Two gens of the LED Maglite Solitaire?

[this_is_nascar]

Are either of these regulated?

 

[MidnightDistortions]

I got several of the 47 lumens at Home Depot for $10 each. Really sweet lights but drain batteries pretty fast. Eneloops would probably work the best.

 

[bykfixer]

Are either of these regulated?

If not an eneloop pro will act as a psuedo regulator as it holds a steady voltage longer than regular batteries.
With my direct drive Coast HP7 using alkalines you can see it dim in a few minutes. With eneloop pro's it holds steady for like 30 minutes.

 

[xxo]

Are either of these regulated?

\


I guess that would depend on how you define regulation. It has a boost circuit so there is some regulation.....is it perfectly flat running at 100.00% for it's entire run time before dropping instantaneously to 0.00%, than no.

Robin Wang's review over at LED Resource has a runtime graph:

http://www.led-resource.com/2013/07/maglite-solitaire-led-flashlight-review/

 

[TheFlash21]

I have the 47 Lumen one and I love it. I actually had two of them, but I gave one of them to my girlfriend. And we both love ours, they are bright little lights and very durable. Worth every single penny I spent on them.

 

[GasganoFJ60]

As for the waterproof rating, has anyone compared one of these to a previous model to see what changes were made to raise the bar?

 

[this_is_nascar]

Thanks.

 

[the.Mtn.Man]

Which version should I buy if I get one?

Buy whichever one is cheapest. The difference between 37 lumens and 47 lumens is imperceptible.

 

[bykfixer]

I have both and actually prefer the 37 lumen version.
It throws better, which is why I like it better.

Side by side the 47 beam is whiter. It also lights up nearby better.

It just depends on what you're after in a Solitaire.

 

[TwiceFuzed]

I have both and actually prefer the 37 lumen version.
It throws better, which is why I like it better.

Side by side the 47 beam is whiter. It also lights up nearby better.

It just depends on what you're after in a Solitaire.

I'm watching for a 37, i haven't come across one yet. I want the 37 for the better throw and you can't have too many flashlights.

 

[bykfixer]

Last night I did a side by side with a 47 and 37.

The brightness was barely different. Operation however was notable in difference.

The 37 was on/off without a lot of variance in the beam. It was a beam whose spot remained about the same regardless of how much it is twisted. The change was in how ringy things got. So a twist of about a half turn was all that was needed. Further twisting made things turn ugly with virtually the same forward lighting and spill.

The 47 was typical Maglite. Turn on for a dispersed beam. Continue to twist for a spotlight beam. It acts like the incan version with an LED output.

The operation of the 47 was easier. There is less resistance felt in the 47 twist action. It was almost like it has ball bearings in the twister head.

The beam of the 47 is whiter where the 37 has a bit of a gray tint. Held one at a time they look the same but side by side a difference is obvious. Like identical twins; when you see them separately you're not sure which one you see, but side by side you can definitely tell. Same for the operation of the lights and the beam quality.

I prefer the on/off what you see is what you get regardless of head position of the 37 version due to simplicity. The 47 you can pick your favorite beam and use the tail cap for on/off.

In a hurry the 37 is just on or off. For fun the 47 can dial in a beam you prefer. Now regarding throw, neither throws very far, but at a distance the 37 lights stuff a tad bit better. Like instead of dimly see-ing a small circle of a shed at 50 feet you see a broad circle of the same shed at 50 feet... dimly, but more area is lit.

For $10 or less, both are winners in my view.

 

[xxo]

Now regarding throw, neither throws very far, but at a distance the 37 lights stuff a tad bit better. Like instead of dimly see-ing a small circle of a shed at 50 feet you see a broad circle of the same shed at 50 feet... dimly, but more area is lit.

For $10 or less, both are winners in my view.

The little bit of added throw is why I have stuck with the 37 lumen version - sometimes I use it out to 50+ feet and the 37 lumen is better than the 47 for this.....I hate trying to light something up just beyond the reach of the light. If the new warm white Solitaire throws well I will probably upgrade to that.

 

[LightObsession]

Last night I did a side by side with a 47 and 37.

The 37 was on/off without a lot of variance in the beam. It was a beam whose spot remained about the same regardless of how much it is twisted. The change was in how ringy things got. So a twist of about a half turn was all that was needed. Further twisting made things turn ugly with virtually the same forward lighting and spill.

