The headlamp remains the sailor's best friend. This small accessory provides valuable services. Whether you sail at night to light the front of your boat, or during the day to see in the trunk or even to light part of the engine, the headlamp provides the lighting.
Installed on the head, it has the advantage of always lighting up where you look. Turn your head and the lamp follows you. The lamp also has a swivel head to allow it to be tilted down. This is a useful setting when you do some tinkering around, to see your hands or your work.
For sailors, we will choose a lightweight and space-saving headlamp to keep it in your pocket from your oilskin. It will also be necessary that it can withstand humidity with a protection rating of at least IPX4 .
At sea, the range is less important than in some outdoor activities. Indeed, you will not use your headlamp like a projector to locate a buoy or anchorage. The headlamp must be able to illuminate the sails and top of the mast of a sailboat, not much more.
It is also interesting to have a color lighting mode to avoid being dazzled and not damaging your night vision. Headlamps most often offer red as night lighting, green may also be preferred.
The new Plastimo F4 and F9 front-ends are entry-level models with an aggressive price tag (F4: 13.90 euros, F9: 19.90 euros). With their LED bulbs, they are powered by 3 AAA batteries for an autonomy ranging from 2 to 48 hours depending on the lighting mode chosen.
The F4 headlamp is the simplest with single beam lighting and 3 lighting powers (from 80 to 170 Lumens). Red lighting is also available. This headlamp has an IPX4 waterproofness. (F4: 13.90 euros).
More efficient, the F9 is equipped with 2 beams: a wide one that carries less far and a narrow one to concentrate the lighting. Each of these 2 beams is available with 3 lighting powers (20 to 210 Lumens). Red lighting is also provided (with continuous light mode, flash and SOS for safety). Plastimo has also integrated a whistle into the lamp headband attachment. More waterproof, this headlamp has an IPX5 waterproofness. (F9: 19.90 euros).
