Review: Black Diamond Spot Headlamp

Review: Black Diamond Spot Headlamp

Black Diamond Spot Headlamp

A headlamp is an absolute necessity in a climber's kit. It's one of those gadgets that you don't need at all... until you do. And when you do it's usually a sketchball situation where you're glad you have the headlamp. Our team had just such an experience lately and were fortunate enough to have a Black Diamond Spot Headlamp ($29.95 on Amazon) for the job.

Team RI was doing a leisurely 7 pitch trad route at First Creek Slabs with a team of four just outside of Red Rocks Canyon in Las Vegas -- It was supposed to be a quick day trip. A three hour touuur.... Lady Luck (5.7) is a great moderate slab haul with a huge variety of climbing: big hollow huecos, forgiving slab with balancey moves, some exposed arete areas, a couple of juicy fist crack sections, and basically everything you'd want out of an afternoon of moderate multipitch climbing. The descent, on the other hand, was a total bear. We ended up getting lost and rapping in the dark. You probably saw that coming.

Enter the hero of our story, Black Diamond's Spot Headlamp. Two of us on the team had this headlamp and the other two of us had some generic crappy ones from Wal-Mart. We going to credit the Black Diamond Spot Headlamp with keeping us from ending up as hamburger meat at the bottom of a sparsely-traveled sandstone cliff. We'd like to thank all the appropriate deities and BD for keeping us safe for the umpteenth time.

Black Diamond Spot Headlamp in action.

The lamp itself is BD's entry level device and the cheapest one they make. The 2013 model is for sale at $29.97, and it's one of the best value headlamps you'll find. Even though it's Black Diamond's lowest model, the headlamp performs better than either of the department store headlamps our team had. It's bright. We used it on our abseil fiasco and it allowed us to spot features and anchors in the pitch black of Nevada night from around 50 feet.

Since it's the entry level model, it doesn't have much in the way of features, but we're okay with that. At the end of the day, your headlamp has one job and must do it well. The Black Diamond Spot cranks out 90 lumens, which isn't as much as more expensive models, but it was plenty for pitch black rapping misadventures. Maybe if you're a kayaker or mountain biker, you might want a brighter lamp. For a climber, BD's 90 lumen light is plenty. The headlamp has several different LEDs on it, including a red one that is designed to preserve your night vision. The main light set has a fader which allows you to turn down the brightness. We could see that being useful in dusky situations or when you're trying to infiltrate an enemy compound or something. 

We totally didn't die. Thanks BD!

The hot

The BD Spot Headlamp is an affordable multi-lumen fiend from one of the most trusted names in alpine sports. It's $29 bucks. That's cheaper than a sandwich and a beer at a ski lodge. It's an incredibly high-value head lamp with great performance and a long battery life. 

The not

It's hard to find any gripes about it. It's a stripped down lamp without many features. It doesn't have rechargeable batteries, it doesn't have an over-the-head strap, and it won't call you back after a first date. It's 90 lumens. If you can find a better lamp for the price, let us know! 

The bottom line

The Black Diamond Spot Headlamp ($29.97 on Amazon) is a little powerhouse of a lamp at a great price point. We credit it on saving our hides on multiple occasions. If you want a durable, powerful lamp for a low price, look no further. The Black Diamond Spot Headlamp is a great value and doesn't skimp on performance.

Be safe, 

Ariel Castro

Rugged Innovations