i carry a sartec with a wet plug. the batteries have a 4-6 hour burn time. i carry an extra light head in my drysuit pocket in case the one in my hand goes out on the dive or doesn't fire when i am already suited up and in the water.
Andrew, what are the UK LED's you speak of?
Thanks!
Danny
Men of Principle since 1839.
I sometimes bring 2 10W HIDs. For most dives I think a conventional Salvo bright backup light (I think it's like 4 W) is enough for a scooter out for a failed primary and is easier to carry. But if I am especially suspicious about the charge/reliability on a battery/light or in extra large cave where more light would be good and/or bottom time limited 2 10W HIDs give a nice combination of more light and redundancy. I've even toyed with the idea of a handle for holding 2 lights at once but I don't use 2 10W HID at the same time that often.
I think Andrew is using these on his helmetOriginally Posted by atedeschi
http://www.uwkinetics.com/product/9
I have the same backup lights on my side mount helmet and have been using them for almost 2 years now.
They replaced the SL4 quartz halogen model that I had been using happily for many years prior to that.
The lights are identical except for the bulb/led assembly
Very bright for their small size with a nice tight beam.
I have found them to be very rugged and reliable and with lots of burn time.
Not too expensive either you can find them for around $40 online
Steve,
Thanks for the answers. Anthony, I promise I wasn't screwing your name up, Andrew A. posted a few posts above you about the lights on his helmet. I have a halogen/xenon SL4 on my harness, and i find that it's just a little too big for my tastes, so I was trying to find something to replace it w/o spending a fortune on a Scout/Rat.
Men of Principle since 1839.
Intova's are $30 or so online. Well worth it. I got mine for under $30 awhile back using the "make a deal" thing on US diver supply.
The shoals are there still, the winds howl loud, the rain beats down, the waves burst strong. Some night, in the chill darkness, someone will make a mistake: The sea will show him no mercy. John T. Cunningham
o ok, no worries. BTW I those super Q lights are awesome and super small. I think they retial for 115 a piece.
I have one in my pocket and one on my mask.
Nice subject...... I can imagine someone getting into cave diving saying, "oh great, the expense of two lights!?" Fast forward a few years, and you're selling older primary lights, wondering how ya got 3? It's much easier now days, with the new line of small hand held backup lights, equal to a 10 watt HID, to carry lot's of light. So, yes, carry a backup. In 7 years with one Helios 10 watt and one bulb, the only called dive was a bad cord, in the gland. I've started using my DR handheld as a primary, because most of the diving I do is sump, and I don't want to haul the extra weight. Not to say, that there's not a need, (especially with scooter profiles) to feel the need for primary backups. Chances are, that in a team situation, one of the divers is going to haul a backup primary, and it can now be used to save a thumbed dive. All things I've mentioned point towards preparing for the loss of what was a good dive. For sumps, and low vis, more light doesn't help, so we're very close to the line, like hugging it, and there's 3 lights on my helmet, and 2 on my harness. Comfort, for me, come's from the line, not the amounts of light I haul, but I do understand the need for backups.
Hye guys,
I use the Q40 eLED. They're cheap (just picked one up for about $35) - and btw, use the same light head as the smaller Salvo rat, which might be more expensive but has the advantages of being smaller AND tougher than the Q40 eLED. The light from all of them is awesome.
Andrew Ainslie
Almost extinct cave diver
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