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H o m e » W h a t I s T h e B e s t F l a s h l i g h t s What Is The Best Flashlights For The Money? A p r i l 1 5 , 2 0 1 6 R o y A y e r s L e a v e a C o m m e n t This is another point of discussion because everyone wants to buy the best flashlight and you are not wrong to think so. Let us have a look at how can we buy the best. What Is Your Budget? You could be a law enforcer, hunter or a survival specialist, when it comes to buying we all are the same. This is because all of us tend to have a budget and there is no point shooting it up. This budget could be $20 or $100, it is ideal to conduct some research first and then decide on it. We have decided to put up a budget of $50 to help you see through some of the facts. Over the time flashlight manufacturers have succeeded in creating some fabulous products. These days you can get LED flashlights and the best flashlight brands competing with each in under $50 market. You can expect the same kind of quality as the high end products because it is a highly competitive market. Here are some of the key features that you can expect to get with these products too: M Y H U N T I Awesome Guides - Awesome Gears

Best flashlights for the money

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Page 1: Best flashlights for the money

H o m e » W h a t I s T h e B e s t F l a s h l i g h t s F o r T h e M o n e y ?

What Is The Best Flashlights For The Money? A p r i l 1 5 , 2 0 1 6 R o y A y e r s L e a v e a C o m m e n t

This is another point of discussion because everyone wants to buy the bestflashlight and you are not wrong to think so. Let us have a look at how canwe buy the best.

What Is Your Budget?You could be a law enforcer, hunter or a survival specialist, when it comesto buying we all are the same. This is because all of us tend to have abudget and there is no point shooting it up. This budget could be $20 or$100, it is ideal to conduct some research first and then decide on it. Wehave decided to put up a budget of $50 to help you see through some of thefacts.

Over the time flashlight manufacturers have succeeded in creating somefabulous products. These days you can get LED flashlights and the bestflashlight brands competing with each in under $50 market. You canexpect the same kind of quality as the high end products because it is ahighly competitive market. Here are some of the key features that you canexpect to get with these products too:

M Y H U N T I N G G E A RAwesome Guides - Awesome Gears

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The lumens are as high and the performance is superb.Some come with rechargeable batteries and what not to enticecustomers.Some may run on AAA batteries and others on Li-On.A few of these also have advanced focus systems.Aircraft grade aluminum in the body.Different modes of operation from low to high lighting.Signaling mechanism to raise an alarm.Many of these products are even waterproof.Some come with warranty.

These may be low priced but offer services like the expensive ones and restassured you can get to know your flashlight well. There are no doubts aboutthe fact that these flashlights can amaze you with their power capacity andperformance anytime.

What Types of Flashlight Do You Want?Primarily, you can differentiate flashlight into three categories if you areplanning to buy one. These categories are based on the lumen, batteriesand then the last one would be by use. It may not be that easy for firsttimer, but it is not that difficult if you follow some simple things. First ofunderstanding your own requirement is the most important factor here.Below is a grouping of all these flashlights that we have compiled with care.

Flashlights By Lumen range

What is lumen? In simple words lumen is the measuring unit and it measuresthe total amount of what is called visible light that is actually emitted by thelight source. Quite obviously the higher the count, the better the light is therecipe of a flashlight.

The best of both worlds can be obtained by following some tricks that havebeen unfolded in this section. In this part of the conversation we discuss

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about how to procure the best flashlights in the best possible way.

Lumens are a commercial these days as every manufacturer prefers usingthem to sell their product. If they are doing so, why should you not do thesame? Meaning you can also choose your flashlight as per the markings andyou need to know is higher the lumens brighter the light. Again, you needknow the use of high lumens properly because investing in 1000 lumens justto use it around the house will do no good. Furthermore, high lumens costyou more and it will not be a good idea to buy something that can helpcampers and survival specialists more. Let us understand what these lumensare all about in details:

1–20 lumens – These can be found in the keychain flashlights asthey are easy to carry ones. These can only light up a small fragment ofa dark room, help you read a map, walking in a park at night, accessinga keyhole, or may be escort you out to a restroom in the dark in atheater.30 to 100 – These are the general purpose ones that you keep gettingaround the house, hiking, repairing a car or even other expeditions inthe dark. In fact 100 lumens can cause temporary blindness whichmeans it can be used for self defense too. So you also need to becareful not to mess up your own vision during an outing.100 and above – These are the tactical flashlights that we have beentalking for so long. These can be used as a weapon for self defense,survival and quite aptly for lighting an area properly with brightlumens. The 150 lumens can be used to blind an assailant with ease andagain be warned about the usage.200 and above – These are specifically used for trails, to light upsurroundings and even as bicycle headlamps. Well, at 300 lumensblinding could be caused at indoors too and with 700 you can actuallylight up a field.1000 and up – Strictly for outdoors like the ones used by rescueparties, diving and night orienteering. Although being handheld, but are

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little heavier than all the above. These have to be durable enough towithstand rough weather and the dirt on the road. These are bright andare a choice of professionals throughout the globe because of theirversatility.

