Coleman MAX Headlamp Review

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Flashlights are a wonderful thing and something that is absolutely invaluable as a survival tool. Almost any household that looses power for whatever reason – the words inevitably are said – ”Anyone know where the flashlight is?”.

Again – flashlights are great but typically have one consistent drawback – they must be held. Ever tried working on a car trying to hold a flashlight. Not the easiest thing. You end up trying to lean the flashlight up against a pile of rags or a tool box at just the right angle to light up what you need to see.

One answer is the headlamp. I have had a few of these and they have been OK. They have been low power with the older generation LED’s. Battery life is great as usual with LED’s – but just not very bright. I decided to try something different.

Enter – the Coleman 108 lumen 3-AAA Battery Headlamp.

I picked this up at Wal-Mart for just a tad under $25.00. No doubt on the upper end of the price range for mefor a headlamp. You can buy a very nice and powerful flashlight for $25.00 – but of course it’s not going to be hands-free.

Here are some specs:

5 different light settings: High/Medium/Low, Red (Night Vision), Blue (Sportsman’s Light)

LED Headlamp also includes red light for improved night vision, blue light for map reading

Cree® XLamp® XP-C LED

108 lumens of output on high; 53 on medium; 19 on low

7 hours of run-time on high, 12 hours on medium, 21 hours on low

51 M of beam distance on high; 35 M on medium; 21 M on low

Includes 3 AAA batteries

Easy to adjust headband

After opening the package – which was not easy – I put the included AAA batteries in the unit. I tried the headlamp on my head without adjusting the band – it was perfect. It felt very snug and sturdy. Other headlamps that I have owned have had bands that were thin, too weak, or too narrow to stay securely in place.

I turned on the light which was very easy to do while mounted as the knob is large and has a ribbed surface. Turning in one direction turns on the red and then the blue LED’s. Turning in the other direction turns on the 3 power levels of white light. Honetly – I was pretty impressed with the single LED on high setting. It is bright!!

Here are some pictures of the light compared to a standard AA powered Maglite. By the way – the wall is blue.

Lowest White LED Setting

Highest White LED Setting

RED LED Setting

BLUE LED Setting

Summary - I am very impressed with this headlamp. Water resistant, comfortable, versatile – and super bright. I found it very easy to adjust the settings while it is mounted and also easy to angle the light. The strap seems pretty rugged – with a lot of adjustment.

I placed the Coleman MAX on my head while I clean my S&W M&P9. It helped a lot as I was able to use hands. I walked out of my garage last night and looked across the street. Much to my surprise and satisfaction – the Coleman MAX lit up my neighbor’s garage. This thing is very bright.

If you are looking for a quality headlamp – I recommend this one.

Rourke