Back in the mid 1990’s I was the first to review the original Samalite headlight in Improve Your Sea Fishing magazine. I gave it a top review after exhaustive testing and my review proved to be accurate, for over the years the Samalite became the number one seller in the quality higher priced headlights with unbeatable reliability and performance.

To prove the point I still have my original Samalite, incredibly with its original battery, and I’ve been using it, and abusing it, ever since that first day to this. Its power, durability and reliability prove the point of you get what you pay for!

But Samalite have just introduced their new generation headlight, the Samalite LED 600 and it looks set to dominate the market for some time to come. SMP Electronics, the manufacturers of the Samalite range, have wisely allowed LED technology to rumble on to a predicted level before entering the market. They’ve waited until technology advanced far enough to provide them with an unbeatable headlight.

TEST CONDITIONS
I tested the LED 600 over a two month period including a prolonged stint in Ireland where we caught conger to 30lb off the shore in the pitch dark on a mark that was like a skating rink and seeing where you were going was a must!

The headlight has fished on open beaches with blowing sand, endured heavy persistent drizzle that gets in to everything (bar the Samalite), plus the headlight was left soaking wet in my shore tackle box for 5 days while I was off boat fishing. I also inadvertently dropped it on to a muddy bank which saw it splattered all over in mud. It came through the field testing fully intact!

FEATURES
The LED 600 features both a Wide and Round lense option. The Wide lens is ideal for general fishing from beaches and breakwaters as it gives a wide pool of light, so much so that you can fully illuminate your base camp when looking at your rod tips. The pooled light in low power is perfect for baiting up, you use mid power for general work and high power comes in to play for landing fish and illuminating a wider working area.

The round version offers a more concentrated beam of light. This penetrates a good 100 yards plus and is ideal for picking out fish either in the surf or from rocks in a  good swell, and for spotting lobster pot buoys when you’re playing fish. This light is perfect for rock fishing as it has the long range power, but again pools light in front of you illuminating your feet and the immediate ground in front of you making rock fishing that much safer when you’re working close to rock edges or walking on very uneven ground.

I also hear from SMP that they’re working on an add on lense that will fit on the round LED 600 and concentrate the light beam in to a pencil beam. It’s designed for night shooting, but might also be of interest to rock anglers who need to look ultra long range as well!

Both lights have three output options. Low power lasts 10 hours, mid power 6.5 hours and high power 4.5 hours. You just keep pressing the switch to go through the power output options and to turn the light off and on in sequence

The high powered 10W LED puts out 600 lumens and will last for years, it never needs replacing so you don’t have to worry about carrying spare bulbs etc. I understand from SMP that there is also a higher powered 1300 lumen headlight about to come in to the range too, but frankly the 600 model gives masses of power for virtually every fishing situation I can think of.

The headband is designed for use on hard hats, also for use on bare heads or under a bobble hat. It is made from tough ergonomic/ventilated polypropylene with a small adjustable elasticated strap at the back. The head band is extremely comfy worn just on the bare head. I find fully elasticated headbands can cause a pressure problem and become uncomfortable on the head after prolonged wearing, but the headband on the Samalite fully avoids this and remains comfortable at all times.

The battery is a lightweight, 5ah, non memory, Lithium ion type designed for constant recharging and takes about 5 hours to recharge The battery is also small measuring just 3-inches wide and 1¾ -inches deep, and that’s measured in the case as well!

I also like the fact that the battery has a push in connector which means when not in use the battery can be fully isolated to avoid inadvertently turning the headlight on. That said, with the connectors connected, there’s a green light behind the main switch which glows when the light is powered up.

The battery weighs about 202 grams and the full headlight unit and battery combined about 355 gram so its very light and comfy to wear and carry. If you prefer there is an extension lead available allowing the battery to be either worn on a belt, or in a pocket. There is also a dual battery kit available to double your running time.

What I also like about SMP Electronics is that they think out of the box and have made the new headlight and battery compatible with the all their old range as well so you can buy a new headlight and connect it to an old but good battery.

CONCLUSION
The headlight proved comfy at all times worn over my bare and now balding head, also over a bobble hat. At no time did I feel the uncomfortable pressure of the headband around my head as I do with fully elasticated headbands.

The light is easy to switch on via the round press in switch at the rear of the unit and quick to move up through the different power options when you need more power such as when looking for or landing a fish.

I didn’t have the LED 600 out in heavy rain, but it was out in persistent heavy drizzle and the light gave no problem. In fact the guys at SMP tell me in their personal testing they’ve immersed the round type LED light and battery in a bucket of water until it went out, dried the light over a couple of days, and it switched on and worked perfectly again straight away when dry. I wouldn’t recommend this, but it illustrates the tough and reliable build of the lamp.

I was using the round type as I need to spot fish at range when rock fishing and found the beam amazing with both long range clarity and a pooled light to the side and front of you so you can see where you’re putting your feet. The light is intense and bright, not diffused like other lights I’ve tried. On low power you still have a good working beam with range, but also that pooled light ideal for watching rod tips and baiting up.

I switch between low power, medium power and full power depending on what I’m doing at the time, but even after fishing 7 hours straight through the dark the light was still as powerful and clear as ever.

The Wide version I found is ideal when working from a base camp on open beaches when a long range beam is of no advantage. It illuminates all the area you need to see to the sides, in front and above so you can keep half an eye on your rod tips.

I’ve tried hard to find fault with the Samalite LED 600 headlight as that’s exactly what SMP Electronics to their credit asked me to do, but I genuinely can’t. It’s proved to be the best headlight I’ve ever used and the jump in performance over my old original Samalite is massive, as you’d expect.

I understand that it’s a high price compared to most other available headlights, but in my opinion this Samalite LED 600 headlight is worth every single penny and is well worth saving up for. I think it’s the best on the market and will appeal to anglers who need a totally reliable headlight for serious fishing situations!

PRICE
Both the Wide and Round version Samalite LED 600 Headlights retail for £235.00 plus VAT. They come complete with their own mains electric charging unit and battery extension lead.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
Contact SMP Electronics,
Unit 6,
Border Farm,
Station Road,
Chobham,
Woking,
Surrey
GU24 8AS.

Tel: 01276 855166.
Fax: 01276 855115.
E-mail: sales@smpelectronics.com

The Samalite LED 600 is also available in some good tackle shops or contact SMP Electronics for your nearest stockist.

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