What should every huntsman know about flashlight, headlamp or lantern?

Pocket flashlights have been here since the end of 19th century, when they were invented by Joshua Lionel Cowen from American Eveready Battery Company. But a lot has changed since then. 

A brief history of pocket flashlights 

Until the end of 19th century a man could use as a light source only kerosene lamp or torchlit. It may sounds romantic, but it can be also dangerous. We could also light up a campfire, but that can not be obviously taken with us.

Because of the Socialism, there were only very few models on the Czechoslovakian market to choose from. It got better in 1990´s , but the source of light was still the same - – a tiny bulb with 10mm screw-thread and voltage 2,5 - 12 V. The power of these tungsten vacuum bulbs was about 10 lm/W so the power consumption was still quite high.

Some change came little later, when the standard lights started to be replaced by halogen ones. They were about twice as effective. Only recently another innovation started to be popular and those are LED lights, which are highly effective. They are much better than standard lights, which are rather source of heat than source of light. Only 1 % of the energy turns into the light, 99 % goes for heat. With the LED lights the percentage is around 13 % to 87 %.

U.S. market 

In the United States and another English speaking countries the situation was different. In addition to standard plastic flashlights there were also larger square-shape flashlights with 6V battery and legendary Coleman gas lanterns. This lasted until the late 1980´s.

One of the innovations that changed the US market was the MityLite model from Pelican Products, which ran on two micro (AAA) batteries and was surprisingly waterproof. In 1988, SureFire flashlights got on the market. They used lithium batteries, were metal, had the best light output so far and looked like proper military equipment. 

Nowdays tactical pocket flashlights 

Modern tactical pocket flashlights provide totally different comfort. They are much more durable as they are mostly metal. They also have better designs, but this should not be considered the main advantage - those are impact, weather and corrosion resistance. 

As for the light output, most of the models offer at least 200 lumens. For comparison, you can imagine every standard small light with 10mm screw-thread to have at least 20 watts. Thanks to the long beam distance you can see objects even in the distance of hundreds of meters. 

Advantages of LED bulbs 

We have already talked about one of the advantages, but it is certainly not the only one. The other one is incomparable life span, 25 times better than standard bulbs. Knowing the fact, that bulb lasts on average one year, the LED light source should last 25 years, which only time will tell...

Choose lithium (Li-ion) batteries 

Another advantage of modern LED flashlights is the source of energy. Lithium batteries as opposed to standard alkaline batteries last much longer and if the alkaline batteries are not rechargeable, you can then throw them away, which is not really ecological. Li-ion batteries are more expensive but at the same time they practically do not discharge themselves, so you do not lose almost any capacity for following months.

And what about headlamps ?  

When it comes to headlamps, hunters are obviously one of the main customers. Their duties are very often at dark. Fortunately, the possibilities are practically unlimited. Their main advantage is, that they allow to have both hands free and yet provide enough of light. They are small and lightweight and can illuminate the specific spots you are aiming at.

Most of the models offer multiple lighting modes so you can adjust different intensity according to your needs. They are usually weather and dust resistant as well as shock proof and can therefore be your ideal companion to any terrain.

Lanterns are still popular 

Lanterns, which can placed on the ground, hold in the hand or hang somewhere, are still very popular. They are multi-use and hunters would appreciate the fact, that they shine in different directions, whether they need light at night or early in the morning. Some of them have special feature that can temper the light so the user is less visible during hunting.

Another special types are those, that can be attached to a headwear or footwear, for example Bootlamps from Sneaky Hunters.