Spotlight of choice for night hunting?

Hi Guy's,
Trying to sort out my shit for next years trip down to Waimate for some wallaby busting. Last trip saw us using very inadequate lighting at night from vehicle so would like to quiz everybody what would be their spotlight of choice for Night shooting from a vehicle. I see torches are coming very popular....are these making hand held spotlights obsolete or do they still have their place? Is halogen or HID preferred? Does a red filter actually help? Any information or advise is greatly appreciated to ensure next time round the Roo's get a hiding.

Big is best for spotlighting...just make sure you have applied for and received permit to allow shooting from vehicle.

The biggest lightforce is what i use from a vehicle, Can't imagine needing more light.
Hid good for battery life but doesn't really give much more reach and running of vehicle battery life is not a concern.

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Get one of the Maxtoch torches, they are awesome.

Get a lightforce if it's just for spotlighting from a vehicle.
Great throw beam wise and weight/battery life aren't an issue from the truck.
If I'm walking I have a lithium battery pack for my lightforce, but really like my nightmaster, which is basically the same as a Maxtoch and can be clipped onto the scope very easily and is great out to about 300m.

For spotlighting off a quad or vehicle I have rarely used anything but a Lightforce. Either the 170 or 240 models. If I have to get off and walk, then I'll use my maxtoch torches.

The new torches are not bad, but if you are spending hours at a time spotlighting a properly designed spotlight like a lightforce is what you need. Their light is better suited for spotting animals, and they are much more ergonomic for holding for a long time.

Sticking with regular Halogen or HID worth the extra?

Halogen.

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Originally Posted by veitnamcam

Halogen

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+1

I've got a HID and I love it. Red filter blocks a lot of light so I don't tend to use it. I use the lithium battery for my 'Handipiece' lasts for ages.

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Originally Posted by JoshC

For spotlighting off a quad or vehicle I have rarely used anything but a Lightforce. Either the 170 or 240 models. If I have to get off and walk, then I'll use my maxtoch torches.

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+1

Halogen for me.

Prefer maxtoch LEDs. Had found HIDs don't show up the roos eyes but LEDs do every time. Sure you lose a bit of width and general brightness but you gain a lot more certainty.

A little bit of advice.
If you lend your Nightforce to your brother (or anyone) to use on his quad, take off the scope mounting bracket cos he sure as fuck will lose one of the small screws

Something else to consider, for me the LED lights with their very white beam don't seem to cut through mist very well and seem to give off a lot of glare in even slightly foggy conditions.
The halogen lightforces etc seem to cope a little better under these conditions and sometimes mean the difference between being able to carry on shooting or having to go home.
Does anybody else find that this is the case?

Yes I also find halogen it is easyer to pick colour to help with identification than the whiter hid and led lights that seem to pick out eyes like all hell but can't see anything else.

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Originally Posted by Rich007

I've got a HID and I love it. Red filter blocks a lot of light so I don't tend to use it. I use the lithium battery for my 'Handipiece' lasts for ages.

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Are these lithium battery different from the ones you get from HnF?

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Originally Posted by Matt2308

Something else to consider, for me the LED lights with their very white beam don't seem to cut through mist very well and seem to give off a lot of glare in even slightly foggy conditions.
The halogen lightforces etc seem to cope a little better under these conditions and sometimes mean the difference between being able to carry on shooting or having to go home.
Does anybody else find that this is the case?

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Absolutely. The LED torches are a pain in the arse if its a bit misty

Note - when we dedome (10 minute tweak) the maxtochs their distance increases about 60% and the led tint changes to a halogen warmer colour - great for mist and fog.

Easy to dedome a nightmaster NM800?
What will this do to the beam spread?

Lightforce is more than enough power, wouldnt bother with anything else.

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Originally Posted by Timmay

Are these lithium battery different from the ones you get from HnF?

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Yeah I would say so Electric sheep shears, portable shearing handpiece, NZ, AU

A full moon and good scope.

Lightforce custom 5k HID.We have had deer running towards the light.Best was 7.

i have a 35w hid spotlighted heaps of pigs with it. easy to light up a animal 600 odd meters away and clearly identify it. its down side is it needs to warm up before you get full power but i just put it against my jacket for a few seconds. plus side last longer on batteries then a halogen and they dont get hot.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Matt2308

Easy to dedome a nightmaster NM800?
What will this do to the beam spread?

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Just looked that up and it appears to have an aspheric lens which wont lend itself well to de-doming. Only any good for a flat lens with a good sized reflector behind it.

Thanks gadget.

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Originally Posted by Matt2308

Thanks gadget.

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Let me know if you want to borrow a de-domed torch to try.

Thanks!
Tempted to add a Maxtoch to the collection but the NM800 is pretty good for shooting out to around 300m.

I use a couple of smaller aspheric lensed torches mounted on the scope too. The spot is about the same intensity as a standard Maxtoch but narrower and lasts about 4 hours on a charged cell. You may decide you want one though once you see the colour tint with de-doming.