$25 walmart "1 million candlepower" light v/s $$$ Mag85/123/4567

Hey guys,

I was interested in a recent hotwire for sale, it was $250 for a turnkey 4000 lumen hotwire. Wow, that's bright. I still might get it as the end-all addition to my lights (and first hotwire).

But w/ the 8-10 min runtime, I figure it's going to be somewhat similar to those 1-10 million candlepower searchlight/floodlights like you see at Walmart, for much less. What are the differences? Ok, I think the Walmart ones are halogen, but besides the chemicals?

The Mag85 and other Mag hosted ones are impressive b/c they look just like regular mags. That's one thing i can see. But if I just wanted the output and not necessarily the small form factor, the 2 mill. cdlpwr light should do me good, right?

Always wondered this, and tried a search but nothin'. Thx guys, as always.

mcmc

I don't own any of those Mag mods but I used to own some cheap spotlights.

With the cheap spotlights don't expect much runtime (maybe anywhere btwn 20-50 minutes of runtime)

And don't expect them to last forever either, ( all the ones I had don't work now)

If you want lumens and runtime you gotta get yourself an HID. ( note that you may spend around a thousand or more for some of the more powerful of the species)

I satisfy myself with my Rayzorlite. If you look at the botom of this thread you can see the Rayzorlite VS the Mag85.

https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/121036&highlight=Rayzorlite


There is a pretty good selection of HID lights. If you got the money I would sugest the 40W Helios.

Hers a rather old shootout but still very helpful.

http://home.earthlink.net/~kenshiro2/

basically, everything is better on the hotwire.

bulb is more efficient

battery is lighter, and not made of lead acid

beam can be customised with different reflectot

water reistant

and far more reliable

get the mag hotwire......I own 2 and am building more......get it....you wont be sorry

...

I saw a 300,000 candle power spotlight like the ones at walmart at my local rite-aid for $20...I looked at it for like 10 minutes then put it back, lol I just don't need a big boy like that...but if I did I would probably buy a better quality one...

those "spotlights" are not going to be anywhere near as bright as a 4000lumen mag-hotwire mod... however- you could modify THEM to be about as bright as you want...

direct driving an autimotive bulb from a lead acid battery over lousy gage wire results in about 11V at the bulb... those bulbs don't really get exciting untill around 14V... a stock 10million candlepower spotlight from a hardware store or auto store probably doesn't even break 1500 lumens.

if you just want something completally bizerk bright... check out the LarryK14... it's a 500 watt landing light mounted in a harbor freight spotlight powered by a ~28V pack built from li-poly cells (i think)... something to the tune of 14,000 lumens will make you smile and soil your pants at the same time!

mdocod said:

something to the tune of 14,000 lumens will make you smile and soil your pants at the same time!

Click to expand...

:lolsign: Now thats just funny!

Wow. That sounds pretty absurd. Where can I find this?? And how many arms and legs will this cost me?

Thanks for the conversion factor - it's good to know that the 1 million candlepower lights are only about 1500 lumens. Wouldn't have guessed it! Maybe next time the 4000 lumen light comes up again I'll pick it up.

Thanks guys,
mcmc

There's a thread on the Incan forum.

If you want to build one yourself, like I did, it'll cost you around $250 (minimum) plus time and effort.

I'd be willing to sell them preassembled.

The Vector brand and other cheapy rechargeable spotlights at Walmart and Target don't get nearly enough love, IMO. They are incredibly bright (blowing away a Mag85), and represent the best lumen/dollar ratio you will find anywhere. They just plain make a ton of throwy light that will blast a target at distance. Lots of lumens, big honkin' 6" or whatever reflector.

Now, they aren't stealthy like a Mag85, nor do they have a smooth SF-like corona. But at $15 on sale (I've bought 5 at that price), they are cheap enough to keep one in the car, one in the house, etc. Cheap enough not to cry when you lose it or it breaks.

Even if you end up with a costy, high end light, you should get a cheapy spotlight too and see for yourself. Maybe keep it under the front seat of your car.

peace

powernoodle said:

The Vector brand and other cheapy rechargeable spotlights at Walmart and Target don't get nearly enough love, IMO. They are incredibly bright (blowing away a Mag85), and represent the best lumen/dollar ratio you will find anywhere. They just plain make a ton of throwy light that will blast a target at distance. Lots of lumens, big honkin' 6" or whatever reflector.

Now, they aren't stealthy like a Mag85, nor do they have a smooth SF-like corona. But at $15 on sale (I've bought 5 at that price), they are cheap enough to keep one in the car, one in the house, etc. Cheap enough not to cry when you lose it or it breaks.

Even if you end up with a costy, high end light, you should get a cheapy spotlight too and see for yourself. Maybe keep it under the front seat of your car.

peace

Click to expand...

absolutely right.

I still remember when I was using my Mag85, and my dad comes over with his Costco 15million(advertised) light(that I bought him) and torn my light to pieces.

You should have seen his face when he finally outshined me, for 25 bucks.

D*** S** O* * B****!!!!


aoh and powernoodle, PEACE? now I have seen everything.

