Favorite/best headlamp?

[Zappaman]

Gotta find a way to pay the influencers pushing there stuff somehow, repackaged and jacked up prices will do it

I was looking at a fenix but now I’m not sure it isn’t also a sofirn

Just the nerd I am... I'll give you some insider info here.

I'd sure Fenix buys from the same "parts" maker for THIS light as (I KNOW) Sofirn does-- in this rare case for Sofirn- they source this body Vs. make it. (BTW: I feel Fenix is a FINE brand- they do a GOOD job).

Sofirn USUALLY designs and machines all their own bodies and reflectors (as well as doing the same for MANY OEM buyers... possibly for Fenix- but we'll never know).

Sofirn saw an opportunity to take a GREAT design (from another OEM-- and this headlamp really is) and "tweak" it correctly (as most DON'T). You can find "knocky-offey" garbage out there using this exact same body (from the same OEM who makes the body that sells for like $1.50 each in large lots)-- the difference in quality is in the "guts" they put into them.

MOST light "brands" do this (from Ebay cheap crap- to top dollar). They find the parts in China and have a "shop" do the assembly in large runs-- then sell it wherever they can (under some brand/model name). Some are VERY well made (and some are brands here that are fine lights like the Fenix indeed!).

Just remember: most light "brands" do not machine the bodies or reflectors they use. But Sofirn does (as both an OEM and now, their own brand as of four years ago). I know some very popular brands they make, but I'm not at liberty to disclose this as they have to be VERY careful to not break trade agreements WITH their own customers- and... it doesn't matter.

What matters... is that if you get a well made, top quality piece of gear for a (very) fair price-- YOU win!

 

[Pn8hall]

Well this thread just cost me 2 new Sofirns........ Currently running the black diamond storm 400 and 350. No complaints with them but at that price its hard to pass on the Sofirns. I ordered a red one and the 5000k one linked early on. I prefer a green LED over a red and if Sofirn had a green looks like it could be the perfect headlamp.

 

[Zappaman]

Red is in style lately

Congrats... you're going to love your lights! AND now they ship from CA (if you selected the option Vs China)... if so, you should get them soon too! Let us KNOW what you think when you get them.

 

[Pn8hall]

Yep they will ship from CA. I will update things after using them a bit. I use a headlamp several times a week for work so they will see some hard use.

 

[Zappaman]

Another bit of trivia... the owner of "Sofirn" named the company after his wife. Kinda cool I think

I don't think I could sell a light named "Sally" (random girl name picked here) -haha!

 

[Agross]

Well now I have two more coming with the red light as well. I gotta quit looking at rokslide. I’ll follow up when I get em. The headlight I have now the red light is extremely weak. When I saw the video of the different settings of the red light as well, had to try it.

Red is in style lately

Congrats... you're going to love your lights! AND now they ship from CA (if you selected the option Vs China)... if so, you should get them soon too! Let us KNOW what you think when you get them.

 

[ChrisAU]

Nitecore NU25 from Litesmith with their UL headbands are fantastic. Super light and take up very little room when stored in a pocket or bino harness. I have multiple.

Nitecore® NU25 Triple Output USB Rechargeable Headlamp

Nitecore® NU25 is a triple output USB rechargeable headlamp with 360 lumen, high CRI, and red LEDs. Featherlight at just 1.17 oz (33.0 g) with our exclusive ultralight headband, perfect for backpacking.

www.litesmith.com

 

[TheTone]

I’m well aware that lots of companies don’t actually build anything, they just pay someone else to make stuff with their name on it or do the China bull buy thing. I got to know a local guy to me that had a machine shop, I was pretty surprised at the amount of work he was doing for what you think are big companies but really aren’t. It is nice to see the curtain get pulled back on things. The current thread in the back pack section is amazing!

Peax is pretty defensive about this thing on some of their social media. I’ll never buy anything of theirs as long as the Grifty Blowman is part of the “crew”

 

[bayangler]

I am an LED light seller and have been for about 5 years. I've been selling/gifting the Sofirn D25... over 50 in two years here in Kansas to hunters, Amish barn builders, and farmers. It's a 100% hit with zero failures in a few years.

