Study Lighting

Lights:
ZebraLight SC51w, H30-Q5;
HDS/Ra Clickies (100Chc, 140Cgt) and Twisty 70Tr;
SureFire 6P-M60Wl, L1;
Inova T1.

May is a month of intense studying; the first half of it at least. For years, one of my biggest study problems has just been finding a comfortable amount of light. My room lighting is... awful. I love portable lighting, but fixed lighting holds little interest for me, and I tend to prefer dim environments anyway, so I'm not well equipped when I do actually need to see what I'm doing for long periods indoors. For a while now, I've used my flashlights, usually with diffusers, to fill in for my missing desk lamps, with mixed results, but recently I've improved the situation a little. Since I've just come through an extended period during which this was the most important (and sometimes only) use of my lights, and I was relying on my lights to allow me to get my work done on a nightly basis, I'd like to devote a post to taking a look at how they serve me in this role.

My Nalgene lamp (with 100wwC Clicky attached) was a clever idea, I thought, but not truly that useful for this application. I have the terrible habit of trying to study on my bed, so getting this lamp to stay in one place and aimed correctly was more effort than it was worth. Still, something to remember if I ever go camping.


This has been my most successful technique for about the last year: a series of lights with either diffusers or very floody beams suspended over my bed. Here we see my 6P with Malkoff M60Wl and Inova T1 (the 2008 edition with the K2 TFFC). Not sure what's above and behind them.


Eventually I wised up and cleared some desk space for myself, just in time for my final study sessions, after months of doing math propped in bed. Here are a couple of Clickies standing by while my new ZebraLight SC51w lights up the book from above.


The ZL SC51w has kind of revolutionized my study lighting. The output, beam, tint, and runtimes make it a breath of fresh air for this kind of use. The neutral XPG emitter has a tint that is very comfortable on the eyes and produces a beam with a very wide spot that can actually be used to read even at fairly close distances without a diffuser. (The effect is a bit better than it appears in this shot.) Wish I'd had it sooner.


A look at the lights used in the days leading up to this year's final, including that wonderful little green Zebra standing there with the Clickies. Lying in the crease is the gen6 SF L1, though I can't remember how I made use of it here. At rear left is the ZL H30, which is always useful, though I've found its cool tint and limited runtime at high outputs rather limiting for this application.


The hanging setup over the desk, similar to what I strung up over my bed before. I've got the SC51w, 6P-M60Wl, and a Clicky going here, though I found I could usually make do almost as well using just the ZL alone. It really is great, I can't emphasize that enough. Because it doesn't have to be diffused, its beam remains focused. Because it retains its normal throw, less output is needed to put proper lux on the page. Lower output means greater efficiency and longer runtime, and its efficiency is already cutting edge to begin with.


Another look at the desk setup. This time I had the SC51w and the diffused high CRI Clicky (Moby Click) hanging above to provide page lighting while the Twisty tailstands in the center of the desk and reflects a little soft area lighting off the folded paper above. At the top right corner of the book stands the little H30 set to a low level. It's adding a little lighting to that corner of the book, but its primary function there was actually just to provide a little illumination on the calculator screen with the edge of its beam.

Final look at the same setup, showing one of the other Clickies (the 140Cgt) attached to the bookcase a few feet up to add another 35lm of area lighting when I wanted it.


My study lighting setup is probably far from ideal, mostly because of the battery concerns and trouble it takes to set it all up, but the results aren't too bad and I'm very grateful that I'm able to create adequate illumination to work despite my lack of more traditional lamps.

Blackout

Contributed by Sam
Location: Art 308, HSU
Light: 120Chc

While in a closed room with no windows looking at a powerpoint about medieval art, the power randomly flickered and went off, plunging the whole class into pitch black terror. I pulled out the 120Chc after a couple moments and performed a ceiling bounce so that the person in the back of the room could safely walk to the door and open it up to the daylight. Soon, natural light came in and flooded the room, so I shut my light off. I saved the day for about 15 seconds, then stealthily blended back into the masses of unprepared students scrambling for their iphone flashlight app.

Cutting felt at the Plough

Light: ZebraLight H30
Knife: Spyderco UKPK Drop Point, Khukuri

I stopped by the Pewter Plough after class to help with some of the work on the set of "Becky's New Car," which opens in two or three days. The main task was putting up black felt on the walls, and I'd been told that I'd be helpful because they needed someone tall enough to staple it at the top. As it turns out, they got some helpers that could put it up, but their biggest problem was actually that they didn't have anything that could cut the felt. They were trying to hack their way through it with an old pair of scissors that appeared to mostly just get jammed on the material. I went over with my UKPK and was able to cut the length of it pretty easily as long as it was held taut. I think I also tried the Khukuri briefly on a piece, but the fine edge of the VG10 didn't bite into the material (which is a lot like woven strands of fine plastic I guess) as well as the toothier S30V, so I stuck with the UK. Afterwards, I wished I'd brought the ZDP Endura to try, partly because I think its toothiness is somewhere closer to S30 and would have liked to see how it cut, partly because using the UK in an actual work environment showed me the limitations of a slipit in ways that normal light use doesn't.

While cutting a section of felt that was attached in a corner, I needed to provide my own light since I had to get between what I was working on and the big standing work lights. I'd foreseen a situation like this since the theatre area is very poorly lit (only has stage lights, can't have normal lights visible), so I attached my little ZebraLight to the chest of my jacket. Very glad to have it, and I would have had a lot more trouble if I hadn't brought it. Afterwards, someone noticed it clipped there and asked about it.

Ranch walk with Van

Lights
Me: ZebraLight SC51w, ZebraLight H30, Ra Clicky wwCT (17670), Ra Clicky 140Cgt
Van: NiteCore D10

Went for a walk across the ranch and back on the bluff trail with Van around 9:30. It was one of our beautiful, clear, starry Cambria nights and quite perfect for it. It was even somewhat warm, with a little bit of that strange micro-climate effect the ranch sometimes gets at night, like corridors of warm and cold. At the beginning I offered Van the choice of two lights: a 2D Mag or the little NC D10. He chose wisely. I started out just using my warm Clicky, but I switched to my ZL SC51w and gave it its first real use in its intended walking light purpose. I was very happy with it. After so many years of fumbling with annoying tactical switches while out walking, it was refreshing to be able to relaxedly carry a small light in a comfortable position and still be able to adjust it without finger contortions. The floody beam doesn't reach far but does a great job of evenly lighting up the path ahead. The warm tint was easy on the eyes, though the quality of it is not up to other warm emitters I've used.

Tonight was also Van's introduction to geocaching. Since our walk took us right by one, I encouraged him to have a go. He found it quickly, came up with a username on the spot, and signed the log. After our walk we continued on to the phone booth cache downtown. A pretty good night.

Watch out!

Contributed by Sam

Watch: MIL-PRF-46374G
Location: Music room 207

In class yesterday: The clock was all wrong and the teacher was wondering out loud how much time he had left to lecture... A few people scrambled to pull their phone out.. I briefly glanced down at my watch, "11:45."

"Great, thanks Sam"

That's how it's done.

Throw away a good thing

Contributed by Sam

Light: Ra-120w+2xAA
Location: Arcata Community Park
Time: ~6:30pm, 52º

After taking a long walk through the redwoods I ended up at the community park. There's a huge grassy field that has become completely saturated with water, leading to about 8in. deep of mud, grass and sludge all mixed together. At the time however, I didn't realize how saturated it was. I stood there looking at the field and was struck with the desire to throw my Clicky as far as I could after setting it to maximum output. I thought I'd play a fun game of 'throw the flashlight' for a while before heading back to my apartment. Well... nature had something else in store for me.

I threw my Clicky about 70 yards, it was a sight to behold, that beauty spinning in the air in the pitch black night. It came down with a heavy thud and everything went black. 'Uhoh' I thought to myself. I made a mental location of the light and went searching for it... Searching, searching, searching... I pulled out my 5mm LED headlamp which I had brought with me, and was hunched over, moving slowly in a search pattern around the location where I thought it had landed.. I couldn't find it... That idea would make me sick.. Having a semi rare Ra-120w with a 2xAA tube attached buried in the mud.

I walked back to my throwing position and stood there. I looked over the grass and could see my footprints laughing at me in their methodical grid-like pattern which proved fruitless. By then I had been searching for an hour and a half.

I stood there and I looked, and my mind went clear.... I stood in silence in the stillness of the night and waited.. Waited for an answer... A coordinate... Then.. It came.

I visualized the light spinning in my head, I watched as it fell and went dark. Then I walked towards where I mentally saw the light fall. As I walked, the ground was burping beneath my feet, large earth worms were able to quickly move through it, ahead of my treading path. It smelled like heavy wet mud. The ground was alive...

Suddenly, the shape of the Clicky appeared apart from all the organic matter. It stood out as a foreign object.. Clip side up, covered in mud, still burning away. The mud on the lens was steaming from the LED heat generation.

