# What headlamps do red?



## R11GS (Sep 27, 2007)

What headlamps do both white and red?

I know the Photon Fusion...


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## Marduke (Sep 27, 2007)

The Energizer 3 and 6 LED (and more models that I forget).


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## Skeeterbytes (Sep 27, 2007)

Some Primus models have both color LEDs. At least one Gerber has white, red and green. Then there are the lensed red lights, such as several Petzls (Taktikka, et al.).

--Rick



R11GS said:


> What headlamps do both white and red?
> 
> I know the Photon Fusion...


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## BlackDecker (Sep 27, 2007)

Don't forget the Rayovac Sportsman Extreme 1AA headlamp. Has both Lux and 2 red LED's. $19 at Wal-Mart.


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## Carpenter (Sep 27, 2007)

R11GS said:


> What headlamps do both white and red?


 
 I read the title wrong. I was looking for the head_lights (car) _that do white and red..


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## sotyakr (Sep 27, 2007)

Also both the .5 and 1W (both Luxeons) Coleman Exponents. In addition to the Luxeon primary, both models have a pair of white 5mm LED's and a pair of 5mm reds.


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## R11GS (Sep 27, 2007)

Carpenter said:


> I read the title wrong. I was looking for the head_lights (car) _that do white and red..



That would be......... interesting....


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## R11GS (Sep 27, 2007)

The only energizer I found was the three LED. It has three whites and one red. But it uses AAA; I tremendously prefer AA's (or even 123's) to the point where a AAA light would have to be nearly perfect before I would consider it.


The Primus' I find that offer the white/red combo are the Primus Primelite A and the CA. The CA has no top strap and uses AAA's, but the A has the top strap which I like, runs on AA's and has a removable battery pack in the back to balance. That's all good stuff. What I've read says it lacks regulation, but I don't think the Fusion has good regulation either. It doesn't have the dimming options of the Fusion, but it does look like with that Luxeon, it'll have much better white throw. Appears like a decent light. I'll have to see if I can find more "reviews".


I couldn't find any Gerbers with the white/red option.


From Petzl I see the Tactikka, Tikka and Zipka, but they all appear to be AAA light that use red lenses with white LED's. For several reasons I believe that red LED's are a better red solution than white LED's with red lenses. I see that the Micro is incandescent, has a red lens option and runs on AA's, but it's an incandescent only and not dimmable. The Saxo appears to have a red lens option and runs AA's, but it has no top strap and is non-dimmable incandescent too.


I looked at the Rayovac site and they really lack good data.


The Coleman Exponent 1W-4AA looks kinda interesting, but I can't find many details on the operation. It is 4 AA's so it might be getting on the heavy side of things. I'd sure like more info on the operating modes...




So aside from the Fusion, the Primus Primelite A and the Coleman Exponent 1W-4AA seem the best [so far] for my considerations.


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## Skeeterbytes (Sep 28, 2007)

http://www.gerbergear.com/product.php?model=0007


--Rick


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## filibuster (Sep 28, 2007)

+1 to what BlackDecker mentioned on the Rayovac 1AA headlamp which has a great red LED option. Here's a link to what CPF'rs have said about it: https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/169690

It has a 1 watt white LED with two 5mm red LEDs and a single 5mm blue LED plus a diffuser powered by a single AA battery.


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## JohnB (Oct 2, 2007)

We stock some models that do red. One model from Sunree called "The Challenge" has 7 white 6 red and 6 blue. 



John


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## R11GS (Oct 2, 2007)

The Gerber link was somewhat helpful; thanks Skeeterbytes. But like the Rayovac, it still leaves me with more questions than answers. I found the Gerber on Flashlightreviews, and it didn't fair well there for many reasons I can relate to.


It really looks like the top contenders for me are the Fusion, Primus Primelite A and the Coleman Exponent 1W-4AA. They all run on AA's and have top straps. Of these the Coleman and the Primus have a decent throwing white mode. The Fusion has better dimming. From what I can find, the Coleman has the best regulation of the bunch. It also looks like the price winner of these three.

But while the manufacturer's site for the Fusion tells me the entire operating instructions, the Coleman site and the Primus sites are... just plain lame. I'd really like to know the dimming modes and whether you can start them [logically] in red.


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## Skeeterbytes (Oct 3, 2007)

I have a Primelite AR and it always starts in red mode. Which means they actually understand 

I don't have it with me, so I hope you'll forgive me for not remembering all the available modes. What I recall is the red pattern is fairly tight and bright enough to walk by, the white 5mm mode is quite floody, and the Lux mode is a tight spot with quite a bit of spill. My AR is not regulated, and I don't know what they might have changed since I got it at least two years ago. They don't mention regulation with any of their lights.

