How many hours on your incans, and for what?

[bykfixer]

So far so good frodo.
It doesn't turn it into a sunlamp but it definitely makes a 4c brighter.
I keep a 3 cell bulb in the tailcap for the eventual day it 's but thus far it has a couple of dog walk type hours on it.

Tried some Tung Saul, Chicago Miniatures and Brinkmanns that only lasted a couple of minutes but the Maglite made ones are tough.

 

[Lumen83]

I'm at about 7 Hrs a week. I generally only use incans. They're 6Ps with different chinese knockoff bulbs. One is really bright and one is pretty dim. One for outside and one for inside. Both are running over 16650s. My EDC is an LED light but I hardly use that.

 

[ampdude]

So far so good frodo.
It doesn't turn it into a sunlamp but it definitely makes a 4c brighter.
I keep a 3 cell bulb in the tailcap for the eventual day it 's but thus far it has a couple of dog walk type hours on it.

Tried some Tung Saul, Chicago Miniatures and Brinkmanns that only lasted a couple of minutes but the Maglite made ones are tough.

That's why I keep my krypton mag bulbs around. They seem to tolerate overdriving pretty well. I haven't tried it much with the mag xenons though. They have the rep for being less forgiving.

 

[Grijon]

I have blown two 5-cell xenon White Star II bulbs in less than an hour by putting them in a 6-cell light on NiMH, but I haven't tried it with any others yet.

I've got 4 hours of 16650 time on a stock Surefire P60. It sure is fun using a P60 without burning two batteries per hour.

Thanks for all of the responses, everyone!

 

[Grijon]

... I generally only use incans...My EDC is an LED light but I hardly use that.

This is pretty similar to my situation the last several weeks

and,, I thought, I was the only one using incandescent lights nightly simply to check on windows and door locks before going to bed.

Ah ha ha, not by a long shot, it seems!

...on misty nights, the "shape" of the beam is really fun to see in action.

There is something so incredibly satisfying about seeing the beam shape in mist/fog/steam/whatever, and I do feel like incans are even more satisfying in this than LEDs.

 

[Grijon]

I use P61 in this host powered by pair of 18650. Much brighter than P60, much longer run time and free lumens...

That's really cool, fivemega, thanks for sharing it!

 

[bykfixer]

Maglite kryptons seem to play nice with the voltage alkalines provide when over driven 1 cell higher from 4 cells and up. A 2 cell bulb in a 3 cell light doesn't last very long. I prefer the beam the kryptons provides over the PR base xenons in a Maglite. Now in fixed head lights by Don Keller like Kel Lites or Bianchis, the xenon looks pretty good.

I know, I know, alkaleaks and all that but they are a lot more friendly to incan bulbs. I suppose it's the sagging output over time versus the steady feed of output with rechargeables.

 

[Grijon]

Right on, bykfixer. I figured that the jump from 5 to 6 was the smallest so would be a good place to start, but two things happened: the bulbs kept blowing in the big light and none of the smaller lights have needed a new bulb yet! LOL

So I still plan on testing a 4-cell bulb in my 5D light, but I'm waiting for the original bulb to go out first...

Got my first set of NiMH D cells, so my 4D incan Maglite that I've been running on alkalines is going to get even more use. All my other D incan Maglites have Eneloops in 2xAA parallel adapters so far. If these LSD NiMH Ds work out well I plan to convert all the Mags to LSD NiMH.

 

[Grijon]

...I know, I know, alkaleaks and all that ...

I have been very vocally anti-alkaline in the past, but I've now run something like three dozen alkaline D cells through incan Maglites with no issues. The cells are never in the light for more than 2 or 3 weeks tops, and I've been blessed with no leaks so far.

 

[alpg88]

i used to put 1 cell less bulb in maglites, my experience are same as others here as far as output, however i noticed 1 thing, overdriven krypton bulbs are more likely to burn out if dropped while on. the filament is brighter, but less shockproof.

 

[ampdude]

I have been very vocally anti-alkaline in the past, but I've now run something like three dozen alkaline D cells through incan Maglites with no issues. The cells are never in the light for more than 2 or 3 weeks tops, and I've been blessed with no leaks so far.

