Who makes the best "aircraft grade aluminum" flashlight?

I hear the term "aircraft grade aluminum" all the time when purchasing high end flashlights from reputable dealers. A quick search on Google reveals that not all aluminum is created equal. Aircraft grade is a loose definition on the type of metal that is typically anodized for our lights. Does anyone know which manufactor used the highest quality aluminum in there lights? SUREFIRE, ELZTTA, MALKOFF?

Just trying to learn more please don't roast me.

This might help, it's off the Oveready site...

Welcome to OVEREADY Insider 53.

Many of our configurations feature two metals, aluminum for most of the flashlight, reducing weight and maximizing heat transfer. And steel in or above the head to take the brunt of head-first impacts. This is a cost efficient way of putting each metal where its most needed. But this approach is based on standard soft aluminum. 6061 is the aluminum found everywhere: ladders, cans, foil, bicycles, aircraft, and most flashlights. When marketers say 'aircraft grade', they are describing the metal used for the skin that covers the wings and fuselage.

But what if aluminum could be as strong as some steel? 7075 is about 90% stronger than 6061 and is the aluminum reserved for high stress applications. Aircraft fittings, shafts, teeth gears, worm gears, and missile parts. Aerospace and defense equipment, including the M16 rifle, rely on it for when the going gets tough. So what does this mean for flashlights? Durability approaching steel and titanium, less weight than steel or titanium, thermal and electrical conductivity superior to steel and titanium, and a natural anodize color that can be described as OD green.

It costs more and color/shade matching makes it a tricky choice for multi use parts, but its ideal when durability is key and all parts are made from the same stuff. Before we start making flashlights with 7075, we're expanding our battery capsule selection. Introduced in titanium and later reborn in delrin. Now available in black and natural HA 7075, with our first ever Acme Speed Threads and Quad orings:

I mean...you dont have to be the hulk, but sometimes you can "feel" the softness of aluminum in some lights vs others. 606x series can be considered aircraft grade...707x series, as stated above, is MUCH more resilient. The anodizing is a bit different too...

I may be wrong, but it seems like I remember reading that there is a trade off. 7075 is stronger, but 6061 conducts heat more effectively, or something along those lines. No?

Modernflame said:

I may be wrong, but it seems like I remember reading that there is a trade off. 7075 is stronger, but 6061 conducts heat more effectively, or something along those lines. No?

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Here are the alloy specs.

dc38 said:

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...urefire-REALLY-saw-through-another-flashlight

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Good bump!

Subjective question here. Best? Best at what?

6061 is easy to machine cleanly, has a good durability, pretty good heat conduction, holds a finish well and offers good fatigue resistance.
Remember, airplanes flex a lot, fly through all kinds of temperature extremes and look cool with giant logos on the side.

The 7075 is a harder material that does not bend as readily nor bend as many times without breaking. It's hardness makes machining more difficult (read more expensive) but if you need your light to withstand falling off a 10000' building... accept no substitute.

Seriously, aircraft grade is fine for most uses. Air Force one is made out of it

Bykfixer, most of AF1 is made from 2024T-3 aluminum.
High stress, high strength parts are made from 2219.

We're talking flashlights, not aircraft. Almost any grade of 6000 or 7000 series aluminum alloy is overkill for our use.

What I'd like to see more manufacturers do is to roll threads instead of cutting them. Rolled threads are smooth while cut threads can be quite rough. Roll threading costs more, so that's why it's not typically used on consumer items.

NoNotAgain said:

Bykfixer, most of AF1 is made from 2024T-3 aluminum.
High stress, high strength parts are made from 2219.

We're talking flashlights, not aircraft. Almost any grade of 6000 or 7000 series aluminum alloy is overkill for our use.

What I'd like to see more manufacturers do is to roll threads instead of cutting them. Rolled threads are smooth while cut threads can be quite rough. Roll threading costs more, so that's why it's not typically used on consumer items.

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Thanks NNA

NoNotAgain said:

Bykfixer, most of AF1 is made from 2024T-3 aluminum.
High stress, high strength parts are made from 2219.

We're talking flashlights, not aircraft. Almost any grade of 6000 or 7000 series aluminum alloy is overkill for our use.

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And the 2024 is actually lower in yield strength than 7075, but less brittle, and more fatigue resistant. Both are used in aircraft, as well as several other alloys, including some recently with high lithium content, in addition to the copper in standard 2000-series alloys.

Anyways, aluminum flashlights get dropped, in which case you most certainly can see yielding - dents, dings, bent bezels or other edges, etc. It's usually not a functional issue, but not desirable, either. A 7075 flashlight might be a bit less likely to get these dents or dings, but it might actually be slightly more susceptible to such drops leading to cracks or broken off edges.

So without digging up some of the fracture toughness data, we're probably trading off a bunch of different properties for roughly comparable overall performance.

Thus, I agree with NoNotAgain: don't overthink it.

What's really going to get you more overall resilience, better thermal performance, etc, is thicker material, as well as designs that support the circuit board well to ensure it has good thermal contact with the body, is not likely to be damaged by the load of the battery pressing on it during high-G impacts, etc.

By the way, thread rolling is actually quite cheap for extremely high volume production, but flashlights are not high volumes in the same way bolts are. It requires more expensive, specialized equipment, and it can take a lot of time initially working out how to get the final dimensions you want after the rolling process. I'm curious if any flashlight manufactures actually do use rolled threads.

bykfixer said:

but if you need your light to withstand falling off a 10000' building... accept no substitute.

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Unless it's stainless steel, titanium, magnesium, tungsten..

Great information here guys, Thank you.

Oveready BOSS!

Great Thread here !



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