Best Survival Flashlight

what-is-the-best-survival-flashlight

 
The flashlight, also known as a ‘torch’ in other parts of the world, is very high up on the list of things to include in any survival kit. The challenge though is, there are so many flashlights to pick from, which flashlight should you buy?

What is the best flashlight?
Answer: The one that you have! ;)

(UPDATE)
I have lots of flashlights.
But I can tell you that one of my favorites is this one: Fenix LD22

Why? (Read here)

 

Decide the flashlight criteria

Will it be used in a 72 hour survival kit, a bug-out-bag, or backpack?

Or will it be a head lamp, tactical light, or flashlight on your key chain?

Maybe a LED lantern, or simply a flashlight to have in your home?

Does it need to be waterproof? Does the color matter? Does brightness matter?

What size should it be? What quality should I pay for?

More: Best Pocket Carry Flashlight For Under 30 Dollars

 
First, decide the purpose and requirements.

  • Type – purpose (size – shape – weight, spot or flood)
  • Brightness – bulb type
  • Battery type – rechargeable or not rechargeable – battery life
  • Color – hidden or conspicuous
  • Quality (price – many features are shared by many models, but price and quality vary)

 
Brightness

Most people automatically think the brighter the flashlight the better. However, a brighter flashlight will usually be bigger, heavier, and the run-time will be less – requiring more frequent battery changes or recharges.

There are many use-case scenarios where you will not want a particularly bright light, but instead a normal output will be Okay. In fact, there are examples where you want the flashlight brightness to be very low, e.g. , to keep your location concealed.

Flashlight brightness is rated in Lumens.

If you want a brighter flashlight pick one with a higher lumen rating.

To get an idea of the scale of lumens, 13 lumens is the approximate brightness of one lit candle and 1,200 lumens is the approximate brightness of a 100 incandescent watt bulb.

One flashlight that I keep around the house for general purpose use is this one. I’ve had it for years. It sits on it’s charger mounted to the wall near the back door:

Streamlight UltraStinger LED

The following flashlight is a quality Fenix with 1,000 lumen output:

Fenix UC30

 

Size Matters

Your flashlight application or specific purpose will determine the preferred size. Key-chain size, or something slightly larger for a backpack. For more powerful applications, size will increase, although today’s technology has packed brighter illumination into smaller packages. The multi-million candlepower lights are about the biggest size you will encounter. Although they can be held with one hand, you will pay the price with their weight and size.

 

Spot or Flood Beam Type

A spot light will narrowly focus the beam and will reach further with brighter object illumination. The angle of the beam will vary depending on the reflector design – some of which are variable, allowing you to adjust it or zoom in and out. A flood light will widely light up an area for general purpose, closer lighting purposes. There are use-case scenarios for both types.

 

Bulb type

Common flashlight bulb types include LED, halogen, or xenon. They each serve a purpose and have their own trade-offs.

LED flashlight technology has come a long way over recent years and there are many very bright LED flashlights available. LED (Light Emitting Diode) technology is extremely power efficient and will run for very long periods of time before requiring a battery change or recharge. Personally, I prefer LED flashlights for nearly all of my normal applications.

However if extremely bright light is desired, other bulb types such as halogen, xenon, and others can produce brighter light. The penalty you pay for other bulb types is that of power consumption and battery life.

 

Conclusion

There is not a ‘best’ survival flashlight because it really does depend on its specific purpose, which will vary because of that fact. Having said that, keep in mind the criteria listed here, which should help you think about options. Also, the general rule that I always follow when purchasing any product is, ‘you get what you pay for‘. In other words, the better ‘stuff’ usually costs more money. In some instances this will not matter to you, but in other instances it will.