Best of the cheap handlheld LED flashlights?

[Werehatrack]

On Mon, 14 Jan 2008 12:24:09 -0600, [email protected] may have said:

>Are any of the LED flashlights sold at Walmart any
>good?
>
>Some are 3 watt units for abt $20

My personal favorite is the 3W two-C-cell unit sold by Advance Auto
Parts for $20. Close behind that is the Task Force unit mentioned by
Chalo, which is at least as good if not better, but not as economical
to acquire. Definite disappointments include the two-AA factory-LED
MagLite, which has an anemic output, and all of the multi-LED lights,
which are just uniformly pretty much useless. A surprisingly good LED
conversion is the 5W TerraLux setup for the 2AA magLite, which
provides a wider bright spot than most of its competitors...if at a
lower spot brilliance. Unfortunately, it's also not as cost-effective
as might be desired, at $20 for the LED and replacement reflector.
The shorty 3W Task Force unit that uses the 3 AAA battery setup is a
decent light if you don't need a lot of runtime, and it has the
advantage of being light and compact. Several compact higher-wattage
CREE lights are on the market, but the ones I've seen are usually set
up to use the largely-unavailable-in-the-US CR123a batteries, which is
a definite minus. (I have one, and it definitely has assault-level
light output capable of stunning your victim; Do Not Shine Directly In
The Eyes Of Anyone Nearby.)

Sadly, the one accessory which has still eluded me is a sturdy,
inexpensive and reliable handlebar mount for such lights; everything
I've run across was either flimsy plastic (beware the ones from Hong
Kong; they have a half-life of a couple of blocks), poorly designed
(fifteen minutes of fiddling with shims to mount the clamp, and no
dismount of the light without a tool is Not Acceptable), well out of
my price range ($50 for a well-made aluminum unit was just too much)
or not secure on hard bumps (the lone spring-clip mount I've tried.)



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[Werehatrack]

On Mon, 14 Jan 2008 16:17:55 -0600, richard <[email protected]>
may have said:

>Speaking of WallyWorld (and I have yet to actually test this in the
>field), in their sporting goods section they had a cluster of 3 LEDs
>that replace the bulb and reflector in a Mini-MagLight (the two AA version).

Saw it. The light output is not useful for anything beyond two feet
from the flashlight; there's no focus at all.



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[(PeteCresswell)]

Per Werehatrack:
>Sadly, the one accessory which has still eluded me is a sturdy,
>inexpensive and reliable handlebar mount for such lights; everything
>I've run across was either flimsy plastic (beware the ones from Hong
>Kong; they have a half-life of a couple of blocks), poorly designed
>(fifteen minutes of fiddling with shims to mount the clamp, and no
>dismount of the light without a tool is Not Acceptable),

If somebody could find a cam-locking nut for the flashlight-side
clamp, this guy's homebrew seems like it would fit the specs:
http://nordicgroup.us/s78/flashlights.html
--
PeteCresswell

 

[Pat]

> Sadly, the one accessory which has still eluded me is a sturdy,
> inexpensive and reliable handlebar mount for such lights; everything
> I've run across was either flimsy plastic (beware the ones from Hong
> Kong; they have a half-life of a couple of blocks), poorly designed
> (fifteen minutes of fiddling with shims to mount the clamp, and no
> dismount of the light without a tool is Not Acceptable), well out of
> my price range ($50 for a well-made aluminum unit was just too much)
> or not secure on hard bumps (the lone spring-clip mount I've tried.)

I can report that the Maglite handlebar holder for their 2 cell C battery
flashlight does NOT work on the Lowe's Luxeon flashlight. The flashlight is
just a bit larger than the holder can expand.

Pat in TX

 

[Werehatrack]

On Tue, 15 Jan 2008 21:15:42 -0500, "(PeteCresswell)" <[email protected]>
may have said:

>Per Werehatrack:
>>Sadly, the one accessory which has still eluded me is a sturdy,
>>inexpensive and reliable handlebar mount for such lights; everything
>>I've run across was either flimsy plastic (beware the ones from Hong
>>Kong; they have a half-life of a couple of blocks), poorly designed
>>(fifteen minutes of fiddling with shims to mount the clamp, and no
>>dismount of the light without a tool is Not Acceptable),
>
>If somebody could find a cam-locking nut for the flashlight-side
>clamp, this guy's homebrew seems like it would fit the specs:
>http://nordicgroup.us/s78/flashlights.html

I can think of several ways to make that quicker to work with, but
it's still likely to be more of a hassle to deal with than I'd prefer.

BTW, the mount shown on the far right of the table on that page is the
plastic Hong Kong version I disparaged...for cause. I had three
samples. All failed within a short period.

In looking at the others, the Twofish may have the best
prospects...but I doubt that it will remain solidly positioned.

