Nightstar

Has anyone out there bought or ever sampled the Nightstar? It's the single LED light that is powered by an electromagnetic generator which stores a charge in a capacitor. It requires no batteries and is completely sealed. The switch is a magnetic leaf switch so it requires no hole in the body of the light. It seems like the ultimate emergency back-up light.

I've never seen or used one, but I honestly wouldn't trust it for a true EMERGENCY if that emergency happened to be the delcaration of atomic warefare.

The reasoning behind this decision is simple: in the photographs I've seen of this flashlight, the electromagnetic coil windings were clearly visible through the plastic housing.

Why is that so screwed up? When an uncontrolled fission or fusion reaction occurs (such as when someone drops the A-bomb or the F-bomb), a portion of the energy released is in the form of electromagnetic waves. Remember that bright pulse of light "1000 times brighter than the sun" that you're supposed to avoid looking at when the "bomb" is dropped? Well, visible light isn't the only component of that pulse. Visible light is a *very small* component of this pulse. The pulse is very broadband, and encompasses almost the entire electromagnetic spectrum. That pulse of broadband energy is strong enough to induce a short-lived spike of 50KV (that's 50,000 volts) for every 3 feet of wire that's exposed to it! And I can guaran-fu**ing-tee you that there's more than 3 feet of wire in the coil of a "shake light". Even if the switch is off, there will be MUCH more than enough voltage induced in that coil to jump the switch contacts and turn the LED into a crispy critter.

Since the "shake-light" is not shielded in any way (the models I've seen pictures of let you actually see the coil windings through the plastic case), all the goodies inside will let out their supply of "magic smoke" if a nuclear device is discharged within a thousand or so miles, and will subsequntly no longer work.

Don't believe me?
Then put a "shake light" in the microwave the next time you reheat a cupajoe, and it will probably look like the 4th of July in there. And I guaran-f**king-tee you it will never work again unless the oven's waveguide is hosed.

But for lesser emergencies...

I have one and suppose if the S**T really hit the fan in a non-atomic fashion, I'd use it when all other sources of power were gone. In the mean time, it sits in a drawer.

It is much larger and bulkier than I had imagined and by weight and volume, an Arc AAA and a few batteries would be a wiser selection to have att the ready or take on some treck. If the AAA lithiums ever happen, this case is that much stronger.

As a curiosity and gee whiz show piece it is interesting. If demonstrated, likely comments such as " Bet you are familiar with that particular motion of hand..." should be anticipated; especially if it is an all male audience.

I have one. It is not very bright. With the lens in place, the spot produced is about as bright as the general beam of the CMG Infinity (except, of course, it is only a spot, whereas the Infinity provides a nice broad beam). This brightness is only available when the capacitor is fully charged. Within 1 minute, the illumination drops off noticably. Within 4 minutes, it couldn't even compete with a firefly.

The form factor is rather bulky. About 4 D-cells in length and width. The weight is about 3 D-cells. The hand motion to charge it was designed so that red-blooded American males should have no problem. It takes about 30-45 seconds to acheive a full charge, but during that time, you can't use the light.

The electronics are simple so even if you should get the internals wet, it shouldn't affect the function. This is possible because the lens can be removed and mating surfaces are sealed by an o-ring. Once the lens is removed, the LED is exposed, and the capacitor too.

The flashlight is quite solidly built and has a reassuring heft to it. The lexan and polycarbonate used in its construction is very tough and the seams are well-aligned.

In a nuclear emergency, I'm not sure that many of our electronic devices will survive. Even filament bulbs might blow due to the EMP. However, for more mundane matters, it should suffice.

Personally, I keep mine in the car, where heat will cause batteries to discharge quickly. With this light, I know that I will always be able to get some usable light and I never need to constantly check and replace batteries.

Well I hadn't considered the possibility of nuclear blast as an emergency but I will next time. BTW, Craig @ the LED Museum(I think I'm right) I wonder what you'd recommend to use in such an emergency.

Thanks,

You shouldn't need a light. Everything will be glowing a nice soft green already!

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by bigos:
BTW, Craig @ the LED Museum(I think I'm right) I wonder what you'd recommend to use in such an emergency. <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Hard to say. A plastic flashlight is probably out of the question; an ALL-metal one may have a chance of survival, depending on how it is oriented in space to the actual detonation point. The hope here is that the metal body of the flashlight will act like a faraday cage and keep the majority of the electromagnetic pulse away from the lamp.

Higher current incandescent bulbs, like those found in the Legend and Surefire flashlights, would stand a better chance of withstanding the pulse; lower current lamps like LEDs and smaller incandescents like Mini-Mags would be more prone to blowing out. Flashlights with a lot of internal wiring would also stand a poorer chance than those with minimal or no wires. Large bodied flashlights would also be worse off than tiny flashlights.

LED flashlights that stand at least some minimal chance of survival would include SMALL metal-bodied ones like the Arc-AAA and the CMG Infinity. Incandescents that would stand some chance of survival would include the Surefire E1 and E2, the Legend LX, and possibly some of the Mags.

Plastic bodied lithium keychain lights probably wouldn't do well, because the long, exposed LED leads would act like antennae, gathering a substantial amount of pulse energy and dumping it into the LED die. The proximity of the LED leads to the batteries is short enough in some of these to allow an arc to strike between them, thus completing the circuit and popping the LED.

And all plastic-bodied lights, LED or not, stand a very high chance of popping. This includes all LED, most incandescent, all fluorescent, and all electroluminescent. If you're close enough to the blast (but not so close as to be killed or injured yourself), don't expect your household incandescents or fluorescents to work afterward either. Fluoro tubes in the house will probably flare very brightly, and your TV and computer monitor tubes will glow brightly, even if they're turned off and unplugged.

The only advice I have to offer (not being an expert in nuclear theory or fission dynamics) is to buy a small, well-sealed lead, thick copper, or thick stainless steel box or safe, ground it THOROUGHLY, and put your most loved flashlights and a transistor radio inside when the Emergency Broadcast System alerts you to an incoming ICBM. If you see the flash before putting your flashlights in this container, you're too late. Don't expect the radio to make it, but most of the flashlights should.