I'd seen the Zebralight H50 reviewed a few times and when MFS (Mick From Stoneliegh - you'll meet him again later) said he was looking for a new head light I suggested that if he liked the look of them we could take advantage on the 'free shipping if you buy two' deal. Very glad I did.
A head light beats a regular torch for everything except signaling, but they've always been bulky. BoB has been using Petzel since the 80's when they had a battery pack that sat on the back of your head, never comfortable but still better than holding a Maglite between your teeth. In the interceding twenty years head torches have gotten a lot better and cheaper, the bulbs have been replaced by LED's, but they either only shine enough light for tying a hook on or are still quite bulky.
You've gotta hand it to Zebralight it's a really well thought out package, the torch runs on AA (they do make other sizes but what's the point?), has three settings:
Reading stuff
Searching for stuff, and
'Stuff it I'm going back to the tent'
It comes with a whole accessory set of different clips and a really well thought out head band. The headband has a soft holder for the torch that means it doesn't dig into your bonce and - here's the clever bit - the soft holder GLOWS in the dark so you can find the torch at the bottom of your bag or in the tent when nature calls in the wee small hours.
We ordered ours from the factory in Shanghai and four days later we were wearing them. $100 for the pair. They also have a shipping faculty in the USA so if your stateside you may get one even quicker than that.
It's been fantastic for work as well - no more getting into the fuse box by candlelight and retrieving bits and bobs from under floorboards and behind kitchen cabinets has never been easier. MCP mocked my headlamp 'How Much!!' But when I came back from the van he was wearing it and apparently 'needed it' too much to surrender it.
For the more technically minded there's a very thorough review at cpfreviews
If you've got the spare cash I'd really recommend buying a pair so you could have one for the Bug Out Bag and the other as your Every Day Carry. Top bit of kit. Highly recommended.
Shine on
SBW
