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Posts: 406
Location: Stones throw away...finally!! | Need to buy a good headlamp in the next couple of days. Could anyone give a couple good suggestions as far as brightness, battery life and comfortability. Thanks. |
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Posts: 1184
Location: Iowa Great Lakes | I use a cheap wal mart Energizer brand, run Lithiums in it and get at least a season out of it maybe more. About $10 plus batteries. |
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Posts: 4053
Location: Land of the Musky | My suggestion is not to buy the $30 ones but go find the $10 or less models at your local hardware or sports store and buy three.
JMO
James
Edited by tacklebooty 8/19/2008 9:47 PM
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Posts: 431
| I second the energizers from wal-mart. I've got 3 or 4 of them. I've used them all of over the place. I really like the red light it has, which is what I use when I am trout fishing so not much light is thrown over the water. My mom takes them when she goes to Haiti on mission trips as her source of light at night. I even dropped one in Kinkaid earlier this year. Don't know how I managed to find it with my blind grab, but I did and it still works. |
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Posts: 814
| One word....Petzl, there pricey but worth it, very bright,durable, and comfortable. Mine has 14 leds and one halogen and it has different setting for the led's so you don't have to use full power unless needed....ask Jonesi about the petzl, it lights the whole boat up at night. |
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| Petzl for sure...get a good one....Petzl Duo 5 or 14..easy to use on off switch, led and halogen bulbs...
buy one good one and be done...imo.
Princeton also makes a decent light too |
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Posts: 89
| Hey Guys,
I also need a new head lamp. You guys mentioned few allready and I was
wondering if any of you have used the musky armor lights if thery're still doing
there night fishing promotion. |
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Posts: 1316
Location: Madison, WI | This is my favorite headlamp: Very bright and comfortable.
http://www.rayovac.com/flashlight/lux3aahdlt-b.shtml
Then I have a couple of these for back up, nice b/c they use one AA
http://www.rayovac.com/flashlight/se1whlt-b.shtml
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Posts: 194
Location: Southwest PA | Here is another nod for the Petzl.
I have two, one I have had about 10 years and have worn out the elasticity in the head band I'm currenty looking for the material to make up a new head band, its a halogen bulb. The battery pack is belt mounted and runs off of 3 C cell batteries . The second one is probably 3 years old and has both an LED and halogen bulb, the battery pack is 4 AA batteries which is mounted in the rear of the head band.
I would also suggest as previosly stated, get one with both the LED and halogen bulbs.
If you plan on using the light a lot, look at the Petzl, if your only going to use it 3 or 4 times a year stick with one of the cheap models you can get at Wal Mart, they'll last a long time being used 3 or 4 times a year.
Rich W
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Location: Contrarian Island | i bought my newest Petzl from Moosejaw.com.
they have a good selection of nice headlamps |
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Location: Sun Prairie, WI | Black Diamond Vectra IQ. Great headlamp!!
http://www.bdel.com/gear/vectra_iq.php |
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Posts: 29
Location: Chicago | I personally think the cheap ones that clip to your hat are the best. they are light, don't even feel like you have one on your head. I spent $50 on a "top of the line" one in the past that felt like I had a brick strapped to my head, i had a headache after 5 minutes. I just go with the clip on one's now. Mine usually last a season and walgreens usually has them for $5, which is pretty much the cost of the two batteries. |
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Posts: 143
| I have a $60 black diamond one that i got for like $25 on www.steepandcheap.com
watch the site, they pop up every now and then. waterproof, totally awesome. 4 batteries, should last forever on LEDs. |
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Posts: 32886
Location: Rhinelander, Wisconsin | Muskky Armor, best light I've ever used. I ended up using it for hunting and Ice fishing too. |
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Posts: 130
Location: Chicago | I've got a Musky Armour light as well, works great. Got it free when I bought 2 baits that also work great. Dave |
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| imo those little clip on lights that go on the bill of your hat are not bright enough at all..anyone who does any fair amount of nite fishing should get a good / Bright light..
the nice thing about the petzl w/ the halogen is that can be used as a pretty decent spotlight and can is super bright at a good distance ..the clip on lights dont provide nearly enough lighting imo if you are on the water a lot at nite...get a bright one ...
Petzl. |
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Posts: 2427
Location: Ft. Wayne Indiana | I use the "Cat Eyes" on the bill of my hat and have used them with great success for years.
On a side note....Myself and Musky Armor will be putting out a new net attachment this winter at the shows. It will attach to any net and will provide you with all the light you will need. No more head lamps...no more taking your hand off the reel to try and turn on the head lamp, etc... The attachment will have I believe light that contains 15 super bright LED's I believe. The days of big head lamps are over....
I personally hate the big head lamps as they give me a head ache. I use the cat eyes and they work just fine to switch baits, pick out backlashes, etc...like I said I have used the cateyes ONLY for years...but wanted something more without the bulk of a headlamp. |
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| day of the big headlamps are over? no way...the light on the net is neat...but headlamps will always be needed imo unless you want to carry the net all around the boat while fighting a fish and pointing the net handle at it..is that practical? no...how about when you have a 30 foot Baja coming at you at 40mph...do you pick up your nifty net and shine it at him...that halogen on the Petzl has come in handy more than one time for situations like that....the big head lamps are not uncomfortable and you get use to them and forget they are on...the net light is neat...but imo is not needed whatsoever...headlamps on everyone in the boat are much more useful for more than just netting fish....the clip on lights are good for lighting up things at short distances and that's about it |
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| imo those little clip on lights that go on the bill of your hat are not bright enough at all..anyone who does any fair amount of nite fishing should get a good / Bright light...
