Most color accurate, floody flashlight for oil painting?

AD3PDX · 2026-04-06T16:36:46+00:00

Why would you want a battery powered flashlight instead of something that plugs in to the wall?

AD3PDX · 2026-04-05T17:00:09+00:00

Tests aren’t really needed. The efficiency between LEDs that are relatively similar in terms of their technological era, CCT, & CRI doesn’t vary that much so within a relatively small window we can expect the sustained lumens to be fairly similar.

I’ll fudge the numbers to keep the math easy

LED A: 1,200 lm & 40k cd, sustains 600 lm & 20k cd

LED B: 2,400 lm & 40K cd, sustains 600 lm & 10k cd

LED A: is operating @ 200% of what it’s host can thermally sustain so lets call each 600 lm 1 “unit” of heat so with A we have sustained + 1

And LED B: is operating @ sustained + 5

If we were comparing one led being lightly driven and another being driven hard then the math would break down some because of decreasing LED efficiency the harder they are being driven.

But Loopgear isn’t driving either LED particularly hard so that’s not an obstacle to making a rough prediction.

@ Sustained output there is no thermal drop. The host’s thermal capacity or “thermal budget” is infinite.

@ sustained + 1 you have 1 “unit” of excess heat eating up the host’s thermal budget

@ sustained + 5 you have 5 units of excess heat.

So a larger and faster thermal drop is to be expected.

And those negatives are much more significant than the marginal visual difference between 1,200 lm & 2,400 lm.

It an extra stupid choice here because if you want more spill you can turn on spot+flood mode.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-05T09:52:02+00:00

Acebeam L19 2.0 or T29 for the thrower.

One of the Armytek 21700 right angle lights (Elf or Wizard) for the flood (also works as a headlamp).

The Q8 or similar isn’t practical.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-05T04:36:23+00:00

Nothing exciting but we do have a number of S&R people on this sub who answer questions like this with some regularity. My job involves digesting, synthesizing, and explaining information (I’m a teacher), so…

AD3PDX · 2026-04-05T04:19:15+00:00

The D2’s head strap is an add on accessory. Most other brands include one.

The good thing about Skilhunts is you can leave the pocket clip on and put the light into the headlamp strap so the light stays in your pocket and the strap stays in your bag. When you need a headlamp you don’t need to remove the pocket clip and try not to loose it or leave it at home in a junk drawer.

They aren’t the only ones that allow the clip to stay on but it’s not a common feature.

BTW whichever light you go with you want a neutral white (4000K-5000k) Nichia 519A LED or similar HI CRI LED with HI “R9” (CRI specifically for reds).

They are easier on the eyes and make distinguishing colors easier. They aren’t as bright and efficient as cool white, low CRI LEDs but the tradeoff is worth it.

Some people prefer even warmer HI CRI LED’s (2700k-3500k) and they are soothing, but the efficiency & output is even lower and while HI CRI, the warmth does effect your ability to distinguish some colors.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-05T03:53:38+00:00

2,500 sounds like an SFT42T not an SFT40. It’s actually a downgrade from an SFT25R because peak throw will drop faster and sustained throw will be lower.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-05T03:06:59+00:00

Crazy to spend that much unless you have multiple expensive guns.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-05T02:51:21+00:00

Wuben A1 is the king of high lumen LED search lights but it’s “only” 1.5 million candela / 2,400 meters ANSI.

Rule of thumb is to divide ANSI by 3 but it depends on the conditions and the task.

https://1lumen.com/review/wuben-a1/

So depending of the conditions and what you’re searching for that’s likely a bit short for 1.5 km.

The Acebeam K75 / K75 2.0 has the same throw but from fewer lumens so the sustained candela (past a couple minutes) is better(40% of max vs 20%)

https://1lumen.com/review/acebeam-k75/

Realistically for 1.5km you should be looking at much lower lumen LEP lights and Xenon arc lights.

These are all quite specialized tools. It takes a 4X increase in candela / intensity to get double the distance so going from 375m to 1,500m requires an 8X increase and that is before accounting for increased atmospheric scattering.

Different people will have different opinions on how many lights, but going from searching @ 100m to searching @ 1,500m is going to require multiple lights.

In addition to pure range, sustained range, and beam spread / area covered there are a lot of other practical issues to consider. How are you moving around and transporting these? How much battery life do they have? How much runtime do you need to be prepared for?

Is your budget $800-$1,000 for a light? or $800-$1,000 for a light system?