Vacuum lighting

Light: Ra Clicky 100wwCT

This afternoon I spent some time helping at the Pewter Plough, getting the theatre's seating area cleaned up and the rows of chairs back into place in preparation for the opening of Glass Menagerie. The area was lit by the little marquis lights arching across the ceiling and by some tripod work lights, but the floor was not lit well enough to be able to see all of the small bits of trash that needed to be cleared before vacuuming. Of course the Clicky dealt with this problem. I also used it to navigate around the areas of the theatre beyond the seating area, which had been left completely dark.

Flood repair

Yesterday we got hit with a huge volume of rain all night long. After weeks of heavy rainstorms saturating the town, this one finally pushed things over the edge; the town's streets are covered in mud and small streams, a bush slid down the hill and into the BofA parking lot, erosion damage is evident everywhere, and it seems that everyone in my neighborhood had flooding in their lowest area. In our case, this meant that our downstairs bedroom was flooded with a couple inches of water that seeped in through the concrete walls. Not a lot of damage to stuff in the room, but the carpet is a total loss, so today we got started on pulling it out and vacuuming out the water left pooled on the concrete below. We mostly just tore the carpet since it tears in a straight line without a huge amount of effort, but this was not my idea and I disapproved of the unnecessary strain on the back. For sections too awkward to pull, I stepped in and used the Pacific, which, despite my complaints about the edge, was able to tear through the material very easily.

High CRI BBQ

Contributed by Sam

Light: Ra Clicky 120w CRI93

For my brother's birthday we decided to have a BBQ.. It got late and dark, and our porch light was ruining the mood, so I pulled out my Clicky 120 to work by. It rendered the color beautifully, and allowed us to cook the steak to perfection.

Light-Fi 2010

Lights: SF L1-R, Ra Clicky 100wwCT (17670), Ra Clicky 140Cgt, Princeton Tec Apex.

Went for a walk on the ranch with Joe and Teresa. Used the red SF L1 for much of my walk out, then handed it off to Teresa to use for most of the rest of the trip. I used Apex and warm Clicky after that, but I think both started blinking to indicate battery depletion. Think I mostly used the other Clicky for walk home. Joe used his Fenix P2D and a generic 7x5mm light. While out there, we discovered a gas leak from a pipe next to the upper fire road trail, now noticeable due to the saturated ground it was bubbling out of. Joe called it in and Cambria was saved.

Michelle joins the club

After a year of her playing with my Tasman, I decided it was time for Michelle to have her own. Picked one up at a good price and gave it to her tonight. I'll be interested to see how she uses it.

Christmas eve unwrapping

Ended up at a Christmas Eve dinner and had to open some presents. Most people do not spare the scotch tape quite the way I do, and glossy, untearable wrappings are pretty common, so the best way into them was to cut the tape. The little Ladybug Salt was perfect for this and drew no comments.

Christmas tree hunt

Light: Ra Clicky 140Cgt
Knives: Ladybug Salt, Military

The rain broke and my dad was finally ready to go out and get a Christmas tree. I went along to Morro Bay to help pick and to do some shopping at Albertsons. My dad needed to cut a coupon out of his mailer and asked if I had a knife. Of course I immediately reached to my back pocket for my new Military, but I realized that I was in the middle of the produce aisle and a 9.5" knife would probably get some looks. I instead used my friendly little Ladybug, which I carry as much for polite use in situations like this as anything else. I really love the Ladybug, and it makes for a great pairing with the Military.

After shopping we went over to pick up our tree (got a nice, fresh one of about 6.5' for $12.50). By this time the sun had set, so my Clicky provided the lighting as we carried it from the dark area of the lot where they were stored to the car, then as we tied it into the trunk. The Military's only use was to cut the paracord I used to tie the tree in, which it did with an almost insulted effortlessness.

Final studying

Lights: SF L1, SF/Milky ML1, SF L2, Ra Clicky 100wwCT, Ra Twisty 70Tr

In the last few days while studying I had to use lights for reading due to my terribly inadequate room lighting.  I burned through the 14670 in L2, RCR in L1, used ML1 on primary for a bit, and killed I think two 17670s in the Clicky, with the second one stepping down when I went to use it as car lighting after class. So I guess that means I used the lights for something like 6-7 hours total of reading, which was mostly a waste since by the end of it I'd remembered that reading the book mostly is a waste. Still, I did pick up a few little details that ended up being helpful.

Warm tint was nice to read by, but diffused 70lm was actually just ever so slightly low in a lit room with a large book. The 100+lm burst was pretty much perfect though. The 110ish of the L1 was perfect. I had the Twisty hanging above to provide area lighting and killed at least one battery in that too. Burning the midnight lithium.

Samy report

A report from Samy in Humboldt.

"It's a story a day here. There's always the ordinary, yet within it the unordinary. My knives get used for cutting fruit and vegetables. My flashlight shines only briefly here and there.

Kitchen stories... .. kitchens are strange places, where someone's hungry mind is conveying its intent and our body is haplessly finding solutions to create whatever product. I tend to eat simply. Often times I am splitting avocados by splicing the body in half and rotating them apart into two halves, lightly copping into the seed and twisting to remove it. Other times I resort to a 'chefs' knife in the kitchen, which i bought at ace hardware. That's for cutting tomatoes and heads of cabbage."


And some commentary on my usage.
Me: I think the only story I have is using my Aqua to spread peanut butter.
Samy: wow. you're like, the expensive bladery that does velvet duty.
Me: yeah I know....  It's funny, looking over my knives you can see heavy wear on the tiny Ladybug... and then most of the rest looks almost perfect.
Samy: what does that say about you?
Me: that I mostly have small cutting needs, or that food cutting puts more wear, or maybe just that I'm more careful as the price goes up, or just that H1 scratches really easily. I tore down a bunch of boxes with a UK a couple weeks ago, but it still looks perfect just because S30 doesn't scratch easily.
Samy: small cutting needs sounds like it.
Me: mostly. lots of opening light packages and spreading peanut butter.

Eisley concert

Light: Ra Clicky 140Cgt

Took my Clicky to the Eisley show at SLO Brew. Didn't use it much except maybe to check the floor afterwards, but I did get to show it to Garron and Weston. They both love lights and Garron had an Olight stolen, so I figured he'd probably be interested to see a high end option other than SureFire. Garron showed me his remaining Olight and SF L1, both of which showed signs of extensive use. Though my own lights are mostly pristine due to my light uses and careful tendencies, it always makes me happy to see one that's clearly provided good service.

As for knives, I went in with a normal but light carry. Usual Ladybug in pocket, no big knives, and just the innocent looking green UKPK Drop Point as a main knife. I've never had any security problems at the venue, but I wanted to be conservative about it all the same. As it turns out, there was more security scrutiny than I've ever gotten here before—enough that when I got about 15' from the door I moved the UK from side pocket to waistband. They didn't care about my pockets much though, only the bulky camera gear in my messenger bag, which one lightly felt up before letting me through without looking inside. (Seriously, what's changed? They didn't care at all about all the stuff I brought for the "Hottest Chicks in Metal" show, but at the "pansy girl music" indie rock show they get concerned? I understand them not wanting outside liquor or glass bottles, but if it's an issue now—and at a very non-threatening all ages show—why wasn't it an issue before? I'm not complaining though; they're still one of the most relaxed and enjoyable real venues.)

October usage

Not any very exciting stuff, but October saw the return of early darkness as we transitioned more fully into autumn, meaning my Clicky did a lot of car-lighting after class. My Ladybug opened lots of bananas, my Tasman spread some peanut butter, and my Cat opened some granola bars. At some point my Khukuri cut a tissue paper snowflake for a busser at Linn's. I also used my serrated Aqua to spread peanut butter once, which it did well. Pretty standard usage mostly.

Welcome to the club, Ian!

Today Ian got his first SureFire, an OD G2ZL, which is one of my favorite models. May it serve him faithfully.

Clearing a path through the supermarket jungle

Stopped by Albertsons and found my normal entrance (the main one, and the closest one to Rite Aid, so it's the one used by many seniors) roped off by rough string. Some paving work had recently been done in the parking lot, but parking was unrestricted and there was no immediately apparent reason for the door to be blocked. I thought the door was closed for some reason, but it was still functioning—people were just getting roped out of and inside the entrance area for no reason. When I left the store by the other door, I purposely walked back the length of the building, into the cordoned off section, waited for a 70ish year old couple to stare in confusion at the string before carefully bending under it, and then I walked up to a section, touched the blade of my Khukuri to it, and down went a section of string before I could even feel the blade contacting it. Immediately after, I saw customers and employees walking through my cut section, paying little attention to the remaining sections. Order was restored, confusion eliminated, and potential injury averted.

Post-Pinedorado Plough Lighting

Light: Ra Clicky 140Cgt

This morning, after the Pinedorado parade, I went by the Pewter Plough to help out with preparations for the show that evening. Since many sections of a theatre are either dimly lit, even in the middle of the day, or lit only by a complex system of lighting, my Clicky was very useful in getting around the area behind the stage and tidying up the seating area while putting out playbills. Since the theatre was open for visitors during the Pinedorado, an old couple came in to look around and see the set. Rather than searching around for and figuring out the lighting controls for the room, I used my light to illuminate the room and show them the set.

