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Lightweight Rechargeable Headlamps 2020 Review


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  • #3654469
    Cameron M
    BPL Member

    @cameronm-aka-backstroke

    Locale: Los Angeles

    Lightweight Rechargeable Headlamps 2020 Review

    Several new lightweight rechargeable headlamps appear on the market, and my headlamp needs are evolving, so it seems time to give rechargeables a closer look. For many years I have used the ultralight favorites Petzl e+LIGHT and then the Nitecore NU20, which are fine for trail hiking, but not powerful enough for off-trail. My criteria for choosing headlamps to review are personal and specific to strenuous off-trail travel where I need both a strong focussed beam for route finding and extended + 100 lumen performance to survive a bad situation. During my evaluation I premiate lighter size and weight; a regulated medium-power light output that maintains a consistent strength over many hours; a good route-finding beam strength; water resistance; light reflector qualities; and a subjective rating of use-enjoyment. Considerations less important for me include price and value; a battery indicator; a red-light feature; a close-flood feature; a flashing light; and the ability to swap batteries. In my website review I first give some quick opinions and then go into more detail with documentation that informs those opinions.

    I post some summarized comments here about three top-rated lights but you can read the full review of nine lights with extensive photographic documentation at my website which is non-commercial with no affiliate links:

    https://www.trailnamebackstroke.com/rechargeable-headlamps-2020

    Rechargeable headlamps for off-trail travel. 

    Some prefer rechargeable lights for saving money or creating less battery waste in the world. The ultralight argument for a rechargeable may include making good daily use of a solar charger, otherwise, like all expendables, the size of the battery is only weight-efficient if it matches your ultimate consumption. Now that I spend most of my time off-trail I largely avoid traveling at night, and so my main requirement is having a light that is strong enough and lasts long enough to get me out of a bad situation. The efficient use of a battery over several days by drawing it down carefully may not serve one well if an unexpected bad night occurs at the end of a trip. Therein lies possibly the best argument for a rechargeable: the ability to “top off” the light each day in preparation for the unexpected bad night. The Fenix HM50, similar to the small battery Zebralights, offers a different strategy; it is so lightweight that one could carry an extra battery in reserve, with the comfort of knowing that a certain number of hours of light are in reserve.

    I learn many things during the review: manufacturer stated lumens and longevity ratings are often false or wildly misleading; less heavy lights are distinctly more comfortable to wear than even slightly heavier ones; reflector design varies a lot and is very important; some aspects of light perception are difficult to quantify, even with photography. I review nine lights, almost all of which are new models for this year, and I will keep three quite different lights for more field testing and personal use: the Petzl Actik 450, Black Diamond Revolt 350 and the Fenix HM50.

    My favorite headlamp is the Petzl Actik 450. The Petzl is nice to hold, is among the smallest and lightest, and is the best-looking design (I am an architect, after all). Most importantly, my tests show a unique lens light pattern that provides a center hot spot, which I strongly prefer, combined with a very gentle outer perimeter drop-off. I like the preset lumen settings of 6, 100 and 450 lumens, and the 100 lumens “medium” setting probably only degrades to about 60-70 lumens over 7.5 hours, so its light regulation is excellent. I am concerned about the middling IPX4 water rating, but the light performed fine after a kitchen test of five minutes of intense dousing. This light can use both the supplied lithium battery as well as AAA batteries. A feature shared by most of the lights is the “long-hold” button to guard against accidental activation.

    I am generally impressed by Fenix on many levels: the informative website, honest ratings, and the obvious careful thought that goes into their products. The Fenix HM50 is my favorite. It features a screw-end barrel design that can use either a rechargeable or a CR123 battery just like my favorite non-rechargeable Zebralight H32W. It has an impressive IPX8 water rating and maintains a strong regulated light at the 130 lumen “medium” light level for 5.5 hours. The 50R is the lightest and smallest headlamp of this review and works well with a DIY lightweight headband for a combined total weight of only 2.4 oz. The very low weight of this light also suggests a possible failsafe strategy of taking one additional .6 oz battery, a strategy I use with the Zebralight.

    The new Black Diamond Revolt 350 appears after the start my review and I almost did not bother to test it as its top light level of 350 lumens seemed too low and it is also quite heavy at 2.7 oz for the bare light. It is indeed a brute, but if I had to grab a light to go on a rescue mission, I would want this one. The focussed beam projects more light at a distance than 350 lumens suggests and the medium setting of 190 lumens is powerful, well-regulated, long lasting. I like the typical Black Diamond feature of the push-button variable lumen settings. Unfortunately, the IPX4 water rating is only average, probably a function of its ability to swap-out AAA batteries. This light in particular has many mixed web reviews, probably because of confusion with the older, inferior model.

