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What order do you want your headlamp modes in?

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 Toerag 17 Oct 2022

I also wanted to add an option for 'any, as long as it's not flashing!'


Prompted by the other thread, what order do you want your headlamp modes in?

Brightest first, then dim, then off
Dimmest first, then bright, then off
Bright, off, dim
Dim, off, bright
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 bouldery bits 17 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

The worst mode is that one where it slowly and gradually goes from off to brightest then back down to off endlessly for no reason. 

 65 17 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

1. Reading in a tent;

2. Moving around an unlit hut;

3. Bright for walking off the hill in pitch dark;

4. Mega for mountain biking and/or searchlight duties;

5. Flashing for cycling; 

6. Mega bright SOS pattern (preferably with a lock on this mode).

9
 Dave the Rave 17 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

On, or, off

3
 RX-78 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

Dim to bright with option to turn off any time by longer press on button. A red light aslo is handy.

Actually my usb charging decathlon light is great. Two big buttons a '+' and a ' -' to toggle up and down the 4 brightness levels, starting on  dim red light. At any time a long press on the '-' button turns it off. No flashing mode. And can lock it in the off mode by pushing both buttons at once.

 Andrew95 18 Oct 2022

Dim to bright.  That way you are less likely to blind everyone nearby. 

 Jenny C 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

Dim then bright - I don't want to dazzle myself before dropping to dim, but an extra button press to go bright isn't a big deal when my finger is already there.

Also I do like a red function. 

No strobe please.

Post edited at 09:25
In reply to Toerag:

Alongside this question it'd be interesting to know people's take on which they prefer - an infinite scrolling between brightness (i.e. dim-bright-dim-bright-dim etc...) or whether or not it is best being interrupted (i.e. dim-bright-off). The former is the approach Silva take, whereas the latter is what Petzl take. Curious to see if anyone has any preferences, although I suspect it'll be a case of some like one whereas some like the other.

 Rick Graham 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Dave the Rave:

> On, or, off

And some simple mechanism that stops the torch  accidentally switching on in your rucksack pocket.

 AlanLittle 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

Having decided to splash some money on a Zebralight, and spent an evening battling with how to set it up, I noiw have it on:

1. Low - indoor, hut tent

2. Brighter than the Petzls I had previously, bright enough for pretty much any realistic use

3. Brighter than the midday sun

 Alkis 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

I can't remember what torch this was but it was: hold to turn on/off, hold for longer to go red. Press to change modes, and it would remember what mode it was in when turning on. Worked really well for me. It may have been the Reactik.

 elliptic 18 Oct 2022
In reply to RX-78:

> Dim to bright with option to turn off any time by longer press on button.

This. Whatever brightness modes are available it should be possible to cycle between them without turning it off completely at any point.

(To add another entry to the list of shame: I have an LED Lenser with three brightness modes cycled by pressing the power button but *only in the first few seconds after switching on*. After that brief opportunity pressing the button again just switches it off...)

 galpinos 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Alkis:

If it was the Reactik, the main downside is it has the smallest button in the world which is hard to find, when wearing it and using gloves. Also the lock function is quite hard to use.

 Guy 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

Dim first.  There is nothing worse than waking up or being woken up in a mtn hut by the very early morning sun of the worlds brightest headlamp.  

In reply to AlanLittle:

+1 for zebralight, I've got one too and its the best torch I've ever had. Three modes, the dimmest of which will eke out the battery for days and the brightest of which will light up an entire mountainside and a really simple control system with a nice big button. Also uses 18650 batteries which are rechargable but you can buy a stock of your own fairly cheaply and carry as many charged spares as you think you'll need. I'm had an assortment of BD and petzl headtorches and not really sure why people keep buying them when there's much better and simpler options available.

 kathrync 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

Dim, then bright, with an option to switch off at any time with a long press.

 Iamgregp 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

I'd just go for On & Off meself.  

1
 Robert Durran 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

I really, really don't care as long as there are no further complications and it doesn't keep seitching itself on.

 Holdtickler 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

maybe:

One Press - On Dim/Off

Double Press - On Brighter

Triple Press - On Brighter still

etc

 tlouth7 18 Oct 2022
In reply to elliptic:

> I have an LED Lenser with three brightness modes cycled by pressing the power button but *only in the first few seconds after switching on*. After that brief opportunity pressing the button again just switches it off...)

Sounds ideal to me

 Ridge 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

Aren't the middle two the same?

Anyway, my vote is a single on/off button that switches the lamp on always at the dimmest setting and a separate button to toggle brightness up and down in use.

Also a transport lock on the on/off button.

 Iamgregp 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Iamgregp:

Or possibly On then Off?

Might set up another poll…

 Ridge 18 Oct 2022
In reply to tlouth7:

> > I have an LED Lenser with three brightness modes cycled by pressing the power button but *only in the first few seconds after switching on*. After that brief opportunity pressing the button again just switches it off...)

> Sounds ideal to me

Not really. I often run on a low setting, occasionally going to high for route finding. With that system you constantly have to keep switching the light on and off again to change brightness levels.

 mik82 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

Off - On (at last brightness setting) - Off

Hold button down to increase/decrease brightness. 

This is how the internal light dimmer in my van works

 Andy Hardy 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

Petzel should reincarnate the zoom, with a twisty control from off to full blast through every brightness level in between. 

