Looking for a torch to replace a tesco job, the aa one. I've been looking on deal extreme and it's confusing to say the least. Basically I would like a torch same size as the tesco or maglite aa, as it needs to fit in shirt sleeve pen pocket.

Maglite….

I do like the maglites, I've got an old converted aa one, but it's not as bright as the tesco one. Is the magled any better?

I have a Fenix PD30 for work and it's the business. Depends on how much you want to pay mind you

Ive got a light that might suit you, comes with batterys,charger,bar & helmet mount.
Email in profile if you're interested.

OK, so there I was going to suggest one of the 900lmn flashlights, but that's probably a bit big. Not so sure about AA size ones, IMO they're all pretty similar, it's more a question of liking the appearance, having a good bright quality emitter and the switch having the appropriate series of modes.

Fenix

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.39062
I've had several Maglite's and frankly their light output falls well short of what DealExtreme torches provide for a lot lower price. I use Fenix torches as well, but they are pretty pricy. The one above is pretty much what you're looking for.

Oddly enough I've just had a newsletter from the people who sell these: http://www.4sevens.com/product_info.php?products_id=2320&newsletter=071910
They do lots of different lights, including the Fenix ones, it's who I bought mine from.
These could be just the ticket:
http://www.4sevens.com/index.php?cPath=297_332_367

The fenix do look good if a little expensive. Ive never seen one in the flesh, is a build quality thing that you pay for.

Yup, mine's very well put together. Comes with spare o-rings and rubbers for the buttons. Very pleased with it and it's tiny compared with my old Surefire. My PD30 runs on funny batteries though, CR20 lithium things

Get one of the new LED Maglites…

Sure, someone will link to a superobscureboutiquetorchbrand who offer one that is 0.12% brighter and costs a quid less, but Maglites are Maglites.

Run them over in a lorry, they still work.

Drop them off a cliff, they still work.

Take them to festivals and wrap them around the head of a stoat-faced Mancunian who has entered your tent at 3am and claim to be 'lost', but only after rifling through your belongings, they still work. The Mag that is, not the Mancunian's bloody head.

Very fond of my Lenser P7, haven't tried anything else but it does a good job for night time dog walking, it came with a free pen sized torch at the time that is quite good for the size, got mine on line from Blacks when they had one of their sales on, saved quite a bit at the time,
PJ.

I've got the 3d magled in the car which replaced the older halogen 3d. I've been using the tesco aa as it's brighter than my old aa maglite with an aftermarket conversion. It is heavier though.

Surefire all the way.
G2 or 6P if you don't want to spend too much, or E2E if you are a bit spendy. All work very well and spares/service is excellent.
One of my G2s got dropped out of a 4th story window and still works, albeit a little bit scuffed.

fenix are great – I've an older version of the (I think) P2D. Really small, build quality is excellent and it's grand for the occasional 2 mile walk to the station in the dark over the winter (when the bike is off the road or I'm working late).

Not cheap though.

I'm quite a fan of LED Lenser at the moment. I've got a keyring mini torch of theirs that embarrasses my trusty old 3xD-cell Maglite.

I have two Maglites and they are utter cr4p.

My small one (used in Army training) was useless – bulb fell out all the time and it was useless. My full sized Police one is worse – it has the output of a glow in the dark sticker.

My £9 Tesco AA Cree torch is about 1209581409 times better. In fact it's better than my £45 Ring LED torch – doh!

But for proper power, I use a Myo XP headtorch – that really belts out some decent light.

There is a pretty decent multiple LED torch in poundland. I use them for work and the switch seems robust. I have replaced my maglites with them.
Only downside might be 3 AAA batteries side by side so perhaps 2cm diameter. Probably not robust enough to put on a lid as a ghetto-nightride option.

Try Ultrafire C3 Q5, runs on 2 x AA but can be used with 1 x AA as well making it really small. Good quality and about 200 lumens output. I have one as well as couple of friends and family. Get the extension tube to run it with 3 AA rechargeable batteries and have around 230 lumens. http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.7938

Runtime on 2 AA and hi is about 2hrs. Flashing mode is probably 6-8hrs. I used it as a bike light and it would make a good helmet light.

Always found Maglites unreliable. Don't know if the LED variants are any better. Never had a bad experience with the LED Lensers though.