Flashlights By Batteries

If you want to deviate from the above topic and diversify your selectionprocess, then you can cast a look at the batteries.

1. AA flashlight – The good old regular ones that are highly disposablealkaline batteries that we use on a day to day basis. This never fails andthe fact that these are available at all stores makes them one of the bestones. These are favorites of many campers and professionals because ofthis single reason. The only downside of flashlights that use thesebatteries is that they do not illuminate too much. However, theirupsides outnumber their downsides, which is why they have been apopular choice of many all across the world.

2. AAA flashlight – These aaa flashlight are very much like the abovementioned alkaline ones and are readily accessible at major stores.These are of course more powerful and can light up an area in a betterway. Moreover, one special thing that makes these batteries special isthem being less expensive.Nonetheless can be easily disposed off when they run out. One problemwith these batteries is that they do not last long and die very fast, butthis is not considered to be a problem as they are available all the timein stores as already mentioned. All this certainly makes them a treat forthose who do not want to invest in anything high end.

3. 18650 flashlight – The Li-On batteries serve pretty good as these canlast for long to start with. These have high lumens to work with incoordination that makes them worth every penny spent on them. Yes,they are expensive and you cannot deny it, but they serve equally well.

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Another problem is that of not being at hand because these arespecialty batteries that need to be bought from specific stores. Justinvest your money in a good brand name and that should see youthrough and give no cause for worry for quite some time. This meansthese flashlights work with LED lights best and can actually brighten upa place sharply.

4. Rechargeable flashlight – These are nothing but Li-On batteries thatcan be recharged as the name suggest for recurrent use. An examplewould be the CR123A batteries that have swept the world with itspower performance. High lumens with batteries that can be rechargeddid create frenzy some time back. The only problem is that you need tobuy a charger for these batteries which may be a daunting task forsome. Otherwise with their dominance and control these batteries areto be considered the very best. These are here to rule and that is whatthey have done for quite some time now.

Flashlights By Uses

This is yet another way to sort out what suits you best and which is thebest flashlight for you. Feel free to go through this list too, as this willonly help you understand your needs better:

1. Brightest flashlight – These are of course the brightest of all as theyconsist of 10,000 lumens and have an output of 7300 lumens. Thismakes them stand out totally from the rest because of their ability tolight up a huge area. Plus, most of these are waterproof and run on18650 rechargeable batteries. This makes them sturdy and long lastingthat gives you more than enough reason to give it a consideration. Yesthe only thing that you need to know is that these on the expensiveside so that means if you have a budget you will have to think about it.

2. EDC (everyday carry) flashlight – The edc flashlight is a commonlyused flashlight. These typically run on AA or AAA batteries, making yourlife comfortable. Not to mention the batteries are available at local

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stores which is why these are so much in demand. These are usually of3 inches in size and are sufficient for your regular needs. Moreover,these are reasonably priced and can be found at as low as $10 even.There is no need to add that these last you long and are ideal for roughuse. You can get them with plastic or aluminum body that gives you avariety to select from.

3. Keychain flashlight – Just like the name implies, it is a flashlight witha keychain at the end. That is the tail of the flashlight has a keychainattached to it and its ideal size is something around 3 inches. This makesit a perfect product to be kept inside a purse, handbag or the glovecompartment of a car. These are moderately priced and can fulfill youreveryday needs. These also runs on AA and AAA batteries that areabundantly available in the stores. All this makes them a popularproduct that gets them all the attention. if you are looking forsomething simple, then you can go for these.

4. Survival flashlight – A survival flashlight is the first and foremostthing that a survival specialist has to have. Usually these flashlights havecolor coded lenses. There is no need to mention that each of thesecolors indicate something special and have specialty usage. Theseflashlights have diffusers that can be used to increase and decrease theintensity of light. This certainly helps survival professionals to find theirway and sometimes even camouflage their moves. These is lots ofdebate about alkaline batteries or rechargeable ones as one is easilyaccessible but the latter can last longer. Hence, most survival specialistschoose rechargeable over the primary ones.

5. Hunting or Camping flashlight – Who else more than the campersknow the true value of a flashlight? So the flashlight had to design onespecifically catering to their needs. So these hunting or campingflashlights were introduced to make their lives easy. These flashlightscan keep them safe and can be used to keep them away from anythingappalling. These can save them during power failure, after lights out oreven all through their expeditions. With LED lights, solar batteries,rechargeable batteries and powerful lumens the scenario has changed

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completely for campers all round the world. In fact the invasion byvarious brands has made it competitive and this in turn has givencampers a lot more choices.

