Hey everyone I was doing some night work around the farm this weekend. I have a drawer of headlamps and it got me to thinking. As most of our readers know we are big on lights here both flashlights and mounted tactical lights. In this article I want to discuss headlamps, cause sometimes you just need to have both hands to do work. Theres are many options for this from cheap to ridiculous. As most of you know, im not a big proponent of blowing every spare dime you have to buy a piece of equipment. I have a drawer full of these in the kitchen for grab and go use on the farm. Since they are such a frequently used piece of gear for us I wanted to discuss them.

 

I want to say up front that I don’t discuss the claimed light distance cause I think its bullshit, some of the small cheaper units claim to be useful out past 100 feet or more and I think that’s straight up crap. However I don’t think they are crap, they are useful I just don’t think they preform as well as the manufacturer claims. Anyway on with it.

Lets go price, low to high.

 

First up, tractor supply bargain 2 pack head lamps 2 pack handheld flashlight.

https://www.tractorsupply.com/tsc/product/jobsmart-4-pack-led-flashlight-headlight-combo

 

– AAA powered

– 3 power settings, Dual brightness settings with red light option

– adjustable elastic head band

– relatively lightweight

 

For the 10$ price these are very affordable. We keep these in a drawer and in a repurposed fruit bowl near the door for kids to grab if they need one. Range is rather short with these lamps, they are best suited for illumination of what is right in front of you. Maybe best suited for taking out the trash, changing a tire, or maybe for use getting around the house when the power is out. Bottom line do they work yes, but I think the best use of this is around the house or keep one the glove box or console of the car as a backup.

 

Energizer

https://www.amazon.com/Energizer-Headlamp-Zoomable-Flashlight-Batteries/dp/B00TOOCBU0

 

– AA powered (3 batteries)

– 4 brightness settings with red light option (2 flood, 2 spot, red)

– adjustable elastic head band

– pivoting adjustable mount

Coming in at 10-11$ each these are a little more costly but perform well. They are fairly bright and comfortable. I would have no problem going about night time chores and other tasks the range on these at the high setting is about 15 feet. I would definitely keep one in my bike packing gear or in my edc bag. I have one of these in my tool bag as a backup option.

 

Coleman

https://www.target.com/p/coleman-174-led-headlamp/-/A-14245899?ref=tgt_adv_XS000000&AFID=bing_pla_df&CPNG=PLA_Other_All+Products%2BShopping&adgroup=All+Products_Catchall&LID=700000001230728pbs&network=s&device=c&querystring=coleman%20led%20headlamp&gclid=[*GCLID*]&gclsrc=ds

 

– AA powered

– Dual brightness settings with red light option

– adjustable pivoting mount

– adjustable elastic head band

Coming in at  $22 – $25 this is a pricey option but it performs well and one of these can be found in both my wife and my get home bags. It has a bright light with 3 different white light modes, as well as a red and blue setting. Battery life is decent though I haven’t tested it to see exactly how long the battery lasts.

 

 

 

Innova gear 5000 lumen headlamp

https://www.amazon.com/InnoGear-Flashlight-Headlight-Rechargeable-Batteries/dp/B01N0NESTQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1537200716&sr=8-1&keywords=innogear+led+headlamp

 

– Dual 18650 rechargeable batteries

– Pivot mount

– 3 brightness levels, and strobe / flash (I don’t know what the hell for, and I can do without flash)

– charger and cable included

 

These are our go to headlamps for most outside night work now that we have tried them, we use when doing chores or riding our bikes after dark. As of the writing of this article I actually used one of these to fix a burnt out headlight on one of our vehicles this morning. We balked at the price, but a friend gave me one for my birthday, and since we have found that despite having to have a special charger and special batteries we still love these and they are BRIGHT… If I am going on a road trip or traveling away from home I carry this and a spare set of charged batteries. Battery life varies with this unit as I have 2200mah, 3600mah and 5000mah. I would suggest buying a handful more 3600 or 5000 batteries so you don’t have to wait for a set to charge and can just swap them out.

 

I also have a charger for my 18650 and other rechargeable batteries around the house and I highly recommend it if you are considering getting the Innova gear or similar headlamps.

 

https://www.amazon.com/New-i4-2016-EdisonBright-BBX3/dp/B01LXI41GR/ref=sr_1_4?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1537201808&sr=1-4&keywords=nightcore+charger&dpID=61soRa6S%252BrL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

 

Well I hope you guys found this interesting and informative. If you have suggestion, questions or comments please feel free to email us atuncensoredtactical@gmail.com or join us on our discord server Insurgency Knitting Circle. We have several relevant channels and discussions in real time with our listeners. It’s a quickly growing community with lots of amazing people that contribute daily.

Till next time, stay safe, and live prepared all ways.

-TX Joe

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