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[[email protected]]

Chalo <[email protected]> wrote:

>The Lumileds one says "Luxeon" on the package; the Cree XR-E one says
>"60X brighter..." on the package.

Went to my local Lowe's but could not find a Task force
light that had Cree emitter...... all seemed to have
Luxeon.

Should I get the Luxeon model or is the Cree unit that
much better? What's the diff?

 

[Werehatrack]

On Wed, 16 Jan 2008 12:07:09 -0600, [email protected] may have said:

>Chalo <[email protected]> wrote:
>
>>The Lumileds one says "Luxeon" on the package; the Cree XR-E one says
>>"60X brighter..." on the package.
>
>Went to my local Lowe's but could not find a Task force
>light that had Cree emitter...... all seemed to have
>Luxeon.
>
>Should I get the Luxeon model or is the Cree unit that
>much better? What's the diff?

The 3W Luxeon is a worthy device. I'd take it in a unit that was
under $25 readily. At $30, I would head for Advance Auto Parts and
buy their "Professional's Favorite" brand in the 2-C-cell format
instead; it's an excellent value.

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[Chalo]

[email protected] wrote:
>
> Chalo wrote:
> >
> >The Lumileds one says "Luxeon" on the package; the Cree XR-E one says
> >"60X brighter..." on the package.
>
> Went to my local Lowe's but could not find a Task force
> light that had Cree emitter...... all seemed to have
> Luxeon.
>
> Should I get the Luxeon model or is the Cree unit that
> much better? What's the diff?

Either one is a good flashlight for a good price, but the Cree version
is brighter without any sacrifice in battery life.

When the LEDs are driven according to specs, all "bins" (quality
rankings) of Cree XR-E emitters produce substantially more light per
watt than Luxeon emitters of the same form factor. You'll get more
light output, better battery life, or both by using a Cree emitter
than by using a Luxeon III or K2 emitter. This rule of thumb may not
apply after just a few months of development in the fast-moving LED
lighting industry.

There is a newer Luxeon emitter called the Rebel that produces
comparable total output and light per watt, but it is a much different
size and shape. The Rebel LED is easily recognizable by its much
smaller plastic emitter dome-- around 2.5mm in diameter vs. 5mm to 6mm
for the others. Sometimes, the collimating optics of flashlights make
it difficult to impossible to tell what the emitter looks like,
though.

Chalo

 

[(PeteCresswell)]

Per Chalo:
>The best value I have yet found is the 2 x C cell Task Force LED light
>with a Cree emitter. It costs $30 at Lowe's,

Scored three of them after work today.

These are *brave* little flashlights.

Thanks again for the sage advice.



Also, after reading a few web pages in the vein of
http://nordicgroup.us/s78/flashlights.html
and considering my special usage considerations, I implemented my
own system, which features:
---------------------------------------------
- Near-instant removal/replacement: no tools required

- Isolation of the flashlight from road shocks

- Quick and precise adjustment of the lighted area.

- Low cost

- http://tinyurl.com/26ng7t
---------------------------------------------
--
PeteCresswell

 

[SMS]

(PeteCresswell) wrote:
> Per Chalo:
>> The best value I have yet found is the 2 x C cell Task Force LED light
>> with a Cree emitter. It costs $30 at Lowe's,
>
> Scored three of them after work today.
>
> These are *brave* little flashlights.
>
> Thanks again for the sage advice.
>
>
>
> Also, after reading a few web pages in the vein of
> http://nordicgroup.us/s78/flashlights.html
> and considering my special usage considerations, I implemented my
> own system, which features:
> ---------------------------------------------
> - Near-instant removal/replacement: no tools required
>
> - Isolation of the flashlight from road shocks
>
> - Quick and precise adjustment of the lighted area.
>
> - Low cost
>
> - http://tinyurl.com/26ng7t
> ---------------------------------------------

Yeah, that's a very good system for securing it to the bicycle.

 

[Pat]

>> > The best value I have yet found is the 2 x C cell Task Force LED light
>> > with a Cree emitter. It costs $30 at Lowe's, and it blows away lights
>> > for which I have paid $120 or more (and those I made by hand from the
>> > best parts then available). Unlike previous flashlights with
>> > comparable light output, it's a convenient size for mounting on a
>> > bike.
>>
>> I went there and bought one, and it didn't work! So, I took it back and
>> now
>> I can't tell if their new ones have the Cree emitter. How can you tell?
>
> The Lumileds one says "Luxeon" on the package; the Cree XR-E one says
> "60X brighter..." on the package.
>
> Chalo

Thanks, man. I got one today. Now, I have to figure out the handlebar
holder, My Maglite 2 C Cell holder is too small to fit this new light.

Pat