After a lot of research and querying the list, I finally bought a new searchlight for Touche'.
I bought this one: http://store.marinebeam.com/marinebeam-ultra-long-range-cree-rlt-illuminator/ It is pretty darn phenomenal. After using a pistol grip "Q-beam" style light for years, it will take some getting used to. This light is a bit bigger and heavier than a MagLite 2 D cell flashlight. The MarineBeam has 3 D cells. The biggest difference is the narrow beam. They claim it has very little "spillover" light to reflect off lifelines, deck, shrouds, bimini frames, etc. I certainly remember having to hold the old searchlight outside the lifelines in order to prevent being blinded by reflected light. When pointed forward, the Q-beam did, indeed, generate night vision destroying reflected light from deck, shrouds, etc. While I haven't tried it on the boat yet, a quick test in the neighborhood showed very positive results. It VERY clearly illuminated a stop sign 300 yards away. The beam was, indeed, very narrow. (Fortunately, my neighborhood is fairly peaceful. There are neighborhoods where I wouldn't do this.) At first I was concerned about finding buoys and day beacons with such a narrow beam but when I thought about it, it shouldn't be a problem. Most reflectors on marks are 2-10 feet or so above the water, a fairly small area to search. Dennis C. Touche' 35-1 #83 Mandeville, LA
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