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Old November 15, 2009, 11:48 AM   #26
rickyjames
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call me old fashioned but my favorite flashlites are the big everready 6 volt lights and anything from maglite. recently i have picked up a few small led flashlites sitting on the checkout counter at autozone 2/$5.00. these work well also.

I have tried a couple of the super zoom tacktikool flashlites and they have all been a disappointment. poor battery life, blown bulbs, shorting out causing the body of the light to get hot. now people have told me i just need to buy more expensive units. i think to myself if i have problems with a $30 to $60 unit why in the hell would i spend more money.
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Old November 15, 2009, 12:16 PM   #27
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Quote:
call me old fashioned
Yer old fashioned! The last 5 years have brought incredible jumps in LED technology. The Mag and Lanterns are truly dinosaurs. It's too back since an American company could retool and compete with the quad-die guys and offer an updated icon that I'd rather own. Bill's torch might be a nice alternative.
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Old November 15, 2009, 02:22 PM   #28
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The Mag and Lanterns are truly dinosaurs.
Yes, except when they are modified by us flashlight geeks. Then you can have a Mag body with some putting out as much as a 1000 lumen's. But not the average guys cup pf tea.

One of my mods I like the best is my 2 "C" Mag modified for 3 CR123 or 2 re-charge lithium batteries, driving a K2 LED. Great throw and adjustable beam. Somewhere around the 200 lumen mark.
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Old November 15, 2009, 02:28 PM   #29
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I understand....really, but then all you have is the shell of the Mag. I've seen overbored Mag bodies and tri-milled crescent cuts for three rows of batteries. You don't keep the plastic lens do you? Kinda like calling a NASCAR racer a Chevy. The true hot rods are the quad-dies. Imagine a set of 5 heatsinked quads on a 3_D Mag powered by lithiums. That's right up there with HID lights.
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Old November 15, 2009, 02:53 PM   #30
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You don't keep the plastic lens do you? Kinda like calling a NASCAR racer a Chevy.
No, you have to have a glass lens. Yes, it's not really a Mag anymore. But the Mag bodies are great for modifying.

Example:

http://www.blackbearflashlights.com/...l_borealis.htm

Better have your money ready.
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Old November 15, 2009, 04:54 PM   #31
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I just ordered some of these for my shop to replace the CR123-eaters...

Nothing fancy, just a rechargeable, 3W, Cree bulb flashlight. It's a PITA (not to mention expensive) to keep replacing CR123 batteries. The new lights will pay for themselves in a year when compared to the cost of CR123's and HAZMAT shipping fees. At least someone (me) is trying to save the taxpayers money...

I'll let you guys know how they work out.
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Old November 15, 2009, 05:01 PM   #32
madmag
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I'll let you guys know how they work out.
I bet they work out just fine. You will love the re-chargeable lithium's. Great life between charges, great run times, and no batteries to buy....what's not to like.
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Old November 15, 2009, 05:05 PM   #33
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no batteries to buy....what's not to like.
And no (used) batteries to discard... You'd be surprised at the amount of regulations involved with discarding HAZMAT...

I'm trying to push rechargeable everything (lights/tools/etc) to all the other shops on my ship. I recently processed a HAZMAT discard shipment and realized just how much money we drain from our budget on senseless use of consumable HAZMAT items...

When you pay 2x more for shipment to/from the unit than the cost of the batteries themselves, it becomes counter-productive...
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Old November 15, 2009, 05:08 PM   #34
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I just received 2 of the delights from Bill, They are as advertised. Very bright, small and delivery was very quick. I like the idea of AAA batteries, instead of the others and the price was right. I don't know Bill and I am not his Homer. There might be a better light out there for the price, I just don't know of it. Satisfied customer.
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Old November 15, 2009, 06:17 PM   #35
output
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Delight

I just picked up a DeLight from Bill about a week or so ago and I have no complaints. The OP started a thread about “cheap” flashlight recommendations…people are posting links to lights that are two, three, and four times the cost of the DeLight. I own over four surefire lights that I am happy with and that I paid a lot of money for. I also own one Delight that I paid $35.00 for that is just as bright as some of my high-end lights.
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Old November 15, 2009, 07:00 PM   #36
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The OP started a thread about “cheap” flashlight recommendations…
You are correct, and I am one of the guilty parties. Flashlights are another hobby for me so it's hard to limit my conversation.

