1million candle beam spot lights, junk?

[f22shift]

are these junk? are these worth getting? i notice them selling them for $5 at a radioshack. seems pretty cheap. i can imagine it can have a nice throw.
anybody with experience with these?

http://www.radioshack.com/product/i...kw=flashlight&kw=flashlight&parentPage=search
http://www.radioshack.com/product/i...kw=flashlight&kw=flashlight&parentPage=search

 

[Learjet]

They're alright. They run better on 6x sub C's.

 

[TorchBoy]

They're alright. They run better on 6x sub C's.

Similar sized spotlights around here are 25W with a 4Ah 6V SLA battery. If the above are the same I'm not surprised running on six sub Cs is "better".

And US$5 would be a very good price, especially including a wall charger. I'd want to buy several at that price.

 

[zipplet]

Those "x Million CP" lights are kind of OK. I have a 2 mil one myself. Throw is good, output is respectable however the runtime is very poor.

They are fun for spotlighting things a long way away, since they throw a lot better than an LED. Personally, I'd snap one up if you don't have one for such a low price. It's not a bad thing to have in your arsenal!

 

[f22shift]

that's what exactly i was thinking. couldnt hurt to have one just in case. thanks guys. hope they still have one

 

[barkingmad]

I have bought 2 - both were junk - both went back...

If anyone knows of a 'good' one I would be interested - but generally a bit cr@p! :shakehead

 

[powernoodle]

Vector brand and other rechargeable 1M and 2M candlepower handheld spotlights at Walmart, Target, etc. are very nice lights and worth the money if you can get them under $15 when they are on sale. I have probable 4 or 5 of them spread around the house and one in the car. They put out a huge amount of light and are probably the best lumen to dollar lights you can find anywhere at any price, IMO. Certainly worth trying one to see how you like it.

cheers

 

[f22shift]

Vector brand and other rechargeable 1M and 2M candlepower handheld spotlights at Walmart, Target, etc. are very nice lights and worth the money if you can get them under $15 when they are on sale. I have probable 4 or 5 of them spread around the house and one in the car. They put out a huge amount of light and are probably the best lumen to dollar lights you can find anywhere at any price, IMO. Certainly worth trying one to see how you like it.

cheers

how many lumens would you say an 1mill one puts out? and runtime?
i'm trying to think if it's worth to carry to a camping trip
thx

 

[Illum]

look up the lamp's specs on bulb lumens...then take into account light lost through the window, etc

should give you a rough estimate of how much your looking at.

depends what your definition of camping is. If its a car accessible then sure
If its "hiking camp" or others lights are and should be water resistant to some extent, long runtime, etc...
1-2MCP spotlights generally have runtimes close to half an hour at max...and SLA cells are heavy

 

[2xTrinity]

I picked up one of these for cheap a while ago. It just working one day when I went to go use it, and I've seen similar failures happen to others, as well. I haven't gotten around to taking it apart and seeing if I could mod it or do anything with it, but personally, I don't really like the form factor at all, so it's hard to justify modding a host I flat out don't like. I wouldn't want to carry it camping, as it's heavy, awkward to handle, and the long handle makes it difficult to pack.

If that light were packaged more like a traditional 6V lantern, rather than a ridiculously disproportioned pistol, I would probably buy some, and mod the battery pack to use sub-Cs to improve runtime and/or weight.

 

[f22shift]

look up the lamp's specs on bulb lumens...then take into account light lost through the window, etc

should give you a rough estimate of how much your looking at.

depends what your definition of camping is. If its a car accessible then sure
If its "hiking camp" or others lights are and should be water resistant to some extent, long runtime, etc...
1-2MCP spotlights generally have runtimes close to half an hour at max...and SLA cells are heavy

excellent points.
i checked it in the store was 6.99(manage special 4.99 gone). still a good price i think but.. package says up to 25 minutes. that is pretty short and i have no way to recharge it. it'll be an island camping. probably should pack light.
my later camping at martha's vineyard will have electricity but the light would be overkill i think. i'm not sure if it's even woody.
25watt bulb. im guessing its something like 300 lumens.

 

[SuperNinja]

On a purely monetary standpoint, it is a great deal.

The battery is worth at least $5, and the charger is probably worth close to $5 too.

 

[Illum]

On a purely monetary standpoint, it is a great deal.

The battery is worth at least $5, and the charger is probably worth close to $5 too.

Personally I'd buy one, mod something to run on the battery and use the charger. the battery pack is worth more than $5, more like 10 in some places...and to find a charger thats suitable for such a battery would soak up alot of your freetime...

anyone know whether this is 6V or 12V? if its 12V I'll buy one

 

[aerosimon]

I've bought a few of these, 1 surviving, 1 battery donor, 2 parts donors, all bought cheap. 2 Batteries still operate after 3odd years As others say, you can think of them as cheap throwers, or parts and generally its worth trying one. As you go bigger to thors etc, you carry them round less (more kgs) and care for them more. These ones are great to leave next to the bbq or wherever.. I've found that earlier ones were better with smoother mirror finish reflectors, wheras these days, everthing is becoming less reflective and wavy (australia anyway), check the spot quality, some are shockers.. Remember old uncharged Lead Acids sulfate so old stock can be a gamble.. Also many cheap replicas have replaced quality goods while costing the same amount.. A sure sign (eg for larger 12V H3 versions) is globes marked as 6V 150W..

Note: My measurements of 6V 25W marked ones is actually 13Watts and 55W versions chewing 25 or so watts. Also, early versions of eg 3.5million CP 12V versions used 100W phillips bulbs which flash over 14odd V (well driven) while newer ripoff ones are labeled as 6V150W.. Good Luck

 

[scott.cr]

Like most here, I've purchased several from Horrible Freight... they're commonly on sale for $3 to $8. I've had 100% failure rates though due to poor build quality, but this is easily fixed if you're handy with a soldering iron. BUT!! I have had one of my light's chargers burn a hole through the SLA battery case. After that, I swore those lights off. I don't want to burn my house down over a $3 light!

I haven't yet had a bad experience with the cheaper 18650s or their chargers but I put 'em in a metal box for charging...