    Full review:

    https://www.trailnamebackstroke.com/rechargeable-headlamps-2020

    #3654499
    Eric Blanche
    BPL Member

    @eblanche

    Locale: Northeast US

    Thank you for that comparative review. Lots of good info.

     

    I personally have been using a zebralights h32fw since about 2015 or so and have been very happy with it. A little heavier than some but I have to say the battery performance from the cr132 is IMPRESSIVE!

    #3654525
    Cameron M
    BPL Member

    @cameronm-aka-backstroke

    Locale: Los Angeles

    Yes Eric, I also like my Zebra H32 with the cr123 batts, but this effort is to evaluate rechargeables, and I really do see an advantage moving to the Fenix HM50. I contacted Zebra before this review and I gather that Zebra has done research on rechargeables but does not seem ready to jump in as yet. Too bad!

    #3654528
    Nick Gatel
    BPL Member

    @ngatel

    Locale: Southern California

    I’ve been using the same headlamp for twelve years. It works. I normally don’t read reviews on almost any kind of gear these days. But your post caught my attention for some reason and I clicked the link to your blog. Incredible what one can test and write about something as simple as a headlamp.

     

    However, I spent and enjoyable amount of time reading all of your blog. How delightful. Wonderful stories and even better pictures. Then I got to 1971.

    I did my first big hike the same year. 6 months wandering the Sierra Nevada. But I was older than you at 21. And there you were, a 15 year old kid, stitching together his own unique trip, not on a trail, but to do something really neat — hiking Hadrian’s Wall. Wow! And your parents let you go. Ah, plastic ponchos, tube tents, and a Svea. Fabulous. Keep writing so I can read more. Thanks.

    #3654548
    Aubrey W. Bogard
    BPL Member

    @bogardaw

    Locale: TX

    Excellent!  Thanks for sharing.

    #3654730
    Cameron M
    BPL Member

    @cameronm-aka-backstroke

    Locale: Los Angeles

    Thanks Nick. I remember that we are both poncho advocates, although I am getting error messages from your site at the moment :/

    Since you mentioned Svea stoves, tube tents etc. I thought I could share the light that my UCLA backpacking pal Harry and I loved in the 70’s, the Duracell Durabeam (Made in U.S.A.) 3.2 oz, 2xAA. Great beam, excellent form factor. The earth colors are very 70’s, and the design is actually pretty smart, sort of like those sharp-edged cars Toyota was cranking out in the 80’s.

    #3654737
    Nick Gatel
    BPL Member

    @ngatel

    Locale: Southern California

    How ironic!

    Just today I found two of them when I was cleaning out some stuff in the garage. Quit using them around 2008 when I bought an eLite and then a Tikka soon after. The elastic straps are starting to loose their elasticity on both of the headlamps. The old Durabeams are just fine, just look beat up. They were made in the USA.

    My Durabeams also survived my two kids using them in Cub Scouts and Brownies. The plastic has held up well over the decades, even being stored in the garage where summer temps here exceed 120F. I have two because I always buy spares of things that work well. I tested them and both work, so I brought them into the house for use. Just weighed them. 1.35 oz without batteries, 3.25 oz with two AA installed.

    #3654738
    Nick Gatel
    BPL Member

    @ngatel

    Locale: Southern California

    I remember that we are both poncho advocates, although I am getting error messages from your site at the moment :/

    Yeah, I updated the PHP version on the site and everything crashed. Got it up and running about an hour ago. Good thing old guys like me learned how to program computers in the ’60s  :>)

    #3654740
    Alex H
    BPL Member

    @abhitt

    Locale: southern appalachians or desert SW

    Nick thanks for making me go look at Cameron’s site, I will have to spend more time there as well.

    My first trip without adults was at 13 in 1970, my first long trip was at 15, like Cameron in the White Mountains of NH.  Sorry for the thread drift.

    Yes I have a few Durabeams around, one of the great things about them is you could hold them in your mouth while starting your Svea in the dark!

    #3654744
    Cameron M
    BPL Member

    @cameronm-aka-backstroke

    Locale: Los Angeles

    Yes I have a few Durabeams around, one of the great things about them is you could hold them in your mouth while starting your Svea in the dark!

    Yes, I forgot about that!

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