My experience is the AA and especially AAA cells are prone to leaks more than C and D cells. Sure if you leave some D's in a Maglite for several years, they'll probably be leaked and corroded when you open up the light, but as I mentioned in another thread I've seen AA's new in the package with an exp date 8+ years in the future leaked all over the place. Seems to be more or better quality control on C's and D's. Or maybe we just don't notice it as much because we don't use a lot of them anymore. And I don't recall seeing a lantern battery with F cells leak before, though the cheaper lantern batteries have D cells in them. Reminds me that I need to check a several year old battery in a lantern light now.

Seems like years ago, alkaline batteries didn't leak nearly as much as they do nowadays. Maybe it helps the battery makers sell more of other types of batteries. Or maybe they just make them too fast and with too lax QC nowadays. Or maybe all is the case now!

 

[bykfixer]

Only leaks I've had since joining here were Energizers, Duracells and those GoingFu type that come in low budget items like tv remotes or $2 flashlights. Size didn't matter.

After reading why they leak I even tried to coax a few Rayovacs into leaking before leaving them in my 4c Maglite. Thus far Ive had no Rayovacs leak.
I have a 1x aaa light that really sucks up juice from a battery and ran it a few times until the cell quit, which was like 20 minutes on a regular alkaline. Using Rayovac e-cells (the blue kind). Battery got all warm after a few minutes but never flinched. I'd set the depleted cell aside for a few days before disposing and no ooze left the casing. Energizers and Duracells would ooze out 'snot' overnight after using them in that light.

Anyway after that I feel confident in leaving Rayovacs in my 4c with 3 cell bulb. I can definitely understand the filament breaking if dropped while being over driven, which is why I keep a 4 cell bulb in the tailcap of my 4c.

 

[ampdude]

I've seen all three brands leak, but recently the worst offenders have been newer Energizers (Exp 2027) in AAA and AA. Seen some very old (exp 2007) Duracell and Rayovac AA's in the past year that developed leaks as well. I should have thrown them away years ago though, even though the charge was still good on the batteries. I usually keep partially depleted batteries in those plastic sandwich meat containers and it ruined most of the other batteries in there.

 

[bykfixer]

This morning my wifes oldest left a book of matches on my coffee table before he left. They sat next to an incan flashlight I had left on the coffee table last night.

It reminded me of incan versus LED as I used a butane lighter to light a cigarette. It dawned on me how we used to rely on matches before the butane lighter like we relied on light bulbs before LED's. Along those lines this thread could be 'how many seconds do your matches last' instead of how many months does your BiC lighter last.

Here in 2019 I use an LED light way more than incan same with a butane lighter instead of a match. But when a pilot light is out in my home, nothing replaces my supply of fire on a stick to solve that issue. Now with a light bulb flashlight there are times when my pilot light is a mood of serenity that only the gentle glow of a light bulb can relight. Like the match I know the bulb is a lot more temporary so I opt for the LED for the reliability. It's funny to think of a light bulb like a match when there was a time the light bulb was the only practical way to get electric fire on a stick. They lasted plenty long back then. They still do. We just prefer LED's for the same reason as butane lighters.

 

[LeanBurn]

We should really move St Incans day 6 months to October/November. It is tough to use the light when the sun is up until 9:30pm and usable ambient light until 10pm.
This time of year I can bring it out just after dinner for a full 4 +hours of usable incan time, way more fun.

My 2c

 

[Grijon]

We should really move St Incans day 6 months to October/November. It is tough to use the light when the sun is up until 9:30pm and usable ambient light until 10pm.
This time of year I can bring it out just after dinner for a full 4 +hours of usable incan time, way more fun.

My 2c

I quite agree. We're up to 4c.

 

[ampdude]

I also agree. I'm not really into flashlights in August when it's boiling out and the sun is out most of the time. If only we could still buy 6c's.

 

[bykfixer]

How about November 1st? It's such a lonely nothing special day and with the kids all bouncing off the walls from eating candy, ya gotta get outside for some sanity……

 

[ampdude]

How about November 1st? It's such a lonely nothing special day and with the kids all bouncing off the walls from eating candy, ya gotta get outside for some sanity……

St Incans Day moved to All Saints Day? Makes sense to me. I like it.

 

[id30209]

Yes! Why only 1 day? Let's make it a month!