Question about SF A2 heat?!

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mx125

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Jul 5, 2007
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104
Location
Toronto, Canada
I'm new to the A2. Well . . . high output flashlights in general. Until now it has been used in bursts of 5-20 seconds. I had it resting on the counter (on high) to illuminate a work are for about 10 minutes. When I picked it up I could only delicately hold the handle . .and the head was too hot to grip for more than a socond or two comfortably.

Is that normal? . .and can CR123 batteries take that kind of heat?

I was thinking of doing my own runtime test but now I'm afraid I'll pop something.

Thanks.
 
mx125 said:
I'm new to the A2. Well . . . high output flashlights in general. Until now it has been used in bursts of 5-20 seconds. I had it resting on the counter (on high) to illuminate a work are for about 10 minutes. When I picked it up I could only delicately hold the handle . .and the head was too hot to grip for more than a socond or two comfortably.

Is that normal? . .and can CR123 batteries take that kind of heat?

I was thinking of doing my own runtime test but now I'm afraid I'll pop something.

Thanks.
Click to expand...

Pretty normal. Your putting out ALOT of light in a small area. Your A2 is like a "Heatsync" which dissipates heat away from the light to keep it as cool as it can (It doesn't work really well but it does keep it cool by a few degrees) The batteries are (if your using good quality one's, SF123's, Duracell etc) rated for 212F (100C) and I'm not really sure your light got THAT hot. As I've gotten my A2 hot to the point of having to get a towel to twist the tail cap off. Usually if it gets that hot I'll take it apart for a few minutes, Let it cool off and then put it back together. The light can take that type of heat pretty easily. By the time it would start to damage anything in side the batteries would either die or melt before much could happen. So as carrot said, Pretty much normal / to be expected. It can be hard for "Mag users" to understand when they get into High Output flashlights due to Mag's not getting hot (Not enough light)
 
lightr07 said:
Pretty normal. Your putting out ALOT of light in a small area. Your A2 is like a "Heatsync" which dissipates heat away from the light to keep it as cool as it can (It doesn't work really well but it does keep it cool by a few degrees) The batteries are (if your using good quality one's, SF123's, Duracell etc) rated for 212F (100C) and I'm not really sure your light got THAT hot. As I've gotten my A2 hot to the point of having to get a towel to twist the tail cap off. Usually if it gets that hot I'll take it apart for a few minutes, Let it cool off and then put it back together. The light can take that type of heat pretty easily. By the time it would start to damage anything in side the batteries would either die or melt before much could happen. So as carrot said, Pretty much normal / to be expected. It can be hard for "Mag users" to understand when they get into High Output flashlights due to Mag's not getting hot (Not enough light)
Click to expand...

Great. I just needed to hear from the experts that I wasn't outside a safety zone. That's good to know on the battery specs as well.
Thanks again.
 
Wetterman said:
That's why it says Caution hot surface ;)
Click to expand...

:naughty:

cht.jpg


(Yes, The Icon seen there is actually my avatar.)
 
True. I saw that . .and expected the lens surface to get hot . . i just didn't have any experience with the entire light getting to that temp. Not a problem though . . .now that i know all the componenets handle it just fine.
 
The last A2 I purchased had something in its literature about not running it for extended periods of time. I have over 160+ hours on one of my A2's, mostly running the incan straight until the regulation kicked out and no heat related problems yet.
 
TMorita said:
Yah, but your avatar is upside down!

Instead of a hot surface which is heating up air, it looks like a rain cloud.

Toshi
Click to expand...

Its actually a photo of an E2D that i reviewed on my review site. I had it on hand so i wen't ahead and posted it.
 
leukos said:
The last A2 I purchased had something in its literature about not running it for extended periods of time. I have over 160+ hours on one of my A2's, mostly running the incan straight until the regulation kicked out and no heat related problems yet.
Click to expand...

Tested mine against heat: burnt a set of batteries with the light sitting on my desk. The thing was hot in the hands, but no problems.
 
270winchester said:
my concerns is with the LEDs being so close to the hot lamp and how they survive the heat like that.
Click to expand...

Well, let's say that the body of the flashlight gets to 100-120 F when hot. LEDs, being directly connected to the body of the bezel, must be at around that temp. And I'm pretty sure that high wattage LEDs get much hotter than 120 F ''inside'' the LED and still runs...
 
afterglow said:
Well, let's say that the body of the flashlight gets to 100-120 F when hot. LEDs, being directly connected to the body of the bezel, must be at around that temp. And I'm pretty sure that high wattage LEDs get much hotter than 120 F ''inside'' the LED and still runs...
Click to expand...
the thing is, from what I can gather, the intended market for the A2 Aviator, is, duh, Aviators.(I'm smart like that ya know)

since most pilots don't use the incan for prolonged periods of time, I suppose the LEDs are safe as long as you don't run the light on high continuously all the time. but I'm just speculating on that one.

still, I am a little concerned as the effect of heat on the LED. I think I had a short conversation with JS about this, and my speculation is as far as I can think of, seems to me that SF would do enough R&D to make sure the LEDs would be safe. but who knows...I own 2 A2s BTW, it's the only light I have other than the old Ultra-Gs that I have more than one copy.
 
mx125 said:
I just needed to hear from the experts that I wasn't outside a safety zone.
Click to expand...
Nope, you're perfectly fine. It may feel warm to your skin because we're flesh and bones, but the flashlight can handle it easily because it's mainly metal and glass.

It's like trying to touch your car engine after a long run on the freeway. You WOULD NOT be able to, because it's extremely hot. But it's perfectly normal - the car can handle the heat easily. Same with high powered flashlight.. you may find it very warm, but the flashlight wouldn't.
 
You will be fine. Use your A2 to your hearts content. I have used mine with the incan on extensively for long periods with no problem. I open mine up sometimes if it gets too hot to touch(or I just throw some water on it), but as the body is designed to be a heat sink(as well as your hand), no worries. If your A2 DOESN'T heat up after long use, that's when you should worry.
 
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