noobie looking for every day use "budget" light for hvac use

[herbarex]

So I'm new to the forums, and trying to gather some more knowledge on the technology of flashlights out there...

I use a flashlight every day for my trade, whether it be in an attic, crawling around under a house, inspecting components in low light situations, etc. The 2 flashlights I've previously used are:
a Surefire L4 Lumamax (which was stolen from my work vehicle along with all my tools ) and am now using a Surefire 6P LED.

Now I LOVED the L4 Lumamax, except for the price at the time I bought it (It was much more expensive at the time) I'm Disappointed in the 6P LED...

The only complaints on the L4 Lumamax were that the bezel would get pretty hot with extended runtime, and battery life isn't that great.
The complaints on the 6P LED are that the output is nothing compared to the L4 i used to have, and the battery life is just as bad.

Any advice for an every day use, tough built, high output light that won't break the bank? I know Surefire can be significantly more expensive than a lot of the other brands out there.
I've only used lights that use the CR123a batteries, which can get expensive. I know there are re-chargeable lights, and lights powered by AA, AAA, etc. What works best?
Thanks for any imput!

 

[Trabaker]

I edc a Fenix LD22, plenty of power for what you're describing and a 2.5 hour run time on turbo to boot. Uses 2 AA's and is tough. It's up to you to decide if $60 is "budget" for you though. :thumbsup:

 

[Veru]

Take a look at the Armytek Predator (for more throw) or Viking (more flood). They are both tough and use 18650 rechargeables or the CR123 batteries

 

[AVService]

I second the idea of the Fenix LD22 and I do pretty much what you do too.

They are rugged and easy to use and some of the better made for the money to me.
You can use rechargeable Eneloops or just any AA that you find and they are plenty bright for Attic,Crawls and Drop Cieling work.
They are also light weight.

 

[Gunner12]

The L4 is a flooder light with a fairly wide beam, would you like the same beam pattern?. If you use the light often, look into Li-ion batteries, or a good set of AA batteries.

Maybe a Zebralight SC600 could work. That and a set of 18650 batteries.
If you prefer AA batteries, the Thrunite Neutron could work. A Fenix LD22 could also work well as mentioned before. Foursevens also has good lights, as well as Sunwayman, Jetbeam, etc.

What's your preferred price range, battery, modes, etc?

:welcome:

 

[ToyTank]

I find a headlamp or right angle light very useful so I can use both of my hands especially when working from a ladder, scaffold, ironwork, etc.

I'd recommend Zebralight H600 or H600W. The H51 models are nice also and use regular AA but lack the output of the H600.

Edit: Well the ZL arene't exactly budget but are about what you paid for the 6P I imagine.

 

[Tiresius]

You can look into the slim 18650 lights. Niteye, ET, Jetbeam, and Nitecore makes them. They're all priced around $50-$90, depending on the brand. Majority of them comes with a NW color so it'll help you with color differentiation.

Of all the guys, I picked the ET D25LC2. It has the price, versatile driver, slimmer than the others and costed me $56 for the NW version.