As a big fan of LED Lenser products I was really pleased as part of the sponsored kit for the Torq Trail Team I received a SEO 5 headtorch. I already have a H7 which I think is a great price of kit.
Appearance wise the torch is a nice bright colour and there are several to choose from including white, black, green, blue and as in my case red.
Unlike my H7 the battery pack and lamp are all in one unit with no cables and the risk of damaging a cable between the two. The headband is very thick and is adjustable. The thickness accounts for the fact that there is now more weight on the front with no separate battery pack to the rear. Though overall weight is down on the H7 and H5.
It’s really easy to use with a single switch on top controlling all the functions. I would recommend reading the instructions as it will help with using all the features available.
Basically there are 3 settings on white light and two on red.
There is a full power setting with one press of the power switch. If you then press it again within 2 seconds it switches to the second setting which is adjustable from 15-100% of full power by holding the button down and releasing it at the setting required as it cycles through the levels. It will the remember that setting for the next use. There is also the usual flashing mode for signalling or getting attention.
There are then 2 red light settings with a solid light and flashing mode which is great for moving around in the dark in a room or tent but without blinding or waking people or signalling.
You can also adjust the focus of the beam by rotating the white disc on the lens to adjust from tight focus to wide flood. This gives you the power to look for stuff in the distance when navigating and back to flood for placing feet and general movement on the trails.
The lamp can also be tilted down by pulling the lamp forward to find the best position for whatever you’re doing. At a really bright 180 lumens on film power and about 120m distance on tight focus with the 3xAAA batteries lasting 7 hours on full and up to 25 hours on its lowest setting it will easily fitball your needs for at least one nights trailer running and in reality a couple of nights with lower. Settings should be easily achievable on one set of batteries. The batteries are really easy to change with a simple clip to push you with a finger or nail and swap out the batteries.
I have used this headtorch now on a few races and lots of training runs and have had no problems with it. I have found a setting on the adjustable setting that I like for general navigating and trail running. It’s easy to use and comfortable to wear even all night and has been robust enough to survive drops and knocks and be bounced around in a pack whilst travelling. It’s waterproof and will survive a reasonable dunking and still work.
There are more powerful versions and more basic versions and even rechargeable option where you can charge the batteries without removing.
In summary its a really good bit of kit that provides good light and good burn time in a nice robust package and I really like mine. I tend to grab it now in place of my old H7 as my first choice.
You can buy them at many online shops including UltraMarathonRunningStore.com