The Power of Ra!

Light: Ra Clicky 140Cgt

Tonight I was at Linn's, as I often am, when disaster struck! Erin was vex'd with a spell of numerical befuddlement! She urgently needed the assistance of a calculator, but... it was solar powered and the dim cafe lighting wasn't enough to power the display adequately. Fortunately, my Clicky was able to stand in for the sun and avert disaster.

AtHC: Around the House Carry?

And the potential practicality of apparently ridiculous and excessive preparation.
A few thoughts on the scope and range of the EDC ethos, as a defense made against my own doubts.

When you're padding aboot your domicile, perhaps clad in the comfortable uniform of repose, 'tis a mite silly to be hauling along a knife, innit? Yes, that's how I felt too, though it didn't stop me from doing it. (I think it's fine to recognize that something you do is silly, but that doesn't mean you should stop doing it if you don't also believe it to be wrong or harmful.) Starting about a year ago, before going from my room to the living room to watch something on tv, I'd sometimes/often slip a folder in my pocket as if I were going out, and then I'd feel like another ridiculous knife knut obsessively preparing for the sudden collapse of society at any moment, or an invasion by those [insert appropriate epithet] [associated color] [disliked minority group, political leaning, or nationality]s that paranoid survivalist types love to fear. However, I don't really feel so silly about it these days because the practice has demonstrated its value to me. A few brief anecdotes (or you might want to just skip to the conclusion):

— Back in February, my life was dominated by the Olympics. Around the same time, my UKPK Drop Point (factory second) finally arrived. It was one of my most anticipated knives ever because I knew it would be rather perfect for my purposes, but it got lost in the mail and after two months I had no expectation of ever seeing it. When it did appear unexpectedly one day, I was loath to let it far from my sight; as I lounged about, consumed by winter athletics, the UKPK sat in my pocket just about the whole time. And I felt silly about it, but I just really liked it, so I did it anyway. On one of the first days I had it, I was watching with my mom and she asked me to open a difficult piece of mail for her. I always open mail with a knife because... that's who I am, obviously, and since I had one already on me I was able to immediately zip it open for her and hand it back. I could have ripped it open by hand if I'd had to, or run off to fetch a knife; it wasn't a big deal... but it was very convenient to be ready for it. That got me to thinking more about the practicality of my silly habit.... More on that later.

- Shortly after the last occurrence, probably also during the Olympics since the seating positions were the same, my mom was sitting on the couch when she found that a tick, carried in by one of the pets, had found its way to her and was now crawling up her arm. When she realized what it was, she started to freak out, but I was able to quickly help out by telling her to hold still while I pulled out my tiny Ladybug Salt and intercepted it. I whisked it up onto the blade, carried it off, then used the back of my ferocious 4" keychain knife's blade to apply enough force to dispatch the monster before sending it to a watery grave. Now, in all seriousness, I'm really glad I had a tool that allowed me to respond to that so quickly and effectively. What would have otherwise been a more unpleasant situation was taken care of immediately. That went a long way toward changing my mind; if something I'm doing is proven to be able to help someone else, it's worth continuing.

- Most recently, I was again in the living room, this time to watch the Tour de France (yes, it seems I'm only there when there's an epic, multi-day sporting event to watch) when... my dad received a box of avocados in the mail! He wanted to open the box and show them off, so he came over and asked if I had a knife, even though I was in my lounging and watching mode. That amused me, that he expected me to have a knife on me even then, and didn't think it a silly thing to ask. And yes, I had my Cat in my pocket because I'd just been opening something of my own. He of course commented on how sharp it is... everything seems very sharp indeed when your main around-the-house cutting tool is a pair of scissors you got in a multi-pack from the dollar store. But I digress; the point is that having it was good, not having it would have been less good.


So, my conclusion, after all those words to describe a few trivial anecdotes of barely significant occurrences. Basically, it's this: I carry a knife—among other things—with me every day because they're useful/helpful/handy/convenient for a great many tasks I might encounter within a typical day, so having them available is simply prudent, sensible, and forethoughtful. Furthermore, the same kinds of tasks I often encounter when out in The Real World can also be found at home, and being at home is no reason to be less prepared to deal with them by having the helpful item I need a short walk away instead of on me and ready to go—especially if such continued preparedness comes with little or no additional inconvenience. So, in my experience, in my life, in my environments, in my situations, I've found that carrying a knife even when not leaving the house is just as justified as when I'm anywhere else, and the same goes for a light after dark. I'm not going to carry a pry bar in my pajamas, or an emergency saw or a mylar blanket or a fire steel, because those are less versatile and cannot legitimately be expected to prove useful in that situation and environment—to carry them would be *actually* ridiculous. But, there's nothing ridiculous in carrying any tool that has been confirmed useful in that particular environment.

(As I type this, I'm reclining in my cozy fleece pants. My FRN UKPK Lightweight (CE FRN UKPKDP LW...) is in the pocket and ready to go, but completely unnoticeable at 1.9oz.)

Geocaching thread

I intend for this to be a thread for reporting my use of lights and knives while in the pursuit of geocaches. So far, that mostly means these will be Pacific Salt anecdotes, since it's been my official caching knife so far, used for cutting through weeds and poking around in potentially treacherous spots. Another tool worth mentioning, though its role is not so noteworthy on a case by case basis, is the ZebraLight H30. It's become my official geocaching area light; a job for which it is ideally suited. I clip it to a chest pocket, angled downwards, and activate it when it comes time to open a cache and sign the log. It gives me a smooth field of hands free light wherever I'm facing, without having to bother with a more cumbersome and suspicious headlamp.

2010
6/27: My first day of caching. Used the Pacific to poke around through pine cones and pieces of bark to find two caches on the ranch. Returned out of the depths of the forest around dusk, so I used the Apex and warm Clicky to find my way home.

6/28: Found a couple more caches on the ranch, used Pacific to poke around in rocks and bushes. Used Apex for light.

6/29: Did some caching on Moonstone, used Pacific to drag caches out from under the boardwalk rather than reaching down into there.

6/30: Went out for a day of caching with Ian, Katie, Brian, and Justin. We went to the end of Harmony Headlands for a cache out there, which we didn't find. I poked around some bushes and branches with Pacific for a while with no sign of it.

7/15: Used Pacific to dig around in storm drain debris looking for a difficulty 3.5 cache that had been sitting inactive for three months waiting for a new log. Found it and added a log to get it back online. Used UK Rescue to cut a strip of paper for the log. Also used the SF L1 to give me some strong and focused illumination for peering down into the drain. I'm starting to think it would be nice to get one of the new FRN UK Rescues just for caching. It's cheap enough to beat up like I do to the Pacific, can be easily disassembled for easy cleaning, but the sheepsfoot tip would make it much better suited for digging through stuff. It'd be the next best thing to an Atlantic. As it is, I have to be very careful not to damage the cache I'm trying to pry out.

8/10: Went after Bill Kerr Trail on my bike. Sped down the forest path around sunset with Apex hanging off my backpack, pointing more or less forward. Think I had a Clicky wedged under my hand too. Used Pacific to clear some spider webs away from the cache before reaching for it, after retrieving it from the creek bed, as I'd just had to do with my camera as well. Clumsy day. The highlight of this cache was meeting Jimmy, the little orange cat who lives nearby.

8/25: My log for Pine Line:
"Whew! This one ended up being quite an adventure, and it was probably the most frustrating of the caches I did end up finding, mostly because I made it harder than it should have been at every opportunity. I headed out in the early evening on my bike, not really intending to go caching. Since I was on that side of the ranch, I decided to go after this one, but rather than heading straight up the hill I thought it would be easier to take the indirect route by going out through Seaclift Estates, up the first road, and then out the path at the top of the hill, which I (correctly) figured would take me right by the cache area. Well, that nearly killed me. In my attempt to show what a manly cyclist I am, I pushed way too hard on a serious hill and ended up almost passing out in a nice fellow's yard (he gave me water and refrained from calling me a pansy) near the top. After recovering, I made it the rest of the way up and out to the cache area, but when I got to just about GZ I found it to be a perfect potential mountain lion den, and something biggish was rustling in the bushes just on the other side of the downed tree. By that point, I'd come too far to let anything stop me, but I didn't want to get an unpleasant surprise either (better to be paranoid than dinner), so I headed around the bush to try to get a view of what seemed to be watching me before it got the drop on me. So there I was, looking like a crazy idiot, calling out to the bush to let it know that I didn't want any trouble, with a knife in each hand [Pacific and Endura] ready to meet a charge... when I look over my shoulder and see someone walking down the trail behind me. Quickly stash knives and pull out camera, try to look like a sane and nonthreatening nature lover, just in time to greet a nice older lady who wanted me to bring my red bike back up the trail for a photo op in front of the mossy tree along the main trail. I obliged, rode back up to the tree, made some small talk as the fog rolled in and the light ebbed out, then said goodbye to the nice photo muggle and headed back to GZ.

