LED Flashlights

[Melensdad]

I don't know about you guys but I like a flashlight that actually works when I need it, is bright enough to let me see what I am working on, and has a long battery life. I've been frustrated by the size of Mag-Lights, and the fact that they are battery hogs and eat through batteries at a time when I typically need them to work without going 'dim' during the process. Those things have drawn me to LED flashlights over the past few years.

• A couple years ago the lovely Mrs_B bought me a 1st generation LED flashlight with 9 bulbs and it is still going strong. I forget the brand, but its old enough that I'm sure it is no longer in production. What I learned from it is that LED multi-bulb flashlights are very bright but only throw a short beam of unfocused light. I still use that flashlight inside the house but not in the woods. Multi-light 0.1 Watt LED flashlights throw a scattered unfocused beam that is useable for about 25'

• My next LED flashlight was an 11 bulb compact unit from GARRITY and it looked like it was well made but the first time I dropped it was the last time it worked. It also was not as bright as the 9 bulb unit I keep in the house. And the beam was just a scattered haze of light. That flashlight is still for sale in stores, cost is about $25. There is no chance that this is a waterproof unit. I would strongly recommend you stay away from this one based on my experience.

• My car flashlight is a DORCY brand 1-watt LED compact that uses 3 AA batteries. It has a dual purpose switch, press it once to turn it on. Press it again and the light flashes and would be great as a warning light. The beam is focused pretty well. It is far brighter than a normal flashlight of its size and rivals a decent 2-"D" cell flashlight for output. The beam is a fixed focus beam and it throws a nice beam and is usable for 50' feet or more. Not bad for a compact light that fits in your pocket, cost is about $22. It is waterproof. It is a very nice compact light, fits in the glovebox, has never let me down. I'd recommend the Dorcy 1-watt LED compact.

• This weekend I bought a new 1.5-watt LED flashlight that uses 2 "C" cells. It is a cheap Chinese product, sold at Target stores under some no-name brand. The price was $25. It is going to end up in my office desk and for the price it impressed the heck out of me. It looks very rugged, although I doubt it really is. It is an aluminum tube, nicely knurled, with a waterproof gasket on the end the opens. Not sure if the lense end is waterproof. The lense is like a big bubble and makes a very nicely focused beam that is good for about 100' if there is a shortcoming it is that the beam is focused too tight for up close work.
  • Target also had a brand called NOVA that looked to be better quality and only cost a couple dollars more but I simply liked the design of this flashlight better. I hope that my preference to the looks of this design doesn't bite me in the rear.

 

[bczoom]

Bob,
Thanks for the info.
Can you order and then review for us the Everlife flashlight I keep seeing on TV?

 

[Melensdad]

Uh, No! But I think Dargo orders stuff from "infomercials" you might want to check with him.

Here is there website: https://www.asseenontvnetwork.com/vcc/advancedresultsmarketing/everlifeflashlight/134349/

I suspect it is uses the lower powered LEDs, not a 1 watt bulb. But it doesn't say on the website. I think they might be usefull, but I don't like the idea of having to shake the flashlight every 3 mintues.

 

[Dargo]

Uh, No! But I think Dargo orders stuff from "infomercials" you might want to check with him.

Hey! How did I get involved in this? The worst part is that I received one of those damn things for a gift. No kidding! I've never seen an ad on one until that link. I have the exact same thing that is advertised though. Believe me, don't bother. You have to "jack off" the damn thing every 30 seconds or so to get 30 seconds of light. I suppose they should advertise that it will keep you warm as well...

 

[Doc]

The worst part is that I received one of those damn things for a gift. No kidding! I've never seen an ad on one until that link. I have the exact same thing that is advertised though. Believe me, don't bother. You have to "jack off" the damn thing every 30 seconds or so to get 30 seconds of light. I suppose they should advertise that it will keep you warm as well...

Funny Dargo!

I had not seen the ad until the link either ....but I bought one of those lights a month ago on impulse. I'd say it is better than a flashlight that has dead batteries, but it is not very bright. I picked it up on sale for 10 bucks. Looks like the one in the ad. I put it in the car figuring it's better than nothing if stuck in the dark. Now that i have it, who knows how long it will be until I really need to use it.

 

[Melensdad]

Here is the newest LED flashlight sitting on my desk. It is 6.75" long, the body has a diameter of 1.25". It is a "River Rock" brand, made in China, sold at Target. I suspect the same flashlight is probably available under other brand names. It has a very nice heft to it and feels good in the hand. I have no idea if it will prove to be as sturdy as it looks.

