rick1970

I Steiner 8x42's. I would like something smaller/lighter for when there is more foot work involved tho.

It turned up today....and with a quick look around outside just now....im not. Even picked up a fox lurking down the creek, could quite easily make him out in cheap NIkko 8x56 scope...range finder said 156yards. Not a good nite for it either, fairly misty.

Ah, that makes sense......bit of confusion in the translation maybe. At the prices DX charge, 1/2 a dozen spares may not be a bad idea..

I currently use a older EDI-T P15 torch and have a couple of 2500mAh 18650 Li-ion batteries and a single port 240v charger. I currently am waiting on a Ultrafire TH-T60 HAII XM-L and a couple of extra Ultrafire 18650 Li-ion batteries from Dealextream as well as a Solarforce M8. Now, whats the go with Li-ion vs Lithium batteries and are their charges different? What charger do I order from Dealextream to get a 2 x port charger, and the option of 12v charging from the 4x4 would be nice as well. The dealextram site can be a tad hard to work through....for me at least. Cheers Rick

After reading this, I now have a M8 on order........

I used to use one, and in the end went in roof mount....which I much prefer. Warmer hand too, something to think about when its in the minus's outside. 90% of the time, I spotlight alone, and just find the roof mount more practicle. I found that the light moving as the door was opened was a PITA. Reflection on windscreen is no worse than roof mount. I always carry window cleaner and paper towel for if/when it becomes and issue. Dust/dirt on the windscreen is the biggest issue there.

My old one. Made from scrap. Old car spotty was changed to a 11" powerbeam. Ended up with a handle mount in the roof.

I run a big 11" Powerbeam on the roof of my Rodeo. While it must effect preformance/fuel economy, its not really noticable. Rodeo is slow up the Moonbi's, Sierra is real slow Old work van (2L auto un-Econovan, overweight at 2.8T loaded) was 1st gear flat to the boards all the way to the top

While i don't own any HID lights, i think the 'colour' of the light would be its biggest advantage. LED's would be in the same boat as well. I recently swapped the Powerbeam 11" pro on my ute for a spare (and much smaller) old Blazerlight spotty. While the little Blazerlight throws no where neer the light of the big Powerbeam, i am finding it better for the foxes. Its more diffused light would seem to have an advantage over a more intense focused light, you just loose a bit of distance. Where i mainly shoot is very hilly country, so the loss of a bit of distance is not such an issue. While a foxes eyes can still be seen a fair way out, it makes you get to within a safe shooting range for the actual shot. I want to do a HID upgrade to the car's spotlights soon tho.

Been using the EDI-T P15 with and without a scope mount for a short time now and i like it. Some don't like the focus feature, but i find it handy.

Agree My old Powerbeam 7" handheld would quite easy go 200m, so i'm a bit suprised at your results with the 9" Pro. Are you getting full battery voltage to the globe? If using a ciggy lighter plug, ditch it for something better. If using clips on the battery, check for good connections. Check voltage at the globe with car running, you should be getting 13.5v +. Automotive 12v globes are designed to run at 13.2v. A drop in voltage to 11v (quite easy with a doggey plug or bad connection) will see light output drop something like 50%.

The focusing guide tells how to adjust the bulb if its changed, ie to remove the black spot from the centre of the beam. You should only need to do this if the bulb has been changed, they come from the factory pre focused.

I run a 11" Powerbeam on my ute. They are a big heavy light, but give good long range preformance. Run side by side they give better range than the 240 Lightforce IMHO. The downside is the light spread is a tad on the small side at closer distances, a bit too small at times. Realisticaly it would have to be a very clear night to be usable (as in taking a shot ) at a true 500m, but you will pick fox eyes at this distance.