Now to stay with cheap flashlights.

I have said that I am sure the Delight is what everyone says. I also have some lower cost lights powered by 3 AAA and they work great. Now my only personal issue is I am not in love with lights that use battery carriers. It adds another device that must be loaded and can fail. I have had 3 AAA carriers fail. Then the light is of no use. NOT saying the Delight carrier will fail. For low cost operation I like AA batteries that are loaded straight in with no carrier. Not to mention higher MAH capacity with AA. Just my preference.

One issue is that the LED flashlight world is changing at almost every three month rate. So when the LED flashlights are discussed, you will find lots of input about different lights because so many are available that have good performance. This is mainly due to the Cree LED being available to lots of manufactures. Just the way it is.

Last edited by madmag; November 15, 2009 at 07:07 PM.
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Old November 15, 2009, 07:25 PM   #37
Shane Tuttle
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The OP started a thread about “cheap” flashlight recommendations…people are posting links to lights that are two, three, and four times the cost of the DeLight. I own over four surefire lights that I am happy with and that I paid a lot of money for. I also own one Delight that I paid $35.00 for that is just as bright as some of my high-end lights.
I did have the intention of discussing inexpensive flashlights. But madmag, Bill, and others have provided quality posts regarding some other options without the chest pounding. If it were to go down hill with the usual "Ford vs. Chevy" garbage, I would've shut it down. However, like I said, the level of discussion has been quite informative and it would be a shame for me to get bent out of shape over the price issue.

For the record, after almost two weeks use, I finally had to replace the batteries. I never logged the time, but I'm guessing I used it for at least an hour or two per day. The light was still useable, but I need my light to be rather bright to perform quality inspections in my line of work. If not, I'm willing to bet it would have gone a few more hours. This is a wild guess in the time. However I thought it was impressive to say the least.

Coastie, that appears to be a great light. I'm not sure if brightness is a big factor or not, but the DeLight is rated at 225 lumens IIRC. Doesn't come with a charger and batteries, though.
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Old November 15, 2009, 07:47 PM   #38
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Doesn't come with a charger and batteries, though.
That's another part of the equation. You can get a cheap AAA charger and NiMH batteries and they will work great in the Delight. should give longer run times. Even-though they are 1.2V, NiMH are better at current delivery and brightness is usually as good or even better.
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Old November 15, 2009, 08:03 PM   #39
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Coastie, that appears to be a great light. I'm not sure if brightness is a big factor or not, but the DeLight is rated at 225 lumens IIRC. Doesn't come with a charger and batteries, though.
Hopefully it will be. We need "bright" lights, but not too bright. The glare of a super bright light is a hindrance in some instances as I experienced with a Browning 210L Tactical Hunter. It had a 210 Lumen output and was almost too bright.

I'm sure the DeLight is indeed a great light and I may look into ordering one for personal use. The inability to substitute consumable batteries was a big factor in my quest for replacement flashlights. I didn't want people to get lazy about having to charge the batteries and just popping in consumable ones.
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Old November 15, 2009, 08:53 PM   #40
Shane Tuttle
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Hopefully it will be. We need "bright" lights, but not too bright.
I agree with that for our line of work. Sometimes, a light that's too bright causes the eye to miss flaws on the surface you're inspecting. Seems like there's good flashlights everywhere we look. Quite different scenario 10 years ago...

Quote:
That's another part of the equation. You can get a cheap AAA charger and NiMH batteries and they will work great in the Delight. should give longer run times. Even-though they are 1.2V, NiMH are better at current delivery and brightness is usually as good or even better.
That's my next quest. I have no idea what's going to be the best charger for the batteries I want to convert (flashlight and household items).
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Old November 15, 2009, 09:28 PM   #41
madmag
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That's my next quest. I have no idea what's going to be the best charger for the batteries I want to convert (flashlight and household items).
You don't need anything fancy. I find the Energizer, Duracell, or Ray-O-vac chargers work great. Wal-Mart is a good place. The AA chargers will also do AAA, but if you want to have full range from AAA to "D" then you will have to get a little more expensive, but same brands.