The detachable battery box is a slick feature. Of course you also have to deal with the cord, which winds around the box when attached to the headstrap. Overall, I'd say the build and materials quality are about par with Black Diamond, and a notch behind PT or Petzl.

--Rick



R11GS said:


> The Gerber link was somewhat helpful; thanks Skeeterbytes. But like the Rayovac, it still leaves me with more questions than answers. I found the Gerber on Flashlightreviews, and it didn't fair well there for many reasons I can relate to.
> 
> 
> It really looks like the top contenders for me are the Fusion, Primus Primelite A and the Coleman Exponent 1W-4AA. They all run on AA's and have top straps. Of these the Coleman and the Primus have a decent throwing white mode. The Fusion has better dimming. From what I can find, the Coleman has the best regulation of the bunch. It also looks like the price winner of these three.
> ...


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## R11GS (Oct 3, 2007)

Thanks! That's very helpful. I think I'll simply start a thread asking about the Coleman....


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## Campdavid (Oct 3, 2007)

Try the Inova 24/7 with the accessories kit....includes a strap to wear as a headlamp, a clip/cord combo to hang it from your neck (or other object), even a magentic clip and a few you can stick on a wall. 

Has red, two levels of white, flashing modes and even a beacon so you can find it in the dark.

http://www.inovalight.com/247.html


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## R11GS (Oct 4, 2007)

It's funny....


I sent a request to Coleman for instructions on their headlamp, got a bot response within a day. Now, more than a week later...... Nothing...... :sigh:


Yesterday, even though Skeeterbytes confirmed the Primelite A starts in red, I sent them a request for the instructions; late in the day too. I received the instruction pamphlet from them first thing this morning.








I guess Coleman is not so interested in decent customer support. Maybe a reason to put them lower on my list. :thumbsdow



I might just go for a Primelite A at this point.....


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## Sigman (Oct 4, 2007)

There's a handy lens kit you can get (red/green/clear) for the Petzl Tikka. Makes a versatile little headlamp!


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## R11GS (Oct 4, 2007)

The Tikka is only AAA's though, right? I'm pretty strongly against AAA solutions. If the light was "perfect" with the exception of using AAA, that wouldn't stop me though. I also find that while lenses work very well with incandescent, they don't make nearly as much sense with LED's. A red LED will be *way* more efficient than a white LED with a red lens.


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## R11GS (Oct 5, 2007)

I found a close-out deal on the Primelite AR for $34.95 ($29.95 for the A)!!! At that price, I guess I gotta give one a whirl.


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## stansbrew (Oct 7, 2007)

love your avitar R11gs


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## R11GS (Oct 12, 2007)

I received my Primus Primelite AR yesterday. It's a very well made headlamp. The straps are very easy to adjust and overall the balance of the unit with the 3 X AA battery pack in the back is very good and it is very comfortable. The battery pack is easily removable but extremely secure. They supply a neck lanyard for the pack so that it can be hung in front of you for either keeping it warm or if for some reason it's just in the way. The lamp can point downward more than enough for reading. The buttons are easily operated and the lamp can be pointed with even bulky gloves. They supply a white stuff sack that "works as a light dampener for overall lighting"; it does let out a lot light that even if not that truly useful to make the unit a lamp, will make it easy to see if it is turned on in the sack. It is advertised as waterproof (IPX8 - 1m for 24hrs) and I can see no obvious reason to be concerned about the lamp portion. The battery pack look pretty reasonable, but if I had spent a lot of time in wet conditions, I might check the battery pack afterwards. I know we all understand how bad water in a battery compartment is. A small downside is that you need to remove the battery pack from the back to change the batteries. If it weren't so easy to turn this on when packed, this would just be a small nuisance in my mind since the pack is so easily removed and there is a low battery indication that is unmistakable and will give you plenty of time before you have to change them. But since it is easy to turn the unit on when packed, I would remove the batteries before packing and so this becomes just a little more of a nuisance.

It has two red 5mm LED's, four "white" 5mm LED's and a white Luxeon with a reflector.

The operation is very straightforward with two large buttons (~1cm) on the top of the unit. One on each side. One turns the unit on and off and the other toggles through the modes. The on/off button has a ridge around it to prevent accidental activation, but I think that this light would very easily be activated when packed.

The access to the modes is very logical. When you turn the unit on, the two red LED's come on which makes good sense for preserving dark adaptation. The next step turns on the four "white" 5mm LED's at "low"; next step is these four on "high". Next step is the Luxeon on "low", then next to "high". The next step is the four "white" 5mm LED's flashing at what appears to be about once per second.


