Headlamps are a crucial component to any hunter, especially if they are in unfamiliar territory. If you have found a piece of land on your computer or have been told about some land to hunt on, you want to make sure that your hunting gear includes a headlamp to ensure your safety regardless of what kind of animal – turkey, deer or elk – you are hunting.
After all, trying to walk and carry a gun in the dark, unacquainted territory can lead to devastating and potentially fatal consequences. Headlamps make the hunting experience far more enjoyable.
There are all kinds of headlamps for runners, hikers, and backpackers, but the list is much smaller when it comes to the best hunting headlamps. If you go hunting before the light enters the sky, choose a headlamp with color modes – red, blue or green. If nighttime hunting is what you’ll be doing, be sure you find a bright headlamp that helps you feel confident that you’ll hit your mark when shooting.
You also want to be mindful of lumens and beam distance. The best hunting headlamps will have worthwhile optical parts to them, which is more important than the specifications. Simply put, you want to focus on the LED lights – once that deliver clearer and brighter lights.
5 Best Headlamps That Will Make Hunting Safer
Lepro LED Rechargeable Headlamp with Motion Sensor
Lepro ensures its LED Rechargeable Headlamp is usable to any USB port and that you can turn it on and off with a simple hand wave due to the motion sensor installment. It has 20 hours of constant 1500Lux light and is designed with three white brightness levels – low, high and strobe. Lepro also provides a red light option that will flash or stay constant.
It can be used for any reason you need it – dog walking, night fishing, hiking, camping, etc. You can also fix it tightly to your head so that it won’t slide or shake when you’re running and is hardly noticeable as it’s a mere two ounces in weight.
Lepro ensured its light was protected from water and outdoor elements, making it highly durable. Its durability also extends to being dropped accidentally, ensuring that it can be taken outdoors without any significant issues.
While other headlamp designs have a 45-degree tilt angle, Lepro designed its LED Rechargeable Headlamp with Motion Sensor with a 60-degree adjustable angle, so you don’t have to strain your neck to look around.
Black Diamond Spot 400 Headlamp
Black Diamond improve its Spot 350 with the Spot 400 Headlamp, which has a 400-lumen output. It’s also much lighter than the Spot 350. It’s equipped with two primary white light modes for proximity and distance. In proximity mode, your entire immediate area is bathed in light. For distance, you can see further ahead of you. Black Diamond also offers a red light and strobe feature that can be activated without the need to cycle through any mode.
What makes the Spot 400 so great is that Black Diamond made sure it’s got an IPX8 waterproof rating – ideal for people who will hunt in wet conditions such as snow or rain.
You can either use the rechargeable function of the headlamp, which consists of a BD 1500 Li-ion battery or use 3 AAA batteries.
When used on high, the BD 1500 can work up to four hours, whereas the batteries will only last two and a half hours.
At low, the BD 1500 is 225 hours compared to just 200 for the batteries.
Black Diamond Storm 450 Headlamp
Black Diamond improved its Storm line with the 450, which is lighter than the model before and only needs 3 AAA batteries compared to four previously. This change in battery capacity and power means a run time drop. The Storm 450 uses the Dual-Fuel BD 1500 rechargeable batteries, similar to the Spot 400. The Storm 450 includes red, green and blue LED light options, whereas the Spot 400 has only a red and strobe option. Keep in mind that run times between the older Storm 400 and Storm 450 are also different, with the latter seeing an increase when the BD 1500 rechargeable battery pack is used.
Although it is more powerful than the Spot 400 with 50 extra lumens, the Storm 450 is not as waterproof (it’s got an IP67 rating). Therefore, you need to be mindful not to get it wet to ensure it stays in working condition.
L.L. Bean Trailblazer Sportsman 420 Headlamp
If you like the customer satisfaction guarantee that L.L. Bean offers, you’ll want to look at the L.L. Bean Trailblazer Sportsman 420 Headlamp. While the company doesn’t outright say it, its latest model appears to be designed and produced by U.S.-based Princeton Tec. After all, its construction is similar to the Princeton Tec Vizz 420-lumen.
L.L. Bean’s 420 Headlamp will provide users with 420 lumens, a 110-hour battery life and IPX7 waterproof rating. You can also adjust the beams, bringing the spot beam to just 25 lumens. You can adjust the 50 lumens of white flood light down to 10 lumens.
Another noteworthy similarity aspect but the difference is the night vision color – L.L. Bean has a green LED night vision; the Princeton Tec Vizz uses a red LED night vision.
Petzel Tactikka+ RGB Headlamp
This is the latest headlamp by Petzl Tactikka, which puts out 350 lumens and is a mix of both close proximity and distance. Therefore, you can use it while walking a dark trail, allowing you to see the rocks and branches and the space ahead of you.
It has two battery options – Petzel Core rechargeable battery or 3AAA batteries. Its 1250 mAh Li-ion battery pack has a built-in micro USB charging port and an indicator light that lets you know its strength. You can charge the battery before going out on your morning hunt and have 3AAA batteries on hand if the hunting goes into the nighttime hours or there is an emergency.
Petzl’s blue, green and red night vision modes make it rise above many other hunting headlamps, which is ideal for those who have an easier time seeing in those colors. On top of that, it’s got an IPX4 waterproof rating so that it can withstand some rain and snow.
Lepro provides high-quality headlamps for hunting with motion sensors, USB cables, or a 3AAA battery. Kindly consider Lepro when choosing LED headlamps.
