Best Shock Proof LED Flash Light?

[mulder89]

A friend of mine is a motor mechanic and I was at his place yesterday and I noticed a box (and I'm talking a big box) of what were very cheap and ultra nasty flash lights.
I said to Kev about them and he said he was complaining to a bloke about the amount of flash lights he goes through and this bloke bought them in for him. I also noticed a few broken ones lying around too.
It got me thinking. What is the best shock proof flash light? He needs some thing bright and will take repeated falls from approx 6 feet to a concrete floor and possibly be able to lay down and not roll away. LED lamp would be good as he doesn't want to replace globes all the time.
He has tried other el cheapo LED lights but they have all failed very quickly from the abuse they suffer.

Any ideas?
mulder89

 

[StarHalo]

The Inova X5 is the go-to light when it comes to ultra-rough conditions. It's basically a solid cylinder of aluminum with an LED flashlight circuit carved into it. Has an excellent floody beam which is perfect for close up work/working on cars, and it's unusually inexpensive for a serious LED light. See it here: http://www.brightguy.com/products/Inova_X5_LED_Flashlight.php

 

[Yoda4561]

Something direct drive, relatively lightweight or has rubber bumpers. We have some lights like that at sears, normally looked down on since they're not aluminum uber-lights, but for a mechanic it may be just the ticket, and no huge loss if it does manage to get broken. There are probably similar ones in Australia but I don't know where you'd find them or what brands they're marketed under. I'm not sure about the x5, but the inova X1 and radiant AA series are unsuitable for this sort of thing. While I have managed to drop the Radiant 2AA from a lader a few times the first one almost managed to mangle the NIMH battery inside. My x1 after a single 2 foot drop onto carpet now only works with 1 brand of batteries due to contact issues.

 

[yaesumofo]

The Ra twisty or clicky are very good candidates for this job. Henry has tested the twisty by subjecting one of his lights to as much abuse as possible and inviting others to help all to no avail. the light still works perfectly.
The Ra takes a lickin and keeps on tickin as they say.
Yaesumofo

 

[Robocop]

You may not be able to find them anymore however from what I remember the original Long Bow lights were completely potted and very tough. I never had one however I did handle a few and just remember being very impressed with the internal design.

Another poster mentioned the Inova X-5 and I agree that this light is simply tough. I carried one for years on duty and it was dropped at least 40 times....even threw it once and it still works today.

 

[Wyeast]

Inovas have been pretty tank-reliable for me over the years. The only issue I've had with a couple have been a little smudge getting on the tailcap contact. (this has happened on my old gen1 greenie X5, and gen1 X1's) Rub with the back of a yellow pencil, and you're good to go. Every Inova I've had (the above, plus an XO3 and three Bolts) have all worked every time without fail.

Color rendition is pretty key for motor work, so I'd probably suggest the Bolt 2AA over the X5, just for a little cleaner white color, and the body is a little less rollaway-prone, to boot.

 

[gratewhitehuntr]

ok
plastic lens for one

or lots of extra glass

I have a Spride Fire ( stupid *******s can't even spell Spider)

I have used it at work for over 1 year

it has been SEVERELY abused

I have used it as a hammer (16P nails) a hammer, a hammer, a club, dropped it on concrete like 200 times, threw it through a 2nd story window and it landed in a bucket of **** (after bouncing off the stucco like 3 times and falling to the sidewalk)
I have put this light through a 1 year surefire advert and it just keeps going
I have run it for hundreds of hours working on cars

I think it is really a Romisen light.
I like the Romisen lights at DX
Oh yeah, get one that takes 18650s

I'll PM you when I get more time with another mod that is an absolute MUST for mechanics.
Really.

 

[mulder89]

it landed in a bucket of ****

 

[cabbynate]

The Ra twisty or clicky are very good candidates for this job. Henry has tested the twisty by subjecting one of his lights to as much abuse as possible and inviting others to help all to no avail. the light still works perfectly.
The Ra takes a lickin and keeps on tickin as they say.
Yaesumofo

+1 on this info....

 

[Gunner12]

What price range, what output, and what battery power is he looking at?

Many of the better LED lights should be able to take repeated abuse with no problem at all.

 

[alibaba]

The Ra twisty or clicky are very good candidates for this job. Henry has tested the twisty by subjecting one of his lights to as much abuse as possible and inviting others to help all to no avail. the light still works perfectly.
The Ra takes a lickin and keeps on tickin as they say.
Yaesumofo

Definitely among the toughest lights out there are the RA lights. If he can swing the $200+- price tag tell him to wait for the clicky and to get a model with wider beam for close up work. The twisty will be too hard to operate one-handed with greasy hands so I'd aviod it for a mechanic.

If he's looking for something that's less $$ the Inova X5 that others have recommended is superb. Long runtimes, smooth floody beam for close-up work................just wrap some grip tape around it and it's perfect! If he wants to stick with AA batt's this one's good too:
http://www.brightguy.com/products/Streamlight_ProPolymer_4AA_LED_Flashlight.php

 

[:)>]

Ra Twisty or Clicky for sure. The Aeon is also a great choice.

 

[fishx65]

The bright yellow Pro-poly should fit the bill just fine. All of mine have survived some serious abuse.

 

[dig-it]

The bright yellow Pro-poly should fit the bill just fine. All of mine have survived some serious abuse.

+1

 

[Photon Joe]

Wouldn't a headlamp be handier for a mechanic?

 

[Ninjaz7]

I used to keep an arc aaa cliped to the brim of my hat,not great color retention but pretty good longevity...a zebra light is what I've been tempted to buy,sounds like an optimum mechanic light(straped to your forehead is kinda hard to drop although I've hit my head hard enought to see stars on a few occasions).

 

[glockboy]

Fenix T1.

 

[RWT1405]

+2 on the bright yellow S.L. ProPoly's and I'd recommend the 2AA LED @ under $20 ($17.95, if I remember correctly) My .02 FWIW

 

[mulder89]

Im not sure what price he is looking at. I just know he goes through them at a rapid rate of knots. You always see bits and pieces of light laying around.
Any link to the SL Pro polys?

 

[LEDninja]

http://www.brightguy.com/products/Streamlight_2AA_LED_ProPolymer_Flashlight.php
http://www.brightguy.com/products/Streamlight_ProPolymer_4AA_LUXEON_LED_Flashlight.php
http://www.brightguy.com/products/Streamlight_ProPolymer_3C_LUXEON.php
Warning Brightguy charges a lot of money for international shipping. They use expensive courier services. You may want to email them to see if they are willing to ship USPS.