Sturdiest hand wound flashlight

Bill. Tokyo · Apr 22, 2011

During the recent earthquake and tsunami here, there was a run on flashlight batteries, which got me very interested in the whole subject of wind up flashlights. My first impression of them is that all that I could find were made out of plastic, and were probably prone to breakage, particularly the winding handle. They don't make mechanical wrist watches out of plastic, which you wind up for a good reason. Too flimsy.

As I am a complete newbie to flashlights, what would some of the forum members recommend as a really sturdy, hard to break wind up type flashlight?

Thanks for any and all recommendations and URLs.

yellow · Apr 23, 2011

1st of all, I think 99 % if that is just junk.
When needed in 1/5/10 years, the interiors - You mentionned plastic parts - will fail.
A low output, long lasting light w. long storage chemistry battery will be better anyway.

for wind-ups: Freeplay!
and here primarily the models where one "cranks" a spring and this spring then runs the dynamo thing
(if there are still such models made by freeplay, system was quite expensive)
The combination to have a working radio - and possibly a low output light - makes a lot more sense, than a medium output, short running crap crank flashlight alone

Lightman2 · Apr 23, 2011

Best idea would be to buy a small solar panel AA recharging system from someone like solar film.com and grab some NiMH cells. That way you could operate your light for a while keeping in mind sun is needed to recharge the cells and if you use the light more than the cells you have then you could be in trouble and likewise if there is not much sun and hence the cells don't get the light they need. Don't buy one of thsoe shaking magnetic lights as they are not better thana candle under a blanket. I bought two of them from a reputable company in the US after reading the reviews and could not believe my eyes when I shook it for the prescribed time only to get this little dim glow on the wall.

RepProdigious · Apr 23, 2011

Just grab a quark 123 regular and put a nice primary li-ion in there. Will stay good for many many years and will run very very long on moonlight but can also give you plenty more light when you need it. Also, if sh!t hits the fan and you break both your thumbs you can still have light

radioactive_man · Apr 23, 2011

I would go for a car charger and some quality li-ion batts. That way I could charge my lights while I get the hell out of the danger zone.

EZO · Apr 23, 2011

Yellow is right, Freeplay is the way to go for a quality, durable wind up flashlight. I've owned both the original Baygen radio and the original Baygen flashlight and you could practically hammer a nail in with them and then go and use them. They were originally designed to be operated in primitive African villages.

The history of the original Baygen Freeplay Radio and flashlight developed by British inventor Trevor Baylis is a really interesting one. You can read about it HERE.

Today the company is called Freeplay Energy and they produce a range of really unique, well built, wind up, solar powered and rechargeable radios, flashlights and lanterns.

They offer wind-up, rechargeable flashlights and lanterns in different prices, power ranges and features. You can check them out the lights HERE along with their other interesting products.

P.S. Bill.Tokyo. Hope you and yours are safe from the horrible tragedy that has beset Japan. Got a postcard today from an old friend in Ikoma. She felt the earthquake even there. Her son lives in Tokyo.

jginnane · Apr 25, 2011

yellow said:
1st of all, I think 99 % if that is just junk...

I had read somewhere, about a year ago, that many of the plastic "shake" flashlights had a watch battery hidden in the housing, and the shaking did nothing to charge the light. (Could have been here, or possibly gizmodo.com, or even tom's hardware.) So be careful... the Freeplay models sound like what you'd really want.

Helmut.G · Apr 25, 2011

jginnane said:
I had read somewhere, about a year ago, that many of the plastic "shake" flashlights had a watch battery hidden in the housing, and the shaking did nothing to charge the light. (Could have been here, or possibly gizmodo.com, or even tom's hardware.) So be careful... the Freeplay models sound like what you'd really want.

I've owned one (and seen many differently brandend models for sale) with coin cell alkaline batteries in it. you would charge the batteries through the mechanism. it works but the batteries will leak very soon after some real use or after a few years storage. the overall construction was extremely low quality.

carrot · Apr 25, 2011

Dorcy makes a hand crank flashlight that is of reasonable build quality and relatively inexpensive.

Lynx_Arc · Apr 25, 2011

After you spend $20 on a semi decent crank light with 5mm LEDs you could buy a $10 led light and $10 worth of energizer lithiums that will give you 150-200 hours of runtime which is a lot of cranking. The lithium batteries would store for 15-20 years also. I used to think crank lights were cool but after you have a light that has to be cranked more than once a night to run it continuously it gets old fast. The efficiency of current LEDs and lithium batteries almost make crank lights unneeded unless you cannot find it in your budget to store up $20 worth of batteries.