 CantClimbTom 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Rob Greenwood - UKClimbing:

> Alongside this question it'd be interesting to know people's take on which they prefer - an infinite scrolling between brightness.

I think it's a terrible idea. Compare it to a high and a low, I can get some estimate of how long the battery will last on either but infinite scrolling I have little chance of mentally tracking remaining battery life.

Also I think it's using technology to "solve" a problem that doesn't really exist, or at least... it's a very niche use case.

 CantClimbTom 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Andy Hardy:

Or just have a zoom with the core battery and a decent LED (good emitter and driver) instead of the incandescent yellow glow.

2 settings high and medium and you get that alternating each time you twist it on

You could probably get an old one from eBay and make it yourself if you want a project 

 ScraggyGoat 18 Oct 2022
In reply to CantClimbTom:

If you start with a Petzl gloom and pimp it, do you end up with a Petzl ungloom?

 Andy Hardy 18 Oct 2022
In reply to CantClimbTom:

I've probably got one in the back of a cupboard!

Actually if I had spare time not a bad idea

 deepsoup 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Andy Hardy:

> Petzel should reincarnate the zoom, with a twisty control from off to full blast through every brightness level in between. 

But the twisty control on the Zoom was, well, the zoom!  (ie: focus)

It sounds like a cunning plan to have a twisty control (more usually referred to as a knob) to adjust brightness, but unfortunately it's also just the kind of electrical moving part that would be very likely to cause reliability problems.

 deepsoup 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Andy Hardy:

> Actually if I had spare time not a bad idea

Not a bad idea as a novelty item.  But if you think you'd like to regularly use a pimped-up Zoom instead of a modern head torch I suspect you might have forgotten how heavy and bulky they were.  (By modern standards.)

 JimbotheScot 18 Oct 2022

Got one of these to replace a bd storm which had a million complicated combinations, much simpler on off independently on each throw/flood side, hold button from off = on at lowest setting, then hold to cycle low/med/high/turbo with memory

https://www.sofirnlight.com/products/sofirn-hs20-usb-c-rechargeable-headlam...

 CantClimbTom 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Andy Hardy:

You could prove the doubters wrong (or maybe prove them right 😉) and still get change out of an £11 note by unscrewing the old bulb and just screwing in one of these cree led jobbies (with electronics included in it) in its place, please note spaces added into link below due to filtering so you'll need to remove them 

https:/ /www.eb ay.c o.uk/itm/283428800153

after that you'll need to think about the (petzl core?) battery. From what I remember the zoom batteries I used had spade/blade connectors so maybe you'll need to solder? Enjoy the project.

 Jack 18 Oct 2022
In reply to Toerag:

I bought an ay-up headtorch over 10 years ago. Turn it on, pressing the button alternates between low and high. Long press for off. Battery still lasts for hours. Simple, well built and still bright enough. Expensive at the time but not bought a headtorch since. Think they are still a similar design.

In reply to Toerag:

I have a really cheap one. It has a switch on top. Left for red, right for white, middle for off. I've positioned a bit of tape over it so it doesn't switch itself on in the bag but still works when I want it to.

It's perfect.

 Andy Hardy 18 Oct 2022
In reply to CantClimbTom:

Looks like lenser already do one with a "dimming wheels" https://www.torchdirect.co.uk/head-torch-range/ledlenser-h5r-core-rechargea...

 Ridge 18 Oct 2022
In reply to CantClimbTom:

> You could prove the doubters wrong (or maybe prove them right 😉) and still get change out of an £11 note by unscrewing the old bulb and just screwing in one of these cree led jobbies (with electronics included in it) in its place, please note spaces added into link below due to filtering so you'll need to remove them 

I looked at doing that a few years ago. The zoom bulb isn't compatible with the led replacements, it's like a teeny tiny version of those old push in car sidelight bulbs where the glass is flattened to make a spade connector.

Clauso 19 Oct 2022
In reply to Andy Hardy:

> Petzel should reincarnate the zoom, with a twisty control from off to full blast through every brightness level in between. 

Was that the chappy with the massive square battery?... Always made yer channel yer inner Arthur Scargill?... And was equally dim, even on full power?

 deepsoup 19 Oct 2022
In reply to Clauso:

That's the one.  There was no 'full power' though, no electronics other than a big square battery and a bulb. It was off or on (and to be fair quite bright for about 10 mins after putting a fresh battery in).

The twisty lens at the front screwed the reflector in and out behind the bulb to go from flood to spot.  (Like a kind of 'zoom' lens, hence the name.)

 Andy Hardy 19 Oct 2022
In reply to Clauso:

And was equally dim, even on full power?

Yes, really made you appreciate how good owls night vision is...

 CantClimbTom 19 Oct 2022
In reply to Ridge:

Hmmm.. you must have been a yuppie with the halogen version? very fancy!

In reply to deepsoup:

Yeah, many of the maglite torches work the same way. A classic design. 

Post edited at 21:53
 Ridge 19 Oct 2022
In reply to CantClimbTom:

> Hmmm.. you must have been a yuppie with the halogen version? very fancy!

 

Just googled and it was indeed the halogen version! I've done the led conversion on my maglites (mini and 4 D-cell) and very good it is too, would be well worth doing on a zoom.

 mattsccm 20 Oct 2022
In reply to Ridge:

On
Off


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