Spearfishing torch

DeepAbyss said:

Hello,
Interested in recommending for a torch.
What number of lumens is recommended for fishing in clear water at rocky area,reef, fishing style in holes and crevices.
Thx

Click to expand...

This probably more than you want to know and will confuse you but for hunting, the lumens printed on the box are almost totally irrelevant.

Things that matter are in no specific order:
- Light temperature. Lights that are more red will be less likely to spook game. I am not scientist but would venture to guess that since red tones disappear with increasing depth, marine creatures do not see red very well, so an amber light seems dimmer to them than a white or blue white which is of equal brightness. I have found this to be true with both fish and lobsters. Most LED's are very white/blue because those are cheaper to manufacture and will trend brighter (higher lumen) when tested, and the average consumer is going to go with the most lumens for the cheapest price.
- Light quality. The human eye does better with higher CRI lighting, we see better so can recognize patterns, shapes and colors better and faster. This is essential to hunting. High CRI LED's are also much more expensive to manufacture and source.
- Lights spook marine animals. So if your light is too bright or penetrates significantly further than the range of your spear gun, or hand grab range, you will scare things away before you can get close to them. This is your number one consideration. You basically want just enough light to see what is range and not much more.
- Most 'dive' flashlights are manufactured to have a very tight beam in order to penetrate and throw as far as possible underwater. This spooks game, and if you are hunting in clear water is especially frustrating.

For hunting, lower power underwater photo/video lights have produced the best results. They tend to be more of a flood style light as well as higher CRI. For some years now I have building and using my own hunting lights, when tested my speargun light was about 120 lumens, but a 90+ CRI and I forget how many kelvins but it would be commercially described as 'warm white'. It throws a very wide beam with barely any hotspot (hotspot can be nice for aiming on a gun though). My lobster light is a little bit brighter on high power.

Before you spend a lot of money on a torch, double check if spearfishing with a torch is legal in your area.
Also check with your own ethics if you want a torch. I personally don't like the idea of killing a fish in its home, but to each his own.

If you're in Europe, the Orcatorch D550 appears to be the same as the Mako (saves you the intercontinental shipping). Odepro is the mother-company of Orcatorch and both have quite a selection on the UK and German Amazon. A lot of companies sell rebranded versions.

One thing often overlooked when people buy a light is the on/off switch, and mainly its placement. Think about it. One hand holds the torch, the other hand holds the gun. Now how are you going to activate a light when it has a tail-switch or a rotation-switch without swinging either the gun or the light around, scaring every fish in the area?

I have a small Odepro wd12, it's compact, cheap and has a side-button and is of good build-quality. If they would make it with just 1 mode (on/off) it would be perfect.

DeepAbyss said:

Hello,
Interested in recommending for a torch.
What number of lumens is recommended for fishing in clear water at rocky area,reef, fishing style in holes and crevices.
Thx

Click to expand...

I used a 100Euro Salvimar extensively and a $16 chinese one. Get the chinese. The key is a magnetic switch and light output regulator to prevent leaks and the cheap chinese one has it like a Salvimar one. The difference is the length of the distance over which the slider travels. On the Salvimar it is longer and allows better output control. On the chinese one it is acceptable. They both take a rechargeable 18650 battery. If you lose a Chinese one - you will get another. If you use a Salvimar one - you will cry.
Example:
I personally have this one:

My buddy uses the last one extensively and loves it for hunting under rocks

50.000 lumen! No need for a speargun anymore; just point this torch and instant fried fish! Better swap your dive mask for a welders mask!

Leander said:

50.000 lumen! No need for a speargun anymore; just point this torch and instant fried fish! Better swap your dive mask for a welders mask!

Click to expand...

This is a bullshit number obviously. But it is very bright.

vrokhlenko said:

This is a bullshit number obviously. But it is very bright.

Click to expand...

No way! But it does ship with a >9000mAh 18650 right?

Leander said:

No way! But it does ship with a >9000mAh 18650 right?

Click to expand...

Dude, it works fine. Chinese are masters of bullshit, just ignore it. I actually believe it uses either 18650 with a supplied adapter or the next size up without an adapter.

The D520 has a rotary switch, meaning you have to twist the head to turn it on. Wouldn't go that way if it's for spearfishing. Side-switch is the only way to go, both slide and push buttons are ok. The Chinalight handheld supernova Vrokhlenko mentioned looks to be a good one. It's cheap, effective and easy to use.

Remember, stuff like a torch... One day you are distracted and let go of the torch, and you'll see the light fading away into the abyss. Cheap is good here!

[URL unfurl="true" said:

Underwater Max 100M L2 LED Scuba Dive Rechargeable Diving Flashlight Torch Light | eBay

New Diving Dive Light Torch. 1 x Diving 10000Lm L2 LED Flashlight. Best suited for: Diving, camping, hiking, trekking, hunting, fishing. 3-optically tuned mirror reflector for optimal light output.

www.ebay.com

[/URL]

Click to expand...

This is a great product. The L2 LED pumps out an amazing amount of light, as a result they suck up a lot of battery power. The batteries the torch comes with however are rubbish and will last less than 10 minutes left on constantly. Buy the batteries (samsung or panasonic) and a good charger separately - they will cost more than double the cost of the torch but worth it. A good 18650 battery will last about an hour. The torch also takes 26650 batteries which will last longer.

Be careful buying ebay batteries. Many are fake.

As for 18650/26650 charger, I use a Liitokala lii-100. Though cheap and from AliExpress, it's actually a well-performing charger. It has usb input allowing a lot more powersources than just the wall socket. It also has a usb-out (a 26650 is quite a nice power bank!). It can charge NiMH batteries as well.

I'm not sure how the Liitokala 18650s are in quality. Heard some good stuff about them. Samsung is way overpriced (and quality too), but I agree that there is a lot of crap on the Chinese market (but also good ones!). As a rule, any 18650 rated at more than ~3500mAh, or 26650 rated over ~5500mAh, is probably a rewrapped dud as lithium simply has a fixed density.

Also, don't use unprotected cells for your dive-light. Unprotected cells are ok for a normal flashlight, but *not* for anything where a short might happen. There is a youtube video of a diver who's light explodes due to an unprotected cell getting shorted. Not a lot of fun if that happens freediving at -30m.

Remember, you get what you pay for with batteries and any manufacturer can put whatever spec they want on Amazon. Some are complete fantasy. I use Panasonic. So does NASA.

“For some years now I have building and using my own hunting lights, when tested my speargun light was about 120 lumens, but a 90+ CRI and I forget how many kelvins but it would be commercially described as 'warm white'. It throws a very wide beam with barely any hotspot (hotspot can be nice for aiming on a gun though). My lobster light is a little bit brighter on high power.
[/QUOTE]

How much do you spend making your own lights?