the hatbrim lights are convenient, comfortable, and inexpensive. i keep 3 or 4 in the boat at all times; boat guests often need one so it's great to be able to keep a couple in the boat without busting the budget.
do they give "enough" light? well, that's a relative term. having spent more time outside at night than most people, i'm pretty comfortable doing things in the dark or with very limited/colored lights. unhooking a fish with a small white light on your head is child's play compared to running an IV line or backing up a HMMT wearing just NVG's!
so for me, the clip-on lights have been plenty adequate, and i do a fair amount of fishing at night. as noted they're not exactly a spotlight on your head, and there are some big differences in brightness based on brand. keeping fresh batteries is important too, regardless of the style of light.
that being said, i'm a big proponent of using the best tool for the job, rather than the cheapest. so this summer i bought a nice headlamp with a big halogen bulb and a number of smaller colored LED bulbs. put it on my hat to adjust the size the first time we hit the water...took off in the boat, hat flies off, light sinks to the bottom. son of a crap.
having a good, bright light makes a big difference when something goes wrong: a fish is badly or deeply hooked, boat trouble, etc. so for those situations i keep a rechargable/12v plug-in million-candlepower spotlight in the boat.
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Posts: 2427
Location: Ft. Wayne Indiana | I have put ALOT of time in on the water, have netted a BUNCH of big fish in the dark, and NEVER once have I missed a fish due to not having a big head lamp on. I use my cat eyes, and they work just fine. The added light from the net light attachment, and you totally good to go.
If I thought there was a NEED for a head lamp, I would have one, but I have put alot of fish in the net with one little pair of Cat's Eyes, so I'll stick with them.
Im not saying head lamps are bad, they definately work, but I hate them. They give me a head ache and I hate them...plain and simple. I am just saying that the Cat Eyes work just fine.
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Posts: 13688
Location: minocqua, wi. | my brand new musky armor light doesn't work ... one of the ones the chinese must have missed on the inspection.
i'm curious about the higher quality petzl's ... looked at them on the site. which model would you choose?
i always throw it into my ice fishing gear for the winter (the rayovac one i have that does work) ... they are great to have for that application too! |
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| forgot to add..but you reminded me Sled...the halogen light on the petzl I have makes a great spotlight on the ice for shining those tip ups!!!
Mike, I seem to be on the water a lot at nite too...I will keep doing it my way, as there are advantages to having a very BRIGHT light at times that your little cat eyes do not off..and you keep doing it your way....to each their own....
Sled...they are pricey but if you want the best..get the Petzl Duo 5 or Duo 14..you won't be dissapointed.... |
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Posts: 13688
Location: minocqua, wi. | exactly where i was going brad ... i've gone to a reflective tape on my flags and it's nice to use the headlamps if someone else is on the 4-wheeler ... between andy and i we can spread a pretty big field with as many kids as we've got and although the cheaper ones work i'd really like to have a higher quality one for that application. |
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Location: Grand Rapids, MI | One thing lambeau illuded to was the difference in night vision from person to person. Person A might require significantly less light to perform normal tasks in the dark than person B. Another consideration along the same lines is that when you turn on a very bright headlamp you are going to loose the ability to see at night which increases the need for a light to perform tasks that could probably be performed in the dark with available light.
Personally I like to have a minimal amount of light and really like the small Petzl 3 LED headlamps. They aren't any heavier than wearing a hat and the light is more than sufficeint.
If you need something really bright for an emergency put a maglight in your pocket.
Edited by Will Schultz 8/22/2008 2:13 PM
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Posts: 1453
Location: Kronenwetter, WI | Clip-ons--as long a batteries are fresh work great for me. Only using a few minutes per night anyhow. Don't need 12 million candle power to find a lure or unhook a fish.
I do have a large spot I use when I need real power.
Edited by Cowboyhannah 8/22/2008 3:44 PM
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Posts: 2037
Location: lansing, il | if you woud learn to use the force, you wouldnt need any lights at all. thats how i roll! |
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Posts: 406
Location: Stones throw away...finally!! | Thanks for all the replies. I ended up going with the Petzl Myolite 3. I used it Thursday and Friday and I was super impressed with both of the bulbs. The LED's cast a great light for hand work, and the halogen really reaches out there. The battery life times for both are great and the price was "I think" very reasonable at roughly $50.00. Thanks again. |
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Posts: 1185
Location: Iowa | Chris,
One that you can use for fishing and hunting like I know you do, is the Streamlight Trident. It has 3 different settings on it. One green bulb, three green bulbs and 3 white led bulbs. The green won;t spook deer and the white led works perfect for muskies at night. I have the at scheels for 29.99.
Matt |
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Posts: 1716
Location: Mt. Zion, IL | Mag light mini mag with the 5 dollar head strap. works WONDERS when your boat gets a flat tire on the interstate. The LED bulb by "Nite-ize" can be found at walmart. 10 for the flashlight, 5 for the l.e.d. upgrade, and 5 for the headstrap at cabelas. |
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| at times we have to perform surgery on deeply hooked fish..would a surgeon use a less than adequate light to perform heart surgery on you? if he walked in surgery room with a pair of cat eyes on what would you do? extreme, maybe, but more light the better. A buddy of mine fishing w/ me this past week promptly ordered a set of the Petzl Duo 5's after he saw how much BETTER they perform at getting hooks out and lighting up the boat.
imo more light is better when you have to see what is going on with the hooks in a fishes mouth. Mike you are so ademate about the fish coming first and taking all precautions but you would use a less than adequate light on your head just because of a little discomfort a bigger light might be ? interesting. |
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