Headlamp info??

[Philo]

Looking for one of those head lamps for deer hunting/ice fishing/outdoor activities. Don't know anything about them. Anyone have any good models to recommend to a novice? Thinking I want to spend around 30.00. Doesn't matter to me if it straps on your hat or has its own band that goes around your head. Either way is fine.

[Ray Esboldt]

I don't know if I know much about them either, but I like the LED lights quite a bit better than the other battery munching headlamps. Petzl, Princeton Tec, and so on. They all seem the same to me.

One thing I have noticed with hunting, the green bulbs light your path in the woods quite a bit better than the white. Don't use them in your ice house though. They make your stomach a little jumpy.

[Fergus Mor McErc]

I use a Princeton-Tec Aurora. It has three white LED lights with three different levels of brightness and it can also blink at two different speeds. It's a headband type and is very light weight. I love it and use it all year.

I also have a Ray-O-Vac with two white LED's and One red LED. The Ray-O-Vac was half the cost of the Aurora but works pretty much the same. The red LED light is nice in the summer for keeping the bugs from swarmming my face.

[loebs93]

One of the more popular models of headlamps is a LED/halogen bulb mix.

My first headlamp was just a LED version. They are nice for a couple reasons. First they save on batteries big time. Also they are usually significantly smaller and lighter than most other models.

I have worked at outdoor retail stores in the camping departments all through college for the last three years and I recently bought the Black diamond-Gemini ($38) headlamp. This is a combination of LED and the halogen bulbs. You have the option of having one or the other on at a time. There are a lot of times when the LED bulb just does not cut it, like when you're walking off the lake, through the woods at night or taking down the trap. This is when it is nice to have the halogen bulb.

The LED bulb is nice for indoor use. It saves on batteries and it probably the light I use about 70% of the time out of the two. Inside a tent or portable it will light up most anything you look at inside. If you need more light for tying those knots with 4lb test line just press the button to switch the head lamp over to the halogen bulb and wala there you have it.

[Dano_the_jigasaurus]

Petzal Duo is a great head lamp a regular bulb and an ultra bright halogen.

[Tom Linderholm]

Two years ago I found a energizer one in walmart for $15.00 with two LED's and one Red, for that price it has worked awesome, lightweight, and if I do manage to break it I will just buy a second one for less than what it would of costed me for a single petzle.

[JohnMickish]

I just purchased the energizer one about a month ago at Gander for $17.00. The best money I have ever spent! I am so impressed with the light I am giving them away for Xmas presents.

[TurdFurguson]

I have a Black Diamond that I got for Christmas a couple years ago. I really like it, its lightweight, works well in cold, and is really bright. I use it a lot for ice fishing. It has 4 LEDs and uses two AAA batteries. I haven't had to change the batteries yet and I have had it for a couple of years. It also comes in handy for getting squirrels out of an attic.

[Blaine]

I am a huge fan of Princeton Tec headlamps. I own 4 of the Auroras for myself and my clients. Mine see a lot of use in the salt water and they hold up well for the dump that we put them through. They have a lifetime waranty and the company stands by that claim. I've sent a couple back over the years and they've replaced them quickly.

I had other brands but they were all so heavy compared to the Auroras. I'd always get a headache after a few hours of wearing them, now I forget I've got one on. They run forever on the AAA batteries and put out a bright, even light pattern.

[Bob_D]

I'm with Blaine on the Auroras. I've had two and I'll be getting another. I use them for fishing and for hunting (getting to the stand, etc.), and they are waterproof. I think they are about $30...and worth every penny. I think they still include a free jig charger with the headlamp.

[hanson]

Just got back from a weekend of deer camp and I had my Princeton Tec Aurora on my head most of the time. I would wear it walking to the stand, coming back from the stand, chopping wood at night, fetching water. Might I add that there is nothing better than a headlamp when you have to field dress your deer in the dark.

[Ed Carlson]

The LED lamps are much more efficient and lighter. In the past couple of years many new models are out that have different configurations as was previously mentioned.

Good Ol Wall Mart has a good selection of lamps that range from under $10 to up to $40. I picked up a new lamp this fall, 3-LED five settings for around $10, works great. It is a Garvey I think? It has 3 light intensity settings and 2 flasher settings, one a slow flash and the other a faster strobe setting. The strobe may come in handy I guess if a guy is in need of help or as a extra safety light on an ATV at night? The strobe does a fair job on luminescent jigs, not as good as a camera flash will but it will give them a solid glow.

One of the biggest benefits is extended battery life on these light LED units, many last in excess of 200 hours on a set of batteries. You do gain more intense light in a much smaller package.

Lots of choices out there now in comparison to just 2 years back. Prices are falling with the new competition too, that helps. You can get a good unit for under $20 now pretty easy, or even under $10.

[Hammer-Smites]

I do a lot of flathead fishing in the summer, so I have tried many different types of lights at many price points. Believe it or not, the best one I have found for the money was a small Rayovac clip on light for $9.95 on a rack at Walmart. It clips on the bill of your hat and runs on AAA batteries.

[huskiesplayer15]

I have the aurora which is awesome and my dad has the black ice by browning.

Best Fishes

Chris

[Philo]

Thanks for the advice. I went with the aurora. Got it at GM on sale for 20. I thought that was a pretty good deal. Can't wait to try it out next weekend deer hunting.

[Bob_D]

Wow!...$20??? That is a great deal. I wish I could find them for that. They are about $30 around here. I'd buy 2 more at $20 if I could find them at that price.

[ccarlson]

We had a kids weekend at our hunting camp this fall. After I shut the generator off the kids said "Uh, dad, it's a little dark in here!"

I got out my princeton Tech aurora and ran it on low for two nights in the middle of the room and then put it back on high to get to the duck blind and set up decoys. And that was on batteries I put in a year ago! They are great.

ccarlson