I actually looked right at where the cache was hidden and gave the area a cursory glance because I thought it looked like a good hiding place, but I didn't take it seriously because the gps was leading me deeper into this miniature section of woods. I never did figure out what was rustling, but it had quieted down by now so I decided to just carefully go for it. I couldn't find a convenient way in, so I ended up crouching down and nearly crawling my way into the middle of it, where I searched for about half an hour without any luck. On the plus side, I was able to practice some CITO action and collect a number of beer cans (which I took a closer look at after reading the hint) and a water bottle that appeared to have been made into a bong. Guess it's not a lion that hangs out here.... Finally I checked the gps again and found that it was now leading me back out of the wooded area... straight back to the obvious spot I'd already looked over. Clambered back out, took a closer look, immediately spotted something out of place, and there it was. Oy. Signed the log, replaced the cache, looked up just in time to see an owl fly over my head. By this time, it was almost 9pm, fully dark, and the thick fog had coated my waiting bike in a layer of dew. Affixed my bundle of CITO treasure to the handlebars, prepared my light, sealed up the softshell, and bombed back over the hill by the direct route this time. I was never so glad to make it back to the terrace trail; my quick ride across the ranch and back turned into a 4.5 mile, 2 hour adventure that I at one point thought I might not make it back from under my own power. Quite an evening. Good hide, TFTC!"

9/21: Got the FTF on Barking Up the Wrong Tree. Searched a long while and at one point got frustrated enough that I used the Pacific to saw through a small dead branch that was getting in my way. It did it well.

10/01: Went up to the top of Happy Hill and took a walk through the forest to find "End of the Road - Cambria Pines," which we'd had to give up on at the end of June. This was the first cache with my new caching knife, a plain edge Cara Cara Rescue. I mostly just chopped some weeds with it, but its rounded tip was nice for poking around in pine cones and bark when I got to the GZ.

10/10: No tools needed for Rusty Bridge to Nowhere, but I did take advantage of the interesting rusty surface to take some photos of the Pacific.


2011
1/4: Joe discovered that my "Stairing at the Sea" cache had gone missing, so I replaced it with a new one, this time screwed into place. It was a tough job in a small space at an awkward angle, but I got it installed with light from the H30.

2/01: Found "MB Back Bay Surprise" out in the Morro Bay marina area. The wet log on this one finally convinced me of the value of my space pen, so I decided to finally get some refills for it.

2/24: Finally finished "Adobe Abode" and had quite an adventure doing it. Along the way I got to quickly explore the old adobe with the warm Clicky.


2012
2/06: Haven't been doing much caching lately, so today Michelle and I headed out to Pine Mountain in Atascadero to look for a couple. We got there just before sunset, so we ended up doing a bit of trail walking by flashlight. I had the 100Chc and she borrowed the ZL SC51w. Unfortunately, no finds. My records getting really bad.

Lights saving lights

Lights: Ra Clicky 100wwCT, SureFire G2Z-M60

Tonight, after the My Javelina show at the Rogue Wave Cafe in Cayucos, I was standing around with some friends when Will's girlfriend dropped the rubber switch boot from her flashlight. As such things do, it hit the ground and scurried into a secure hiding place behind a bench, against the building, and under the overhanging shingling. They probably never would have found it tucked away like that, but I brightly lit up the area with my two lights and spotted it hiding back there. Another flashlight's day saved.

Salts at Schizatchfest

Lights: Ra Clicky 100wwCT, Inova T1-K2TFFC
Knives: Spyderco Pacific Salt, Ladybug Salt

Chris celebrated his birthday today with a bonfire at Avila/Port San Luis with various friends. Since it went well into the night, obviously my flashlights were useful when it came time to clear up. The Clicky's strobe in the heavy plume of smoke was pretty entertaining too. There was also a bit of knife usage. Since I was at the beach and I already have experience with getting Columbia River sand/silt into a knife pivot, my Salts were the obvious choice to carry while everything else got tucked safely away inside my bag. When Kyle wanted a piece of my banana, I used my Ladybug Salt to slice some off, since I keep it clean for food use and it's been my official banana knife recently. When Michelle needed to cut the plastic wrap off a bundle of firewood, I gave her my Pacific Salt, and the wrapper appeared to pretty much melt away on contact.

La Boheme

Light: Ra Clicky 100wwCT

I went to the final performance of La Boheme at Cal Poly and, after a long wait at the ticket office, arrived just as the lights were going down. Of course, this was a Clicky moment. I had the 100wwCT with me, so I quickly clicked it down to the minimum level, which I have set at 0.14lm, and used it to make sure I didn't step on any toes on my way in. This story is worth noting primarily because it's a situation where 99% of other lights would have been unacceptably obtrusive, but the Clicky is designed well enough to function perfectly in this situation. I can't stress the value of a very low level enough.

To Cat a piece of paper...

This morning, I arrived at my math class a few minutes late. I knew we were having an extra credit makeup quiz, so I headed up to the front of the room for it but was told it would be on my own paper. Problem was, all of my paper is in my spiral bound notebook, and I was in a quiet room of people working on math. Since I didn't want to rip it out, I held the notebook off to the side and out of sight, pulled out my little Cat, and quickly sliced it out. Day saved!

However, it did make me rethink the importance of how much and what kind of noise different edges and steels make when cutting paper. In that silent room, my slightly toothy S30V made a grating sshhhrrrrzzzzzz sound as it cut, and I would have much preferred an edge that was just the tiniest bit quieter and smoother in its sound so it wouldn't have sounded like something terribly violent was happening to that notebook. It's been a while since I've compared, but I think I recall VG10 and 8CR13MOV having a slightly softer sound, at least as I sharpen them.

Headlamp vs. Torch: A discussion of proper light usage

Contributed by Joe (yes, not-contributed by Joe)

Joe: last night i was coming down from El Cajon Mountain at night.
we started at dusk and before we got to the road it was stargazing dark.
two of us had headlamps, one had a dim hand light, and i had the P2D.
(one hapless guy had nothing. he walked in the middle of the pack.)
(to be fair none of us expected to be out that late. i would have brought Streamlight if i had.)
(by "none of us expected to be out that late" i mean "we arrived at the foot of the mountain at 8:30 AM.)
Me: "In our defense, it was unexpected, so it was ok that we were unprepared for it."
Joe: uh huh.
but.
anyway.
we were walking over uneven terrain. not treacherous, just with lots of little rises and dips, and there were bits of light scrambling.
so
i discovered that
when i held the P2D low, basically just holding it in my hand as i left my arm swinging like normal walking, the bumpy ground was full of shadows and hilights.
i could see the 3d-ness of it.
relief might be the right word?
Me: relief.
Joe: but basically i could see the terrain,
the topography of it.
if i held the P2D at my temple like a headlamp,
the shadows all disappeared,
because the light and my eyes were inline.
Me: yeah that's a thing, and a part of using a light; that's one reason I often don't care for headlamps.
holding it away allows you to see relief on the ground better and you can see farther because you get less backscatter from atmosphere, holding it in line with your eyes allows you to check for reflections like eyes.
so what did you conclude?
Joe: i concluded that a headlight will never be my only (or even primary) source of light when covering rough terrain
*that i will never plan for a headlight to be my only.
Me: good lad.
and that's an important lesson.
if you go on an Online Forum,
you'll find that it's full of lots of Opinions.
lots of People have an Opinion, and they really like the one they have,
and many say, I have a Torch, I don't need a geeky headlamp. others will say, once I tried a Headlamp I never bought another torch because they're pointless.
as is usual with such Opinions, both are Wrong.
both do good things, both are necessary at different times, and having and respecting both is the only correct answer.
Joe: yeah a headlamp is nice for close work
in fact it is nice for work that needs a hand and then another hand, where neither of those hands is holding a torch.
Me: yep, if you're, like, carrying stuff and doing ... hand stuff, a headlamp is great.
Joe: and if i were serious about crossing some ground and didn't mind being a bright obvious target (and annoyance to sleeping animals), i could easily see using one of each.
headlamp for the basic business of one foot in front of the other, walking on the mud not the three inch deep puddles; torch for finding a path, terrain relief, and mid-range looking & seeing.

ProPoly Revived!

Contributed by Joe (or more like not contributed, because he's a jerk about it).

Joe:

ok NEWS FROM TODAY
i went to the streamlight repair place
Emergency Equipment Engineering
they have *the [worst]* website, don't even bother. actually do. it's amusing.
inside it was all uniforms and holsters
this is apparently where police officers *actually* get uniforms?
and like, such as "tactical equipment"
they don't repair Propolys at all
they repair "some models"
(Stingers ha. ha.)
so it'd be: accept from me. at the end of the month, sent off with the batch to Streamlight Central. at the end of the month it comes back. so like 2 months of waiting.
suuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuck
so he recommends just calling lady at Streamlight Central. he gave me her direct line. apparently she is the repairs lady.
that'll take 2 weeks plus i pay shipping. : /
ok.
so i leave
i call the other authorized repair place int he county, 15 minutes east in El Cajon
he says the only thing he can repair on a Propoly is the tailcap switch, but their shipment to the factory is going out next tuesday, and it'll be returned in 2-3 weeks after that.
so, hey, i'll save shipping.
so i go over there
he says, you know what, let's put a new switch in. just in case.
he disappears into a backroom for a while
i look around at the various things in what is basically the lobby
he comes back and it works!!
so somehow
when alkalines explode
tarnish the reflector
get all kinds of powdery gunk all over the contacts and the emitter itself
... they actually only ruin the switch.
so
I WON!
streamlight is totally working again. free of charge.
it was only the outside of the reflector that got mesed up
the reflecty part is great.

