Difference between Smooth and Textured reflector

Well, as you see, I'm asking, if someone knows what is the difference between Smooth reflector and the Textured one? Just simply question: Which is better?

That's something I would like to know also. My search fu is weak.

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In general, smooth = longer throw, often accompanied by beam artifacts. The artifacts are much less of a problem now with LEDs than they were with Incandescent filament bulbs.

Textured/Orange Peel (OP)= Flood. More specifically differing degrees of beam diffusion, ranging from just enough to smooth out any rings or artifacts in the beam with similar throw to a smooth reflector, to a heavy stipple texture that gives an artifact free wide flood pattern regardless of incan or LED with very short range.

Well, without getting bogged down in lots of details about specific emitters and particular reflectors ... *very* generally speaking - textured reflectors even out the beam a bit, while smooth reflectors may help maximize throw.

EDIT: Yoda said it better than I did, and is a faster typist, too

What about rectangular textured reflectors like the ones you'll find on some household halogen bulbs? I haven't seen many flashlight with such reflector so far, how does that compares to orange peel that seems to be preferred around here, The only lights I found that uses such reflectors tends to be cheap plastic bodied, but it works well, so how come there'e no more of this kind of reflector in higher-end light? looks more precise too compared to random orange peel.

bobbagum said:

looks more precise too compared to random orange peel.

Click to expand...

It's not really, you get pretty much the same effect. I don't know of orange-peel cut into aluminum reflectors is random or not. Faceted reflectors (as good a name as any) tend to be easy to mold into plastic* and vapor-deposit shiny things onto.

*I believe they make the glass halogens the same way, but could be mistaken.

"Rectangular reflector"? Do you mean a curved reflector that is made from many small flat rectangles, like this one?


I think the reason these are not used very often is because each design requires a different mold, but textured reflectors can be made by spraying melted copper onto a smooth reflector. Smooth reflectors are very easy to make in many different sizes, because they can be cut using a spinning lathe -- no mold required.

Textured reflectors don't throw as far, but the beam is much smoother, without dark spots in the middle. With newer LEDs that produce several hundred lumens, there is almost no reason to use a smooth reflector, because the extra throw is minimal.

Yeah, the way I use my lights is to see details in dark places, and if the lighting is uneven or has imposed features/artifacts, it distracts from the target details (IE: "Is that a shadow/beam artifact, or part of the target's texture?", etc.

Sometimes, it doesn't matter much, sometimes it does. It depends upon the light, and your subject.

Faceted reflectors are a complex subject. On budget flashlights they're usually just a cheaper way to do a texture and smooth out the beam, on high end optics they're mathmatically designed for a light source to throw or flood or all sorts of things inbetween. If you see a "Fraen reflector" this is what you're probably dealing with.

Multifaced reflector

So that's what it's called.

Let's see if I get this right...

looks like badly designed multi-reflector can produce some harsh artifacts from halos to radiating pattern, and it seems to only work well for a specific distance, so even the orange peel reflector might be less efficient it's more practical to manufacture, implement with varying emitter/reflector size. but aren't most reflector chromed plastic that's molded, not plate spinned metals? so I supposed most flashlight manufacturer will likely be investing in a mold for the plastic reflector anyway? actual cost increases in manufacturing's probably minimal, but looks like designing such complex reflector properly's that's going to be a problem, even cars head and tail lamps using multireflector design seems like a very complex thing to design. Some cheap lights these days even have combination reflector and aspheric lens too, at the volume that they'll probably be selling, it probably makes sense to invest in designing something so complex.

Moving on...
Now that most LEDs lights tend to be very powerful, would having a smooth reflector+diffusor be a better combination than orange peel reflector?

Re: Multifaced reflector

bobbagum said:

Moving on...
Now that most LEDs lights tend to be very powerful, would having a smooth reflector+diffusor be a better combination than orange peel reflector?

Click to expand...

If you don't mind the work involved in a diffuser - either keeping up with a diffuser cap/wand, or flipping it up and having it in the way when not using it, then you have a more all-around light.

Re: Multifaced reflector

bobbagum said:

Looks like badly designed multi-reflector can produce some harsh artifacts from halos to radiating pattern, and it seems to only work well for a specific distance, so even the orange peel reflector might be less efficient it's more practical to manufacture, implement with varying emitter/reflector size. but aren't most reflector chromed plastic that's molded, not plate spinned metals? so I supposed most flashlight manufacturer will likely be investing in a mold for the plastic reflector anyway? actual cost increases in manufacturing's probably minimal, but looks like designing such complex reflector properly's that's going to be a problem, even cars head and tail lamps using multireflector design seems like a very complex thing to design. Some cheap lights these days even have combination reflector and aspheric lens too, at the volume that they'll probably be selling, it probably makes sense to invest in designing something so complex.

Moving on...
Now that most LEDs lights tend to be very powerful, would having a smooth reflector+diffusor be a better combination than orange peel reflector?

Click to expand...

Most flashlights I've seen use metal reflectors. Metal reflectors won't melt or distort from heat, and they can help dissipate the heat from the LED. Making a metal reflector with facets instead of orange-peel texture is very difficult, because each facet would need to be cut by an expensive computer-controlled cutting machine. With a textured reflector, all that's necessary is to cut the smooth reflector with a spinning lathe, then spray melted copper onto the inside of the reflector. The process is much less vulnerable to small mistakes.

All the diffusers I've seen blur the light a LOT more than textured reflectors do. The goal is to eliminate little dark spots and rings in the beam, not to convert the flashlight into a flood light.