New-ish member :D

[asutherland]

Hi again all!

Sorry for my bad placement of that last post with the ebay link. I definitely wasn't advertising for them though. (esp after all my research and finding out how fake their pics and specs were) The X1 light, the one those beamshots were from... how much does something like that cost?

Last night I did about 2-3 hours research on here, ebay and the general web, and decided on the 24watt AC ballast ORACLE light that CPF'ers get the discount lovecpf- would be my best choice. I didn't want a light that was 14 inches long and 7 pounds:duh2: Plus....I agree about the fake specs and beamshots = bad sales ethics. Plus I hate ebay. hehe

I haven't been posting on CPF before because I didn't really have anything interesting to post about. I have however lurked for quite a few months (Since I realized my flashlight addiction!)

Currently I have the following lights...

- "900 lumen" P7 emitter, 2x1850 Auora
- a small (but surprisingly bright) 1 CR123A powered Ultrafire 3 way
- 2 of the Ultrafire 2x AA Cree lights
- AKOray K06 (similar to the small Ultrafire above)
- 1xAAA powered Fenix light, small, dim but will last 21 hours runtime and is waterproof (this is my backup for in the field )
- a big old 3x D cell Mag-light that I never use

Anyway, thought I would say hello, and thank everyone that posts on here regularily for their good info and research. I've definitely read a lot of it :wave:

Plus, I wanted to share a picture I took last week. My brother and some friends of mine went on a cross-BC roadtrip through southern BC (kootenays). We spent one night overnight in Cody, BC (an old abandoned silver mining town) It was amazingly awesome and very freaky to camp overnight there. Take a look at the info site on Cody here: http://www.ghosttowns.com/canada/bc/cody.html

Here is a picture of the old post office, with us camping out front. The ONLY light was that of the campfire and our flashlights. The buillding is lit up with my P7.

 

[Flashanator]

Hey! Welcome.

Nice pictures there, Little Spooky too. oo:

Id also get my self an N30 HID for those places. Bit bigger, but chucks out alot of light.

 

[asutherland]

Hey! Welcome.

Nice pictures there, Little Spooky too. oo:

Id also get my self an N30 HID for those places. Bit bigger, but chucks out alot of light.

I'm going to order one of the 24watt ORACLE lights, I think.:thumbsup:

What do you guys do for a light that provides a good amount of light, say over 150 lumen, but has a LONG runtime? Like, more than 2-3 hours. I'm kind of tired using a 900 lumen light to take a pee and then finding it runs out in an hour. I took a look at Fenix' TK40, it seems to fit the bill. Other ideas?

 

[BVH]

Good choice!

I really like my Oracle 24 form factor and color of light. The only down side for me is the 32 to 33 minutes of run time I am getting. (Although most other owners are posting about 40 minutes + or -) My problem will be solved when I get my Panasonic 2900 mah Li-Ion cell pack made up. I think it will give me between 65 and 70 minutes of run time. Then this will be a nearly perfect light.

 

[asutherland]

Good choice!

I really like my Oracle 24 form factor and color of light. The only down side for me is the 32 to 33 minutes of run time I am getting. (Although most other owners are posting about 40 minutes + or -) My problem will be solved when I get my Panasonic 2900 mah Li-Ion cell pack made up. I think it will give me between 65 and 70 minutes of run time. Then this will be a nearly perfect light.

Cool! The runtime is the only thing that's been turning me off of it too. That and not having a lower mode to save batteries when that much light isn't needed.

Where can I find one of these Panasonic battery packs that you're getting? I'd like one too

 

[BVH]

I'm buying the newest release of loose Panasonic cells (same physical dimensions) and will attempt to simply replace the existing cells with the new ones, re-using all other pack materials. If I am successful, I might consider making some for other owners. Depends on whether or not the new cells already have tabs on them. If they do not, I will not solder directly to the battery ends - end of project.

 

[asutherland]

I'm buying the newest release of loose Panasonic cells (same physical dimensions) and will attempt to simply replace the existing cells with the new ones, re-using all other pack materials. If I am successful, I might consider making some for other owners. Depends on whether or not the new cells already have tabs on them. If they do not, I will not solder directly to the battery ends - end of project.

If you're successful, I'd love to buy one off of you. Any chance you could let me know?

 

[BVH]

Sure, just keep an eye on my Oracle 24 battery data thread.

 

[Flashanator]

I'm going to order one of the 24watt ORACLE lights, I think.:thumbsup:

What do you guys do for a light that provides a good amount of light, say over 150 lumen, but has a LONG runtime? Like, more than 2-3 hours. I'm kind of tired using a 900 lumen light to take a pee and then finding it runs out in an hour. I took a look at Fenix' TK40, it seems to fit the bill. Other ideas?

