Cr123 batteries

At virtually any gas station or convenience store, you can purchase some AA batteries or maybe AAA batteries. The CR123 is much less common, although you might be able to get one from another backpacker.

That's why I stuck with the Zebralight 1 AA battery headlamp.

–B.G.–

I have a couple of Sure fire flashlights that use CR123 batteries. I like the output but not the price. I personally would not want them for my headlamp due to possible availability issues. You may find them or you may not. You can buy them in bulk online though and just carry them and add to your resupply.

I can't speak to the availability of CR123 batteries on the PCT but regarding lumens output, my PT Byte is only 50 lumens on high and I find that I don't need that much light unless I'm running or biking. I'm not sure what the output is on Medium but I find that is more than enough for me when I'm night hiking.

Full disclosure, other BPL members have had problems with theirs but mine has worked flawlessly.

Edit: Zebralight advertises the weight of the H51 at 84.9 grams. Battery life at 100 lumens is advertised at 2.4 hrs.

The Princeton Tec Remix with 3 x AAA batteries is advertised at 83 grams. Battery life at 100 lumens is advertised at 28 hrs.

We use them a lot at work (in camera flashes) and buy them in bulk on Amazon, the Surefire brand is our preference. Even if you can find them in a store, they're often 5+ bucks a pop—$1.75 each or so from Amazon.

"sacrifice supreme light"

ZL H31F, top lumen, 209. (CR123)
ZL H51F, top lumen, 190. (AA)

Percentage difference: 9%. The human eye perceives light on a logarithmic scale, so it's often said that "it takes around 100% increase in lumens before a beam looks significantly brighter (appearing about one-quarter brighter to the eye)… [and] intensity needs to be 300% to 400% to look twice as bright."

In other words, you won't see a difference. You will only imagine a difference, and know it's there in theory. Advantage: AA cell, due to ready accessibility and low cost, unless you're talking freezing conditions.

Use prime lithium AAs such as Energizer Lithium AA, and even the weight advantage disappears.

"Edit: Zebralight advertises the weight of the H51 at 84.9 grams. Battery life at 100 lumens is advertised at 2.4 hrs."

We've discussed that before here. A lot of the weight is in the fancy headstrap. I used a different strap for my H501, added a lithium AA battery, and kept the total weight under two ounces.

–B.G.–

Being a bit of a torch geek i've got a fair few torches to choose from, there tends to be 2 torches that i use 99% of the time though.

ZL H600 or the ZL SC600

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I've tried CR123 torches and just cannot get on with them as after 18650 torches it seems like i'm forever changing the batteries.

I have a few AA torches, it might just be me being unlucky but whenever i seem to need batteries i can never find them or i'm in the middle of nowhere.

With 18650 batteries i get just under 1 weeks "around camp" use out of each one.
I tend to take 2 torches just in case, so also take 2 spare 18650 batteries as well, as of yet i've never needed the spares.

ZL recently bought out a new version of the SC600, 900 lumen max output with a really good spread of low outputs as well.
900Lm might seem a bit overkill, but having that extra light available if needed, does come in handing on many many occasions.

I prefer the beam pattern of the SC600MKII as it has a little bit more throw than the H600, the differences are very small though, plus the angled head and headband make the H600 a LOT more useful for night hiking.

The SC600 does make a fantastic camp light though.
Get yourself a white 35mm film canister and it makes a great diffuser.

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So my suggestion would be to ditch the CR123 light and go 18650,
2 x CR123 batteries weight more than a single 18650 PLUS the 18650 batteries lasts longer.

"We've discussed that before here. A lot of the weight is in the fancy headstrap. I used a different strap for my H501, added a lithium AA battery, and kept the total weight under two ounces."

That's a great point and that modification can be made to either headlamp. My point is that the weight is nearly the same (Remix slightly lighter) but the advertised battery life of the Remix is much higher.

A popular "lightening" headband mod to the ZL is to replace the headband with a flat boot shoelace, a cordlock, and an elasticized "finger sleeve." Makes a minimalist headband for use around neck, head, or hanging in tent. Components all dual use.

I've been using this setup for travel for years, works great, and has the additional benefit of being very low bulk and easy to pocket.

"A popular "lightening" headband mod to the ZL is to replace the headband with a flat boot shoelace, a cordlock, and an elasticized "finger sleeve." Makes a minimalist headband for use around neck, head, or hanging in tent. Components all dual use."

Interesting. How does the finger sleeve work as part of this system?

The headband on the H502 weighs 23 grams

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One of my AA Eneloops weighs 13 grams, the torch alone 30 grams

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No idea what a shoelace weighs, but i can't honestly say the weight of any of my headlamp straps has ever bothered me.
I have found some to be extremely uncomfortable if wearing the torch for anything more than 15 mins though.

Only problem i have had is while running with the H600 it tends to bob up and down, i fitted a extra strap running over the top of my head and it fits great now with no bobbing up and down.

I've carried a Petzl e+lite on thru-hikes, and it uses a 'coin' type of battery. For colder and shorter-day portions I'll swap with a heavier light that puts out more lumens, but I find that I'm fine with the coin type of batteries even though they're less (or not) available in trail towns along the way. The offsetting factor is that a pair of these is so very light that I'm fine with carrying a spare set all the time, and just planned to get a new set in an infrequent resupply box, or one could bounce them.

So my personal feeling is that it's best to get the lightest weight headlamp that you think serves your needs (where of course battery weight includes potential spare batteries as part of the weight calc).

> Interesting. How does the finger sleeve work as part of this system?

Sorry, I should have explained this UL adaptation for the ZL headlamp.

The finger sleeve is elasticized, and about the right size to snugly fit around the body of a ZL. So you thread the shoelace through the finger sleeve, then attach the cordlock. Then slip the ZL body into the finger sleeve, where it's held snugly. Last, place the cord around head and adjust to comfort level. While this setup isn't as comfortable as the original, it's not bad, either!

When using this setup, at least 80% of the time I hang the ZL loosely around my neck, letting it hang down mid-chest level (which is not at all easy to do with the stock headband). Neck carry works best with a wide-angle ZL such as the H50, H501, or H502, since aiming these wide-angle headlamps is not critical. When more precise placement is needed, pull the rig up around the head and snug into position.

This setup on an H501w (previous model) weighs 1.5 oz total. That's everything: headlamp, lace, cordlock, sleeve, and a lithium AA battery. Light weight, bright (H502 is 260 lumen), long runtime (from 4 days to 3 months continuous runtime in low modes–why even turn it off?), AND readily available batteries.

For this type of performance I'll gladly add 0.5 ounce over an e+light, which I believe tops out around 26 lumens.

^^^ This is how I use my Zebralight; around the neck. I like the lighting much better from this angle. I've never cared for having a light on my head.

When on the trail at night, I carry my Zebralight in my hand at about waist level. When in camp, I put the head strap on my head so that my hands are free.

I should add that I do not use trekking poles, so my right hand is free to hold the light. If you do use trekking poles, you will probably have the headlamp on your head.

–B.G.–

"A popular "lightening" headband mod to the ZL is to replace the headband with a flat boot shoelace, a cordlock, and an elasticized "finger sleeve."

Another option for those that use a visor like a Headsweats SuperVisor is to thread the headlamp onto the back of the visor. As nightfall comes I rotate the visor and turn on the lamp. (As an aside, the Headsweat supervisor is one of the sweetest tips that I put up from Mr. Skurka.)