6. Compact or Small flashlight – LED flashlight like a keychain or a pencan be considered ideal for many. This is exactly what is meant by acompact or a small flashlight. These are available at varied shapes andsizes (1.5 to 3 inches) that can be slid inside a handbag, tied around abelt or kept in a pocket. Yes, these may not have high lumens may be 6is more and have a rather short shelf life. On the brighter side of thisthese are easy to carry as they are weightless, most of them lookattractive and some even come with a guarantee.

7. Law enforcement, Police or Military flashlight – High lumens,strong body as most law enforcers use these as a weapon, often comewith a pocket clip to carry along and overheat protection are some ofthe basic features that you look into when we talk about policeflashlight. Besides all this, a law enforcement flashlight has to be gunmountable and should come with lenses for diffusing the intensity oflight. They can use to disorient a suspect or hit back in personaldefense, all these criteria have to be satisfied for a police flashlight. Asbuyers are conscious of this market, so are the manufacturers who keepinnovating their products to bring the best.

Size Of FlashlightsIf you ever thought buying a flashlight was easy then you would be wrong.It is not as these days you have standards to comply with, of course for youown good and you get a variety of them to choose from. You shouldinvestigate a little to find which one suits your requirements the best. Likedo you need it to be just around the house, in your glove compartment, forhunting expeditions or want to use it for under a weapon for security?Different people have different needs and there is no denying this truth.Below is a compiled list of types of flashlight that you can choose from:

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Mini flashlights – As the name suggests it is a cute small handheldflashlight. In general it runs on AA or AAA batteries and can illuminate asmaller area as it is only 3 inches in size. It can fit into the hands, butyes cannot be used as a weapon because of tiny size. Overall, it is smallto fit into a purse or the glove compartment, but can serve the purposeof lighting up a dark area without much of a problem.Penlights – As per the name a penlight is about the size of a pen thatis usually used by doctors and nurses to check their patients. Thesehave very high lumens and yes can be used like a weapon as it has theblinding that we have been talking about on an intruder.Medium flashlights – Now this is the mostly used flashlight of all asthey are available in 4 and 6 inches in size. This means they are easy tohandle and are bigger than a small palm sized or pen sized one. Thesealso come with a variety of lumens and LED bulbs that you can choosefrom. Some can really catch your fancy at an instant because of theirboisterous looks. Yes, these can be used as a self defense weapon whenthere is a need.Large Flashlights – Picture the ones that police carry with them,more than 6 inches in size with a small bezel but a sturdy one. Thisserves like a powerful weapon one that can replace a baton and canlaminate a large area. So you can use it camping and other outdooradventures that you may be thinking of.

Types Of Batteries. How Much Battery Life YouNeed?Practically speaking, most of us would want to get a best flashlight thatwould be easy to maintain. More importantly, its parts should be easilyreplaceable which means they should be found at hand. This is because itgives you the leverage to buy parts like batteries or bulbs from anywhereanytime. Talking about batteries brings us to this point of discussion wherewe focus on batteries of a tactical flashlight. Let us have a quick look at theones that are readily available in the market to the ones that are found in

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the most sophisticated of flashlights:

Everyday ones – The C and D cell batteries that are widely used inflashlights for everyday use. These may not suit high powerrequirements, but these are a pragmatic choice for many like thesurvival industry, travelers, hikers, backpackers and the likes. Reasonbeing better availability of these batteries over any other type.AA or AAA alkaline – The AA or AAA batteries are alkaline batteriesthat are again pretty much easy to be found. The aa flashlight may notbe a great help for professionals as these are not that powerful but canlight up enough to brighten the darkest of areas.Rechargeable batteries – Think of the Li-on batteries like the 18500or the 18650 flashlights which are a great power resource. There areno doubts about these rechargeable flashlight batteries being sturdy andquite luminous, but the only problem lies with the fact that you need tokeep them charged. It is quite obvious that for this you need to buy agood charger to go with as it will keep it charged as per requirement.Diposable Lithium – No do not judge the book by its cover and thatmeans do not confuse them with the Li-on batteries. These are aspowerful as those batteries and last more than alkaline ones, but thesecan store energy. They are light in weight and have a shelf life of atleast 10 years! The downside is that of these being more expensivethan the alkaline ones.

Types Of Control SwitchesNow talking about flashlights is incomplete without discussing their switches.Come on, this is going to be interesting and we promise that we will notbore you anyways. Jokes apart, there are three main types of switches like:

Body switch – Do you remember Mag-lite that has the switch on sideof tail of the body? That is the kind we are talking about here that youcan grip easily. In fact, you can hold these in special ways that is

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possible with another type for sure.Tail switch – This is the favorite of all as the switch to turn off and turnon the light is located at the bottom of the flashlight. This serves as agreat tool when it comes for self defense because of this feature. Thisindicates that while using it with a gun can also become an effortless jobbecause of this strategic placement of the switch.Head/Tail twisting switch – Okay, this one can be found in the smallcute ones like the keychain flashlight. As the name suggests theswitching on or off has to be done by twisting either the head or thetail. Most people complain about this kind to loosen the head or the taildue to regular twisting.