EZO · Apr 26, 2011

Lynx_Arc said:
After you spend $20 on a semi decent crank light with 5mm LEDs you could buy a $10 led light and $10 worth of energizer lithiums that will give you 150-200 hours of runtime which is a lot of cranking. The lithium batteries would store for 15-20 years also. I used to think crank lights were cool but after you have a light that has to be cranked more than once a night to run it continuously it gets old fast. The efficiency of current LEDs and lithium batteries almost make crank lights unneeded unless you cannot find it in your budget to store up $20 worth of batteries.

Lynx_Arc, I would tend to agree with your comments here. In fact, I no longer own my BayGen radio or flashlight for the same reasons you put forth. Why bother cranking when you can have hundreds of hours of runtime with appropriate batteries?

On the other hand, it sounds like you haven't explored the current generation of hand cranked lights, at least the ones produced by Freeplay. None of them still rely on 5mm LEDs. Their Jonta model uses a Luxeon emitter and can provide 12 hours of continuous bright light because like some of their other models it is rechargeable as well as hand cranked and their cranking mechanisms, when compared to cheap wind-up products are highly sophisticated and efficient.

I think it's important to remember what the Freeplay products are actually designed for. As I pointed out in my previous post, these products were originally developed for use in primitive African villages where there is no electricity and batteries are unaffordable, or as is more often the case, completely unavailable. In most ways the current Freeplay products are still designed with the same usage conditions in mind, although they've found a wider audience in more civilized settings.

The OP of this thread had a specific and I think appropriate reason for his interest in a hand cranked light. As a resident of Tokyo, especially considering recent events, he knows he is in a major earthquake zone. During a disaster of that magnitude it may not be possible to access your stash of batteries or obtain new ones. In fact, the OP said, "During the recent earthquake and tsunami here, there was a run on flashlight batteries". One might need a reliable flashlight for days, weeks or even months and a high quality hand powered torch would be the best option in that situation.

Mr Bigglow · Apr 26, 2011

EZO said:
Lynx_Arc, I would tend to agree with your comments here. In fact, I no longer own my BayGen radio or flashlight for the same reasons you put forth. Why bother cranking when you can have hundreds of hours of runtime with appropriate batteries?

On the other hand, it sounds like you haven't explored the current generation of hand cranked lights, at least the ones produced by Freeplay. None of them still rely on 5mm LEDs. Their Jonta model uses a Luxeon emitter and can provide 12 hours of continuous bright light because like some of their other models it is rechargeable as well as hand cranked and their cranking mechanisms, when compared to cheap wind-up products are highly sophisticated and efficient.

I think it's important to remember what the Freeplay products are actually designed for. As I pointed out in my previous post, these products were originally developed for use in primitive African villages where there is no electricity and batteries are unaffordable, or as is more often the case, completely unavailable. In most ways the current Freeplay products are still designed with the same usage conditions in mind, although they've found a wider audience in more civilized settings.

The OP of this thread had a specific and I think appropriate reason for his interest in a hand cranked light. As a resident of Tokyo, especially considering recent events, he knows he is in a major earthquake zone. During a disaster of that magnitude it may not be possible to access your stash of batteries or obtain new ones. In fact, the OP said, "During the recent earthquake and tsunami here, there was a run on flashlight batteries". One might need a reliable flashlight for days, weeks or even months and a high quality hand powered torch would be the best option in that situation.

Yes I agree wholeheartedly with the last paragraph. When it's been dark for weeks and people are way beyond the frantic stage, it can be really tought to withhold your stash of batteries, but no one will reasonably expect you to give up your Freeplay light. Which after considerable looking around is still the only reliable brand of windup unit around. And for which I've had at least one go bad- that was a special bargain unit sold 75% off after the Y2K scare and not typical of the company- but get two just in case.

Lynx_Arc · Apr 26, 2011

EZO said:
On the other hand, it sounds like you haven't explored the current generation of hand cranked lights, at least the ones produced by Freeplay. None of them still rely on 5mm LEDs. Their Jonta model uses a Luxeon emitter and can provide 12 hours of continuous bright light because like some of their other models it is rechargeable as well as hand cranked and their cranking mechanisms, when compared to cheap wind-up products are highly sophisticated and efficient.

I think it's important to remember what the Freeplay products are actually designed for. As I pointed out in my previous post, these products were originally developed for use in primitive African villages where there is no electricity and batteries are unaffordable, or as is more often the case, completely unavailable. In most ways the current Freeplay products are still designed with the same usage conditions in mind, although they've found a wider audience in more civilized settings.

The OP of this thread had a specific and I think appropriate reason for his interest in a hand cranked light. As a resident of Tokyo, especially considering recent events, he knows he is in a major earthquake zone. During a disaster of that magnitude it may not be possible to access your stash of batteries or obtain new ones. In fact, the OP said, "During the recent earthquake and tsunami here, there was a run on flashlight batteries". One might need a reliable flashlight for days, weeks or even months and a high quality hand powered torch would be the best option in that situation.