Welcome to the club, Rushi!

Rushi just got a Ra Clicky EDC to replace his stolen Fenix P2D! Hopefully it will generate some stories for him to share with us here.

Another moving day

I once again got to spend a day moving for my mom. Trucks, boxes, stairs, narrow doors, stress, all the usual. Not a whole lot to report. My UK Rescue cut a piece of cardboard off a box to wedge the armoire door and the Clicky Cgt was used a bit after sunset. Nothing exciting, but glad to have them.

Putting the dead back to bed

So, this afternoon, I was doing my usual sort of thing, wandering around the cemetery, looking for friends. It was my first time up there since the big storms of the last few weeks and there was a lot of debris lying around. Branches were strewn everywhere, and surprisingly many of them looked just like the branches at the beach in Morro Bay, covered in sea lichen and stuff. A worker was there with chainsaw and mini-backhoe clearing away stuff. As I was walking through the rows looking for interesting headstones, I found a couple wooden markers that had been blown over or knocked over by falling branches, including one of the ones I was out looking for today, almost like it was meant to be. So, I grabbed some of the fallen branches lying around, used my little Spyderco Cat to whittle a point on one end where necessary, jammed the pointy end into the dirt, and made them into temporary supports to hold the markers up until someone could get around to re-sinking them properly.

Woot Bag of Crap Flashlight in Haiti Aftermath

It may not be much of a flashlight, but it's a light, and it worked when it was needed. This is a perfect example of why I promote the EDC ethos.
http://www.woot.com/Blog/ViewEntry.aspx?Id=11068

Swiss Army = key to party

My first story of 2010 is a very important one. In the wee small hours of new year's eve, after celebrating at the Pewter Plough cafe party (with very good singer), I went off for my own celebration on Moonstone Drive. I took my camera gear and one of the bottles of Martinelli's I got earlier down to the little hidden bench I found last week on the edge of one of the cliffs and perched there comfortably above the waves (I was fortunately well bundled up for the 43º weather). Now, my more loyal readers will remember that the last time I encountered one of these bottles it was on a night I was traveling light and I ended up having to rip the top off with my Manix. This time I was prepared and was able to neatly (and much more gently) open it with the bottle opener of my Victorinox Climber Deluxe. A big improvement. And so I sat there all alone at 2am and celebrated the passing of the years.

A mother's reaction

I was at the Plough picking up my mom's dog and she was struggling with a little plastic package of sequiny things she was going to use to decorate the cafe for the new year's party. I watched her struggling with it for a moment to see if she'd have me do it or just keep at it then I asked if she'd like me to do it for her. She promptly handed it over and I opened it with my friendly little bright orange UKPK Rescue. One of the things I like about this knife is that it's so gosh darned cheerful in its vibrant, fruity shade! But of course her reaction was that it looks so sharp and is that really legal. Oy. I didn't show her the on-loan Military I had in my pocket.

Contrasting attitudes

While visiting Tia, she wanted to open up some of the boxes of books she'd shipped home, so she asked for a knife. I handed her my new Cat second, which I thought was oddly perfect for her with its small handle that is actually probably not small for her hands. This is an unremarkable story, just a typical day to day use of one of my knives, but it amused me because Tia gives the impression of being possibly the girliest tiny little big city girl I know, but she doesn't bat an eye at taking and comfortably using whatever knife I give her, from the little Cat to the 8" Kulgera. It'd be nice if it weren't remarkable, but earlier in the evening I found myself in the middle of Ian's knife discussion with a new temporary busser from England who wondered what the point was of carrying a knife at all. He didn't seem uncomfortable around them, like some are, but he didn't get them and didn't see the usefulness. So, after that, it made me smile to see someone apparently so unlikely putting one to use and taking it for granted that I'd have one on me.

Edit: In the busser's defense, his objection was largely directed at Ian carrying his big Para-Military, which I admit far exceeds any actual necessity in this case, though I disagree with the implication that this makes it wrong to carry such a knife if it's preferable and legal. Also, the busser himself carried a small traditional pocketknife while bicycle touring, though I doubt he kept it on him normally.

The Tender Trap!

Once upon a time there was a princess, her name was Kaitlin, and she was having a birthday. In celebrating her birthday, we found ourselves in the magical and bluesy land of Cambria Pines Lodge, where I suddenly became savagely hungry. I searched the menu and settled on an old favorite that always comes through for me: chicken tenders with fries! But, when they arrived, I was given no silverware! So there I was, sitting in the middle of a loud bar lounge, moments from perishing, with a delicious basket of chicken and none of the typical implements of gentlemanly consumption. But! I was prepared. I pulled out my Titanium spork (ugh, geek points, but it really is good and worth it) and Spyderco Khukuri and proceeded to lay waste to my dinner with great precision. As I was cutting with the Khukuri, I realized that cutting food was exactly the kind of cutting I got the knife for, the angled blade could not be more perfect for it. I pretty much want to cut all my food with it now.

Upward Descent

Contributed by Sam
Light: Ra Clicky 170Cn
Location: Sacred Tree, HSU

I was climbing my favorite tree, got way up to the top when I thought "oh wait, I didn't zip my Clicky into a pocket"... just at that moment, as I squatted down into position, the Clicky popped out of my pocket, fell the better part of 20 feet, hit a branch, bounced straight up about 4 feet, then continued to fall, hit two other branches which sent it spinning out of control for the rest of its fall, and skidded into the under brush..The Clicky ended up falling approximately 75 feet total.



I decided that since it wanted to do that, I wasn't going to go chasing after it. I remained up in the tree a while, viewing the post-sunset sky. The wind was cold.



After a while I came back down and found the Clicky lodged in the undergrowth of ivy vine. I inspected it a moment, saw nothing wrong, hit the button and it bursted to life.

The Knife Has a Thousand Eyes

Contributed by Brian (he provided the title too).

once upon a time i was in a car (a honda, my honda) with my good and close friend curtis. he had just purchased a brand new journal (he's a writer folks) that was wrapped in a very thick plastic. not sure why whoever made this journal thought it needed to be placed in thick plastic, but it was. sadly the brute strength of one curtis could not open the damn thing. so what was i to do? well friends, a while back my other good and close friend ian got married. while attending his wedding he gave all of his groomsmen (myself included) a knife each. not just any knife. a beautiful opinel. now back to the plastic packaging. i took out my wonderful opinel and slid through the plastic like those 2 people did through white house security. after the job had been did (yes did) curtis showed his gratitude by letting me buy him a jameson....... the end.

Other uses for a Manix2.

This was a more interesting night than anticipated. I ended up hanging out for a little while at Mozzi's with Annamarie, Rebecca, Chelsea, and Micah. After a while they decided to move on to the lodge and Annamarie peer pressured me into going along, but it was 11:55 and they were just closing. We went back down to Mustache Pete's to see if they stayed open any later but they were closed too. Finally it was decided that they would proceed to Rebecca's house, Annamarie declared that I was going too, and Rebecca vetoed any potential noes. So it was settled. We headed over to the artist studio/guest house for our little party, carrying snacks and the makings of some kind of very girly sounding drink they wanted. But, one of the ingredients was Martinelli's sparkling cider, which we too late realized doesn't have a twist off cap, and there was no bottle opener over there. Rebecca tried keys, Micah tried a can opener that looked like it might do it, but nothing budged it. Normally I probably would have had something with an opener on it, like a SAK or the Leatherman Squirt in my little supplies pack, but tonight I was trying to travel very light because I was using my new Nalgene flask for the first time and that allowed me to get away with not carrying any bag. I was a little reluctant to do anything too abusive if not necessary, but when all else failed I finally just hooked the Manix's blade spine under the cap and wrenched it off. It actually worked perfectly and the edge of the cap didn't even scratch the 154CM. Glad I decided to bring that one along since I would not have been so rough on the Khukuri. All in all, a fun and interesting night.

Cayucos show

Light: Ra Clicky 140Cgt

Went to the My Javelina/Jesse/Micah/Ryan/Steve show at the Cayucos church tonight. Shortly after I arrived, Kyle came to me for a light to light up dry erase board of lyrics (so Stuff Christian Culture Likes!), so I gave him the Clicky. He gave it a try but the writing was too light to be readable on the white surface so he gave up. Later, he and Micah borrowed it again to fiddle with some gear tucked into a dark corner. I also used its strobe to have a quick mini-rave with Adrian. Manix2 saw some quick use too, had to cut some electrical tape off my notebook to cover the obnoxious flashing red light on my filming camera.