For me I use these two lights, & are essential for long runtime use:

Ryobi 18v Light (At least 200lumens) With 2 LithA123 Battery packs.

MAGLITE6D with Xenon Bulb (~120lumens) with 10ah NiMH batteries.



The MAG gets a hell of a long runtime. Both have very long runtime & are ideal for camping. All you need is a small 300w car inverter so you can run the chargers & charge them up.

 

[asutherland]

For me I use these two lights, & are essential for long runtime use:

Ryobi 18v Light (At least 200lumens) With 2 LithA123 Battery packs.

MAGLITE6D with Xenon Bulb (~120lumens) with 10ah NiMH batteries.

http://img219.imageshack.us/i/56925825.jpg/

The MAG gets a hell of a long runtime. Both have very long runtime & are ideal for camping. All you need is a small 300w car inverter so you can run the chargers & charge them up.

Ya, I've already got an inverter so I'm ready to go there! Do you recommend anything smaller that has a long runtime?

 

[Flashanator]

Hmm, not that I can think of. I'm not to knowledgeable on low output/long run time lights.

Maybe start a new thread about this kind of light & I'm sure others will help.

Maybe something LEDS?

 

[asutherland]

Hmm, not that I can think of. I'm not to knowledgeable on low output/long run time lights.

Maybe start a new thread about this kind of light & I'm sure others will help.

Maybe something LEDS?

Good idea. Hey, thanks for your help! PS - I just took the plunge on my Oracle 24w HID light purchase:thumbsup:

 

[Flashanator]

Awesome stuff

Camping is so fun with flashlights. :twothumbs

 

[asutherland]

We're going camping again in August at the old Alexandria Bridge, probably just across it on the other side. Fraser Canyon. http://www.michaelkluckner.com/bciw6alexbridge.html

I'll post up some pictures afterwards with the new Oracle

 

[Patriot]

Hi again asutherland,

If you don't mind, I won't quote every post you made but I'll address the things you mentioned.

First off most of those images were from the Polarion PH40 and PH50. Only one or two were from the X1, but it's irrelevant since the PH40 and X1 have essentially the same output. I only bring the specifics to light so that if you start searching them you'll know what to look for. Search "PH40" "PH50" "X1" or "Polarion." The lights are sold by 4sevens.com and cost in the neighborhood of $2000.

Regarding the Oracle 35W I believe you have the length correct but the light isn't 7 lbs. I don't have one to weigh but I'm guessing the weight is less than half of that, possibly less than 3 lbs.

The 2 x 18650 Aurora that you're using now is actually about half of the stated lumens out the front (OTF) of the light and closer to 450 lumens. The hardest driven P7's are roughly 700 lumens out the front (OTF) but that's with good regulation.

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=229135

Regarding an all purpose light that's over 150 lumens but lasts longer than an hour, there are many choices including the TK40. I recommend that if you already have a good stash of rechargeable AA, but if not, consider the Jetbeam M1X or Eagletac M2 and M2X. These are also P7 and MCE LED's (quad dies) but with variable outputs so you can adjust according to your needs. All of them run way beyond and hour.

The output of the Oracle24W will be very impressive compared to any of the lights you own now. Imagine 3.5X the overall light output combined with extraordinarily longer throw! I think you'll be pleased with that. Whoever you order from, kindly ask them to thoroughly test the light before shipping it. There have been enough small issues with the Oracle that you don't want to have to deal with shipping and returns, especially if you're overseas.

 

[asutherland]

No problem, and thanks very much for the detailed reply!

I bought it from the Advanced Automotive Concepts guy, with the CPF discount

I'm in BC, so shipping USPS/CAD post was only $30.00. Hopefully they won't ding me too badly at the border. Luckily I was able to choose USPS over UPS and their over-inflated "handling" fees.

I'm very much looking forward to the Oracle light. If you guys are interested, I can post up some nice close-up shots and some beam shots as well once I get it

Andrew

 

[Patriot]

I'm very much looking forward to the Oracle light. If you guys are interested, I can post up some nice close-up shots and some beam shots as well once I get it

Andrew

Please do Andrew! If there's one thing we can never get enough of around here it's lots and lots of beamshots.

 

[Juggernaut]

Please do Andrew! If there's one thing we can never get enough of around here it's lots and lots of beamshots.

The ultimate "lets not blind the crap out of everyone, but is still powerful and long running / small setup" is one of LF's D26 / D36 R2 drop-ins. Tested by G-Man for 180 lumens out the front regulated in a wolf eyes M90 with A168 extender powered by 3x of those new Panasonic cells you'll get about 8 hours and 45 minuets of regulated near 200 lumen output. All in light much smaller then a 3d Maglite:thumbsup:.