Are you talking about this light HERE ?
It claims after 6 months of sitting around the batteries would be at 15% capacity which under normal circumstances means you would have to charge it every 2-3 months or find yourself cranking just to get any light at all. It says it takes 30 seconds of cranking for 10 minutes of "normal" light output also at $42 can buy a lot of batteries or a few lights and batteries for them and a cheap bag to keep them in. I could see in a place where there is no batteries (like africa etc.) at all getting one perhaps. For a month or less outage I would say cranking vs buying batteries beforehand I wouldn't touch a crank light. Imagine if you got injured and could not crank it. I have gotten hurt before out camping and could not use my strongest arm as a kid. 120 rpm mean 2 crank arounds a second that requires a good arm IMO. I suggest anyone that wants a crank light do their homework first. Shut off their lights and use a flashlight for a day to see how much light they need and how many minutes/hours of light they use a day at what level and compare that to what batteries can hold and how much cranking and lights/batteries cost. I think for the most part crank lights would lose for non very long term situations. If I had to consider $42+ for a crank light I would probably start leaning towards a solar power charging solution instead as it could be used to other things too.

Dude Dudeson · Apr 26, 2011

Solar alternatives are cool, but there's something to be said for "light on demand" via muscle-power.

I've been using a cheapo "twist light" for about 18 months now. It was an "experiment".

It is now a somewhat valued piece of equipment.

Cheap price, and I know if SHTF I may "use it up". But it's definitely got me intrigued with higher possibilities in this category...

yellow · Apr 27, 2011

what I wonder:
given the light is made from good quality
(crank/shake parts survive heavy use, even quite some years in the future)

how about the cells?
Will a conductor have nearly unlimited lifetime? Or just a few years?
Rechargeable cells might be about useless 10 years (?) in the future, especially when not cared about?

Or will both live much longer, like in those post-war/post-extreme-global-accident movies?
:thinking:

EZO · Apr 27, 2011

Lynx_Arc said:
Are you talking about this light HERE ?
It claims after 6 months of sitting around the batteries would be at 15% capacity which under normal circumstances means you would have to charge it every 2-3 months or find yourself cranking just to get any light at all. It says it takes 30 seconds of cranking for 10 minutes of "normal" light output also at $42 can buy a lot of batteries or a few lights and batteries for them and a cheap bag to keep them in. I could see in a place where there is no batteries (like africa etc.) at all getting one perhaps. For a month or less outage I would say cranking vs buying batteries beforehand I wouldn't touch a crank light. Imagine if you got injured and could not crank it. I have gotten hurt before out camping and could not use my strongest arm as a kid. 120 rpm mean 2 crank arounds a second that requires a good arm IMO. I suggest anyone that wants a crank light do their homework first. Shut off their lights and use a flashlight for a day to see how much light they need and how many minutes/hours of light they use a day at what level and compare that to what batteries can hold and how much cranking and lights/batteries cost. I think for the most part crank lights would lose for non very long term situations. If I had to consider $42+ for a crank light I would probably start leaning towards a solar power charging solution instead as it could be used to other things too.

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I live in a rural area half way up a small mountain where we lose power quite often, sometimes for a few hours when a tree limb falls on a line, sometimes for a few days after a major storm blows through that might take out multiple lines and occasionally for a week or more if we get hit with a monster ice storm. Like many around here I have a generator, a wood stove, a 12 volt auxiliary lighting set-up and of course numerous battery operated gadgets and tools like flashlights, radios, cell phones, laptop, cordless drills, etc, etc, etc. My habit is to periodically top off all my batteries now and then, accordingly with its type so that, for example, when I go to start up my generator during an outage I know there is enough juice in the battery to start the thing or the knowledge that when I hit the switch my 12 volts lights will come on and stay on. In the same way, I have my propane tank filled periodically so that I don't get caught without fuel for cooking, heating one of my buildings and running said generator.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I would imagine that someone who purchases a Freeplay wind-up flashlight specifically because they live in an earthquake zone might go to the trouble of charging it up every few months.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]My post was essentially trying to return to the OP's specific query which was, "what would some of the forum members recommend as a really sturdy, hard to break wind up type flashlight?" He wasn't asking for a discussion or lecture about the merits, he just wanted advice on what to buy.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]You know, its funny how things often tend to go here on CPF. Here we have a new member who asks a simple straightforward question and everyone jumps in to hand out all kinds of unsolicited advice and opinion, often without even answering his actual question. Reading through the posts here, we have, "Just grab a quark 123 regular and put a nice primary li-ion in there", "go for a car charger", "buy a small solar panel"[/FONT], [FONT=Arial, sans-serif]"lithium batteries almost make crank lights unneeded", "I wouldn't touch a crank light", etc. I often wonder how a new member at CPF reacts to this kind of thing. (BTW - Kudos to Carrot for providing a simple direct answer to the OP's question!)[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]Anyway, I think you make some very good points in your post, especially the possibility that one might have an injury that would make it difficult to operate a wind-up device. However, you seem to be viewing the OP's question as an either or scenario when you say, "cranking vs buying batteries beforehand I wouldn't touch a crank light", but at no time does the OP ever say that he just wants a wind-up light instead of a battery powered one. He just expresses an interest in this type of light and asks what would be the best quality wind-up light he could use if batteries became unavailable. My guess is that someone who, like him, wants to be prepared for an emergency just might have one or more quality flashlights and a stash of batteries on hand as well. Remember, he's not talking about just having the lights go out, he's talking about a possible disaster of biblical proportions.[/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]I'm a bit disappointed that you chose to edit out the first line of my post when you quoted me, where I said,......."I would tend to agree with your comments here. In fact, I no longer own my BayGen radio or flashlight for the same reasons you put forth. Why bother cranking when you can have hundreds of hours of runtime with appropriate batteries?"..... I mean, we do seem to actually agree on this point but if someone wants to add a Freeplay wind-up light to their arsenal, why not? [/FONT]