The red is not terribly bright and I can't see a good reason that dimming them would be very useful. They won't throw very far, but far enough to see what's immediately in front of you while walking. The "white" 5mm's are too blue and too focused in my opinion to be very useful for much. The Luxeon has a very nice tint and very reasonable throw with not a lot, but adequate side spill.

Reports are that it is not well regulated, but I can't really test that easily.


I bought the AR (it has a remote) on close out, but I wouldn't bother spending extra on it. You set the headlamp into a "standby" mode that will allow you to turn it on with the remote and cycle through all the modes, but it does not appear as though you can turn it off. I think if you could also turn it off, the remote would be *way* more useful. This way when overnighting outdoors, you could set the headlamp where it would light your sleeping area and be able to turn it on and off from your rack.





So bottom line, the pros and cons from my perspective...



Pros:


Red light is good for preserving dark adaptation and is accessed when the unit is first turned on and you can turn it off directly from red without cycling through any white modes.

Very comfortable and balanced.

Easily accessed buttons that are quite useful even with gloves.

Logical mode access.

Uses readily available AA's and should have good runtime.

The Luxeon has a very nice tint, decent beam and the low and high modes both are useful.

It appears very well built and is advertised as waterproof.

The battery pack is removable and they supply a neck lanyard for it.



Cons:


The 5mm "white" LED's are too blue and too focused to be of much value to me. I just cycle to the Luxeon. This to me is a shame since a nice lower output, floody white would be useful.

The red is not very bright, but then again, if it were I would want a "low" and "high" mode.

It's too easy to accidentally turn it on when packed. I think they really should consider a "lock-out" feature. With two buttons, I would think this would be practical.

You have to remove the battery pack to change the batteries. This would be less of a concern if I didn't feel the batteries needed to be removed for packing.

Poor regulation? I can't confirm this...

And for the AR, the remote does not appear be able to turn the lamp off.




Conclusion:

This is a nice headlamp. It is one of the very few that have red LED's for preserving dark adaptation and runs on AA's (my personal preference). It is a very well built and a useful headlamp. It has enough deficiencies that while I'm happy with it at the price I paid ($35), I don't think I'd be so happy at the full advertised price. Without the remote being able to turn it off, I wouldn't opt to pay extra for the remote option.


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## gloworm (Oct 12, 2007)

Good review, may have to check this light out.


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## copykat (Oct 14, 2007)

I have a Brinkman
http://shopproducts.howstuffworks.com/Brinkmann-3-Led-Headlight/SF-1/PID-31963427
2 white leds with lens/magnifiers and 1 red led no lens.
a slide switch on the top, one way for red, other way for white
can tilt the beam up or down and stays there fairly well, unless you hit it
runs off 3 AAA's easily replacable
comfortable on my head
Being a flashlight snob I am surprised at just how much I like this light


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## Bogie (Oct 15, 2007)

One of my favorite headlamps is the Ray-O-Vac 3in1 its a 3xAAA format with 2 5mm Red,1x 5mm White, And 1 Incan (MMag bulb) can be had for about $8 at Wallmart. The feature I like is that on the switch Red is the first position so when I use it at night or when hunting I don't effect my vision by switching on a white light.


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## R11GS (Oct 15, 2007)

While I understand the value of some of these other options.....


I *really* don't like AAA's and I *really* like top straps.






I always carry and have AA's on hand. Pretty much everything electrical I take "on the road" with me uses AA's. Handi-talkies, GPS's, radio's, lights, etc.; even shavers and cell-phone "back-up packs". Anything I would want to carry "on the road" that requires something besides AA's will have to have special consideration for spare batteries. It is *so* much easier for me to simply stick with AA's that as a rule, unless something has exceptional value to me, I will only use portable devices I intend for "on the road" that use AA's. So while I will consider something that uses a different battery type, it must exceed the value of anything else I can find that uses AA's by a *lot* of margin.


My red Photon is a great example. I carry a red one around my neck. The value of having a red light that I can sleep with around my neck and always know where it is, and the fact that a battery will go for a very long time and the simple impracticability of any AA sized light for that use outweigh the disadvantage of not using AA's. A funny note, I never carry a spare battery for the red Photon. I simply carry a spare red Photon! My present EDC is a P2D (with red lens of course!). Do I carry spare 123's for it? No! I carry a L1D AA body tube for it instead.





Top straps are very important to me too. When wearing a headlamp for more than a few minute, the top strap allows the rest of the straps to not be very tight. Just tight enough that it doesn't move around and for me this is much more comfortable over long time wearing than wearing a non-top-strap unit more tightly. The top strap works better for me when wearing over a helmet or hat.


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