I have had a ROP and a Mag85 and currently own my cheapie 1 million cp light from Radio Shack. The Mag85 was MUCH brighter than my spotlight. Not even a comparison. I also currently own a G&P Scorpion which is around 400-450 lumens, and it is in the same ballpart is my spotlight as far as overall output goes. I have done ceiling bounce test between the two and they look very similar, even though the spotlight has a more yellow beam the overall output looks to be about the same. The beams couldn't be more different however. The spotlight has a VERY intense spot with a dim spillbeam, while all the hotwires I have owned have intense spill as well as good throw.

To be honest though these incredibly bright lights don't get used for more than a few minutes (or even seconds) at a time. I would buy yourself the spotlight and save yourself alot of money. I really like my new Wolf Eyes 9DX. It is *only* around 175 lumens, but has a good solid hour (if not more) of runtime. This output is good enough 99.9% of the time. Unless you are jacking deer from 200 yards away, or want to see something way down the street, this light is as bright as you could ever want.

Good thread, same question I had. I am building a M85, just waiting on the hotdriver/KIU (have you seen the jeers?) and already am designing a 100 watt. But I already own a $17 Vector that was made as a 1 Million CP. The pistol grip unlocks and swings around over the side giving the light two configurations, the handle over the body makes it handle like a flashlight. It has an area light on a swivel at the rear too. I have notice it out performed everything else I have seen but have not been able to compare it to hotwire mods. I want to improve its switch, wiring and maybe the halogen bulb in it. It amazes me how much light it puts out, I have used it in dark rural areas and it seems that it it is about 1k lumens +.
Anybody know a good source for the lead/acid replacement battery? Mines about shot.

270winchester said:

aoh and powernoodle, PEACE? now I have seen everything.

Click to expand...

Off topic alert.

"Peace" isn't a commentary on anything. I'm all for using our military to kill people and break things.

Maybe have to change my sign-off to "yo".

Yo.

I have both the Sam's Club Vector 15 Million Power Series spotlight and a Mag85. Somebody (sorry, can't recall who) reported that they measured the 15 Million power spotlights at ~400,000 CP (which I guess is why they don't call it the 15,000,000 CandlePower Series). I can report that the spotlight is brighter and throws farther than my Mag85, but the beam is ugly and yellower. At $25, I don't regret buying it for a second, even though I have no use for it.
My Mag85 cost about 10X as much when all is said and done including batteries and a charger. I also don't regret buying it- it's the light I most love, mostly because I built it and that much light coming out of a lowly Mag is fun (and that's nothing compared to 4000 lumens).
They're two very different lights. If all you need is lumens, then the spotlight is probably a better deal, though probably not 4000 lumens. But I myself would like the hotwire more. Heck, at the price of these spotlights, just buy both!

It's very much an apples and oranges comparison here.

Sure, the 10MCP spotlight will shine on things a long way away. But how often do you typically need to see something 500 yards away unless you're on a boat?

I've got several Mag85/951s and love the "sure-fire" type beam. It's bright enough to illuminate a group of thugs fighting from a block away (and get them to disperse in a few seconds) and bright enough to sear the retinas of a bad-guy close up (and make him go condition brown in his shorts). And it doesn't scream "monster light" until you turn it on. Sure, it's higher maintenance and more limited (as you're pushing the envelope as far as components go), but the output is breathtaking. And it's not like carrying a heavy briefcase around.

Flashlights are like most things. You get what you pay for (well, most of the time anyway!).

John

All the comments about the stealth/innocent-look of the Mag hotwires is a valid point well taken. I think that would be a huge plus if I ever ended up w/ a 4k lumen light.

"At $25, I don't regret buying it for a second, even though I have no use for it." haha i had to laugh that that one.

I think if some cash frees up I am definitely on a 4k lumen light - just for kicks. And that may end this addiction, filling out the extreme end of my range.

For now I have a Quad-Lux coming in from MillerMods, which will put out at least 400 lumens, so thought $25 is dang cheap, I think the 1hr runtime on this guy will be enough for me.

If I run across a deal of $10 on one of these x-million CP lights, I might buy one to throw in the car though.

Thanks for the advice guys! Keep it coming if you have more insights to share =)

This thread got me to do some modding to lower the resistance of the light and I found my older 1 million Vector is 12V not 6V and uses a 12V 75 watt bulb. The battery is shot though. I cannot find a new sealed lead-acid 12v3.0Ah/20hr battery. Any suggestions?
What I did find is every rechargeable combinations I looked at, 1 millions, 2 millions from Vector, Brinkman, Dorcy, and even Harbor Freight is now 6 volts pushing a 6V 55 watt bulb. The Harbor Freight looks good and is $9.99.

I could just buy the $10 light and put the bulb, battery and resistors that facilitate charging on 12V into the old light. BUT, and a big BUT, was before the battery blew (it is 8-12 years old) I did side by side with a Vector 2 Million. Here we go with no rating standard because the true 12volt had more spill, more throw and was very noticably brighter. Reflectors were essentially the same and the batteries were at full charge. That is why I want the replace the 12 volt power source.

I've found a lot of SLA batteries at zbattery.com.

8-12 years old? Now THAT'S an old battery, no matter how you slice it!