Bug Out Bag Light?

Brooke

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Hi:

I live near the location of a number of forest fires (https://prc68.com/I/Ukiah.shtml#9_Oct_2017_Fire) and as part of the Firewise community preparedness program am looking into battery powered lights to put into a Bug Out Bag and also to use around the house for the times where the AC mains are off. For me the L91 AA is the only battery choice because of the 20 year shelf life. That's twice the primary CR123A shelf lift and far better than any rechargeable battery. I got a bunch of lights that run on AA cells as a first try (https://prc68.com/I/FlashlightPat.shtml#BL-Table).

I think this is a new application, or maybe I just don't know the correct name to search for? For example an EDC light can have exotic mode control because you learn how to use it, but for Bug Out Bag or power fail use the light may not have been touched for years and when it's needed is not the time to read the fine print to how to use it, so an simple user interface is mandatory. "Back Up" light turned up lights a skin diver might use or automatic night lights that turn on when the power fails. Is there a name for this?

Another consideration is battery life where a switching mode power supply would be much better than a resistor. But manufactures don't talk about this and so far I haven't come up with a way to test for it. There is a need for room lighting where something like the Fenix CL23 looks like a good choice. Also for general flashlight use the Olight S1A looks very good, but it's out of production. The Stgreamlight Sidewinder Compact II also looks very versatile. I'm looking for suggestions.
Have Fun, Brooke
 
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archimedes

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I like the Peak Logan 17500 with a set of battery adapters.

It can run on AA (of any common chemistry) as well as CR123A or even AAA. Much higher output is available from Li-Ion batteries, such as 17500 cells.

It is also very durable, and simple to use.
 

koziy

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Thrunite TN4A — or one of the identical flashlights made by Manker, Sofirn or Thorfire. Disclaimer: I don't own one but I'm trying to get a hold of a few Sofirn SF11's to set up a couple emergency supply kits of my own (they seem to be out of stock at the moment, although they did take my order).
 

thermal guy

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I had primarily 123 cell lights in both my BOB and GHB. But as of late I have started to go more of the AA format. The AA lights of today are far better then they used to be.and runtimes are fantastic. And then there is the availability of AA batteries in an emergency situation. They are EVERYWHERE and I don't mean stores because in a bad situation AAA and AA D and C cells will be gone in a day. But you can always scavenge them from toys,clocks,remote controls. Etc. AA to me seems the way to go.and peak lights as I'm starting to see are some of the best. I have a few of them in AA and they appear to be strong enough to use as a drift pin!
 

hiuintahs

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Brook, I posted a run time graph of the Jetbeam Jet I-MK single AA LED flashlight to show how well regulated the output is during the entire life of a battery. Thus as you can see this is a good switching type of boost regulator. This is a favorite of mine due to being an excellent value for the money. It's very simple and reliable. It's not very expensive. I use to be able to find these around $16 ea on sale. I've purchased around a dozen of them and given a few away as gifts. This is a 3 mode twisty with a 1.5 - 30 -150 lumen output. I measured about 2 lumens on low, 31 lumens on medium and 145 lumens on high using an Eneloop NiMh battery. This is good spacing since our eyes perceive brightness not on a linear scale. IE: twice the lumens doesn't look twice as bright to our eyes. It's nice to have a much bigger spread between modes. I like the spacing on this light. If wanting an inexpensive light with a tail switch there are others that I could suggest.

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I wanted to mention that even though Energizer gives a 20 year shelf life, I'd think you'd get more than 10 years out of CR123A batteries.............after all we're talking pretty much the same technology. One is made by Energizer and the other is made by a host of other well known manufacturers. So I wouldn't discount the CR123A battery over the L91 simply by these shelf life specs alone. You're on the right track as far as long term primary battery storage though. But if you're wanting a Single AA, there is nothing wrong with that. It's just that the single CR123A lights will have a higher max mode than single AA. But at an equivalent lower level, you'll get similar run times since both battery have similar energy.

The Jetbeam equivalent in CR123A/16340 is the Jetbeam Jet-II MK.
 

thermal guy

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Ya the MD3 has lots of possibilities with Dropins and different battery options. Great link. I had forgotten about that thread.
 

lion504

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Does the OP only want AA suggestions? For a smaller ff, what about a Malkoff single AA MDC? And an alternate 2xAA tube is pretty reasonable. Both tubes can be paired with a VME head (and M61 or other P60 drop-ins) for maximum LED flexibility. And Malkoff has the simply UI the OP is looking for.
 

NH Lumens

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My night stand light is a Malkoff MD2 with a M361 drop-in and high-low switch. With the switch set on low and on a fresh 18650 3500mAh cell, runtime is measured in weeks.
 

thermal guy

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Ya I just did a runtime test with my M361 on lowest setting but no hi/lo ring. I got 48 hours I think and that was with a 2500mah cell. Love that Dropin
 

GoVegan

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Thrunite TN4A — or one of the identical flashlights made by Manker, Sofirn or Thorfire. D.

Thrunite TN4A and many other Chinese lights are not recommend due to their crazy UIs that require manuals and study. Exactly as Brooke pointed out:

"For example an EDC light can have exotic mode control because you learn how to use it, but for Bug Out Bag or power fail use the light may not have been touched for years and when it's needed is not the time to read the fine print to how to use it, so an simple user interface is mandatory."

