Are Canister Lights fading away...

[decostanza]

Mark another down for canister diver. Regarding canisters...I believe the technology and engineering has greatly improved in this area over the last few years. I currently use a LD35 (3500 lumen) made by Underwater Light Dude and it is by far the best out of six canister lights I have ever owned. I have tried the cordless a few times but wasn't happy with the burn time or light output. The latchless system is really nice on my current light. I love it in the caves, but due to geography I spend more time in the local mud puddles and Great Lakes and it more than holds it own. I am frequently asked to loan it out to dive buds. As someone previously mentioned, the bulb replacement of HID is something I will NEVER miss as it frequently brought a tear to my eye when I noticed a broken bulb.
Best regards,
Don

 

[boulderjohn]

The primary reason I have not gone to handheld is that I don't feel like spending the money when I have perfectly good canister lights. I have, however, given it a lot of thought. You can get pretty decent non-corded lights for a lot less than a good canister light; in fact, it is conceivable that you can get two decent non-corded lights for the cost of a good canister light. If so, there is your answer for the burn time--you can go into the dive with the expectation that your first primary will burn out and you will need to go to your second primary.

And that brings us to another question--what is the definition of a primary light, anyway? It is possible that many divers are carrying backups with more power and burn time than the primaries of old. So what about the rule of ending the dive if your primary fails? If you still have three backups with more power and burn time than the primaries had when that rule was developed, do you end the dive?

Finally, @Capt Jim Wyatt, when I am open water diving and don't take my canister light, I slide a knife onto the right side of the harness and route my hose under it. It works fine.

 

[kelemvor]

Here's my simple design that I knock-up with recreational wreck students so they can conveniently mount a hand-held when doing penetration/reel-work...

It's a 5 minute job... you just need a few inches of spare harness/weight-belt webbing, a few inches of bungee and a hot screwdriver...

That's a great idea! I've been using the DiveRite QRM, but it's quite expensive to put on all my lights.

 

[tbone1004]

just to play devils advocate. Unfortunately UWLD doesn't make anything comparable to the LX20, but the LD-15 with the mini canister has comparable burn times. Yes it is $400 more than the LX20, however it puts out about double the light output of the LX20, and has some nice features that make it worth the extra money. The main one that is keeping me from cutting the cord is convenience when cave diving. The LX20 is VERY big compared to the head of the UWLD, and when you have to take the light off of your hand, it is not easy to put it anywhere. With a cord you can hang it from your neck, clip it off, etc etc. Charging the LX20 is also thoroughly annoying since you have to pull all four batteries out and charge them as opposed to a battery pack. Personal preference but I think the LX20 is a terrible investment. You can get comparable light outputs from backup lights and since you can get 6-10 good quality backup lights for the price of the LX20, it really isn't something that I can see a justification for.

 

[vinegarbiscuit]

Team cordless here. I'll never futz with another damn canister again. It was so gloriously liberating to dive without a cord coming out of my arse. No matter how I routed the damn thing, I felt like a bondage victim. Screw that noise. I get plenty of burn time from my light - she's all I'll ever need on OC, although I may buy a back-up primary and slip it into my pocket when I start using my CCR in caves. Now, if I was doing Hemphill-esque dives and needed a lot of firepower and burn-time, then sure - a canister would be the correct toy (with today's technology). But I'm not, and never will, which brings me back to the glories of diving without my hand being tethered to my bum.

 

[victorzamora]

Team cordless here. I'll never futz with another damn canister again. It was so gloriously liberating to dive without a cord coming out of my arse. No matter how I routed the damn thing, I felt like a bondage victim. Screw that noise. I get plenty of burn time from my light - she's all I'll ever need on OC, although I may buy a back-up primary and slip it into my pocket when I start using my CCR in caves. Now, if I was doing Hemphill-esque dives and needed a lot of firepower and burn-time, then sure - a canister would be the correct toy (with today's technology). But I'm not, and never will, which brings me back to the glories of diving without my hand being tethered to my bum.

To me, the issue is burn time AND light output. I have yet to find an all-in-one with anywhere near enough light for my admittedly spoiled tastes, especially one that will last for even one real dive. The closest I've found is the gigantic Big Blue TL4500p. It claims 4500lm but can realistically only output ~3000, and that's with some optimism. They're also claiming 2 hours of burn on high, which seems very optimistic by the pure math numbers. On top of all of that, it's enormous at 6" long and like 3" around. The tiny lighthead is such an important factor to me.

As for the cord, I guess I just don't really ever notice it. The few dives I have with a cordless primary, it actually annoyed me. Even with the little lighthead of the UWLD lights, I like taking them off of my hands for some things...like donning and doffing stages. Every time I've tried donning or doffing stages with one of those giant primaries on my hand it makes everything much harder...and whereas I normally just hang my lighthead around my neck or let it hang, that's not possible without a cord.

 

[Reku]

For me it's the cord itself I like - can't drop it, and you can hang it anywhere or clip it off. Also having 3000lm's+ and a 6-10+ hour burn time is fantastic. In my case my light is -2lbs in the water - which also saves me from having to add some weight. I see it as wins all around without any cons. That's just me though...

I honestly would be half temped to add a 'fake' cord to a cordless light if I had to. That's how much I like canisters.

 

[karstdvr]

For me it's the cord itself I like - can't drop it, and you can hang it anywhere or clip it off.

Funny you mention that. I heard someone dropped their self contained light, and it fell between some rocks in a break down pile out of reach of his arm. Had to come back with one of those reachers that elderly people use to pick up pinecones.

 

[kr2y5]

For me it's the cord itself I like - can't drop it, and you can hang it anywhere or clip it off. Also having 3000lm's+ and a 6-10+ hour burn time is fantastic. In my case my light is -2lbs in the water - which also saves me from having to add some weight. I see it as wins all around without any cons. That's just me though...

+1

I honestly would be half temped to add a 'fake' cord to a cordless light if I had to. That's how much I like canisters.

Been there, done that... I had to improvise when my light head was out for repairs, and I have to say it works pretty well

View media item 200469

 

[eelnoraa]

Canister here as well. Reason 1 is brightness and runtime combination. Sure cordless can be, but not likely, as bright, OR run as long, but I want brightness AND long runtime. Reason 2 is the cord, you can't lose the light if you decide it drop it for any reason. Reason 3 is the smaller light head. I have never been bothered by the cord myself. It is part of my dive gear, haven't entangled yet. Maybe if one day I get myself entangle, I will change my mind