We know that not all vehicles can go off-road terrain joy-riding. Retail can limit anglers to products they purchase without regard to the local water culture. Here is all you need to know when purchasing fishing lights. You must buy the light that performs best in the waters you will be hunting.
Written By Capt Lee Noga
Toy Light (LUCK)
- Single Mode (ON/OFF) – Dumb light.
- NO expanded purpose, solely a light source.
- Popular in calm freshwater applications.
- Angler has no control. You fish based on how the light decides to settle or bobble.
- Luck cannot be repeated and leads to inconsistent results.
- Toy lights have short cords
- Subject to bait blackouts since it is an attractant.
- Top Down Lighting spooks winter nocturnal shrimp that avoid light. This includes the Full moon.
- No deployment instructions.
- No flotation accessories.
- No hardware to affix a rope anchor.
- They are not built to sustain. the weight of an anchoring device.
- Tube lights have a short life expectancy in hostile tidal waters.
- No instructions/educational pointers.
- Short warranties or Home Made.
Tool Light (Science)
- Expanded purpose light with a single mode (one) (ON/OFF) – Dumb light.
- Expanded purpose light means it has other advantages & purposes besides being a light source. Ability to anchor and set the depth of the light.
- Look for metal-frame lights such as the MacDaddy Fishing Lights™. PVC/glass tube lights break in hostile conditions and struggle with heat dissipation when offering high lumens.
- Angler has total control & ability to manipulate marine life using proven strategies using multiple lights.
- 33 ft cord, recommended.
- The longer the cord, the more lumens are lost traveling an extra-long cord.
- Ropes with anchors were accepted as the gold standard. Setting depths was and remains the standard.
- You cannot battle bait/catfish blackouts with a single-mode tool light.
- Depth Setting system (Depth – 8). Explained in detail in the online .PDF file below about how to use Light deployment strategies.
- Light Deployment Strategies to Manipulate Shrimp. Click Here to read/download teaching manual
- 6 Month – 2-year Warranty.
- Beware Of Lifetime Warranties.
TOOLBOX Light
- Expanded purpose light that has multiple modes besides (ON/OFF) – Smart light
- In 2012 MacDaddy Fishing Lights™ expanded the TOOL light into the first TOOLBOX light using three battery clips. See pic above.
- Expanded purpose light means the light has other advantages & purposes besides being a light source.
- 2016 -The 3-clip toolbox light evolved into a Patented MacDaddy Smart light® 5-mode Button cycled (Chip-driven). Multiple patents awarded.
- 2017 -The 5-mode toolbox light evolved into a Patented MacDaddy Smart Light® 7-mode Button cycled (Chip-driven). Awarded both utility & design patents.
- 2025-2026 – MacDaddy Fishing Lights are exploring adding a phone app to their MacDaddy smart light models & adding 8th mode (TBA).
- Patented Strobe-patented frequency to bust up catfish/baitfish blackout, restoring partial light field vs. ending hunt and leaving.
- Patented Strobe frequency to boil light-sensitive marine life (i.e.-shrimp) to the surface.
- Patented Strobe frequency Half Power to boil light-sensitive marine life (i.e.-shrimp) in shallow waters under 8 feet.
- Half power, All green, All white, Both colors.
- Capable of adapting to any water, deep or shallow, tidal or pond.
- Light Deployment Strategies to Manipulate Shrimp. Click Here to read/download teaching manual