We replaced our signature Red Ring of Quality with black and subdued the Coast logo to create a tactical style that will fit right into any situation where stealth and concealment are necessary. A quick cycle switch allows you to select between a high output setting of 615 lumens, a high powered strobe mode, or a low output of 64 lumens. Coast’s Pure Beam Focusing Optic System with Fingertip Speed Focus Control provides superior beam consistency from spot to flood, with no dark rings typically a
$ 117.00
Best Flashlight I am Aware of At This Price,
The goodness:
The case is a nice quality thick cardboard black box, the lid then flips open to reveal the flashlight in a cutout foam enclosure. The lid then has some illustrations of the key features: focusing optic, speed focus with beam lock (really that’s the same feature, but it is worth noting twice), and a quick cycle switch. They don’t mention on the box the strap connection at the back that keeps the otherwise round flashing from rolling across the table. It also has the lifetime guarantee and the fl1 specs (more on these in a second): 615 lumens, 15h 15 min runtime, and 269m beam distance. I mention the packaging because it is nicely done and if you are giving it as a gift the packaging helps convey a sense of quality and occasion. 5 minutes after you open it you will have forgotten about the packaging, but it’s still nice to see Coast get the little things right.
This flashlight is essentially an upgraded version of the old maglite (the ones with the magnesium bulbs). It’s worth noting Maglite themselves make upgraded maglites with LEDs. Anyway, the feel of this is very similar to an old 3D maglite. Crosshatched aluminum that is round just bigger than a D battery. Feels good in your hand, doesn’t slip, and if you swung it at somebody in a dark ally it would hurt. The only non-aluminum you see on the exterior is the black rubber switch button and the plastic but sturdy focusing lens. Good retro feel of when things were built to last. The focusing system is a strong improvement from the original maglite as well, easier to adjust quickly and more even throughout. The CREE XM-L LED, one of the best LEDs out there, makes for bright light and long battery life.
Overall it is a very good flashlight and certainly better than any flashlight 90{660353129f8d892044c993645a1c75194301fec6786a7f617c15adde0b0011e9} of people have in their house today and the best flashlight I am aware of at this price.
Things I think could be improved:
Lack of voltage regulation. In a voltage regulated flashlight peak brightness is maintained until the batteries are close to dead. So in a flashlight rated at 615 lumens you’d get 615 lumens the whole time until you needed to change batteries. In a non-voltage regulated flashlight such as the HP17 brightness falls off over the life of the batteries. So in this case 30 seconds in on high you would get 615 lumens, and at 15h 15min you would get 10{660353129f8d892044c993645a1c75194301fec6786a7f617c15adde0b0011e9} of that, or 61 lumens. The dropoff is more or less linear, so you might get around 338 lumens 7 hours and 37 minutes in for instance (the dropoff is very dependent on the batteries you are using). That kind of thing drives me nuts, when a flashlight is half as bright I want to replace the batteries. It also makes rechargeable batteries annoying because they run at 1.2V instead of 1.5V so you end up having an initial brightness around 20{660353129f8d892044c993645a1c75194301fec6786a7f617c15adde0b0011e9} less (around 492 lumens). I did test this flashlight with 3 AA Eneloop batteries in D casings and notice a slight dropoff in output consistent with expectations.
The waterproofness is ipx4, which is splash resistant. You can safely take it out in the rain. I would have liked to have seen IPX7 or IPX8, where it would take full immersion in water. I test all my flashlights in full immersion anyway, 10 minutes in my filled up kitchen sink. It’s worth noting again that my immersion test goes beyond what the flashlight is rated for in this case. The HP17 turned on and worked fine after the immersion. However, on opening the battery compartment a few drops of water were in there, and while there were no drops of water visible through the lens in the head there was water underneath the sliding part where the head meets the body. So yes, you can take it in the rain, and if you drop it in a puddle you will probably be OK, but it’s not built for anything more than that.
There is no binning information for the Cree XM-L LED used in this flashlight. The Cree XM-L is one of the absolute best LEDs out there. This probably only matters to flashlight purists, but it’s nice to know what exactly you are paying for. Due to manufacturing variation the LED that produces the light are classified from T2-T6, or U2 or U3. The higher up the binning the more bright and efficient that particular LED is, and the more expensive it is. Many flashlight manufacturers publish the binning information for the high end CREE LEDs used in their lights.
Only two brightness settings. In this case I think a high, medium, low is called for. The high is really quite bright (615lumens) and the low is really quite dim (65 lumens). Most of the time you need something inbetween and it isn’t there.
Voltage regulated IPX8 waterproof flashlights around this brightness that cost more:
Fenix 800 Lumens Flashlight, Black…
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|Amazing Flashlight,
I saw this flashlight at a trade show and really liked it. I ordered one and am even more inpressed! This flashlight is an absolute flame thrower! It will make daylight out of anything up to 500 feet away…possibly more. The quality of the flashlight is top notch. I love it!
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|BRIGHT!!!,
Only one small issue, the batteries rattle a little if you shake the light, it does not effect the performance of the light. Everything ells is perfect. Due to its large length I don’t carry mine around I keep it in my Jeep. And its really BRIGHT!
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