Breaking the Dry Spell

Today I received my first new flashlight in about nine months. To my slight surprise, my NiteCore EZ123w arrived, after only two days. My impressions to Samy:

somewhat small and bright spill, tight spot. nice and warm, it makes GT look bluish. looks like spill is brighter than GT. as for the size compared to a Clicky... it's uhh.... ridiculous. it's smaller than my index finger. I just tested it against the 100w, much warmer!  as expected, since they're the same emitter, it's the same gorgeous warm tint as the M60WL. the low, which is suppsed to be like 20, is actually about 10 or a little less. the high, which is supposed to be 100, absolutely blows the warm Clicky away at 70 and looks brighter even when it's on burst.  spill is definitely brighter than burst, spot looks about the same if not also a little brighter. considering that my 100W appears to actually be 105-110, this thing is bright. so it's as warm as my warmest tint, has a better beam than the malkoff, and appears brighter than the clicky, all in a package smaller than the mckinley.  it's also way brighter and warmer than the T1. downside, it's very stiff to turn to full power. ok pretty happy with this little light.  the low is basically a perfect peering around inside level, like a nice little task light. the high is really surprising for its size. big difference in heat management; laid out various lights running at full power,
m60w, t1, twisty, clickies, all barely got warm. d10 got surprisingly warm considering it's got a Q5 running on a lithium aa, not pushed very hard. ez got fairly hot. but then it was the brightest of them all and by far the smallest.

Here's a bad photo for size reference:

From Flashlights

Santa Barbara Girl Adventure!

Light: Ra Clicky 140Cgt

A quick story from my day trip to Santa Barbara with Kaitlin and Cammi. After a long day of cruising around State St., buying adorable outfits, and discussing the merits of various kinds of underwear, we headed to the harbor for some sushi. As the chill grasp of winter gently entwines its frosty fingers about us, the days grow shorter with alarming rapidity, giving us a sunset time of just before 5pm. As we were leaving the sushi place at 6, we heard a frolickful kersplashing from the shallow water below. I took a look with my Clicky and revealed dozens of tiny little silver sardiney fish zipping about at the surface, as well as a sea star sitting on the bottom a few feet down.

Later, back at Linn's, it helped with the important task of showing off the day's finds to other girls.

Side note: The knife I carried for this was my little old Cricket, to comply with the more restrictive laws of Santa Barbara.

A new convert

Years ago, I got the first Spyderco of anyone I knew and started telling everyone how great it was. When Joe lost his fiddly little Kershaw Chive, I told him to upgrade to a Spyderco and he ended up getting a Dragonfly, which he still carries probably four or five years later. I had a few years where I stopped buying or carrying them because I couldn't find a design that really fit me, so I ended up carrying a yellow Benchmade Mini-Grip because it was the only knife that did work for me and completely satisfy me at the time, but I never stopped recommending Spyderco above all others. At some point, Ian followed me and started buying Spydercos instead of the cheaper stuff he'd been carrying for years. Then, recently, Samy needed a small but capable knife that would be school friendly and stand up to his use, which was perfect since Spyderco does small knives better than anyone. I gave some suggestions, he looked through the options, and eventually he ended up with a Lava. Now, a few months later, he wanted something bigger and with teeth for more serious uses, so he got his second Spyderco, a Scorpius. Yes, I'm proud of him.

Here's his initial report when he received it:

Hey..

Well, you're not online and I wanted to tell you that the Scorpius came... It's one hell of a knife!

The handle is pretty comfortable, and mine has the lanyard hole at the 'snout' of the handle, and not where an eye would be for a dolphin.. Maybe mine's an old version? [It's actually a newer version.]

It's big! Fits in my hand pretty well, and the handle shape allows for two different holding positions, which I like.

The blade is a bit stiff, and while playing with it, I gave my self a little nick of the skin... Got some blood on the blade already...Gotta be careful with this one.. The lava is child's play comparatively.

Anyway, hope you're having fun, wherever you are.

-Sam

:)

ProPoly down!

Contributed by Joe
Light: StreamLight ProPolymer 4AA Luxeon

Tonight, we lost a flashlight.

In preparation for tomorrow's night hike, I prepared to replace the batteries in my Propoly. I'd brought it on my recent Joshua Tree trip, but it inexplicably failed to light. I assumed those pesky rechargeables had run themselves down again, and threw it back in my bag. Now a month later it was time to recharge.

But there weren't rechargeables in it.

There were alkalines.

Leaking alkalines.

The reflector is crusted and tarnished; the diode looks intact; and the lens has a bunch of hydroxide dust on it.

After cleaning with a bit of vinegar (staying away from the contacts) it still won't light. That's right, the indefuckingstructible
Streamlight was done in by its own treacherous batteries.

Tonight, we lost a friend.

But I'll see about that "If you can break it show us because we won't believe you" Streamlight warranty.

October blackout

Lights: Ra Twisty 70Tr, SureFire L1-R, Milky ML1, NiteCore D10, ZebraLight H30, 2D MagLED, StreamLight ProPoly 4AA Lux

Tonight we had another power outage. This year is ending up being a throwback to the good old days of Cambria going out a few times a year. I stayed in and set up my lights in the room, which actually made for quite a nice environment, better than normal. I had my 2D MagLED standing on a shelf with a paper reflector on top to light up the room; the Twisty with 19670 body hanging in the middle of the room and pointed at a wall; D10 standing on table with a translucent film can cap on top; and the ML1 on low, NovaTac, and red L1 pointing at walls. Of course I kept a Clicky with me, but for my personal light I kept the H30 clipped to my chest, providing a nice even light to walk around, eat dinner, and read some Sherlock Holmes. My dad occasionally used the ProPoly I left on the table.

Influence stories - Knife carry

I was recently thinking about my possible influences as a kid that led me to start carrying a knife at such an early age, and I remembered an incident that may have played a role. I was probably 10 or 11 and I was walking around my neighborhood with Ian LeSage (yeah, another one), my best friend at the time, and when we got down to the Harvey St.(?) beach access we found that some local punk kids we knew had strung a strong string across the road at about waist level. We decided we'd better save the day and take it out before someone hit it, so we grabbed a rough rock and started trying to saw through it. We didn't get very far before a car did come along, so one of us started waving our hands at it to stop while the other kept frantically sawing, but it ignored us and drove right through it, snapping it and I guess doing no damage. We had good intentions and were trying to help, but we were unable to follow through because we didn't have anything sharp and were forced to try improvising in an inadequate fashion. To make it worse, I think I probably already had a couple pocket knives by that time, so it was a good lesson in the value of EDC.

But well before that, I remember wanting a pocket knife more than anything. I remember hanging around the old HART sidewalk event they used to have in town and looking around their old storage shed, thinking maybe a pocket knife might magically appear if I just kept looking for it everywhere. I was probably about 6. When I was probably 7, I finally realized my dream. I gathered up like $10 that I'd saved from my allowance, had my mom take me to the hardware store that used to be where the antique place is now in the Creekside center, asked the old guy there for the price of the little traditional pocket knives I'd seen in a glass counter, and then told him I'd be taking one. I think the price was around $6. It never occurred to me that he might have refused to sell a knife to someone my age, and it's sad to think that nowadays he probably wouldn't. But he just smiled and fished one out for me, like he knew he was playing a key role in a rite of passage. I was so happy to finally have my first knife, and it was probably just about the most expensive thing I'd ever purchased at the time. It's still around somewhere; it's a little two-bladed clip point with an imitation-wood plastic handle, probably just over 3" long closed and very thin. I carried that knife for probably around a year before I was given a Wenger Swiss Army Knife for Christmas (I think) when I was 8, which I used for years.

I've sometimes wondered what gave me such an incredible desire for a pocket knife at that age, and today I think the answer just might have hit me. What I realized is that one of my favorite childhood books was My Father's Dragon, which I found in my garage and read probably around age 7. In a climactic scene, Elmer must free the dragon from his tether by sawing through the thick rope with his pocket knife before the jungle creatures that enslave it can catch them. I think that may have elevated the value of being prepared with a knife considerably for me. Also, around that time my mom was seeing a guy named Larry, who was known to always have a small pocket knife on him. I liked him a lot and used to hang out at his house playing computer games sometimes. The example he set of always being prepared for little tasks that could come up probably stuck with me too.

Blog policy update

I've been kind of thinking about it for a while, and tonight I decided to go ahead with it. Though I'd like to keep the primary focus of this blog on flashlight stories, I'd also like to open it up as a place for stories of other kinds of EDC items, such as knives, since most light carriers tend to have other tools on hand. Hopefully this change will provide some interesting new variety.

Lava Flow

Contributed by Sam
Location: Campus Apt.
Knife: Spyderco Lava

Situation: We ran out of toilet paper....


Casually, I walked down to my building's community advocate, and was intending on leaving a drawing on a dry-erase board of me sitting on the toilet with a gleaming question mark where the roll would be.

