any other good swirl finder lights similar to the brinkmann dual xenon?

**eyezack87** · 10-22-2010, 12:21 AM

Originally Posted by sulla

Eyezack light cars you mean light colored ?

Can you guys rely solely on high lumens tactical light to show swirls and waterspots ? I`m trying to decide between 150 MW MH and tactical erring towards the tactical since it`s easier to work with

Like light colored pearl cars. My Bamboo Pearl RX330 was perfect under the Brinkmann and other halogen lights in my arsenal until I picked up my Fenix. Its the same deal for my Accord. Some cars don`t respond very well to any halogen lighting.

Higher lumens doesn`t mean much most of the time. Its how the light hits the swirls you could say

**Accumulator** · 10-22-2010, 11:28 AM

Originally Posted by eyezack87

..[the rechargeables]..... work quite excellently. Since the set I bought comes in a pack of 2, it lasts a very long time. I finally recharged the first one a few weeks back. Lasted approximately 4 months with uses every week on full and half power

Cool, that`s good to know. Heh heh, we have [I won`t say how many!] CR123s in our various lights and buying dozens at a time gets pricey!

Keep us updated on how many recharge cycles you get, and whether the working life starts to drop off.

Higher lumens doesn`t mean much most of the time. Its how the light hits the swirls you could say

Right :xyxthumbs It`s all about getting just the right kind of *contrast*.

**eyezack87** · 10-23-2010, 06:52 PM

Lol, considering how long they lasted on the first charge, I should be able to update you within 2 years with the progress :lol

These are the ones I bought if anyone was curious:

DealExtreme: $8.01 TrustFire Protected 18650 Lithium Battery (2500mAh 2-Pack Blue)

DealExtreme: $7.52 Digital Li-Ion 18650 Battery Charger

**wascallyrabbit** · 10-24-2010, 08:10 AM

Originally Posted by Accumulator

Heh heh, yeah....I was deliberately avoiding the "tactical" reference

FWIW, though I have more SurFire lights than any other brand, I find the stuff from First Light USA kinda handy for certain things, sometimes more ergonomically fitting than the usual flashlight shape.

not sure i want to know why you have this light. we use the tomahawk because is the only one i`ve found so far that has night vision capability (ir mode), white light and colored leds for non assisted night vision. the low white light setting works well for me in swirl spotting.

**Accumulator** · 10-24-2010, 10:52 AM

wascallyrabbit- Glad to hear somebody else likes stuff from FirstLight. FWIW, SureFire has numerous lights with IR illuminator capability.

eyezak87- Heh heh, quite the opposite here, we really go through CR123s, even the better ones that last pretty long. You sure that link you provided is for that size?

**eyezack87** · 10-24-2010, 04:44 PM

OH, I just realized that my Fenix is capable of taking 2 CR123`s lol. My bad Accumulator. I can reference you to some good CR123`s on Deal Extreme though. I went with the 18650`s since they were more powerful for my Fenix

**wascallyrabbit** · 10-24-2010, 09:00 PM

Originally Posted by Accumulator

wascallyrabbit- Glad to hear somebody else likes stuff from FirstLight. FWIW, SureFire has numerous lights with IR illuminator capability.

firstlight is pretty nice stuff. the tomahawk we got is light three lights in one, make that four as they just came out with a task light for the bottom (battery cover is a light that runs on 2032 type batteries). wasn`t looking for a dedicated ir illuminator, having ir combined with a light that i would be carrying anyways is plus. the tomahawk has combined several nice features like colored led (we got red/green), ir (ir mode locks out white/colored light), white light and blue task light in a small and ergonomic package that can be used one handed. yes surefire makes ir lilluinators some with white light capabilities, but haven`t seen one that has colored leds, ir and white light yet.

**Stu** · 10-25-2010, 09:21 AM

I have saved many a battery using a variable output power supply to charge. You can increase the voltage until it starts to draw current (will be more Voltage then the battery should be), then turn it down as the charge starts and current increases. I save about 90% of the batteries that appear "open" this way.

Stu (Motorola eng).

**Accumulator** · 10-25-2010, 10:34 AM

eyezack87- Heh heh, OK, glad we cleared that up

I`m set for (conventional) CR123s for now, and it seems like the best source for good ones changes from time to time.

Wascallyrabbit- OK, you make a good case for that light being best for your application :xyxthumbs I didn`t know they offer a task light for the Tomahawk`s battery cover, I`ll have to look into that (I think my wife likes her Tomahawk the best of all her lights!) so thanks for mentioning it.

Stu- Who offers variable output chargers?

**Stu** · 10-25-2010, 02:18 PM

I`m not sure who might have one of these at a good price these days. Radio shack used to carry one. The price might be more then the unit itself anyway. I`d be happy to take a look at the batteries if you like (n/c). I have a supply that will work.

Stu

**wascallyrabbit** · 10-25-2010, 04:15 PM

Originally Posted by Accumulator

Wascallyrabbit- OK, you make a good case for that light being best for your application :xyxthumbs I didn`t know they offer a task light for the Tomahawk`s battery cover, I`ll have to look into that (I think my wife likes her Tomahawk the best of all her lights!) so thanks for mentioning it.

the task lights are new so they may not be on the website yet so you may have to call them to get it.

**Accumulator** · 10-26-2010, 10:44 AM

stu- Thanks I`ll keep the whole idea in mind should I look into rechargeables. As it is, I generally lean towards conventional batteries, which I can carry as spares, swap out as needed, and always *KNOW* will work; I`ve had rechargeables let me down unexpectedly.

wascallyrabbit- Thanks, yeah....I think I might do that.

**gben** · 10-26-2010, 04:11 PM

Thought I`d throw this out here since we`re talking batteries. I`ve never bought from this site before but it might be worth a look see to those of us who have the need for chargers or lots of batteries. BatteryJunction.com Batteries, Battery Chargers, Flashlights, Solar Products & more!

**Accumulator** · 10-27-2010, 10:12 AM

gben- I`d avoid their house-brand/label CR123s. I bought some and they were *awful*. Very short-lived in an unpredictable way. I ended up throwing them away as I couldn`t risk having them die at the wrong time.

**gben** · 10-27-2010, 01:32 PM

Accumulator, thanks for the heads up on those house brand batteries. What brand are you partial to or have had the best useful life out of? My one fenix takes AA`s so that`s easy enough but my other fenix takes the CR123 and that`s the one I`m not so sure on. I`ve never gone the rechargeable route though I would`nt rule that option out.