Here is the new "Must -Have List" thread after the transition from RichS to myself. I would first like to thank RichS for the start of such a monumental thread and all the hard work it took to maintain it. I only hope that I can do a comparable job.

It would be very interesting to see which lights would be considered a " must have " by the die-hard flashaholics of the CPF Community. These wouldn't necessarily be lights of one specific size, output, range, purpose, or price range, but are lights that for some reason would make you say it is a " must-have " light.

To fit in this category, it must meet the following criteria:

* NOTE: The below criteria were updated in 2011 to remove restrictions which made it impossible for some to list all of their true "must-have" lights.

It has to be a " must-have " for you. Meaning, of the lights you own , this one is a " must" have - and therefore you would never consider selling it. (unless of course you were in dire straits)

It must be a specific light - this is a specific " must-have " flashlight for you, not a favorite manufacturer or line of flashlights

It is not a list of lights you own - if you have more than one light you feel is a true " must-have " light, feel free to list more than one. However, we want to avoid individuals indiscriminately listing all their lights. **Please limit your total votes to no more than seven (7) lights. This doesn't mean you should automatically list 7 of your lights, but this is the limit.

I want to make sure this is a highly endorsed list of lights by the CPF Community, so I will only add a light to the " must have " list after it has been recommended as a " must have " by at least 5 CPF members. As the number of nominations increase, the number needed to be on the must-have list will be increased to keep the list at a Top 10. The " must-have " list can't always remain at exactly 10 lights due to voting ties which may put it a little past 10 lights at times.

I'll start with my own " must have " lights: Ra Clicky - extremely versatile, practically indestructable and highly efficient / M6 - one of the best incans with tons of options making it a very practical incan / A2 - one of the only regulated incans available, with the practicality of long-run LEDs when needed / McGizmo Haiku - simply perfection of design, beautiful beam pattern, indestructable Ti.

NOTE: For those of you who are non-Flashaholics or new to this forum, you should be aware that several of the models lend themselves to be very easily modded. For example any of the models using a P60 sized dropin (developed by SureFire), such as the SureFire 6P, C2, Solarforce L2, L2m, etc., can be easily converted from an incandescent to LED, or from a stock LED to a new higher output LED. In fact, this ability to easily be modded/upgraded may in fact be large factor for it being included in the "Must-Have " list. As these lights cannot be purchased as a host only, they are listed as a complete light.

______________________

The complete tabulated data from 6-8-2012

*The Flashaholic's "Must-Have" List* (Top 10 Lights by Ranking) *currently 20 or More Nominations*



Manufacturer Light Vote Count





HDS Systems EDC (Ra Clicky) & Rotary (86) SureFire 6P (60) Zebralight H501 (39) Nitecore D10 (36) SureFire C2 (35) Fenix E01 (33) SureFire A2 (29) iTP A3 EOS (27) SureFire M6 (23) 4Sevens Quark AA (22)

The Nominees (& Number of Nominations)