Oh, remember one thing. From "C" size on up you are still getting an AA re-chargeable. They just basically put a AA NiMH in a body that fits a "C" or "D" size. You can get actual "C" or "D" size from people like batteryjunction, but not normally at your local store.

http://www.batteryjunction.com/

Last edited by madmag; November 15, 2009 at 09:34 PM.
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Old November 15, 2009, 10:18 PM   #42
Bill DeShivs
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Madmag-
Perhaps you can help me. I need to get a friend a light for Christmas (he already has a DeLight) and he wants an extremely powerful spotlight. Is there an inexpensive 6V lantern-type that uses a good LED? This is not something that I have researched. He wants it for night varmint hunting.
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Old November 15, 2009, 10:25 PM   #43
madmag
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Bill,

Quick answer, I just looked the other day at Lowes Hardware and they had a hand held spot light using a (I think) 5W LED. I don't remember that it had a lumen's rating. It was not really cheap, I think about $37. The problem is that is not an area the LED's have completely overtaken. It's still hard to beat a million candle power ican re-charge type for about $20. Of course they are not small and the charge is only good for about 30 min.

I will look for more info at some of my flashlights sites.
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Old November 15, 2009, 10:25 PM   #44
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Madmag-
Perhaps you can help me. I need to get a friend a light for Christmas (he already has a DeLight) and he wants an extremely powerful spotlight. Is there an inexpensive 6V lantern-type that uses a good LED? This is not something that I have researched. He wants it for night varmint hunting.
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Bill,
Try this...
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Old November 15, 2009, 11:51 PM   #45
madmag
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jgcoastie,

That light has 3 led's and that is not normally good for throw (distance) and is expensive.
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Old November 16, 2009, 12:09 AM   #46
madmag
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Bill, at this point I would say that there are not any inexpensive LED spots that can compete with the re-charge hand held incandescent spots you can buy at most stores. These usually run a 55W bulb.

Now going higher in price to about $100 you can get a Mag Charger. That is nothing like the normal Mag light. It runs on re-charge batteries and has about 500 lumen's. Run times are good at about 1 hour. The bulb is about 20Watts. Very good distance spot.

Best I know it takes about $150 to get an LED flashlight that runs about 400 Lumen's with good distance.

That's a niche that LED's have not filled.

Then even higher you get into HID with 3000 lumen's but they cost like you know what.

Best bet for the money. Get a low cost million candle power spot with a back-up battery. This could give you about an hour of run time. More for on-off use.
Here is a typical spot. You can find similar brands at Wal-Mart, Target, etc.
http://www.qualitylogoproducts.com/t....htm?iorb=4764

PS: I have seen some as low price as $15.

Last edited by madmag; November 16, 2009 at 12:37 AM.
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Old November 16, 2009, 12:29 AM   #47
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I am not into spots much, but I found this one at Sears. I like it myself. It uses the standard Sears drill battery...good feature.

http://www.sears.com/shc/s/p_10153_1...1593000P?mv=rr
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Old November 16, 2009, 01:39 AM   #48
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That light has 3 led's and that is not normally good for throw (distance) and is expensive.
Fair enough... I'm no "light geek", I like 'em and have a bunch of 'em... But I'm not very well-versed in the tech side of them...

Thus far I've accumulated:

1- 2D Maglite (incandescent)
1- 3D Maglite (LED)
1- 4D Maglite (LED)
2- Browning 210L (LED)
2- Surefire Z2 (LEDs)
2- Surefire G2 (LEDs)
2- Glock rail-mount laser/light (Xenon)
6 or 7 Energizer and Rayovac LED's
6- 2AA MiniMaglite (incandescent/LED mix)
2- S&W 13 LED white/red
5- Barbie/Dora/Handy Manny/Spongebob lights (my daughter shares my fascination with lights...)
3- DeWalt worklights (Xenon, I think...)
4- Milwaulke worklights (Xenon, I think...)

Love me some flashlights...
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Old November 16, 2009, 01:58 AM   #49
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You have to check out the LED LENSER by Coast. It is a great light that is led, uses three AA Bat., and is focusable. you can order them or you can get them at LOWE'S. Coast also has tactical mounts and switches.
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Old November 16, 2009, 02:09 AM   #50
Bill DeShivs
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Thanks for all the information!
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