Brinkmann 3-watt at Target?

Hello-

I just saw a Brinkmann 3-watt at Target tonight - almost bought it, but was turned off (pardon the pun) by the ABS looking body. Anyone out there have any opinions on it? I can't even find it on Brinkmann's website, nor Target's.

TM

I bought one. Good light for the money. Nice white beam which is similar to most other 3 watters. The AAA battery cage is almost identical to the ones being used by Coast/LED-Lenser. The body is plastic.

Target also had a 1 watt that looked almost identical, but it featured a black rubber overlay. The 3 watt version has a dark-grey overlay on the body.

--dan

How is the beam? Any rings or artifacts?

I've got the Brinkmann 3 Watt as well. Very nice flashlight for the money. The 3 Watt's overall appearance is styled much like the Brinkmann Maxfire LX, except the 1 Watt & 3 Watt LED models are chunkier. There are no significant rings or artifacts in the beam and the hotspot appears to be smaller than that of other Luxeon lights which is noticeable up close indoors, but the beam has good sidespill and the throw on this thing is amazing. The beam's color is a nice bright white a little on the warmer side compared to my Fenix L1P which is very white.

I don't much care for 3 AAA battery carriers, but it works as intended on the Brinkmann and while I haven't bought a Brinkmann 1 Watt light to compare it with, I compared to the Dorcy Metal Gear (which also uses a 3 AAA battery carrier). I like the Brinkmann better. For one thing, the polymer/rubber body of the Brinkmann is lighter and feels better in the hand. It also has a well polished reflector and a tempered glass lens unlike the polycarbonate lens on the Dorcy. The beam on the Brinkmann is much clearer, brighter and whiter compared to my Dorcy Metal Gear.

On the package there is no mention of regulation and I haven't opened the light up to inspect it's innards so I assume the brightness will diminish as the batteries are drained. That's not so bad, considering it's not the type of light I'd choose for everyday carry and use. I think it makes a great light to have around the house or in the car or as a very bright emergency light. Personally, I have mixed feelings about battery carriers in general, but the fact that it runs on easily found and affordable AAA batteries instead of CR123's gives it more of an advantage.

I've bought both lights and was pleased with the 3 watt. It has excellent throw thats typical for 3 watters and has a white beam with only the slightest green tint. The 1 watt was an utter disappointment. It was fairly bright but had a very green tint, too green for my tastes. The biggest downside of both lights are their battery holders and the use of 3xAAA's.

I purchased one when I first saw them, since I was interested in how they manage the heat problem in a non-heat-conductive package. It's bright, as would be expected, even though the beam quality and smoothness is marginal. I still haven't any idea of how they deal with the heat issue. I'd suspect that prolonged use will severely compromise the quality of the LED.

I actually bought one of these at lunch today. For a smaller light the reflector seems unnecessarily deep. No real complaints for a relatively inexpensive, mass-produced light so far, though. Fairly bright, but haven't had the chance to shine it on a white wall in a dark room yet.

I wonder if you could run one of these on one of the bigger LiIon cells like a 17670??? Seems like it would work if it would fit?

I have one of the 3Watt LED Brinkmann's, not bad, very tight white hotspot, the corona is a bit green but not horrible.

It looks like a direct drive off the 3 AAA's in the carrier, no electronics at all that I can see, everything unscrews nicely, would be easy to mod. I haven't gotten brave and unscrewed the "star" to see if it has a bin on the back.
The LED lights up with the "wet finger"/magic thumb test. https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/104777

-David

(EDIT: fix link)

Has anyone tried NiMH or lithium AAA's in their Brinkmann 3Watt?
I am going to try mine on Titanium 1000mAh as soon as I recharge 3 of them.
Are 3 lithiums too much for direct drive lux3s?

-David

2.99792458*10^10cm/sec said:

Has anyone tried NiMH or lithium AAA's in their Brinkmann 3Watt?
I am going to try mine on Titanium 1000mAh as soon as I recharge 3 of them.
Are 3 lithiums too much for direct drive lux3s?

-David

Click to expand...

I've been running 850mah energizer NiMHs in the 3watt, and so far so good. Runtime is close to an hour before I notice the difference in light.

I bought one today to accompany me on my bicycle commute to work. I work 3-11:30PM and thought it would be nice just to have in case of a flat or whatever. Strapped it to my frame. I like it because it's nice-n-light and has a Very WHITE beam.

Rando said:

I actually bought one of these at lunch today. For a smaller light the reflector seems unnecessarily deep.

Click to expand...

A deep reflector provides more throw. Although it packs more length to a light, the tradeoff is worth it to get the most out of the LED.

If a flood is preferred for close-up work, an optic or very shallow faceted or textured reflector works better.

I got one too. Nice bright hotspot and decent throw for the money. Not sure how brightness over battery life is yet.