Gear Reviews

Like most nerds, I like having some type of pocket tool kit on my person at all times. Whether a Swiss Army Knife or Leatherman, it comes in handy so often that I just can’t imagine traveling anywhere without one. But suppose you have to disassemble your car or defuse a bomb MacGuyver style in total darkness? You need some light and you need the light detached from your tool kit so you can see what you’re doing while using the tool itself.

Squeeze Lights Run Out of Juice

For many years I carried a Photon squeeze light on my knife. While very light and handy, they just didn’t put out a very strong beam and when the batteries died there never seemed to be any spare button cells around. Even worse, my Photon light would often turn on when in my pocket ensuring the battery would be dead just when I needed it. Eventually I decided it was time for an upgrade and and wanted a newer high output LED light using more conventional AAA batteries. After some research, I ordered a Fenix LD01 flashlight.

The Fenix Has Landed

While only weighing slightly more than the smaller squeeze lights, the Fenix offered far greater output and operating time with multiple brightness modes. Further, it was also easier to hold and the aluminum housing is very tough. While I’ve never had a problem with wet weather with the squeeze lights, the Fenix LD01 feels much more solid and weather resistant with a smooth rotating switch action and sealed compartment for the AAA battery. I’ve used it in many weather conditions to include pouring rain without any problems.

The LD01 features a powerful 80 Lumens output on the highest setting. The light output is easily as strong as a much larger conventional lightbulb flashlight. I’ve lit up objects 100+ feet away without any problem. On the lowest setting the light is comparable to the squeeze lights but the beam is better focused and more usable thanks to the built in reflector. There is also a medium setting which is a nice compromise in brightness vs. battery life. The light settings are quickly adjusted by turning the front bezel. When turned on initially it will default to medium power, the second twist gives you low power and the last twist gives you high power. Twisting a final time turns the light off. There are no buttons on the light and the entire system is controlled by twisting the head. This is also how you replace the battery. It’s a rugged and simple design and stays off when in your pocket and stays on when you want it to be on. The kit also includes a pocket clip, attachment ring and spare O-ring in case the included one wears out.

In terms of battery life, on the highest setting the manufacturer claims a one hour burn time with a single AAA battery, 3.5 hours on the medium setting and 11 hours on the lowest setting. I’ve not run a battery out yet despite having used mine for many hours already. Because the light uses a standard AAA battery, you can find replacements in stores that may not stock button batteries or specialty photo cells that other lights may use.

The light itself is about 3″ long and 1/2″ in diameter. Here it is in comparison with a standard sqeeze light, the little brother Fenix E01 light (not nearly as bright but much cheaper), and my trusty Swiss Army Knife:

I had some photos of just how strong this light is, but honestly the images just can’t capture it well and it is so bright that it was causing the camera to underexpose. Let’s just say that a full size 3 D-Cell traditional bulb flashlight is about 80 lumens and weights over 30 oz. This light that fits in your pocket and weighs perhaps two ounces is just as bright. Of course there are some lights that are brighter, but for the size this one is really hard to beat. I own several Fenix lights now and have never had one fail me after some pretty rough use (as opposed to some others which failed soon after I bought them).

The little brother Fenix E01 is about 1/3rd the price, but is not nearly as bright even though they both use the same AAA battery. It also has only one brightness setting. It’s a great little light for the $10 or so it costs, but if you want a pocket light that means business I recommend just getting LD01. However, the smaller version could be a great light to keep around the house for power outages or other tasks that don’t require a blinding amount of output. They’re also cheap enough to keep one in your glove box in your car as a backup in case you needed to change a tire, etc. at night.

Knife in the Photo

For those that are curious, the knife in the photo is the larger Swiss Army Atlas model with a locking blade, pliers and saw. I don’t think they make it any more and the Swiss Army Hercules model (the Swiss are on some strongman theme here) seems to be a close replacement (it has added scissors which are always handy). These models of knives are longer than the standard sized Swiss Army knives, but I do a lot of hiking and having a longer usable saw and knife blade is a great feature for cutting branches and other field tasks. The saw on this knife beats the snot out of those cheesy cable saws that always break after about five minutes worth of use. It also works better than many other pocket knife saws I’ve used and can cut branches up to 4″ or so and even 2×4s with little effort (and no, I don’t endorse going around hacking branches off of trees when out in the woods). The locking blade gives the knife extra safety against ham handed accidents that could close it on your own fingers. For what it’s worth, I’ve owned many original Victorinox Swiss Army brand knives through the years and have never had any of them break on me after some hard use (something I can’t say about most of the clones).

A Great Firestarter

The orange thing on the knife is a Swedish Firesteel Mini which is a small sparking device for starting fires, lighting stoves, etc. I keep it attached to my knife on a six inch piece of cord so I can strike it with my knife blade to throw sparks if needed. Usually I’ll use it when hiking to start up my stove and also as a backup firestarter in case of an emergency.

BTW. If you want to make a great fire starter, simply buy some cotton balls and petroleum jelly (Vaseline or equivalent). Make sure the cotton balls are 100% cotton and not mixed with other things like synthetics. Take a few cotton balls and massage the jelly all through them until they are covered but not dripping in the stuff. Then you put the whole mess into a small container that won’t leak (go to place that develops film and ask for old canisters and they’ll hand you bag of them for free or use an old prescription bottle). When you want to start a fire, take out a portion of the impregnated cotton ball and spread it out a bit to get it a little stringy. You then use your Firesteel to throw sparks into it and it will burn, burn, burn. I mean it will burn. A cotton ball prepared this way will easily burn for five minutes. A film canister full of that stuff can make dozens and dozens of fires and works when wet. Try it and see what I mean. In fact, you don’t even need the Firesteel. Just get an old lighter that is out of gas and use the sparker from it to light up the cotton ball (the Firesteel is much more reliable though in wet weather). I keep a container of Vaseline cotton balls and spare Firesteel in my emergency kit when hiking. Watch a video of the amazing Vaseline cotton ball in action. I don’t go out in the woods without some reliable and quick way to start a fire in an emergency. This method blows the doors off of matches which never seem to work well when you want them to. In fact, I don’t even carry matches in my hiking gear because they are so unreliable. I carry only the Firesteel for starting my stove and the Vaseline cotton balls for starting a regular fire if I think I need one.

A Great Piece of Kit

But back to the flashlight. Fenix is a relatively new manufacturer, but they are making some really good products and the LD01 is a great piece of kit. It puts out an amazing amount of light in a small package that fits in your pocket. I think it’s a great value for the quality and function and can easily replace much bigger units for a fraction of the weight.