It is the best made headlamp money can buy (and comes with a good battery- unlike 99% of the garbage sold on ebay, etc.). I'm passing thie info without selling anything here as they are just recently available IN THE US!

They have "milled and polished" aluminum reflectors, and a REAL waterproof USB recharging port (not a rubber thing, but sealed o-ring access- easy as hell- with an LED light thet goes red to green telling you when charged). These are the guys who OEM for some of the stuff mentioned above BTW.

H25L(D25L) Powerful 1000 Lumens Rechargeable Headlamp

Specification:1. Bright Nice Beam: With dual LH351D LED 5000K 90 High CRI, the headlamp delivers 1000 lumens with a comfortable nice beam. Featuring 5 different modes: Low, Medium 1, Medium 2, High, Turbo, 2. USB Rechargeable: Designed with a hidden USB port, the headlamp is rechargeable.3...

sofirnlight.myshoplaza.com

I highly suggest the "5000k" option. Buy two.. they ARE cheap (right now- on sale). You'll thank me later.

PS. buy WITH the battery- unless you have a stash of GOOD 18650 batteries already.

Thanks Zappaman! I was just thinking about getting a few headlamps for my sons and stumbled on this thread. I just ordered some for them (and myself).

 

[JCMCUBIC]

I put an order in for the following...actually a few of them. Thanks for all the input guys.

D25LR Rechargeable Headlamp, LH351D 5000K White Led 90 CRI and SST20 DR 660 nm Red LED Flashlight, Ship From USA

This link is only for people located in USA, order will be sent from California. If you want to buy together with other models, please make sure they are all shipped from USA. Features: 1. High CRI White Deep Red Emitters: The D25LR headlamp utilizes dual LED Emitters. One of which is the...

sofirnlight.myshoplaza.com

 

[Az wildcat]

I also ordered two of the above. Hoping they arrive sooner than later. Just realized I ordered the ones with the non red light option. But for $35 bucks for two, if these are better than my energizer headlamps I’ll gladly pick up two more.

 

[canyonhunter47]

I vote Fenix. I’ve had or used black diamond, petzl and a variety of cheapos. Broke down and got the hm61r. Standardized battery, super long battery life on eco mode, super bright on turbo mode, red lamp, and doubles as flashlight. Only gripe is that it returns to your last brightness setting so you can catch yourself off guard

 

[Agross]

I also ordered two of the above. Hoping they arrive sooner than later. Just realized I ordered the ones with the non red light option. But for $35 bucks for two, if these are better than my energizer headlamps I’ll gladly pick up two more.

I did the same. Ordered two, realized they didnt have the red light, ordered two more with the red light. I ordered the first two yesterday and already got an email that they have shipped.

 

[bigbuckdj]

I ordered several headlamps and handhelds from them, I don’t remember them having so many emitter options last time I looked at sofirn.

I did the same though, ordered the 25L and ordered some red ones today. I love nice lights, hopefully these work out. For the price, I feel like it was worth a shot.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[DMadsen]

I've tried many different headlamps and have become partial to Black Diamond. For some time I used the Iota as my running headlamp and backup in my pack, then started using it all of the time. It has recently been replaced by the Sprint. It is, very lightweight, rechargeable via USB, and I am surprised at the burn time per charge.

 

[Zappaman]

I just wanted to thank all those who considered these Sofirns. The company has been at it hard while keeping quality up and prices down... for now! I look forward to hearing back from those getting these lights here soon! The NEW US warehouse had been good at fast turn around.

BTW: I am not a rep for Sorfirn, just an LED light junky who sells these locally. I'm glad to pass along a good deal when I know and trust the seller.

On Batteries:

Most of these newer LED lights using the 18650 battery (and a few using the newer 21700 battery) are going to have excellent run times. Despite the quality of the LED (and driver that controls the light), they will all run WAY longer than the AA or AAA stuff. But better makes, tend to use quality "binned" ELDs (with correct kenvin ratings) and have better designed drivers (with WAY better components). The springs on better lights don't corrode, while being made of good conductive metals (vs. shiny chrome plated junk). Finally the build quality is "night and day" between the cheap stuff, and better makers-- with good QC programs in place.