Thanks for that comparison. That helped me determine that mine is one of 37 lumen lights, because a partial turn of the head turns it on in it's most focused beam and much more turning just makes the beam ringy.

 

[Kale Orton]

I have purchased both Maglite Solitaires on Amazon within the last two months.. the first was a black one with 47 lumens, the second purchase was grey with 37 lumens. I gave the grey one away to my mother, who then passed it on to my brother. I use the black one daily at work with GP ReCyko Pro batteries, and have fitted it with a Tritium marker vial, so I can locate it in the dark, and added a clip and some heatshrink tubing for improved grip. I love it! - didn't notice too much difference in brightness compared to the grey.

I've trumped both of them now though with a 100 lumen Klarus Mi X6 Titanium, which has a special place close to my heart on a chain around my neck - keeping it for best! - the Mag Solitare however is the workhorse, does an excellent job and I'm not worried about bashing it up at work.

 

[Kale Orton]

Have you had any flickering issues with them? The last couple mini maglites I've bought have been crap, I had one of the first LED ones that they came out with and it was awesome, it was my EDC for 4 or 5 years, it survived several pretty brutal drops from 15-20 feet and finally a 2 foot drop while walking through my garage killed it, it still works, but only when it wants to. It's more or less retired now. The body on that one isn't worth fixing. I bought an AA Mini pro to replace it, but it ate batteries, I lost it and never missed it. I went back to the regular AA LED mini... this one flickers and has to be smacked frequently to get it to behave.... it's not reliable. Truthfully I only have 1 maglite that I like right now, the 2D DL series that I keep in my truck, it's been great. I have another 2D DL series that I think has a switch issue, it was a gift from a family member that bought it on sale at lowes. It would cost me more to send it in and get it fixed than it cost on sale. It was in an unopened blister cell, so it's not like it was a return or something. My sister also received one (identical to mine)at the same time... hers is slightly better than mine but not much.

I recently thought mine was on the way out after only a few uses - it kept switching off and the twist-on function was intermittent - turns out that mine behaves like that when the the battery is low! (I was expecting it to go dimmer and dimmer, not behave erratically like this at lower voltages). Anyways I put in a freshly charged battery and it's as good as new. Phew.

 

[LightObsession]

Thanks for that comparison. That helped me determine that mine is one of 37 lumen lights, because a partial turn of the head turns it on in it's most focused beam and much more turning just makes the beam ringy.

I was wrong, I just found the package for my Solitaire and it's a 47. From on to it's tightest focus is about 1/4 turn. Beyond that, it gets ringy.

 

[Burgess]

Today, my local Wal-Mart has
these 47 Lumen LED Solitaires
on Clearance Sale for $ 7.00 each.


Bought 2 of them, in different colors.


Just FYI . . . .

 

[ArazelEternal]

I just relocated my LED Solitaire the other day. I was glad to find it. Ive been wanting to get a keychain light for a while now as a backup for my Nitecore P12GT. That pretty much solved the issue. I wasnt sure if it was the 37 lumen version or the 47. From what has been said, it would seem its the 47 lumen version in black (wont buy any other color for my lights if I can help it.) Ive had it.... say for close to a year now I think. Still works just fine. Ive noticed Maglites tend to be workhorses. They take a heck of a beating and keep going. Im glad I read through this thread. Ive been wondering about using the Rayovac 600 mAh rechargeables I have in it but didnt know if it would play nice with rechargeables as some lights that weren't designed for the lower voltages of the rechargers dont play so well with them. Got a lot of good info here.

 

[TwiceFuzed]

I ran a rechargeable (rayovac 800 mah LSD) battery in my 47 lumen solitaire the other day, the light seems to stay at a constant brightness until the battery is depleted. I left my light on intentionally just to see what it did, it appeared to stay at a constant brightness, then it dimmed noticeably for a few seconds and then shutoff. I twisted the head into the off position, then turned it back on. The light came on at full brightness, dimmed and shutoff within a few seconds of turning it back on. I didn't measure the battery voltage when I removed it, but I will next time.
If it stops trying to pull power from the battery once it is below a certain voltage or unable to provide a set current, that would keep the light from over discharging the rechargeable battery and potentially damaging it. In a single cell device there is less worry about over discharging a cell, but deep discharges are still hard on a cell.
I haven't fully discharged an alkaline battery in it yet, so I have no idea how it handles those when they get low.

 

[xxo]

Eneloops are all I use in my 37 lumen Solitaire, I don't think I ever had a alkaline in it.....never had a problem.