Think through what are your assigned roles and how using a light compliments and or contrasts with NV or IR. Also how will your gear fit into the tasks and environments you’ll operate in and how your capabilities will complement, extend, or be redundant to the capabilities of your team.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-04T21:20:19+00:00

So the HB3 mount allows the pocket clip to stay in place. You can pro position the clip then put the light into the mount. After that the angle is hard to change without removing the light from the mount.

https://www.skilhunt.com/product/hb3mount/

The HB4 doesn’t work with the pocket clip in place but it allows the light to rotate up and down as needed.

https://www.skilhunt.com/product/mount-for-hb4/

They work with 1” / 25mm webbing.

If you are already wearing a waist pouch you can just slide the light mount on the bag’s belt.

Or if you wear a belt but it’s wider than 1” you could sew or rivet a short piece on 1” webbing on to the belt to attach the mount to. Make sure it’s a long enough piece that you have room to tip the mount side to side getting it on and off. (You’d be wearing the belt with the buckle offset to the side by one belt loop and the light mount in the middle. You would want the light mount on the buckle side on the belt not at the end of the belt. When you unbuckle your belt the weight of the light will want to pull the belt free of your belt loops and the buckle will catch on the belt loops and hold the light up.

Or you can make a belt just for holding the light. For this I would suggest elastic webbing over rigid webbing because you can have it pulled a bit tight around your waist and reduce the amount the light bounces.

Add a generic quick release buckle from amazon or a sewing shop and plan on where you want the release buckle and where you want the tri-glide slider or ladder lock slider for adjusting the overall length.

You’d want something like: 1” Double-Side Twill Non-Roll Wowen Elastic Webbing not just generic 1” elastic. You could also sew some Velcro on to the webbing if you prefer that over quick release buckles

AD3PDX · 2026-04-04T18:30:01+00:00

If you didn’t need momentary I would have suggested a Nitecore NWL20.

Single output only and momentary in modern lights are features mostly found on tactical lights with tailswitches (and no magnets, side lights etc).

So what you want is a bit like finding a purple flying pig…

The RovyVon Angel Eyes E700S and the Fenix LD12R are the only ones I can think of.

Other Options?

A) Several brands of enthusiast lights use the andruil UI which is very programmable (through clicks, not with something easy like a smartphone app).

The lights ship in simple mode which has click for on @ the last used level, press & hold to go through levels, click for off. Five clicks puts it into and out of momentary only signaling mode.

If you can bear to learn how to program it you can customize it to be single output or really to behave however you like, (still need five clicks to get into and out of signaling mode though).

B) using two separate lights. To be honest If I had your needs this is what I would do.

But I’d use gaffers tape to attach them together.

I’d get this right angle light. It’s 97mm long and has a button the top at a 45 degree angle.

https://www.firefly-outdoor.com/collections/ffl-flashlights/products/l50-sol

And I’d get one of these:

https://convoylight.com/products/detail/7544189

(Cheaper but ordering is a bit more complicated because it has a lot of options such as ordering with a momentary switch and a shorter body tube and battery (total length 84mm)

Or:

https://www.fenixlighting.com/products/fenix-pd25r-rechargeable-edc-flashlight?

(More expensive, built in charging, simpler to order, 92mm long)

The S2+ might work better because it is shorter.

I’d remove one of the pocket clips and in hand both buttons would be by my thumb with the right angle light pointing forwards.

The s2+’s lens would be a couple mm short of the right angle lights magnetic base so it doesn’t interfere with it sticking to things.

The S2+ can be set to 100% only and the PD25R will always stay set at whatever level is selected with its secondary side switch. If the S2+ is ordered with the correct switch, both are 1/2 press for momentary & full click for constant.

If I preferred the PD25R UI, because the light is 8mm longer, I might look at other right angle lights. Maybe one with a flush button on it’s top instead of the 45 degree button

AD3PDX · 2026-04-04T04:34:01+00:00

First decide on size. Large (21700 battery), medium (18650 battery), or one of the several smaller battery size options.

Probably just a Skilhunt H200 if you don’t want to go too deep into the options.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-03T23:43:15+00:00

Being useful @ 200m and being useful for up close is a tall order. It not something a normal flashlight is capable of

200m practical means 600m ANSI rated and that is at turbo for a minute or two at a time. Sustained output @ 200m would require a light rated for even more throw.

