Black Diamond Moonlight

Review Date
January 16, 2005

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Visitors rate this review
5.00 of 5, 1 votes

Reviewed by: markhr ,  Backpacker

Price Paid:  $0.00 at generic camping stor

Summary:
GREAT product. Light, bright and easy to use. NO bulb changes - WOOHOO! Used both moonlight and moonlight pro. hard to tell the difference as the weights are similar as well as initial brightness. moonlight pro battery life is better as it uses AA's. a fully watrproof unit would be better as would a stiff battery case. If the flexible battery case is squashed it can lead to the battery contacts being bent out of shape - so the light stops working. Easy to fix though and it has only happened when I had my bergen really heavily packed.

Similar Products Used:
filament bulb head lamps

Review Date
June 12, 2004

Overall Rating
 5 of 5

Value Rating
 5 of 5

Reviewed by: GreatDivide14 ,  Backpacker

Price Paid:  $30.00 at JL Waters & Co.

Summary:
You can get cheaper, lighter, or brighter, but I stand by my choice. It's lighter than most incandescents (and goes longer on fewer batts, of course), good and bright (with two dimmer settings for around camp), and has a top strap, which I think is worth the added weight. If I were a hardcore lightfreak, I'd go for a Petzl Tikka Plus, which has most of the same features for fewer ounces, but, of course, doesn't have the top strap. If anything, I might like a more waterproof housing in case I drop it in a creek, but it's more than adequate against rain.

Similar Products Used:
Replaced an old 2 AA Princeton Tec incandescent, essentially an older version of the Solo. Got sick of changing the batteries. Not going back.

Review Date
May 22, 2004

Overall Rating
 3 of 5

Value Rating
 3 of 5

Reviewed by: CampfireKing ,  Backpacker

Price Paid:  $20.00

Summary:
While the light put off by this headlamp was good, I also had a problem with the wiring. One of the wires got a break in it, and I decided that the time to re-solder and re-waterproof the headlamp wasn't worth it. While I'm pretty hard on my gear, and I don't fault the headlamp too much for giving out, I'll be looking elsewhere for my future headlamp purchases.

Similar Products Used:
Petzl Micro - still going strong after 5 years of abuse.

Review Date
January 4, 2004

Overall Rating
 3 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Reviewed by: jethrotull4321(Unregistered User) ,  Backpacker

Price Paid:  $4.00 at REI

Summary:
i purchased this at the REI scratch & dent garage sale. THere were at least 10 of them left 2 hours after the sale opened, all with the same electrical problems, so obviously many people have had the afforementioned broken wire problem and returned them to REI. THis one had a broken solder connection in the battery pack and the broken wire problem. However, i spliced in another wire where it enters the battery pack and have not had a problem since. I have been impressed by the light output and battery economy, which outweigh the electrical problems. I don't recommend this light for anyone who can't maintain his own gear.

Customer Service:
n/a

Similar Products Used:
princeton tech 2 AA 3 LED headlamp -- works okay and can swap out LED assembly with incandescant bulb/reflector

Review Date
September 23, 2003

Overall Rating
 4 of 5

Value Rating
 4 of 5

Reviewed by: Damond(Unregistered User) ,  Backpacker

Price Paid:  $20.00 at REI

Summary:
I bought the headlamp last week from REI. They were on sale for $19.99. They may still be on sale. I like it alot. The variable beam is too close together. They should make it more broader...like have the bulbs go out instead of dim. And I would rather see it use 2 AA's instead of 3 AAA's. This would allow me to consolidate the types of batteries I'll have to back. I hate buying AAA's. Other than that, it's cool.