Manufacturer Light Vote Count



HDS Systems EDC (Ra Clicky) & Rotary (86) SureFire 6P (60) Zebralight H501 (39) Nitecore D10 (36) SureFire C2 (35) Fenix E01 (33) SureFire A2 (29) iTP A3 EOS (27) SureFire M6 (23) 4Sevens Quark AA (22) LiteFlux LF2XT (21) SureFire LX2 (21) 4Sevens Quark MiNi AA (20) Malkoff M61 P60 Drop-in * (17) McGizmo Haiku (17) 4Sevens Quark MiNi 123 (15) 4Sevens Quark AA^2 (15) HDS Systems EDC Twisty (Ra Twisty) (15) SureFire U2 Digital Ultra (14) Malkoff MD2 * (13) Fenix TK20/TK21 (12) Fenix LOD/LD01 (12) Muyshondt Aeon (12) 4Sevens Quark 123^2 (11) Fenix L2D/LD20 (11) Fenix TK40/TK41 (11) Maglite/KevinL Mag ROP (11) Photon Freedom (11) SureFire E1B Backup (11) SureFire L1 (11) Arc AAA (10) SureFire E2e (10) 4Sevens Quark MiNi CR2 (9) Dereelight DBS (9) SureFire E2DL (9) Zebralight SC600 (9) 4Sevens Quark 123 (8) Fenix TK11 (8) Maratac AAA (8) Solarforce L2 (8) Zebralight H51 (8) 4Sevens Preon REVO (7) 4Sevens Preon II (7) Lummi Orb RAW (7) Malkoff MD3 Wildcat (7) NovaTac 120P (7) Olight M20 Warrior (7) SureFire G2 (7) Zebralight SC50 (7) Jetbeam RRT-0 (6) Nitecore EX10 (6) Olight M30/31 (6) Zebralight SC30 (6) Cool Fall Spy007 (5) Cool Fall Tri-V (5) Fenix P2D/PD20 (5) Maglite 3D (5) Princeton Tec EOS Headlamp (5) EagleTac M2XC4 (4) Fenix PD30/31 (4) Maglite Mini-Mag 2xAA (4) Maglite 6D (4) Malkoff Hound Dog (4) Modamag Draco (4) Peak Eiger (4) SureFire C3 (4) SureFire Titan T1A (4) Zebralight SC51 (4) 4Sevens Quark Turbo 123^2 (3) 4Sevens Maelstrom (3) Arc 6 (3) CMG Infinity (3) EagleTac P20C2 mkII (3) EagleTac T20C2 MKII (3) Fenix TK30 (3) Fenix TK35 (3) Fenix E05 (3) Fenix LD10 (3) iTP A2 (3) Jetbeam Jet-1 Pro (3) Lumapower Incendio (3) Maglite Mini-Mag LED AA (3) McGizmo Sundrop (3) Nitecore EZAA (3) Olight SR 90 Intimidator (3) Oveready Bored/Modified 6P Host * (3) SureFire 9P (3) SureFire L4 (3) SureFire Z2 (3) SureFire E1e (3) SureFire E1L (3) Zebralight SC60 (3) 4Sevens Preon I (2) Arc LS (2) BigBeam Lantern (2) EagleTac P10C2 (2) Eveready Dolphin (2) Fenix HP10 (2) Fenix TA21 (2) Fenix TK45 (2) Fenix P1D (2) Fenix ED01 (2) Gerber Infinity Ultra (2) iTP A1 (2) Jetbeam M1X (2) Jetbeam Jet-III M (2) Jetbeam ba20 (2) Klarus XT-11 (2) Lummi Wee (2) Mac Customs SST-50 EDC (2) Mac Customs Mag623 (2) Maglite Solitare (2) Maglite 2D (2) Mag-mod Mag P7 (2) Malkoff M60 P60 Drop-in * (2) Malkoff Mag Drop-in * (2) Malkoff M31 P60 Drop-In * (2) McGizmo Ti PDs (2) Nitecore D11 / D11.2 (2) Peak Shasta (2) Photon Micro-light II (2) Photon Rex (2) Photon Proton Pro (2) Polarion PH40 (2) Romisen RC-N3 (2) Solarforce Masterpiece Pro 1 turbo head * (2) Solarforce L2P (2) Stanley HID 0109 (2) Streamlight SuperTac (2) Streamlight Strion (2) Sunwayman V10R (2) SureFire E2D (2) SureFire E2L (2) SureFire M2 (2) SureFire Kroma (2) SureFire 6P LED (2) SureFire G2X Pro (2) Thrunite Catapult (2) Tiablo A10-G (2) Xeno Cube E11 V7 (2) Zebralight H30 (2) Zebralight H51Fc (2) 4Sevens Quark RGB (1) 4Sevens Quark MiNi AA^2 (1) 4Sevens Quark 18650 Tactical (1) 4Sevens S12 Maelstrom (1) AELight 35/50 HID (1) AKOray K-106 (1) Arcmania X6 (1) Black & Decker 2AA Clip Light (1) Coast X-21 (1) Deft HO (1) Delghi Iris (1) Dereelight Javelin (1) Dry 3XML (1) EagleTac P10A (1) EagleTac P100A2 (1) Eastward YJ J09 / J08 (1) Electrolumens Anglelux 1W (1) Electrolumens EDC MCE (1) Electrolumens Firesword (1) Energizer AA headlamp (1) Fenix E10 (1) Fenix TK10 (1) Fenix TA30 (1) Fenix E20 (1) Fenix LD15 (1) Fenix TK70 (1) FiveMega D36 1x26650 Host * (1) Gatlight V3 (1) HyperBeam Elite 7G (1) IlluminaTi R5 (1) Inova T1 (1) Inova X1 (1) Inova X5 (1) iTP C7 (1) Jetbeam Jet-I AA (1) Jetbeam RRT-1 (1) Jetbeam TC-R3 (1) Jetbeam RRT-3 (1) Jetbeam RRT-2 (1) Jetbeam jet 2 IBS (1) Jetbeam PA10 (1) Jetbeam PA20 (1) Jetbeam PC20 (1) Klarus NT20 (1) Led Lenser P7 (1) Led Lenser V8 (1) Led Lenser V2 (1) Led Lenser M14 (1) Led Lenser T7 (1) Lighthound 5mm Keychain (1) Lumapower D-Mini VX Ultra (1) Mac Customs SST-50 Mag Drop-In (1) Mac Customs XM-L (1) Maglite XL100 (1) Maglite Mag85 (1) Maglite 4D (1) Malkoff MD4 Wildcat (1) McGizmo Sapphire (1) McGizmo Lunasol 20 (1) MG P-Rocket (1) Microfire Pioneer (1) Moddoo Triple-XPG P60 Drop-in * (1) Muyshondt Mako (1) Neofab Legion II SST-50 (1) Nitecore Defender Infinity (1) Nitecore EZCR2 (1) Nitecore SR3 (1) no name shower head looking lite (1) Olight T25 (1) Olight SR 51 (1) Olight I3 EOS (1) Olight M51 (1) Peak El Capitan (1) Peak Beam Systems Maxabeam (1) Pelican 7060 LED (1) Petzl Takktica XP (1) Photonfanatic KillerAAA (1) Polarion PH50 (1) Power On Board 35W HID (1) Princeton Tec Apex (1) Princeton Tec Pulsar II Red (1) Princeton Tec Remix Pro (1) Rayovac 300L Lantern (1) Rayovac 2AA Penlight (1) Romisen RC-G2 (1) Romisen RC-29A (1) Solarforce L2M (1) Solarforce L2R (1) Spark SD6-460NW (1) StenLight S7 (1) Streamlight Stinger XT (1) Streamlight Tasklight 3XAA (1) Streamlight Microstream (1) Streamlight TLR-1 (1) Sunwayman M10A (1) Sunwayman T20C (1) Sunwayman V10R (1) SureFire 6P LED Defender (1) SureFire G2Z (1) SureFire G3 (1) SureFire M3TL (1) SureFire Saint (1) SureFire Stratum (1) SureFire Helmet Light HL-1-D (1) SureFire C2 LED (1) SureFire Beast (1) SureFire 12zm (1) SureFire 6c (1) SureFire G2 LED (1) SureFire Hellfighter (1) Surefire M3 (1) SureFire L2 Digital (1) Surefire L6 (1) SureFire 9Z (1) SureFire UB3T Invictus (1) Thrunite P60 3-mode Drop-In * (1) Thrunite TN 11 (1) Thrunite Scorpion (1) Thrunite Ti (1) UltraFire C3 (1) UltraFire RL-2088 (1) Velore AA (1) Vital Gear FB1 * (1) Wolf-Eyes M90 (1) Xeno E03 XM-L (1) Xeno G5 V6 (1) Zebralight H60 (1) Zebralight H600 (1) Dereelight C2H (0)