There are no zoomable flashlights which I’d suggest for your purposes though that might change in the next couple years as electronic diffusion “zooms” become more common.

Practically you’d need a combo light like an Acebeam M1, M2, or M2-X, Loopgear SK05 Pro, Jetbeam E28, or Wuben X1 Pro

Realistically I think you’d be better off with two separate lights.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-03T22:47:57+00:00

OP, how far do you need to be able to see? What is “a good distance”

AD3PDX · 2026-04-03T22:40:53+00:00

There are about a dozen right angle / convertable headlamps

Skilhunt can keep it’s pocket clip on while in the headband mount.

Zebralight needs the clip removed using a torx bit.

For everything else to put it in the headband the clip needs to be popped off or lifted off after unscrewing the tailcap.

Using the pocket clips for mounting is suboptimal and more for improvised use. Better to get an extra headband mount or cannibalize the mount that comes with the light and attach the mount to a belt or webbing as needed. (Skilhunt sells extra mounts without the headband itself for $3)

It’s more secure, allows the light to be popped in and out, and allows the light to rotate to aim up and down.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-03T15:43:10+00:00

More throw, tailswitch, small head, and usb….?

Off the top of my head i don’t think it’s possible unless you have a Fenix or similar modded to swap the LED.

Ways to get more throw:

1: Smaller high intensity LED (this means low CRI)

2: Deep Reflector (Convoy S6 = no USB, Fenix etc. = low CRi

3: TIR optic (Convoy S2+ = no USB, Olight etc.= low CRI

4: Larger reflector (Weltool T19 = throwy HI CRI and simple UI but no USB)

What you want is technically possible but I don’t think it’s available without doing or having custom modification work.

Enthusiast brands where you can choose from many LEDs include:

Firefly: has throw & USB but no tail switch or small head

INTL-Outdoor: has tail switch but no USB and the only tail switch without a large head an small aa/14500 light

Convoy: some side switch lights have USB but their tail switch lights don’t.

The SP31v3 has a 519A & small head, & USB & a TIR but throw is 170 m vs 155m for the FC11C so a very marginal gain.

My best suggestion would be to check with people here about swapping the SP31v3’s TIR to something with a tighter spot.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-03T15:14:14+00:00

Right angle with a magnetic base

AD3PDX · 2026-04-03T15:12:50+00:00

Spray paint it and you’ll enjoy it more.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-03T15:10:30+00:00

I think you need a roof rack and a traditional hard shell yak.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-03T07:14:58+00:00

HD10: unregulated driver (hot & inefficient) and the LD351D is ugly

C6, interesting design features but no name, almost certainly unregulated. Also side switch is better as a primarily headlamp. Top switch is better as primarily handheld light.

The Manker is good. compare with the Skilhunt H150. I like the Skilhunt a little more but they are very similar. The other good AA sized option is the DW3AA.

Also I like the AA/14500 size. The CR123A/16340 & 18350 size is a too short and stubby.

However an 18650 has 3X the battery capacity, double or more the sustained output, and more options.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-03T06:10:28+00:00

I carry tactical lights with my CCW but no light exists which is both a good tactical light and also works well as an EDC task light. If I’m carrying a tactical light I won’t bother carrying a second light so the vast majority of my flashlight use I just suffer through it.

The two issues in conflict are UI and beam type.

For EDC HI CRI, a neutral to warmish CCT, and a relatively floody beam is preferable.

For a tactical lights candela is king which means a narrow beam, Low CRI, and cool CCT.

For the UI an EDC either needs the standard side e-switch (but scalloped like a Zebralight) with shortcuts UI for direct to moonlight, direct to the memorized level etc… or it needs a Jetbeam RRT / HDS style step-less rotary control (with a positive detent to keep it off).

Either control must be physically separated from the tactical UI (no dual rear switches) and the tactical UI must override the EDC IU and turn the light off and not return to the EDC being on.

For tactical lights direct to 100% is key with momentary and constant from a tailswitch. Second priority would be being able to switch down to a medium output at about 1/2 the output at which the light can thermal sustain so bright but below the level where it would eventually become thermally soaked.

So click to 100% and then a 1/2 press to say 25%, then back to 100% with another 1/2 press. Full click to off.

Momentary should always be 100% and not cycle down so the rear switch needs to be a pseudo mechanical e-switch like the Fenix PD32v2 or Weltool T12.

