Well we have had belt mount,helmet mount ect.Rucksack full of batteries??:lol:

Big question is where is all this going to end?

It would end in tears or possible divorce if I spent £350 on a torch ;D
I honestly think that Imalents MS12 is the stuff of coastguards and SAR, it was really impressive lumen wise and allowed us to take handheld photos on our phones but I wouldnt like to rely on it underground as my main lightsource with its bulk, fans and tech wizardry it just seems so fragile, however I now desperately want one :(

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Hold back and the price will drop, trust me.

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Nothing wrong with a Premier caplamp, a water bottle and a small tin of carbide. Gave me all the light I wanted back in the day. ;D;D

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There are even bigger ones now like this 56,000 lumen one:

https://ebay.us/aazlBE 

Or even this 60,000 lumen one:

https://ebay.us/YwwEBo 

They are a lot of money and can only sustain their max power for short periods. But they do open up some possibilities in photography and are potentially useful for video, though the short run-time is their main limitation for that I think.

I like the way the "ultra-low" mode of this torch is 625 lumens. I still consider 625 lumens pretty damn bright! My first caplap was 30 lumens, I thought it was the dogs back wheels when I got it.

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I like the way the "ultra-low" mode of this torch is 625 lumens. I still consider 625 lumens pretty damn bright! My first caplap was 30 lumens, I thought it was the dogs back wheels when I got it.

Do you remember that HID torch I had? About 500 lumens, took 30s or so to warm up and cost about £400?! Back in the day I thought that was the absolute business.

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Moving parts + grit and filth from underground? Mmmmmm :lol:

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Moving parts + grit and filth from underground? Mmmmmm :lol:

Well yes, I am into a new battery already.
Chinese IP 68?

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Thats also what I was thinking Roy, I always get a bit antsy when something has a proprietary battery.

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I like the way the "ultra-low" mode of this torch is 625 lumens. I still consider 625 lumens pretty damn bright! My first caplap was 30 lumens, I thought it was the dogs back wheels when I got it.

Do you remember that HID torch I had? About 500 lumens, took 30s or so to warm up and cost about £400?! Back in the day I thought that was the absolute business.

Was that the one you had when you first showed me Cwmorthin back in 200x? I seem to remember you might have to replace the bulb and the price was incredible...
(i may have made that up of course...Ive banged my head a lot since then!)

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Was that the one you had when you first showed me Cwmorthin back in 200x? I seem to remember you might have to replace the bulb and the price was incredible...
(i may have made that up of course...Ive banged my head a lot since then!)

That was the one!

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Giving this more thought, the DX80 is bright enough for hand held camera photos on auto settings, and gives good results. Low enough ISO setting to not be grainy.
I think these new monsters are expensive, OTT, and not really suited to underground use.
With the DX80 available at £199 from these LEDSupermall people, it appears to be a German company, that is what I would go for.

If you want a powerful thrower torch, you dont need that power if you choose one that uses Cree XHP 35 emitters which will focus to a controlled beam. The Imalent R90C looks good at £250.

I think its going a bit silly now with built in fans etc. The Acebeam sticks the extra XHP 35 in just to be a tie breaker.

The above really summarises not only the big issue with my own lamps but the 'output politics' of Chinese torches per se. Its no good just cramming in as many emitters as you can and claiming daft lumens, or doing this and driving them to full power and claiming honest lumens. The output has to be controlled or you just end up with a massive 'room light'.

Probably good for photography though.

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