Another note on these new batteries... they do NOT leak like alkaline ("alkileaks") will. I have a range finder that uses a set of AAA batteries. I had the AAA's in if for just three months and they leaked. Thankfully I was able to clean the acid which had not yet gotten into the electronics- phew!

 

[gaswamp]

I am an LED light seller and have been for about 5 years. I've been selling/gifting the Sofirn D25... over 50 in two years here in Kansas to hunters, Amish barn builders, and farmers. It's a 100% hit with zero failures in a few years.

It is the best made headlamp money can buy (and comes with a good battery- unlike 99% of the garbage sold on ebay, etc.). I'm passing thie info without selling anything here as they are just recently available IN THE US!

They have "milled and polished" aluminum reflectors, and a REAL waterproof USB recharging port (not a rubber thing, but sealed o-ring access- easy as hell- with an LED light thet goes red to green telling you when charged). These are the guys who OEM for some of the stuff mentioned above BTW.

H25L(D25L) Powerful 1000 Lumens Rechargeable Headlamp

Specification:1. Bright Nice Beam: With dual LH351D LED 5000K 90 High CRI, the headlamp delivers 1000 lumens with a comfortable nice beam. Featuring 5 different modes: Low, Medium 1, Medium 2, High, Turbo, 2. USB Rechargeable: Designed with a hidden USB port, the headlamp is rechargeable.3...

sofirnlight.myshoplaza.com

I highly suggest the "5000k" option. Buy two.. they ARE cheap (right now- on sale). You'll thank me later.

PS. buy WITH the battery- unless you have a stash of GOOD 18650 batteries already.

good price

 

[mthayr]

I put an order in for the following...actually a few of them. Thanks for all the input guys.

D25LR Rechargeable Headlamp, LH351D 5000K White Led 90 CRI and SST20 DR 660 nm Red LED Flashlight, Ship From USA

This link is only for people located in USA, order will be sent from California. If you want to buy together with other models, please make sure they are all shipped from USA. Features: 1. High CRI White Deep Red Emitters: The D25LR headlamp utilizes dual LED Emitters. One of which is the...

sofirnlight.myshoplaza.com

And thanks to @Zappaman for pointing us all to PEAX (cough), I mean... Zofirn ;-)

 

[Lowg08]

I use a two lamp set up. Just cause I’m weird. For walking in and out I use the petzl tactika or something like that. 350 lumens I believe. Then I also carry a petzl RL swift. If it had a red light it would be awesome. It’s 900 lumens. Daylight. Rechargeable battery or standard AAA. Same with the before mentioned. It’s great for gutting or tracking in the dark. I also use it at work. Great at night for putting power lines back up

 

[TFrank]

Locking functions get confusing- but work fine. But when you sell about 20 different models even I get lost. But as these lights can burn a hole in your pocket (on higher settings), locking IS important as a good habit.

A MUCH easier way to immediately lock ANY (quality) LED light is to simply twist the tail cap 1/4 turn. This physically breaks the electrical path while having the convenience of taking a 1/2 second (on any quality light). When you re-tighten the cap- GOOD lights will STAY OFF (even if twist-locked while it was "on"... it won't come back on. It WILL stay off *until you switch it on again). This is the case with the D25.

Run time is based on battery. The Sofirn ships with a solid 3000mah capacity battery. The highest capacity 18650s can get up to 3500mahs. But some higher capacity batteries may lack RMS current to drive some larger lights (at the highest level). This isn't really a a concern here though.

If you want the extra run time, you can buy the after-market 18650s in the higher dollar 3500mah range for sure. I like "18650Battery.com" for small lot orders- check out the Panasonic high capacity battery if you want the best. 18650battery.com is a solid seller. They don NOT sell counterfiet "fakes", and they also DO now sell some decent Chinese stuff that is recently available (*for less than the top four makers now).

Holy genius just unscrew it….