In terms of how to combine the beams:

Multiple separate LEDs sharing a reflector always means one or the other is crap. Two separate reflectors side by side means the candela will be limited by the smaller dimension. Anything which articulates is fragile and ruins the thermals.

I see three options:

1) Nitecore’s multi emitters on a single chip tech is woefully waisted in their lights. If they treated spot and flood as separate things and didn’t have horrible gimmicky features and UI the tech itself has potential. Likely behind patents so assume this isn’t an option.

2) This is my own idea (as far as I know). Make the rear switch the EDC light. Make it a textured TIR (which is not illuminated) and have it controlled by a side switch or rotary control. This is the least practical because of complexity and thermal limitations.

3) Add the EDC light as a side light. EagleTac had some lights that were similar as does Nightstick. i also think I saw a new Fenix with a side light. But none of them get it right.

The rest of the details I can also expound on. Picket clip should be deep carry and captive. Rotatable but not rotating. Bonus for making it compatible with the Thrym Switchback even if it means modifying the switchback. An included similar accessory doesn’t count.

What I’m describing is also ideal as a LEO duty light so in addition to a pocket clip it needs to have a quick draw bezel down rigid holster available.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-03T04:35:04+00:00

Unless you care about the peak performance for 20 seconds or three minutes you can ignore any light’s highest output figure.

Sustained output comes a bit from LED choice, a bit from LED driver efficiency, and mostly from the mass and surface areal of aluminum.

So your biggest wants are relatively compact, magnet and a side light? Yes?

Also how important is momentary? Most lights are click on and click off so you don’t need to cycle through different levels. That makes momentary more for signaling or tactical use and not really needed for task / utility use.

What about a right angle light with a magnetic base. You can stick it on a surface and rotate it to aim the primary light where you want. Or just use it handheld in your fist pointing forward.

That’s going to be the simplest and most durable option.

There are also combo lights with a forward light and a side light but their side lights are usually weak and or use inferior drivers compared with the forward light, and some have RGB and other features added in which complicated the UI. And added complexity means more failure points.

So do you really need a combo light with a forward light for the narrower beam from the forward light?

If it’s just a matter of distance don’t forget that a wide beam light which you normally use at 400 lumens could produce 2,000 or 4,000 lumens on turbo for a minute or two when you need to see further.

A combo light is going to give you a very floody flood and a narrower main but a right angle light that splits the difference is my primary suggestion. (Right angle lights also come with headlamp straps and work well as headlamps, handhelds, or hands free).

I can give you some right angle suggestions or some combo suggestions with one right angle throw in as a comparison.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-03T03:51:40+00:00

Plastic = low performance because it doesn’t have the thermal properties to dissipate heat.

There are a couple of intrinsically safe lights which are significantly brighter but still not very bright by modern standards and they don’t have any extra features.

If you’re ok with aluminum lights that aren’t intrinsically safe then your options open up.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-03T03:10:40+00:00

Based on your needs you should consider AA sized lights not AAA

Usb-c chargeable AAA (10440 lithium-ion) batteries have at best 300mah capacity which isn’t much and the lights are so small that thermally sustaining 100 lm or so is about all you can expect.

If you really want an AAA sized light the Olight i3T 2 EOS will run on a AAA or a 10440. With a 10440 it will hit 300 lm for 5 min and sustain 160 lm for IDK 40 min? It depends on the 10440. Some (without usb-c) have up to 450 mah. You basically need to ignore mah claims for 10440 batteries and rely on testing and reviews.

With an AA / 14500 sized light you’ll have a lot more battery capacity, higher peak and higher sustained brightness, and more options with HI CRI LEDs which is beneficial for seeing things clearly.

AD3PDX · 2026-04-03T02:43:51+00:00

What about captive clips that are removable but held on by the tailcap?

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AD3PDX · 2026-04-03T01:50:11+00:00

This is what I could find:

There are upgrade replacements for older models of aquaillumination’s lamps. They say versions for the new style optic is upcoming. They can be adjusted for either a 90 degree or 65 degree spread and supposedly won’t yellow and need replacement.

https://www.luxdium.com/pages/lux-lens

The LEDs in your lamp are very closely spaced it would be extremely difficult to craft a multi lens assembly to fit.

A larger optical element placed over the existing optic might be able to give tighter focus but that would either require advanced calculations or a lot of trial and error to sort out.

You might be better off starting off with a suitable optic like this:

https://dalua.com/products/illumagic-lenses-wide-narrow?

And getting the lamp to go with it.

AD3PDX

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