De-Lurk and some thoughts.....

Hi! I have posted one reply so far so this is really my first post.

I had flashlights before I had any idea what a flashaholic is. From little 1aaa and 1aa stuff up to 6v lanterns.

I recently got my first 'good' light, A Brinkman Legend LX. It is one of the exceptions in what I'm about to say.

Generally speaking, incandescent flashlights suck wind. Splotchy throws, yellow light. Yuck.

Exceptions. I have three or four lights that have textured reflectors. They still throw yellowish light but they toss a SMOOTH beam. Strangly enough only the cheaper lights have this feature. I have a couple 3D lights from Walmart with rubberish coating and slide switch that are among my favorite flashlights. A swivel head Ravovac is another fav.

The 2D Garrity/Ozark Trail mag copy I just got has a partially dimpled reflector and by trying different bulbs has gotten a pretty decent throw(Beats the pants off Mag for quality.)

Don't own a single LED light so far. Am leaning towards an ARCaaa, and a kit to LED a Mini Mag.

Am a low budget CHEAP bastid so I think this stuff out completely before jumping off (the LX and G/OT 2D were grabbed on recommendations here and another forum - I'm glad I got them!)

This causes me to ask this. Since Mags are plentiful and pitiful, are there any easy conversions? And I don't care if I lose the adjustment - hardly ever use it anyhow!

Thanks!

Playboy Joe Shmoe

You did not say what size mag. However, for the mini you can get the Brinkmann Nexstar bulbs. For D's and C's, you can get higher output bulbs from Radio Shanty. They won't last as long but they are cheap. Next in price is an Opalec LED module for the mini and a Luxeon Star LED for the larger Mags

And now for the mandatory mantra for new people: "Get an Arc-AAA and a Surefire E2e-HA"

I would also recomment a Princeton Tec Attitude for a first LED light and a Princeton Tec Tec40 for an adaptable incandescent. The Attitude runs 3 white leds on 4 AAA in a ver small light with nice output and long long runtime. The Tec40 runs a PR based bulb in a nice dimpled reflector on 4AA batteries, and can be tweaked and run in any number of combinations of batteries and bulbs.

On the Attitude.. one review says it spills light to the rear. Is it bad? Is a black body less likely to leak?

One of my current lights is an Eveready Waterproof Twist Head 2AA that seems to be really good compared to just about ANYTHING else 2AA I've EVER seen. I also have a MightyLite 2AAA that's pretty bad ***. And given my LX, do I really need another incandescent light? (well besides an E2E HA of course!).

Tell me more about LEDs for D cell Mags???

PlayboyJoeShmoe

On the Attitude, don't really think of it as spilling so much as glowing. You can see that the back of the head is leaking light, but I do not personaly find it that distracting. Noticable, but not a big deal IMHO.

I have a couple of those Eveready Waterproofs and they are quite nice little lights. I have been thinking about finding me a nice piece of pvc pipe and running the 2D version that I have as a 3C. One of the Walmarts around here closed them out for $3 EACH!!

You can get a single white LED bulb set up to run on 3volts for a 2D maglite from techass.com. Costs about $12. Runs forever, but not very bright. I have one and generally leave it in a 2C cell maglite.

Jbectho will make you bulbs set up to run on 4.5 (3D), 4.8 (4 cell with Nimh) or 6 volts (4D) with 3 or 4 leds in a variety of color that will drop right into your maglite as a replacement bulb. I have these in 4 led white, green and aqua all set up for 6 volts and like them a lot. The green in particular is quite bright. He also makes a red 3 led bulb that will run on 3 volts. I don't recall his prices off the top of my head, but i think $16-20 per cluster bulb. Sounds like a lot, but they will last forever and more than pay for themselves in battery savings.

I appreciate the info!

On that 2D to 3C you mention, what do you use for bulb?

Playboy JoeShmoe

From another BF member, welcome to CPF. I see you've gained another addiction.

Not at all. I had a flashlight addiction long before I found this site, or knew what real flashlights are.

I have scads of Garrity, Mag, and any odd thing I could find!

I am now trying to figure out what to modify, keep, or ditch like dirty water!

Well, you could go the easy route and just drop in a 3 cell maglight bulb to start. Running 3 c cells for 4.5 volts I would probably hit radio shack and look for a 3.85 - 4 volt blub pulling around .75 - .85 amps. I don't have any handy right now to check a bulb number for you (no 3 cell lights at the moment) but i am going to try to go bulb hunting tomorrow so if I turn one I will let you know.

For cheap to operate, I second the motion on the Tec 40. I just got mine last week. It'll digest any kind of AA (4) from cheap alkalines (like Walgreens), lithiums (for long shelf life or cold weather emergencies) or NiMHs.

I really like the idea of using rechargeable NiMHs for regular use. My wife and I take daily walks in the morning and soon we'll be needin' light. Being able to recharge those batteries 500+ times really appeals to my sense of economy!

With a KPR103 bulb ($1.29 from Radio Shack)it is just as bright as my Brinkmann LX but with way cheaper batteries and commonly available bulbs.

Small (TINY) Update...

Was in a Rat Shack tonight at Baybrook mall. They didn't have spit for pr flange bulbs, just 2AA Kryptons, and 2D Kryptons.

I was gonna grab a 5v nominal 300MCD green LED but the salespeople were too busy for little old me. Best case I could find a way to get around 6 volts in my solitaire or in my 2AA mini mag, worst? case use the hollowed out pr bulb method and put it in a lantern or something.

I know I should ask in LED forum, but what exactly as far as volts and size should I be seeking for experimentation?