[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]By the way, yes, I was talking about the Freeplay Jonta light.[/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, sans-serif]
[/FONT]

EZO · Apr 27, 2011

yellow said:
what I wonder:
given the light is made from good quality
(crank/shake parts survive heavy use, even quite some years in the future)

how about the cells?
Will a conductor have nearly unlimited lifetime? Or just a few years?
Rechargeable cells might be about useless 10 years (?) in the future, especially when not cared about?

Or will both live much longer, like in those post-war/post-extreme-global-accident movies?
:thinking:

According to the FAQ on the Jonta light from the Freeplay Energy web site.......

What is the life span of the internal battery?

"The internal battery is good for 500 cycles when fully charging the battery and 10 000 cycles when using the winder mechanism for 30 seconds."

yellow · Apr 27, 2011

which directly "proofs" that there is a Ni-Mh or Ni-Cad inside; which definitly has a limited liftetime
... therefore the question remains: will such a light be still operational in the very short termed time of 10 years?
if it were Li-Ion rechargeable batteries, the answer would be even more easy: definitly not
No matter if used, or not used, charged or not charged. Within 10 years actual technology Li-Ion is dead.
How about Ni-Cad/Ni-Mh?
Or conductors?
If this is not a topic to think of in a last-ditch emergency light, then which is?

PS: I think You are too harsh to the advises which do not directly lead to just a light for the OP.
1st of all most everyone did give lights/makers and 2nd it does not harm to read of thoughts other ppl have.
Most of us also once were excited on crank lights, some might even still have some (I definitly have one somewhere).
So when telling what we use now and why - instead of the cranky - that might also lead to him finding, that this kind of light possibly is not what Bill thought they were
(and, according to the CPF-motto, he will still get one)

EZO · Apr 27, 2011

You don't need "proofs", just read the FAQ I linked.

What is the battery specification?
It is 1300mAh NiMH AA 3.6V (no molex connector).

For whatever it is worth, they say:

The battery doesn't hold a charge anymore; do I need to replace it?
Rechargeable batteries deteriorate over time, especially if drained nearly completely (to extend the life of your battery, limit how often that happens). However, in many cases they can be "conditioned" back to life. This can be done by administering several vigorous 30-second wind cycles followed by a full charge with the adapter. Alternatively this can be done by letting the product run from the battery until it stops, and then, with the product turned off, fully charging it using the wall adapter.

Helmut.G · Apr 28, 2011

yellow said:
which directly "proofs" that there is a Ni-Mh or Ni-Cad inside; which definitly has a limited liftetime
... therefore the question remains: will such a light be still operational in the very short termed time of 10 years?
if it were Li-Ion rechargeable batteries, the answer would be even more easy: definitly not
No matter if used, or not used, charged or not charged. Within 10 years actual technology Li-Ion is dead.
How about Ni-Cad/Ni-Mh?
Or conductors?

I've wondered about that before.
What would be a good energy storaging device for a crank light that will last through a storage period of more than 10 years?

what do you guys think about:

-capacitors (I don't know how long they last)
-Ni-Cd (said to be more long-living and reliable than the popular newer battery types)
-mechanical systems like springs etc
-some kind of air pressure system
-fuel cells
-a flywheel - I've seen an incandescend light with a flywheel years ago, you would need to push the handle like every 3 seconds or it would go dim. I think with nowadays' efficient LEDs this needed frequency could be lowered dramatically.

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