It turned out that she was inside her room; so she saw me approach and opened the door wondering of my query.. I stated my purpose, "Hello, we have run out of toilet paper, are you who I get it from?" She got up to help right away, grabbed a key card and opened up the utility room...

She walks over to a box, scuffles with it a bit and then says "Ah.. hang on, I gotta get something to cut this with"... No sooner did I say "I've got something," I had the knife out, opened and ready to be handed to her... She looked surprised a bit and said "oohhn nooo" and pulled her hands away, then said "you do it!" .... So I carefully cut through the tape securing the box shut, closed the knife, pull out a bag of rolls, and thanked her for her time.

Now, we will not be left ass-ringed on the toilet, contemplating what type of college ruled notebook paper would be most effective.

Atascadero walk

Lights: Ra Clicky 140Cgt, Fenix E01

Went for a late night neighborhood walk with Michelle before heading home from a movie night with her and Chris. I used my Clicky and mostly kept it at 35 and 100lm. It was a dark night with some light from streetlamps and houses, so a lot of light was needed. Michelle made me happy by having the little Fenix I gave her. It was a nice walk, full of crickets, a passing freight train, and warm overhill night air. The only worrisome moment was when we got some attitude from a dog. I switched the light to the other hand and went for my handy Manix, but it was just barking from a yard. After that I kept my half-full Nalgene in a more convenient spot so I'd have a better alternative.

Another Cambria outage

I had intended to go to first home Coast football game of the season, but around the start time my lights went out. Then Ian called from Linn's; they were out too and he needed me to come down and provide some illumination so they could close up. Turns out the whole town was out due to someone hitting a power pole on Santa Rosa. I took various long running lights down: Ian put the Magled in the dishwashing hovel and claimed the Zebra as his getting-around light, Katie took the ProPoly to finish up her work. Ended up not being needed for very long, they were closing and we all left together shortly after. I left them with the Zebra, Mag, and ProPoly for the night. The game was cancelled and played at the other team's home the next day.

Here's the story:
http://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/local/north_coast/story/860062.html

HSU Room Lighting

Contributed by Sam
Lights: Ra 170CT & 85Tr, NiteCore D10 (Nichia 083), CMG-R
Location: Campus Apartments

Upon arriving at school for Fall semester, I began to live utilizing the few items I brought with me from home.

The harsh florescent-tube lighting of the room was too bright, and wasted too much electricity for me to just be sitting in here, staring at a book...I noticed that my roommate had bought a desk lamp, that burns a 40w bulb.. That wouldn't do for me.

So I began inspecting my room, noticed that the bed frame was made of wood, creating a surface which I could attach things by hook or pin. Promptly I purchased some finely wound hemp rope, maybe about 1/8 in diameter, and some clear plastic push pins.



With these items, I created a small rope line, which I could then attach things to and hang down above my desk.



As you can see, the 170CT with some diffusion works well as a temporary light source. I use the 85Tr as a permanent fixture there, making use of both its white and red output for late night computer work.





The CMG rides on the ceiling above my bed, providing ample book reading light and preserving night vision sensitivity. It is powered by nimh eneloops for long term use.



So far this setup has served me well. I have plenty of light output no matter where I am in the room. I also have a headlamp if it becomes necessary..

Spending my evenings without the main room light on makes me feel better. The harsh artificial light is unnecessary compared to flashlight usage and the reduction of electricity is a positive side effect.

Club 109 camping trip

Lights: Ra Clicky 100wwCT, Ra Twisty 70Tr, ZebraLight H30-Q5, StreamLight ProPoly 4AA Lux, AmondoTech N30, Garrity 2D incandescent

Went camping in San Simeon with Ian, Katie, Brian, and Tia. There wasn't a whole lot of light usage really, but I had a few observations. The 100wwCT was my main light (as usual) and handled all of my getting around and looking for stuff. It also lit up the whole area when I had to chase some raccoons. Its tint was also good for checking out the cooking meat. The Twisty with 19670 tube was basically left on red the whole night, so that it could be found when left sitting around outside and then as a night light in the tent. Some of the others discovered that the Zebra H30 was very good for rolling bits of shrubbery into a combustible tube. I think the H30 ended up being Ian's favorite of the night, he used it for everything. The N30 HID was fun just for blasting light into the sky, but it had no real usage. I gave Tia the ProPoly to use while getting ready for bed. And of course the star of the show was the blue plastic Garrity 2d incan, which had impressive throw for its low output. It was obviously the coolest and most classic light present.

Leak in the ceiling

Contributed by Sam
Light: Ra Clicky 170Cn

Last night, Regina noticed a leak in her bathroom ceiling. She called up maintenance to have a look; only a preliminary assessment could be made and they'd have to come back with more tools in the morning.

They arrive the next morning, armed with a sawzall and some other equipment. They proceed to cut a hole in the ceiling and realize (drum roll) that they can't see anything! Too dark! "Someone get a flashlight!!" I hear them argue amongst each other.
.. I figure that I will aid them, but only until I see what they bring as a 'flashlight'..... and (drum roll again, please) a red anodized minimag!!! yesss!!!!

OK, so I was kind of excited that these people were trying to actually use a minimag for their work, but a better part of me took over and I prepped my 170CN for maximum output.

I walked in there confidently and said "Here, use this instead." and the guy is like "whoa, that's a flashlight?...yea.. whoa, that's a flashlight.." Yeah..

He looks down at me "how much did this set you back?" I looked up "About $200" ($50 less than what I actually paid) and he nodded and went back to working with it.

I hovered around a while as they worked and as they finished he said "Wow, we should get the department to buy us these instead!" I agreed and gave him the ralights.com web address and said they could get a similar light for about $100 which would work well for their duties and could use rechargeable batteries.

Ra Clicky saves the day again!

Searching for bats in the belfry

Light: Ra Clicky 100wwCT

I went to pick up Tia at her house but ended up waiting a while, so I wandered around outside. I heard someone come out of the house, but it was Tia's mom, and she was looking under the house's overhangs with a huge camping style flashlight that cast a very narrow spot of incandescent light. From about 50 feet away, I hit burst on the Clicky and brightly lit up the entire side of the house; she looked around like a plane was landing. When I got there, she explained that she was looking for bats because she'd heard a noise up there the previous night. She went back to looking for them with her big light, so I turned mine on again so she could actually see what was up there clearly. She had a good laugh about how much brighter mine was despite being so much tinier. When Tia came out, she admonished her mother for encouraging me....

Wedding prep

While preparing for her bride's maid role in Ian & Katie's wedding, Tia needed to cut something to put in her shoe. At first I gave her the Benchmade Kulgera, but I thought better of it when I saw her holding it in her tiny hands trying to cut through some kind of thick tape. I took it back and replaced it with the Persistence, which is a more manageable size and better suited to such grunt work. Glad I had both along.

Reservoir Canyon cave

Lights: Ra Clicky 140Cgt, SureFire L1

Received my replacement tails from HDS and took them for their first use inside a cave at the base of the grade. I used the Cgt and L1 and found that it's true what many say, that caves have a strange ability to absorb light. With the Ra and SF both on high, I had a combined output of around 210lm (250 with burst) and it was merely adequate after coming out of the sun. The L1 was clearly more useful, its focused spot lost less light to the dark walls and filled the narrow space well with its spot.

Death of a Stallion

Me, Ian, Katie
Lights: Me - Ra Clickies 140Cgt & 100wwCT; Ian - NiteCore D10

In the evening I went out to return some stuff to Ian and buy Sam's red L1. I got to Linn's a little after 10, hung around for about an hour talking cameras and stuff with Ian while the closing finished. We left around 11.30 and he immediately took off while I called Sam to let him know I was coming. I pulled onto Main and my phone started ringing, so I stopped at the intersection and answered; it was Katie. She asked if Ian had left and said she'd just heard someone crash badly at the bridge right below their house. I told her Ian probably hadn't had time to get there yet but said I'd check it out anyway....

I arrived at the bridge, drove slowly past, and saw a damaged car with no lights on sitting on the other side of the rail with its nose facing back towards the park. I kept going to the park, turned around hurriedly, and raced back to the scene. I parked as close to where they were as I could, saw two people just out of the car, got out to ask if they were ok. The guy, tall and very clean cut looking, came up and started telling me he'd just crashed his car (obviously), etc., and made it clear he wanted me to stick around and help. He appeared completely fine, the girl with him was a little shaken up and had injured her left hand, so I was more worried about her. Fortunately, Ian returned with Katie a couple minutes later, he'd been going through there at about the same time and seen him losing control, went home to get his light and Katie. I hadn't gotten a good look at the car yet since it was in the shadows and I was busy looking them over and trying to help, but when I finally saw it in the light I realized it was a *Nice* car. Turns out it was a gorgeous dark blue metallic Ferrari 575M. Pretty tragic. Eventually the fire department/ambulance/sheriff/chp/Ron the tow truck guy (that's who all showed up) started arriving about 10 minutes after we called. Quite a scene. Ian got to help the tow guy by telling him how to get the F1 gearbox in neutral. Ian and Katie took the girl back to the hotel, I followed the tow and chp, watched the tow guy take the car to his house for the night. I got home at 1:30, after spending almost two hours there.

