PSA: Don't give your kids strong lights, please

Celest

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Sep 9, 2020
Messages
37
Location
New Mexico, USA
I can't believe I have to waste my precious time posting about this... There seem to be some people (mostly I notice when lurking on BLF or hanging out on r/flashlight) who are bragging about giving multi-hundred lumen lights to their kids. This practice is not safe and I honestly won't be surprised if there is an increase in childhood visual impairment among the children of flashlight enthusiasts. If I were a parent, I would just do what my parents did with me and give kids weak grocery store lights (they sometimes even make ones for kids). Sorry, little children do not need modified Convoy lights with <insert number less than stock people think will prevent eye damaging light levels> AMC7135 regulators and such, and as an added bonus growing up with weak lights will give kids that dreamy lumen hunger that will make them like me super addicted to high power lights when they grow up...

One of the less problematic examples of a child with something that is weak by our standards but IMO too strong for a kid:
https://www.reddit.com/r/flashlight...member_as_a_kid_never_getting_to_play_with_a/

Not to mention some people also think kids are ok with Li-ion lights... ummm no. Kids and 18650s do NOT mix.

TL;DR, don't give your kids strong lights, and just give em a cheap light with safe Ni-MH batteries and call it a day. We don't want anyone getting eye damage here. If you want your kid to see a high power light in action, show it to them in a safe manner and tell them that's what they'll get when they grow up.
 

Olumin

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Sep 20, 2020
Messages
1,337
Location
"...that famous Texas part of Hamburg"
Couldn't agree more. Knowing children they'd probably go out on the street and blind passing drivers for fun, or each other. Sub 50 Lumens and runs on primary cells, compatible with NiMH is IMO OK for <12 year old Kids. I don't remember ever being allowed to play with flashlights as a kid, but then again back then these pocket rockets we have today didn't exist. Give your kids a Maglite solitaire and run them on Eneloops. Doesn't even have to be LED. These lights are fool proof and perfectly sufficient.
 

Dark Attic Works

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Jun 23, 2016
Messages
58
Location
Canada
My 20 month girl has a Dorcy pink and black rubberized 3xAA light. Soft and chunky with an easy to push switch. Stock it was 50 lumens or so but I swapped resistors and put in green LEDs because green is her favourite colour. Fun and eye safe!
 

Scotty321

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Jan 13, 2021
Messages
176
I might also suggest not giving lasers to kids, too... although I think there is a sticker on the $5 grocery store lasers about dangers. After having a laser shot in my eye by a 40 year old kid, I'd say the safety risk includes other people/children.
 

Hooked on Fenix

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Dec 13, 2007
Messages
3,076
I prefer to teach kids how to use tools responsibly, including flashlights. If you baby kids too long, they stay immature. There's an entire generation of these grown up babies that had their lives pampered and babyproofed that are in for a rude awakening once they get out into the real world and have to do things on their own. I'm fine letting a kid use a bright light, after laying down some ground rules and enforcing consequences if the break them. However, they have to be mature enough to understand.
 

KITROBASKIN

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Mar 28, 2013
Messages
5,393
Location
New Mexico, USA
I prefer to teach kids how to use tools responsibly, including flashlights... I'm fine letting a kid use a bright light, after laying down some ground rules and enforcing consequences if the break them. However, they have to be mature enough to understand.

Yes, supervision at least in the early days, definitely until the novelty is worn off. There had been no discussions about age or maturity level on this thread. This makes a huge difference. Our 11 year old walks with the dogs and at least one adult at night in country prowled by coyote packs as well as mountain lion and young bears. Most of us know that a flashlight will likely not deter any creature or creep, but when our boy goes off trail to check on his enthusiastic puppy trying to follow the big dogs, he needs to be able to see with some force.
 

Hooked on Fenix

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Dec 13, 2007
Messages
3,076
As a martial arts instructor, I trained children as young as 6 to use weapons, and as young as 10 to become instructors and break bricks. Age doesn't always equal maturity. For trusting anyone with a flashlight, a weapon, or knowledge that can potentially harm someone, you have to evaluate on a case by case basis. Some kids I wouldn't trust with a plastic spoon. Some I would trust to use a .22 handgun. You can't treat all kids the same.
 

Scotty321

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Jan 13, 2021
Messages
176
Although I understand the posts regarding teaching kids responsibility, I would have to guess the "kid" that's in the OP's pic/link is probably under 2 years old. I've taught some friend's 11 year old kids how to handle dangerous things responsibly, however I wouldn't attempt it with a 1-2 year old.
 

boo5ted

Enlightened
Joined
Apr 16, 2010
Messages
689
Location
ATL
I prefer to teach kids how to use tools responsibly, including flashlights. If you baby kids too long, they stay immature. There's an entire generation of these grown up babies that had their lives pampered and babyproofed that are in for a rude awakening once they get out into the real world and have to do things on their own. I'm fine letting a kid use a bright light, after laying down some ground rules and enforcing consequences if the break them. However, they have to be mature enough to understand.


This.^^^



Please don't teach 6 year olds to use weapons. Those things are unpredictable! Oh, not the weapons, the children I mean. From my own experience I can tell y'all, any amount of reason you attribute to those animals is still too much.


They are unpredictable because they do not know the proper way to use them. Teach them the purpose of it and with practice they will no longer be "unpredictable".
 

Hooked on Fenix

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Dec 13, 2007
Messages
3,076
Please don't teach 6 year olds to use weapons. Those things are unpredictable! Oh, not the weapons, the children I mean. From my own experience I can tell y'all, any amount of reason you attribute to those animals is still too much.

The standard age for starting on weapons forms was age 8, but some younger kids took the longer older kids class with their siblings and learned more mature material early. If I had a student start at age 4 and progress to 3rd degree green belt (almost halfway to black belt) by age 6, and they trained an hour a class, three times a week, for two years learning about respect and discipline long before I put a weapon in their hands, I'm not going to hold them back based on someone else's Ill conceived opinion that they are too young to learn certain things. If kids are old enough to understand how to treat a flashlight and taught how to responsibly use it, why hold them back from learning a bit of responsibility in using a fairly safe tool?
 

alpg88

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Apr 19, 2005
Messages
5,283
TL;DR, don't give your kids strong lights, and just give em a cheap light with safe Ni-MH batteries and call it a day. We don't want anyone getting eye damage here. If you want your kid to see a high power light in action, show it to them in a safe manner and tell them that's what they'll get when they grow up.

I prefer to teach kids how to use tools responsibly, including flashlights. If you baby kids too long, they stay immature. There's an entire generation of these grown up babies that had their lives pampered and babyproofed that are in for a rude awakening once they get out into the real world and have to do things on their own. I'm fine letting a kid use a bright light, after laying down some ground rules and enforcing consequences if the break them. However, they have to be mature enough to understand.
the truth is somewhere in between.

I can't believe I have to waste my precious time posting about this...
you really do not have to, you wont change anyone's mind, nor tell anyone anything new, you chose to waste your time.
 
Top