Special Light ModesAre you thinking of a flashlight with some special modes of operation? Thegood news is they are very much available and you can buy themdepending on your prerequisites. Here are quite a few varieties that peopleusually look for when talking about special light modes:

SOS – In naval language this is called the save our ship savior mode.This is a part of Morse code that naval officers are generally use in caseof an emergency only. There is a pattern of blinking that rescuers areaware about, which is why it is most useful for survival professionalsand campers.Beacon – Not to mention that this beacon blinks all the time like alighthouse. Suitable for the survival industry as this keep on blinkingafter a few seconds. Someone who needs to be spotted out can makeuse of this as it can draw attention quite effortlessly.Strobe – Most interesting of all as this is an illustrious light that can beused for self defense. Why so because it can bamboozle anyone with itsluminosity and can be used to defend oneself from a miscreant. It has ablinding effect on a suspect and can really confuse them without adoubt. Need we say more about this?

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Material To Make A FlashlightIn simple words you would want to invest in a sturdy flashlight no matterwhat. Yes you may also keep your options for the small keychain ones, butmost of us prefer buying the standard one that will have enough light to putout darkness. In order to get the right kind of flashlight you need to ensurethat it is a sturdy one and that can be used for self defense in case a needbe.

Stainless Steel body – The best of all them as it is not that costly andis low maintenance. Additionally, it is non toxic and can be used todefend yourself if need may be.Plastic body – Here we need to amalgamate the composite built onesas there are fewer companies that manufacture quality plastic bodyflashlights.Titanium body – Very sturdy, skin friendly material that ensures whenin direct contact with your skin does not cause rashes or breakout whileoutdoors. It is light in weight too, which adds to its selling point. Yes,but it is expensive and if you are in budget then you can give this amiss.Anodized Aluminum body – Both type II and type III are consideredto be good investments as they are strong and long lasting. What morecan you expect from a flashlight?

Water ResistanceIf you want to buy a survival flashlight that is waterproof then you shouldknow some fundamentals. These essentials are about how much you wantyour flashlight to be water resistant, as in to what level. Yes, there arelevels of water resistance that you may be looking into and you can choosethe best one that suits your requisites. Here is a small contribution from usthat will make you understand these levels better:

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IPX4 – This is a symbol that indicates the flashlight can resist somesplash of water. This means you are not supposed to immerse in wateras it will not withstand that much of water. These like the ones that weuse at home, the everyday flashlight.IPX7 – Now this one can be submerged in water up to 1 meter but notbeyond 30 minutes. So be very careful about how to use this if youwant to buy one marked with this.IPX8 – Not to mention that this one goes beyond the 1 meter limit andcan get soaked for 4 hours in the least. This is a good and sturdyflashlight that can serve you really long if taken care of properly.

Final ThoughtsNow that you know so much about the best flashlight you probably are nowgoing to get one. The following tips can prove beneficial for all who want tobuy a handheld or weapon mounted flashlight right away:

Maintain standards – Make sure that the flashlight complies withANSI FL1 Standards as mentioned above. This is because these are theindustry following which you will get quality products. This furtherindicates if you buy a product that complies with these guidelines, thenyou will certainly get one which will last longer and serve you well.Proper lighting – Yes, again how much is good light is anotherquestion that is hard to answer. Still generally speaking, you can try toget anything between 90 lumens to 200 lumens as this bright enough,but does not take too much of your battery life in comparison to theones with higher lumens.Right batteries – This something difficult to provide a direct answerto as we would suggest getting something that runs on AA batteries.These are easily available in the market, which makes using them ismore of a convenience. Whereas if you think of the lithium types, thenyou may have to wait once the battery runs out. Hence it is advisablethat you buy one that is convenient for you.

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Gripping it – Buy a compact flashlight that is easy to use because it isyou who will be using, so ensuring its optimum usage will be pragmatic.You may have others in the house that may use it occasionally as well.So getting a flashlight that can be gripped effortlessly and comfortably isa must. It should not be too heavy for you to grip that it would fallneither should be a small tactical flashlight that hardly can be seen.

Before investing your hard earned money, you should at least think overwhat good does the particular product or service would be of. Does it giveyou value for your money or helps you in one or other? There are manyquestions that run in your mind when you even think of buying a newproduct. Well consider buying a flashlight as no different because there afew advantages that you may get with this buy too. Everyone wants toinvest their money in something that adds value to their money. Selectingthe best flashlight is no exception to this and choosing it wisely is a must.

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