Need a great flashlight ?

[tommyt654]

If and I do mean if your local Home Depot still has any, these are by far the brightest and least expensive LED flashlight I have seen on the market ,550 lumens on 3 C-cell batterys included in the package, not a barn burner ,but at $20 more flashlight than most will ever need and only $20 and I have seen similiar at 5 times that price, better hurry as these will sell out quickly, I snatched up 2 ,one for the truck and another for the shotgun , http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1...368321&cj=true

[Jim1]

Thanks! Always need a good light around the place. Picked up 2.

[jseklund]

Thanks, I'm gonna go check this out. I am a bit of a flashlight junkie - everyone who knows me knows I have the brightest lights (including a 8,000 lumen light in a maglite body) and I'm always collecting more....

For $20, if this is even reasonably built, it is a great deal.

[tommyt654]

There worth every penny IMHO,Heres a pic to size it with and the house is 50 yrds away .Wow tho 8000 lumens, what are you baking

[chopnhack]

Nice find tommy!

[Knottscott]

Just out of curiosity, how bright would something like a Cman C3 19.2v or Hitachi 14V flashlight that comes with a cordless drill be in comparison?

[LCHIEN]

Just out of curiosity, how bright would something like a Cman C3 19.2v or Hitachi 14V flashlight that comes with a cordless drill be in comparison?

http://www.sears.com/craftsman-19.2-...2&blockType=G2

Craftsman C3 flashlight 19.2V claims 1000 lumens.

Maglite 2D-Cell LED (3V) claims 110 lumens.

Maglite 3D-cell LED (4.5V) claims 104 lumens

Maglite 3D-cell incandescant (4.5V) claims 45 lumens

Maglite 2D-cell incandescant (3.0V) claims 19 lumens

Don't forget, when comparing lights, lumens is the total light output, the beam angle of a light greatly affects the brightness falling on a given area and so can make a narrow beam light appear much brighter. Also, the power has a great deal to do with it. A 19.2V flashlight can put more power into the bulbs source for a longer time and hence they can afford to run it at higher intensity. You trade off total lumens for battery size and operating time, unless you have significantly more lumens per watt, which would be the real advantage.

The C3 is bright because they have high voltage and a large battery pack and can throw more watts into the bulb. However, the 500 lumen LED will provide half the light output probably for a longer time being more efficient. OTOH, the larger pack of the C3 can increase the run time to competitive levels and being rechargable makes it cheaper per hour to run.

Not saying that more lumens, even for a shorter time, is not an advantage in certain situations. Just have to weigh all the factors, such as:
weight
size of beam
brightness of beam
run time with one set of batteries or one charge
rechargable or not
Base cost
cost per hour OR cost per lumen-hour
life of bulb
ruggedness of construction

All the lights mentioned are attractive for one reason or another.

[tommyt654]

One word of caution on the Craftsman as well as the Hitachi is they are not very shockproof and lend themselves toward easy bulb breakage. This is not to big a deal if you can find the bulbs, while the one I referenced has a cree xm/l bulb that readily available from several sources and less likely to break if dropped. The 1000 lumens claims seems about right for the Craftsman considering the voltage supplied, unfortunately I can find no way to attach it to my shotgun or carry easily in a holster of anykind,thats one of the things I needed in a flashlight and while I like the angle adjustability, its just something else that can break, but like Loring said all have their individual qualitys, get whats best for your situation. Thats a good find tho on the Craftsman, would make a nice light for working on or under a car if you happen to have the battery and charger.

[atgcpaul]

Wow! There's a really similar one at Costco for $50. The only difference I can see is that one has a high and low setting as well as a strobe.

[tommyt654]

http://www.costco.com/TechLite-Lumen...100015093.html , the strobes a nice feature but shortens battery life immensly

[jseklund]

There worth every penny IMHO,Heres a pic to size it with and the house is 50 yrds away .Wow tho 8000 lumens, what are you baking

LOL - Yes, this light will light paper on fire at close range by shingint it on the paper. It gets hot and it's pretty amazing. When people hear that I built it, they look at me funny, but not one person who has seen it live has been able to avoid grinning from ear-to-ear....even people who aren't at all into lights. I live on Cape Cod and I can light up the walk way across the Cape Cod Canal like it was daylight. The downside....it will run for about 10 minutes and then you're done But what a glorious 10 minutes it has.

As for the lumens - Loring is pretty much spot on with his assessment, but it is a good rule of thumb that 4X the lumens = 2X the brightness. So, the C3 is probably not even 50% brighter than the light mentioned, IF (and it's a big if) all of the lumen figures on the packages are accurate (which they often are not).

Honestly, I think most people would be happy with a 200-250 lumen flashlight. 500 lumens is pretty bright, and if there is a smooth reflector in this thing, and the beam is somewhat focused, will probably light up an oject around 1,000 feet or more away.

500 lumens bounced off the ceiling, will be almost enough to read a book by. A typical house light bulb is usually around 800-1000 lumens.

This, to me, is a good desk or nightstand light. Leave a couple around the house for emergencies and you'll be happy.

[tommyt654]

These make pretty good desk light as you mentioned , http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1...&storeId=10051 , However the one I initially linked to is a true 550 lumens if not more. The Cree xm/l T6 bulb is extremely bright and has a 100,000 hr life according to stats I have read about. Lots of folks build these monsters like yours as parts are relatively inexpensive and easy to get nowadays, but most simply purchase premade/manufactured flashlights as they are relatively cheap as China has dominated the building of these for yrs selling them to police depts and outdoorsman like myself.. The 1 I reference would be unable to use as a night light, its way too long and makes a good white light that lights up the area quite well, unfortunately my camera doesn't show just how bright it is. BTW you can purchase 8000 lumen flashlight as low as $80 easily nowadays, http://www.aliexpress.com/wholesale/...lashlight.html , but I like this one its all I need to blind someone temporarily or light up the yard with and combined with the 20% off HF coupon it was less than $20. But be careful I have read reports of homebuilts blowing up in folks hands , http://www.google.com/#hl=en&tbo=d&q...&bih=624before

[cabinetman]

My wife's favorite flashlight is the wind up kind. I couldn't trade her with a Maglite if I tried.

.

[RAV2]

Picked up 3.

One for the car, junked my LED upgraded D Cell Maglite, one for the nightstand, and a backup in my drawer of stocking stuffers.

[jnesmith]

OOS online and within 50 miles of me. Bummer.