All good points Brooke, especially about the 20 year lithium AA batteries. I agree.

However for a bug out bag, I'd recommend a simple headlamp (Petzl) with lithium AAAs (USB rechargeable pack also available!) for your primary lighting, a backup Petzl E+lite as headlamps really are that important, plus a Pak-Lite 9V light (for area/room lighting) for everybody. A small tactical light could also be useful for identifying threats and keeping in a pocket at all times (Streamlight Protac 1AAA, running off the same lithium batteries, small and weighs nothing).
No fanboy recommendations here, just all the most practical options and all relatively inexpensive, no need to go buying expensive lights for this purpose.


BTW the Malkoff single AA MDC has no polarity protection, insert the battery in the wrong way and your light goes :poof:. Not what you need in an emergency.
 

thermal guy

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So Malkoff 2XAA has polarity protection but his 1XAA doesn't. Guess I didn't know that. Glad his 2XAA has it think that's my next light I'm getting from him. But yes you are right if the world is coming down around you and your doing 10 different things at a time you don't want to have to worry about making that mistake or if you loan it out to someone not in the know.
 

lion504

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BTW the Malkoff single AA MDC has no polarity protection, insert the battery in the wrong way and your light goes :poof:. Not what you need in an emergency.

Sorry, wasn't clear. I'm recommending the 1xAA MDC body + the 2xAA MDC body + the VME head + one or more M61 drop-ins (which provide reverse polarity protection). Total should be about $200. Pretty robust and adaptable, IMHO.
 

jabe1

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Personally, I have a Fenix e01 clipped on the outside of the bag, and an efficient single AA on the inside, and a AA headlamp of some sort.One has a Peak ElCapitan;the other, a 4sevens quark, with a 2xAA body carrying spares.
I will generally have something else in my pocket already, along with the various lights in vehicles.

I like AA for this because they are almost always around, even when you can't find them in stores, pretty much every solar landscape light is AA Nicad.

Archimedes has a great idea with the Logan 17500 and a set of battery adapters also, they will run on pretty much anything you can fit into the battery carrier.
 

Lynx_Arc

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One other thing is these days when you have to bug out almost everyone has cell phones and having a power bank is a plus. You can get power banks that are you can remove the 18650s from and use them in other devices plus use the power bank to recharge them also plus use the power bank to charge your cell phone. You can also use USB LED modules of all sorts to light up areas via USB power and USB fans are nice to have in the hotter months without power it may be the only way to cool yourself down. An 18650 headlamp on a low mode can run an incredibly long time and put out a big blast of light when needed that most light formats can't compete with. Sure AAs are good but to be honest if you don't check your bug out bag but once every 10-20 years then you aren't really serious on dependence on what is contained in it. 18650s will discharge over time but AAs in power banks are not very cost effective or useful. Unless you are in a hurricane zone and have to depend 100% on yourself for everything which IMO most people will have limited access to some sort of power be either auto 12v or some main power source then if you don't have a rechargeable setup you end up running out of batteries with no way to replace them. I've learned from power outages here even the worst I could charge batteries in my truck or a someone's house or a business somewhere after half a day. I do have some AAs and nimh and L91s I would toss in the mix but they would be backup for 18650 devices not my main power source.
 

WalkIntoTheLight

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Yeah, I think I'm in favor of using 18650's in a bug-out bag, rather than AA's. An 18650 has 4x the energy as a AA. And if you want long shelf-life, just charge the 18650 up to 4.0v. It will still be 80% charged, but it won't deteriorate from being stored at high voltage. It might not last 20 years, but it will probably still have more charge than the AA lithium after 10 years even if left alone for that whole time. Just top it back up to 4.0v every 2 or 3 years, and replace after 10 years, for best results.

I've had Energizer AA lithiums go bad after just a couple of years of storage (in a car). They're not invincible. So, I wouldn't want to leave them for 20 years and still expect them to work.
 

Lumen83

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Hi:

I live near the location of a number of forest fires (https://prc68.com/I/Ukiah.shtml#9_Oct_2017_Fire) and as part of the Firewise community preparedness program am looking into battery powered lights to put into a Bug Out Bag and also to use around the house for the times where the AC mains are off. For me the L91 AA is the only battery choice because of the 20 year shelf life.

This really sounds like a great idea. My only question is, does a ten year shelf life vs. a 20 year shelf life make enough of a difference to rule out CR123A powered lights? Changing batteries once every ten years really isn't that bad. If you are like me when it comes to bug out bags, you may have other items in a bug out bag such as food rations that need changing at that interval or less. The meals that I keep in mine do expire in ten years. Which is handy because so do my CR123A batteries. So, you may need to be maintaining that bag at that interval anyway. Plus if you are using it for the times when the power mains are off, you are going to be cycling those batteries at less than a 20 year interval anyway. So, it might be worth rethinking this requirement.

Personally, I keep surefire G2X lights in my bug out bags. The batteries keep their charge and work in a very wide range of temperatures, they store for 10 years, and the light itself is relatively inexpensive for its reliability and quality. So, I don't mind keeping it in a bag without use for ten years.
 
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