I tested it last night. My garage/workshop is about 130' from the back door of the house. The flashlight lit up the entire side of the garage with a well focused beam. I was very impressed. At that distance the beam was not very bright, but it was bright enough to see what was going on. The focus point is not adjustable, the factory setting is what you get.

If you are looking for a flashlight that will give you high output of light, and a long work time on a set of batteries, consider the LED flashlights. Even the cheap ones seem to be much better than they were a year ago. But do yourself a big favor and buy a 1-watt or a 1.5 watt LED unit, the flashlights with 8, 9, 10, etc low powered bulbs will give you a scattered light that is only good for working in your home or under the hood of your car.

 

[bczoom]

Here is the newest LED flashlight sitting on my desk.

Bob,

You really need to get better lighting in your office so you don't have to use flashlights all the time

 

[Big Dog]

Looks like he used the interior designer for his office furniture too!!

 

[bczoom]

Looks like he used the interior designer for his office furniture too!!

Shhhh... I don't think we were supposed to comment on the green desk.

 

[Melensdad]

Shhhh... I don't think we were supposed to comment on the green desk.

You might want to adjust the "color temperature" on your computer monitor. My desk has a dark brown walnut burl top. In fact I don't think there is any green in my office at all.

 

[bczoom]

NEW POLL!!!

Does Bob's desk look green in the picture?

I'll cast the first "yes" vote.

 

[California]

First and most important - here's what a brown desk looks like. Nobody needs to adjust your monitor to see that except maybe Bob.

For my use xenon (incandescent) works fine. That technology is bright and I don't use it enough to mind occasionally replacing batteries.

By chance today I just bought a toolbox flashlight to replace my mini-maglite. Home Depot sells the 3 piece set in the center of this photo for $5.99. The mini-mag clone looks as well made as the real thing and has the tremendous advantage of an on/of switch. No more fumbling to get the light on then more fumbling to get it focused. I like this better even though it is longer.

Shown above the HD set is my mini-mag 'Solitaire' (1 AAA, $4.99). I have one in my computer toolkit and another on the tractor keychain for checking fuel level. The HD clone 'solitare' has a push-on button on the back. Again more convenient than twist-on, for a tradeof of slightly larger size.

The third light in the $5.99 set is a keychain LED light. It throws more light across a darkened room than the AAA lights, surprisingly. I don't expect its battery to last long.

And on the bottom is my favorite ranch light, a Pelican M6 Lithium. These are are top quality and amazingly bright - unpleasantly bright indoors.This has two size 123 lithium camera batteries and a xenon bulb. Small enough to carry in your pocket and bright enough to light up a racoon or deer. The push-on button on the back is silent and of course it comes on in perfect focus. I got it at Fry's for $19.95 but I've never seen it below $30 since.

 

[Doc]

Nice Collection there CA. Your desk does look brown. Bob's on the other hand is greenish on my laptop and workstation 21" monitor.

 

[Dargo]

I just figured that Bob only bought stuff that was made from that super expensive old growth logs that they find at the bottom of the oceans and Great Lakes that is several hundred years old. You know, the stuff from old sunken wooden ships and logs that were lost centuries ago on their way to the saw mill. I saw the show on those fine pieces of lumber and how that they get an average of $20K per log out of the stuff. Since I've never seen such a fine piece of furniture, I just assumed that maybe it is greenish since Bob has exqusite taste and wouldn't buy any cheapo Sullivan stick furniture.

 

[TOMLESCOEQUIP]

Nice Collection there CA. Your desk does look brown. Bob's on the other hand is greenish on my laptop and workstation 21" monitor.

Is this better now ?

 

[Doc]

Sure does ...but Bob like it Green ..don't ya Bob?

 

[Junkman]

I thought that I recognized that Formica from a chain of samples at Home Depot.....

 

[Melensdad]

First and most important - here's what a brown desk looks like. Nobody needs to adjust your monitor to see that except maybe Bob.

The third light in the $5.99 set is a keychain LED light. It throws more light across a darkened room than the AAA lights, surprisingly. I don't expect its battery to last long.

OK well I guess I am color blind or my Apple monitor is off color. But that aside, I think it is telling that the tiny little LED flashlight throws more light than your traditional lights. That high light output is one of the things that attracts me to LEDs, but I think you will also be surprised to see how long the battery will last. My experience with LEDs is that not only do the batteries last considerably longer, the bulb stays much brighter while the battery is discharging.

If you look turn on a regular flashlight and simply leave it on, after a fairly short amount of time you can see the beam noticably get dim. And it continues to get dimmer.

If you run the same test with an LED flashlight, the beam stays bright almost until the battery goes dead, so you have far more useable light for far longer, and as they are more efficient, the useable light may be 3 or 4 times that of a traditional flashlight.