Recommend me a head torch

[mnichols]

There's an Aldi 3W CREE LED head lamp on sale now. I'm tempted, as it will be brighter than the standard LED headlamps I have now. Does anyone know if these are of acceptable quality?

I was in Aldi last night and didn't see them

[ossie]

I use a Petzl Tikka..absolutely bombproof and gets used for everything. Must be over 10 years old so when it stops working I might buy another, the problem it just keeps on going. Being old it gives a nice warm glow in the tent rather than the harsh white.

[LollyKat]

The little Alpkit one.

I presume you mean the Muon? I had a look through the other thread and decided this would do perfectly for me, but it seems to be unavailable / discontinued.

Current "little Alpkit one" is the Viper II. 160 lumens (with a 6 lumens red option). Takes 3AAA batteries (alkali or rechargeable). Reduced to £15 (from £19) at the moment.

I was hoping for the single AA battery but that now seems unlikely. I only want a small emergency head torch for night-time repairs. The Viper II looks good, though.

[ANTONISH]

Wilko sell one for £5. Very bright.

[jamesbradbury]

I have a Fenix 2xAA torch (edit: it's an LD22) which I take as an emergency light in case my dynamo one fails, tho it never has. With two cheap straps I can attach this torch either to the handlebars or to my head for night time repairs.

The main downside is that it is a bit dazzling, so I try to use it with consideration. Thankfully it has four brightness settings the lowest of which is only enough to be seen by and claims to last for 100 hrs.

It's a bit pricey at more than £40 when I bought it, but I'd gladly but another if I lost it.

I'm a trendy consumer. Just look at my Nexus 5X using hovercraft full of eels.

[meic]

Fenix have some headtorches that run on a single AA battery, like the discontinued Alpkit Muon does.
https://www.fenix-store.com/fenix-hl23- ... lamp-gold/

[reohn2]

A couple of points that may have been made earlier in the thread but I'm not trawling through again.
Early in the thread Mecalia complained about AAA batteries not lasting as long as AA's and much has talked about what I'd term as "serious" head torches.
IMO as with any tool I ask how much use and abuse it'll get,with that in mind I approach buying anything.There tends to be a scale of expenditure to use,though that's not always a hard and fast rule as I,ve had some very good lasting service out of cheap kit.
I use a head torch spasmodically and only for short bursts of activity,so a £50 headtorch is wasted on me and my money can be better spent elsewhere,I need a head torch to work when I need it and for a short time so I reckon £10 to £15 enough to pay and if it has AAA batteries it's no big deal.
Just a couple of thoughts.

[old_windbag]

I have a Fenix 2xAA torch

Same here an LD20 in my case but when I bought it I also bought a red light filter to put over the light. On low setting this is good to preserve night vision.... you could also get a globe/lantern fitting for it to hang it as a tent light, that mays still be available.

https://www.torchdirect.co.uk/fenix-torch-accessories/fenix-tk-series-filters.html that says for TK series but mine fitted LD series.

Fenix make some very solid torches, if their head torches are anything like that they should be good. Also interesting bike light range for past 5yrs or so.

[jamesbradbury]

Hmm, the red filter is a really good idea and would also mean you might be able to use it as an emergency rear light in a pinch.

[old_windbag]

you might be able to use it as an emergency rear light in a pinch.

Thats an idea. The LD low setting was about 9 lumens. Avoid too bright a setting if possible but anything would be better than nothing in a fix.

I bought the filter for astro use. The torch itself is beautifully machined.

[old_windbag]

I was in my aldi today and they had 3 or 4 of their headtorches. They have the battery pack for 3 AAA batteries at the rear of head by looks of it by the packing and the light is a 3W LED with a focusable beam. It states 180lm and seems to also state a 50% output mode. Cost was £7.99.

[Eton Rifle]

I don't intend to ride at night whilst touring, so don't bother to pack cycle lights, instead taking a headtorch that can double as a front light.

I've just bought a Petzl Aktik and really like it. Three white light modes with maximum 200 lumens. Red light setting including strobe. Only £28 from Millets.

I do take a tiny rear light just in case - a Lezyne powered by a couple of watch batteries. I can either attach it to the seat post or to the back of the Petzl's headband I'd the rear rack is piled with shopping.

[mnichols]

There's an Aldi 3W CREE LED head lamp on sale now. I'm tempted, as it will be brighter than the standard LED headlamps I have now. Does anyone know if these are of acceptable quality?

I've just bought one. Quality seems good, but I can't figure out how to zoom in and out. There are no instructions and nothing online

[thirdcrank]

Perhaps the head just pulls out/ pushes in. That's quite a common arrangement.

[Gattonero]

Hopefully there will be more USB chargeable head torches in future, the ability of charging it via the hubdynamo is tempting.
Sure, one can buy AA or AAA batteries almost everywhere, but why sticking with disposable batteries when a "green" solution is already on hand (actually, in the front wheel)?
To carry a AA/AAA battery charger on a tour seems a waste of space and weight, plus more things to think about; while a USB charging light surely has less battery capacity, but hey! plug it to a dynohub USB charger and the same Usb cable would charge the Garmin, the Headtorch, a powerbank, front or rear lights, a mobile phone, etc.