Ian and I used our lights to clear away small debris from the road and redirect passers' attention towards the water treatment plant, hoping no one would notice the smashed up Ferrari hiding behind us and pull over to possibly create more trouble. We also helped them check the car interior for their stuff, search through purse, etc.

VW wranglin'

Me, Ian, Will
Lights: Ra Clickies 100wwCT & 140Cgt, Mag 4D

I got back into town a little before sunset, so I went for a drive through town and along Moonstone. As I was coming out on Weymouth, a bigol truck passes me by
from the highway to upper Weymouth, and it's pulling a trailer with a car on it. So I'm like wait a minute, that bigol multicolored Dodge with huge steel bumper is Will! And that's Cammi's Ghia! And following behind, that's Ian and Katie in the GTF! So I chased 'em. Followed up to the new house, watched and photographed as they they unloaded it. Then Katie stayed there (because she was all fancied up and too pretty to play with VWs) and I went back to help them get their bug, which involved picking up the front end and moving it up onto the trailer since we didn't bother bringing the keys. Near the end of it, Katie called to ask if we needed the keys. I told her we didn't and that everything had gone smoothly... which was completely a lie. It was lots of fun. Lots of lighting too. I used the 100wwCT I was carrying to give Will some light to work by. Later I got 140Cgt too. When we unloaded the bug, Will drove it off the trailer and found it had no brakes, so I used both Clickies to light up the driveway as he went zipping down it. Dean commented on what a bright little light the Cgt is... while it was stepped down to about one quarter power. (Note to self and reminder to others: make sure I get a copy of my recording to him soon.)

Flashlight quote/incident of the day:
While giving Will light to hook up the trailer
Ian: mine's brighter *shines 4D Mag at me*
me: oh yeah! *shine back with wwCT*
Will: hey, I don't care whose is brighter!
me: whoops, sorry Will, I should have done it like this *turn wwCT back to the job, pull Cgt out with other hand, blast Ian with burst*

Moving day (another)

Lights: Ra Clickies 100wwCT & 140Cgt

Once again helped my mom move. Got to new place after dark, made good use of Clickies. Mainly used ww since the gt has a screwy tail that will need to be replaced. More problems with that one... Really appreciated its sustained 100lm flood when it came time to sweep around for any dropped things when clearing out the truck.

Clicky walk

Lights: Ra 140Cgt, Ra 100wwCT, Ra 70Tr, NT 120P, HDS B42XRGT, SF 6P-M60, SF G2Z-M60WL, SF L1(gen6)

Around 4am this morning I went for a walk down to the beach to compare lights and see how my new wwCT fared. So here are my brief observations.

140Cgt: This is a great light. Using it confirms my opinion that this beam style is the most useful and practical. More than any other, it just cuts a huge swath wherever you point it.

100wwCT: Good throw, very adequate, but no better than the Cgt, short of L1. Color is just beautiful of course, and that helps to give it an advantage over Cgt at a distance. Also, it just kills the B42 for throw, which it should, but it's still impressive since the 120P never really seemed to.

70Tr: Might throw a little better than ww at 70. About same at 100. Good but not amazing.

120P: Seems actually more floody than Cgt. Doesn't throw as well, but near field seems slightly brighter; very even illumination. Its mediocre tint makes things look just that little bit flatter and less pleasant, but it's really not bad on its own, at least on light surfaces like rocks.

B42XRGT: Using this light is fun, such memories, good times. It'd stood the test of time well, its tint is still very nice and it's always been able to throw very well against the 120P, even at barely more than a third the power, about. But I think it's finally done. It still carries better than any of the competing lights, but the wwCT beats it for tint and destroys it in throw. So I guess that is the true successor, at last. It took a long time to find a light I truly think is better, and it's still not better in every way.

M60: I use the M60 as my throw reference, it's the big gun when I'm not carrying a hotwire or HID. That's why I was surprised when it didn't really impress me. Admittedly, it's running on primary CRs still (since its turn as a moto headlight), instead of its usual RCRs, but it should still be doing about 230lm, so I figured it would destroy everything. It did not reach dramatically beyond the L1, just lit up the surroundings much better; a lot of light, but not a very substantial throw advantage.

M60WL: Still the best tint, just a little bit richer than the Ra. More but dimmer spill. Other than that, pretty much the same; roughly same output and throw.

L1: Impressive throw. Clearly outdoes all the other single cells, comes respectably close to the M60 (on primaries). Really solid little light, despite the fact that it's the only stock full production light going up against more expensive boutique lights and semi-custom builds. It did itself proud.

More Clickies!

After exactly a month away, My 140Cgt is back from the shop, and it brought a 100wwCT with it! Hurray!

Morro Bay wetlands (Dying Flashlight Game)

Light: Ra Twisty 70Tr

Went into the wetlands just before sunset, ended up staying longer than expected and went all the way out to the little sand spit. It was heavy dusk by the time I headed back and the only light I'd brought was the Twisty on an RCR it had been using for probably a couple weeks. It quickly dropped from full power to 35lm. When I got off the spit, I had to choose between going straight back to the road and back to my car or taking the longer, trickier, but less treacherous route around through the wetlands again. Knowing that a dying RCR will plunge through the levels pretty quickly... I decided to take the long route to make the dying flashlight game that much more satisfying. It had stepped down to about 17 or 9lm by the time I got out, but it kept going long enough to pick my way through the half soaked paths and across a small stream.

The Woodland Stretch

Contributed by Sam

Into the darkness I went. Up the streets, down the pavement, and eventually into the redwoods.

Using my 100wwcn to light my way, I scaled a small hill and found a favorite tree I like to sit against.

Just before reaching the tree, I heard sound behind me. I look and see a man, with his dog. I turn off my flashlight.

Arriving at the tree, I squat down and become completely silent and still.
I heard the man talking to his dog.

"what do you smell?"
... "what do you smell?"


The dog's collar rang out like a small bell as it climbed the terrain.
They were both in the dark.

..."what is it boy?"
"what do you smell?"

The dog arrives at my tree, presses against me.

I press my hand against it, and felt the dogs face go by in an instant. His nose smelling, breathing..
I say "Hey doggie" in a very low voice as he smells me.

The man arrives now too.

"Hey.. man.... what'cha doing?"

"I'm enjoying the dark..."

"Ah yeah, that's a good thing to be doing."
"I'mtaken my dog for a walk"

Then the man talks to his dog, and they go back the way they came.

The Basic Plunge

Light: HDS B42XRGT

I was hanging out at Linn's with Ian, Katie, Tia, Cammi, Van, and Kellen. After their style presentation bombed, the girls ignored us and started on their crazed wedding planning. Van played his iTouch games, his new favorite pastime, but I got bored. Eventually, I couldn't resist the temptation. Tia's glass of ice water had been sitting ignored the whole time, so I turned on the B42, set it to secondary, turned it nose up, and dropped it in the glass. It sat there for the rest of our night there, about half an hour.

M60 fills in on CX500

Lights: SF 6P w/Malkoff M60, HDS B42XRGT, Ra Twisty 70Tr

After some Linn'sing, Charlie and I hung around the behind the bank lot like old times. He had his cig, I had my Dragon Pearl green tea. We reminisced about bank wall tennis, car chases, old friends, the usual stuff. Got a visit from a familiar face from the past, watched some raging drunks running and screaming at each other on Bridge. Around 12.30 we decided it was time to take off, so Charlie went to fire up the motorcycle and got nothing. It's been a rainy weekend, so we figured the starter got wet or something. The headlight came on but looked a little dim, run switch was where it should be, but the starter didn't respond at all. After 10 minutes of rocking it and peering at it (with B42 and 70Tr), we finally resorted to bump starting it. First attempt only showed us how easy it is to get a 500lb bike to slide along damp pavement. Second attempt fired it right up, but suddenly it had no headlight. We let it run a little, peered at it some more, banged on the lamp, jiggled wires, jiggled ignition, nothing. He shut it off, found that it would now start up fine on its own and the headlight would flicker whenever the starter was pushed, but it died completely as soon as the engine started. We eventually had to give up on getting it to work. I switched the M60 module over to the 6P for better cooling, put in primary CRs for more reliable power, wrapped the light in electrical tape with some padding to help it sit securely, then paracorded it to the middle of his gauge cluster. It worked pretty well, plenty good enough for him to ride behind my car at 30mph through town to leave it at Tia's house. By that time it was about 1. We set off around 1.15, I got him home to Cayucos about 1.30, and he snuck into his house through the back.

Post-tea sunset walk

Me, Samy
Lights: Ra Clickies (140Cgt and 140Cn)

After the Samy farewell tea at the Cozy, Samy, Noelle, and I went down to moonstone to watch the sunset and wait for the rise of the full moon. We walked around a bit, sat and watched the ocean, and ended up using the Clickies quite a bit after sundown. When we got back to the car, we both used them to bounce light the cabin.