Searchlight help!

bbedding

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Oct 19, 2017
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Hi All, this is my first post so please bare with me! i am a search dog handler and get called by the police and various governing bodies to search for missing people, 90% of my time i am in woods and vast fields. i need to upgrade my handheld torch to something a bit powerful with a long beam reach but i don't want to be carrying round something the size of a bazooka from the 80's i only really know Led Lenser and Fenix so any advice is much appreciated:)
 

archimedes

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Hello and welcome to CPF ....

Your post above has been approved, but please refrain from creating duplicate threads. This does not get your posts approved any quicker, but does create extra work for the mods here.

Thanks
 

snakyjake

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I would give consideration to EagleTax MX25 series for the differentianing reasons:
1) Output control ring. I want to change output up or down, not cycle output. I want to preselect output level.
2) Built-in charger.

I would want something for long reach AND width.

I don't want to waste lumens in distance I cannot reach because of obstructions or atmosphere. No sense reaching past a distance that is going to require magnified optics. Don't want to waste lumens in width that goes outside of my prime search vision of my eyes.

MX25L2:
Center lux: 57,300 lux
Center spot angle: 7°
Spill light angle: 58°
Beam distance: 523 yards / 479 meters


MX25L2C:
Center lux: 87,500 lux
Center spot angle: 5.7°
Spill light angle: 59°
Beam distance: 645 yards / 592 meters

MX25L3:
Center lux: 45,100 lux
Center spot angle: 7.5°
Spill light angle: 54.9°
Beam distance: 464 yards / 424 meters



I would really like to see these sampled at 100/200/300 yards for spot and width.

The MX25L2 would be my top choice because of the wide spot, wide spill, and I think 523 yards exceeds my usable distance of 300 yards.

Jake
 

Vinniec5

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I would suggest 2 lights. one Right Angle light in/on your Shirt pocket or if you prefer a good waterproof Headlight so you can keep your hands free to handle your Dog and a seperate light in a holster for searching when you have a free hand.

Pelican has a new 3410 right angle adjustable flashlight with a glow in the dark body that takes 3 AAs with good runtime

As for a flashlight A Surefire Peacekeeper 2 mode with 3-4 spare 18650s would be a good light built for duty and carried in a holster.
a Streamlight led HPL Stinger with a spare battery and car charger would be a simple setup.

Ask some of the Officers you work with and see what they carry with/on them bet you get plenty of good ideas there too of what works for them.

I don't know what your budget is or if you mind working with 18650s-26650s so its hard to offer too many lights with them.
i would stick with proven waterproof duty style lights from name makers after you step 100 feet into the woods all bets are off and you now are deep in-country, the time for fooling with complicated lights is over
 
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arKmm

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Our Dog Handlers use the Streamlight Stinger series now.

I'd personally suggest getting a Surefire G2X Pro (with Surefire V70 holster) as a small compact light. It's 320lm in the newest generation, and runs on 2x CR123 disposables but can use a 16650 rechargeable. Super simple, super robust. Low + High mode only, perfect for professional applications.

Then I'd also get a Streamlight Stinger DS LED HL (with Accumold 7326 Size 2 holster) as a searchlight. Rechargeable and comes with a dock charger that can be used in a vehicle or run on AC. 800 lumen high, and 24k lux, so it throws about as far as you'd need to see for dog work, but is a good all rounder. A lot of torches put all their power into throwing so you get only a thin beam of light which is worthless for close up work, or do the opposite and don't give any more. This sits in the middle perfectly and has a simple user interface.

That way you can always have the small G2X on your belt even during daylight searches so you've got something compact to use when you need spontaneous light or to check a map or similiar. And then during low light searches when you know you'll need serious light you can take the stinger out of your bag and carry it on your belt for longer range or extended runtime.

If you happen to be in the UK I do a similiar role to you and have a range of searchlights. Would be happy to show you a few options.
 
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Keitho

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I might start with something smaller than what most folks here would call a "full size" searchlight, and see if it fits the bill. Something like the Acebeam L16 is pretty useful over 100 yards, has a dead simple interface (tail switch is momentary turbo, always turbo, no other functions; the side switch is click for on, hold to cycle through firefly/low/med/high, click for off), and is USB rechargeable. The numbers to key on for long-distance searching are "throw" and "intensity" (expressed in ft/m, and candela/cd, respectively; they are directly correlated). The L16 is 90,800 cd, equivalent to throw of 603m.

A step up in size and throw, but still easy to charge in your car and easy to use, is something like the Olight M3XS UT Javelot. Dead-simple usage: click on, click off, hold down to cycle modes. Throw 1000m, 250,000 cd.

The ultimate step up, which will require an account in another forum and waiting on a wait-list for an unknown amount of time, and will most likely require a shoulder strap or a custom handle, is the BLF giga thrower, well over 1,000,000cd. Even though it is probably not practical for your use, the video is fun to watch: http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...-aspherical)&p=5136752&viewfull=1#post5136752.

Good luck!
 

arKmm

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I might start with something smaller than what most folks here would call a "full size" searchlight, and see if it fits the bill. Something like the Acebeam L16 is pretty useful over 100 yards, has a dead simple interface (tail switch is momentary turbo, always turbo, no other functions; the side switch is click for on, hold to cycle through firefly/low/med/high, click for off), and is USB rechargeable. The numbers to key on for long-distance searching are "throw" and "intensity" (expressed in ft/m, and candela/cd, respectively; they are directly correlated). The L16 is 90,800 cd, equivalent to throw of 603m.

A step up in size and throw, but still easy to charge in your car and easy to use, is something like the Olight M3XS UT Javelot. Dead-simple usage: click on, click off, hold down to cycle modes. Throw 1000m, 250,000 cd.

The ultimate step up, which will require an account in another forum and waiting on a wait-list for an unknown amount of time, and will most likely require a shoulder strap or a custom handle, is the BLF giga thrower, well over 1,000,000cd. Even though it is probably not practical for your use, the video is fun to watch: http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...-aspherical)&p=5136752&viewfull=1#post5136752.

Good luck!
The thing is though, a search dog handler will be working the dog on a long lead generally which is maximum 10 metres, and you don't need to see beyond 50 metres ish, so anything beyond that is massively wasted. You need the run time, robustness, and good enough illumination for that, rather than anything super far reaching.
 

NoNotAgain

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Being a Fenix user, take a look at the Fenix TK 75.
The 2017 version puts out 5100 lumens on turbo. The benefit of the Fenix brand is that they also sell an extended runtime kit to more than double the lights runtime.
 

FlashKat

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We need to know what is too big to carry for you.
I would suggest the Acebeam K60 or the smaller Acebeam K40M plus carry a small back up.
 
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