing car after dark, mowing lawn, checking oil or finding stuff in bins in work van. My newer and brighter Eveready headlamp is in the kitchen camping tub that gets use for setting up camp and cook.

 

[_WW_]

I have a basic Eveready that has white light and red light. I've had it so long the elastic is all stretched out and I have had to tie knots in the head band to keep it tight. It runs on regular batteries that you can buy anywhere. If it ever wears out I'll try to find another one just like it.

 

[matchu865]

I have a WowTac A2S that is bright as shit (1000 lumen burst) that I use for finding duck blinds at 4am. It was only $30, and is waterproof and uses rechargeable batteries. You can take out the light from the headstrap and use it as a flashlight as well. Can't beat the Chinese brands for performant flashlights - the traditional brands just rebrand/market these anyways. No red light or lockout unfortunately though.

 

[hiddentalus]

Depends on what your intended use is, e.g. around the campsite/home versus backcountry/mountaineering. This will help determine how many lumens, length of light beam and battery life you need. Consider using lithium batteries instead of alkaline batteries to improve battery life particularly in colder environments.

Here is Outdoor gear lab's review: https://www.outdoorgearlab.com/topi...best-headlamp?specs=n&n=0&sort_field=#compare

 

[Salmo_g]

Just noticed today that you can get a pack of 3 head lamps at Costco for $20. Costco stuff is usually pretty good, so there's that.

 

[O' Clarkii Stomias]

I've had petzel and bd/chouinard headlamps for damn near 40 years in all different sizes and configurations. My brother in law works for a utility where the hand out evereadys like they're candy, so he kindly sends some my way. I have to say the evereadys are as good as they get.

 

[JayB]

What about flashlights? For some reason I've always coveted a gajillion lumen strong, waterproof flashlight that I could claim to need for boating or off-roading or something, but really just want to randomly illuminate treetops, mesas, and docks a quarter mile away....

 

[long_rod_silvers]

What about flashlights? For some reason I've always coveted a gajillion lumen strong, waterproof flashlight that I could claim to need for boating or off-roading or something, but really just want to randomly illuminate treetops, mesas, and docks a quarter mile away....

Valid point, the over the top super bright flashlight is always a hit.