Highest Number of "Must-Have" Votes by Manufacturer (Those w/ 2% or more)

Manufacturer Sum of Vote % of Total SureFire - 283 23% 4Sevens - 126 10% Fenix - 124 10% HDS Systems - 101 8% Zebralight - 82 7% Nitecore - 50 4% Malkoff - 48 4% iTP - 33 3% McGizmo - 24 2% Jetbeam - 24 2% Maglite - 23 2%

CRITERIA AND LOGIC ADDED ALONG THE WAY

 Why not break up the Must-Have list into categories?

Originally Posted by Kestrel / RichS

[Kestrel] CPF has had a significant quantity of "Pick the best in each category: 1) Keychain 2) EDC 3) Spotter ... " type of threads - one problem being that my EDC might be your "spotter" for example. Cross-pollination between categories is extremely problematic.

 Why not have separate votes for the same light but with different emitters/configurations?

 What about having a category if price were not object?

Originally Posted by TedTheLed

I would like to make a suggestion.



Have a category for a light or two you would most like if PRICE WERE NO OBJECT,



this would then allow us to see the opinions of many members based on their knowledge and not just their ability to buy and own.



Obviously not alot of us are buying $700 - $2000 lights, like the Maxabeam or Polarion, or Titaniums -- but many more of us have read up on them and have educated opinions..should anyone need guidance in this area..

some day..

Originally Posted by TedTheLed

gotcha. but, just consider; case in point, someone shopping for a, say 'Maxabeam' type '46 quadrillion lumens' light. Using this list they come up with one name; Maxabeam. Is it not a disservice to this person to not advise them of other brand lights that put out very similar beams at half or a third of the cost of a Maxabeam? Just so that they are aware?

 What about lights like the 6P that are voted for only to be bought and upgraded like a host?

Originally Posted by wyager (And others..)

Exactly... If I was a noob, this is the first thread I would come to to look for a light to buy... I would feel pretty bad if I made someone spend like $60 on a light that's pretty crappy without upgrading the lamp, and they had no clue this was the case. That said, if it said "6P with so and so dropin", you're setting them up to buy an awesome light and letting them know what they're getting in to.

Amen! And that is why I thought there was another section for modded lights on this thread. It doesn't seem like it's following the spirit of this thread at all to vote for a "shell" that folks modded... Perhaps an asterisk could be added to the 6P saying that it is a must-have since it can be modded so well?

 Why was the Must be currently available rule removed?

Originally Posted by NonSenCe

In my mind i believe "Availibility" is key factor in must have list like this. -make another thread for those Must have Dream lights (in production or discontinued)



-also on that note.. is nitecore d10 still sold? do you count d10 d10sp and d11 as the same light? i would only count the d11 to be ok as substitute of d10.. so you could add the d11 along the side of d10 on the list. or better yet. make the d11 the main light and put the (d10) like this.