Originally Posted By: PacecarCaptainJ: Your choice of lights are not an "overkill", more like an underkill with respect to long distance throw of the light beam. An XM-L emitter provide lots of flood lighting, but takes special optics to provide throw. The single C8 LED you're looking at would have good throw if the LED chosen was the XR-E.
Red gel paper drastically reduces the light output from an LED type of light. For red light, it's better to get the red LED.
Thanks for the advice. I did a lot more research and settled on the SkyRay STL-V2. I ordered it from DinoDirect (they use a generic description for it, but it's the same light @ $10 cheaper with coupon) and I just got it this weekend. I haven't been able to take it hunting yet, but I tested it out last night. There's a stop sign at the end of my street @ exactly 300 yards from my driveway. There are no streetlights or anything by it, so at night you can't even see it's there. With the red gel over the light I was able to get the stop sign to light up like I was standing right next to it (everything thing else around it still completely dark). I know a stop sign is a lot bigger and more reflective than a coyote's eyes, but as easily as it lit up that sign, I have no doubt I can see eyes at 300 yards.
Then I flipped up the cap of the scope cover to remove the red filter, and the white light lit up the house that's behind the stop sign (330 yards away) like it was daytime. This thing's got some serious throw! I'm planning on taking it out hunting this week, so I'll see how it does in the field and report back. I'm very happy with this purchase, and I got it almost exactly 2 weeks from the day I placed the order.
From Manafont with all the details:
http://www.manafont.com/product_info.php...03cr123a-p-7191
From Dino Direct (cheaper):
http://www.dinodirect.com/flashlights-1000lumens-cree-t6-led.html