$495

I had been looking at a better pair of binos to replace my cheap n nasty 10x50 chinky made ones for a fair while. Thought about buying OS but really wanted to see and handle what my $$$ were buying me first off. The cunning kit can rattled moderatly well, so i was off to the LGS to have a look. 1st off, some 8x42 Burris's looked good, certainly a whole lot better than i'm used too. 10x42 (???) Nikko Nighteaters's, suprisingly looked ok but not for the price tag. Guy got out the Stieners, and even in the good light, the differance was noticable. Price was a little more than i really wanted to spend, but a deal was done and the 8x42 Steiners Hunters followed me home. Going home that arvo was a good gave me a good opatunity to give them a run in the fading light. Side by side with the cheapies, i could see far more with the Stieners. Where the cheapies gave a dark and gloomy (at best) picture in through a group of trees about 300m away and i would have been hard pressed to see a pig. The Steiners gave a bright detailed view where a fox sized animal would easily have been spoted. The cheapies gave me eye strain fairly easily where the Steiners showed no such issues and i was able to get a full field of view with them also (i wear eye glasses ), something the cheapies could never do. All in all, i'm very pleased with them. Will try and get out into the bunny patch this weekend (bit hard atm with the longer than long grass ) to give them a better run. Rick

With all this talk of scope mounted LED lights and HMR'd cottontails (Fenring ), i should have a new EDI-T P15-250, charger, spare battery and the scope mount mensioned above in my grubby mitts tomorrow, and hopefully take it and the Marlin hummer for a run on the conies next weekend

Blazalight handle and 11" Powerbeam through the roof of my Rodeo. The dual cabs roof is only slightly stronger than a coke can and with the powerbeam being pretty heavy, i sikaflexed a round 2mm sheet to the underside of the roof where the handle goes through to stop the caved in roof. Its handy having it set up all the time if you spotlight a lot or alone. Also nice to be able to wind the window up on those freezing winter nights and still spotlight, the kids love to play with it and comes in handy when the #@$$ behind you dosn't know when to dip his lights Depending on the height of your vehicle, it may cause a few problems in undercover carparks (best to measure first before you smash it off), may cause some noticable wind noise at hwy speeds and the missus complains when she hit her head on the handle.

Way too much luggage there me thinks Good quality handheld, big reflector, low wattage bulb (20-30w, 55w max) and a 7 or 9ah sealed gell battery (with a spare in the car if you plan on a long night) would be much more practical. Carry a LED torch/headlamp for walking and only use the spotty when needed to save battery power. A quality spotty with a lower wattage bulb will give you as much (or more) usable light than a 100w supercrap special at a lower power usage, which is a major factor if you need to lump the power source (battery) around with you as well.

I run a 11" Pro Powerbeam and its very bright, cretainly brighter than 240 Lightforce when ran side by side. Only problems are the beam is very concertrated (narrow) which is good/bad depending on the terrain and its f$#%&@* big & heavy. This and a Blazalight handle will be mounted through the Rodeo's roof very soon (from a window mount), but may end up switching to a Lightforce solely due to the weight (and wind drag) issues that may not work too well with the dual cabs flimsy roof.

I own and use a bipod, but don't leave it on the rifles all the time. If stalking around heavy cover i find them more of a hinderance than a help. If your shooting at 300m from an unlevel surface, you will have to adjust it to minimise the cant as this will make a fair differance as the ranges increase. It CAN make a differance to POI, but its usually more to do with a rifle with a bit of kick and shooting with the bipod on a hard surface like a bonnet or a rock. Flexy plastic stocks and an unfloated barrel can also play havoc to POI with a bipod attached. Sugest you try shooting it at a target to see how your rifle responds to it.

Trapper - Blazalight handle is attached to a 11" Powerbeam light

If you intend going spotlighting alone at any time, i would give the lightforce handles a miss. I find them fiddly to lock the light in position too leave both hands free for shooting. I had one in a window mount and now use a Blazalight handle thats much more user friendly. For spotlighting this time of year, a glove with the trigger finger cut of is also nice. Your hand can get pretty cold driving around all night with your arm stuck out the window

Ok, the Bushnell idea dosn't look to good, and i would be on an instant diet (2 stones lighter ) if went home with a pair of 2G Swarvo's. The Vortex Diamondbacks look pretty good for the money. Can anyone compare there with the lower end Leupolds? Rick

In the market for a pair of budget bino's to replace my $40 el'cheapo eye straining 10x50's. Looking at a pair of 8x30 or 8x40's for general hunting duties, and looking at The Optic Zone, their prices on the Busnell seem quite reasonable. Looking at the Legend, Trophy and Excursion ranges. Any feedback on these, or any others in the same price bracket, would be appreciated. Cheers Rick

Anyone used the 140 and 170 Lightforces side by side, with the lower wattage bulbs? Is the 170 noticably enough brighter to warant the extra bulk sitting over the scope?