Old LSI 500K Spotlight And Question.

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Gene

Flashlight Enthusiast
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Dec 19, 2000
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Dunsmuir, Ca.
I have an old LSI 500,000 CP rechargeable hand-held spotlight. I've had this thing for years and it even saved my son and I from a black bear, (hit him in the eyes with it and he ran like a scared rabbit!), once while camping. Believe it or not, it's still going on it's original SLA battery and works fine. Even though it's not that bright by today's standards, it still works for me. Is there anything I can do to help the beam like maybe a faceted reflector? Any suggestions you folks have to help this old spotlight out will be appreciated.
 
A new battery and bulb (same type) should be brighter - both lose something as they get older. Is that a 6v battery and a G-4 (50 watt?) bulb? You could probably find higher wattage bulbs, although I wouldn't get too carried away. The 12v ones are a little easier since you can find lots of different H-4 bulbs for them.
 
Hi Russ,
Yes, it's a 6V battery, (6V4P), and the bulb is a Phillips, (#6336), halogen. It is a 55W bulb. I'm wondering if I can switch out the battery and bulb for 12V items?
 
Hi Gene, I haven't found a suitable 12v battery that will fit in the original housing (I've looked at several of these). The 4ah 12v is twice as big as the 6v 4ah (newer ones are 4.5ah) as you would expect. If I'm right, those bulbs are G-4s, and apparently had application as some sort of headlamp bulb (motorcycle?). If it weren't for the battery problem, I would have used an H-4 bulb (100w & up, they're all over the place as headlight bulbs among others) which it appears would fit right in. I had a 1.2ah 12v battery, but it wouldn't run a 100w bulb. Trying to supply about 8-9amps pulls the voltage way down. Also, this might melt something.

At any rate, there are some other wattages available, I just haven't found any at a decent price. Years ago, Q-Beam had a 750,000 CP lamp that, IIRC, used about an 80w, 6v, G-4 bulb. And I think JC witney may carry some if you can identify the right ones. And they are available for some other low voltage lighting applications - I'm still looking. But I want to go with 12v - I'll probably get one of those Vector monsters.
 
Russ,
Thanks much for all the info. Yes, you jogged my memory and I remember those G4's were sold as an upgrade for older motorcycle headlights, (and came standard on some). I didn't really think I could swap out the 6V for a 12V but I thought I'd ask anyway. I guess I'll just wait until the battery completely expires and put in a new one. This thing has been amazing though because the battery has lasted well over 10 years and still provides over 20 minutes of bright light. Good luck on your Vector!
 
I sure got a rude awakening! I started checking around and 1-2,000,000 12V spotlights are a dime a dozen now! It wouldn't even be wise for me to replace the battery and/or bulb in this spotlight because for about the same price you can get a 2,000,000cp spotlight! I bought this LSI 500,000cp ON SALE from Cabella's around '87-'88 for $49.00! Man, when the battery finally goes on this thing IT goes!
 
If you're still interested just for fun, I have come up with a way to (possibly) get to a 12v conversion. I intend to try this on mine. Powersonic makes a 2.8ah 6v battery that is 2/3 the size of the 6v 4ah battery that is in these lights. I believe I can fit 2 of these into my 6v spotlight. That means I can hook them in series for 12v, and find a 12v (H3 or H4) bulb that will fit. Even if I don't increase the wattage & brightness, I think this light will be much more useful in 12v.
 
This conversion worked with very little trouble, I just had to remove a couple of small pieces of plastic that held the previous battery in place. The only real drawback is the cost of 2 batteries (in this size range, they are all about the same price). Here are the batteries I used:
http://www.power-sonic.com/ps-628.pdf .

I put two of them in series for 12v and used a 55w H3 12v bulb in place of the 55w 6 volt bulb. Interestingly, the 12v light was slightly brighter than the 6v in spite of the wattage being the same (lower voltage drop?). It did have a slight elliptical shape to the beam pattern which wasn't apparent with the 6v bulb. The filament was about twice as long for the 12v bulb & therefore was no longer centered quite as well in the reflector. RussH
 
Gene said:
I have an old LSI 500,000 CP rechargeable hand-held spotlight. I've had this thing for years and it even saved my son and I from a black bear, (hit him in the eyes with it and he ran like a scared rabbit!), once while camping. Believe it or not, it's still going on it's original SLA battery and works fine. Even though it's not that bright by today's standards, it still works for me. Is there anything I can do to help the beam like maybe a faceted reflector? Any suggestions you folks have to help this old spotlight out will be appreciated.
Click to expand...
I've had mine about as long as you've had yours, and I think I've replaced the battery twice, but never the bulb. The battery is cheap (eBay). It's a very fine light, and it's saved me a few times, too. I would just put a new battery in it, when the time comes.
 
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