Rayovac Sportsman Extreme 300 Lumen Lantern - MORE INFO ???

[browneider]

I am looking for some help with modding the ROV 300. I want to eliminate the power to the green marker LED. Has anyone done this? What do I need to remove to stop the power going to the flashing LED?

 

[yalskey]

I am looking for some help with modding the ROV 300. I want to eliminate the power to the green marker LED. Has anyone done this? What do I need to remove to stop the power going to the flashing LED?

I wouldn't imagine that little led consumes a lot of energy. It probably consumes less than the battery's self-discharge rate

I would assume you would open up the thing and cut the wires... but why bother?

 

[bobski]

Frankly, that locator LED seems pretty much useless for actually locating the lamp. It's set back in the housing with a little window to shine through, so it's actually pretty directional. That means the button face of the light has to already be facing you for the periodic blip to be at all visible.
A small surface mount unit on the main emitter board would have been a far better choice, or simply pulse the main emitters at a very low current so they only put out a lumen or two for a split second.
Short of re-engineering the whole lantern, replacing the green LED with blue or UV would let it charge up a thin coat of glow paint applied to the inside of the locator lens. That would at least provide a wider viewing angle and persistent light source.

 

[filibuster]

I opened my ROV up and wiggled the green LED until it broke off. Put a meter in between the lantern and the batteries and have measured nothing by way of current.

On a different ROV lantern, with the green LED in place I'd measure a pulse of .001 amps, but only sometimes when the green LED would blink but it wasn't measurable all the time with my lower end meters.

While I was at it, I took some measurements of the lantern running.

A set of ROV D cell alkaline batteries measure 4.56V when the lantern is off.

With the lantern on high:
I measure .68A @ 3.66V

With the lantern on low:
I measure .28A @ 4.11V

A set of Energizer Industrial D cell batteries measure 4.70V when the lantern is off.

With the lantern on high:
I measure .61A @ 3.58V

With the lantern on low:
I measure .25A @ 4.18V

I like my ROV D cell alkaline batteries!

A set of Sanyo Eneloop AA cells in AA to D adapters measure 4.14V when the lantern is off.

With the lantern on high:
I measure .61A @ 3.57V

With the lantern on low:
I measure .23A @ 3.87V

A set of ROV Hybrid AA cells in AA to D adapters measure 4.06V when the lantern is off.

With the lantern on high:
I measure .53A @ 3.46V

With the lantern on low:
I measure .21A @ 3.80V


Note: the ROV and EI alkaline D cells were not new out of the box. Both sets have been used to either run the lantern for short periods or for other test bench tasks.

Both sets of AA rechargeables were charged a few days ago and have been sitting idle since.

All measurements but the .001A reading for the LED pulse, were taken by an RC Electronics Watt's Up meter.

 

[Lightcrazycanuck]

Interesting Filibuster. Thanks for the information.:twothumbs

 

[filibuster]

FYI - Great deal $24 on the Rayovac SE3DLN Sportsman Extreme 3D LED Lantern

It's on Amazon but since it's under $25 bucks you'll need to buy two to get free shipping or find something else to buy for a buck more.

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

Man, I'm sorry I missed this!

 

[filibuster]

Man, I'm sorry I missed this!

If you are talking about the sale on the Rayovac Lantern in the post prior to yours, well as of today (March 4) it is available for $25. These prices seem to change quickly but they do happen every so often.

 

[bobski]

I'm pretty sure I saw this lantern in Lowes the other day, reduced to the same $25 price point.

 

[LEDAdd1ct]

Wow, nice catch! Thank you!

 

[TPA]

I just bought 2 more of these on Sunday night after doing a 2am engine repair on a coworker's truck and my ROV 3D proved to be the best tool for the job. I would have hated to do such a repair with a flashlight. I didn't even pay attention to the price when I ordered. Glad to see I got a good deal no less!

 

[umc]

I'm pretty sure I saw this lantern in Lowes the other day, reduced to the same $25 price point.

You sure did.

I stopped in lowes yesterday and picked one of these up and am very impressed so far. I plan on going this weekend an getting a few more.

I do wish there was a bigger difference between high and low as well as a third level of lower. I think the current low is a medium, this light needs a low to be great. Regardless, I'm impressed and look forward to getting more and then actually going camping this year.

Now to look into it's 4AA lil' brother.

 

[nosuchagency]

agreed; a lower low in place of the strobe would be an improvement. nice lantern irregardless. :thumbsup:

 

[umc]

I never thought lanterns would be as addicting as flashlights. I went to one Lowes today and they didn't have any of these, so I stopped at another Lowes and they had 3, I picked up 2 and was going to buy them but then said, what the heck and took all three to the checkout.

I also grabbed a Mini-Mag 2AA LED to try..:devil:

What a sick sickness.

 

[Egsise]

I would like to see a runtime graph too, easy to do with a luxmeter so please, anyone...?

Sold as other brands too(pricy in EU!):

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0018S4XIS/?tag=cpf0b6-20
http://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B001V74S90/
http://www.flashaholics.co.uk/silverpoint/led-camping-lantern.html

 

[TPA]

I never thought lanterns would be as addicting as flashlights.

I think the addiciton's worse in some respects. After all, a flashlight usually requires that it be carried. Lanterns can be hung from tents, used in various rooms, etc. And of course, you want at least one lantern for each room of the house. And at least one in each car.

Overall, after discovering the ROV 3D, I'm no longer interested in using flashlights except for a small EDC. I now have ~8 lanterns (2 ROV 3D, 2 ROV 3AA, 2 Energizer 4D, 1 RR 3AA, 1 RR 4AA) and find myself reaching for a lantern long before a flashlight. Need to change out light switch in the dark? lantern. Need to work in an unlit equipment rack? lantern. Need to work on an engine in and unlit parking lot at 3am? lantern. Cookout at the racetrack? lantern. These are all situations I've come across in the past 2 weeks.

I'm hard-pressed to find too many applications in urban/suburban life where a flashlight is the better tool for the job. Maybe out in the woods where you need a long throw. But for everything else, lanterns are more useful.

 

[Kremer]

I think the addiciton's worse in some respects. After all, a flashlight usually requires that it be carried. Lanterns can be hung from tents, used in various rooms, etc.

Have you seen the headlamp forum?

 

[bobski]

Have you seen the headlamp forum?

I was thinking the same thing. ^_^
Lanterns are great for lighting open areas, but I think a headlamp would be better suited for the engine and equipment rack examples above. Headlamps don't seem to cast long shadows the way lanterns do because their output is very nearly paralleling the user's line of sight. In open spaces there's nothing to block a lantern's light so there's no apparent disadvantage... In fact, if the space is occupied by more than one person, the glare of others' headlamps could get annoying, giving the lantern a comparative advantage. On the other hand, getting lantern light to shine between components in an engine bay or equipment rack could be difficult with a lantern (glare would be troublesome as well), giving the headlamp an advantage.

 

[darcyh]

$24.99 @ Lowes in Saginaw. I bought one and am impressed. I should have picked up 2 more. The unit is little; smaller than I expected. Puts out a good amount of light. I really like the strobe feature. I placed it on my front porch for a few minutes in strobe mode. Amazing how many neighbors came out to see what was going on!

Buy one!

Dave

 

[TPA]

I don't think I can get away with a headlamp at work. Full suit & tie...and a headlamp. I don't think that'll fly. Not to mention the red marks on my forehead for the next few hours afterwards. They do tolerate (and buy!) lanterns for me though.

Even in an engine compartment, I'd still prefer the broad flood of light vs. spotlight nature of most headlamps. I can appreciate the hands-free nature of headlamps, but that's about it.