Craftsman 3 AAA LED Tool Light

Sears has this light on sale for $12.99 until 10/29/05.

http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/prod...Yes&vertical=TOOL&pid=03493673000&tab=des#tab

Some spec from Sears:
General Features:
Bulb Protection: Polycarbonate
Bulb Wattage: 1 watt
Bulb Type: LED
Flashlight Continuous Use Time: 17 hr.
Flashlight Housing Material: Stainless Steel
Water Tight: Yes
Controls, On/Off Type: Push button
Dimensions:
Diameter 1-3/4 in. Flashlight Length: 6-1/2 in.
Batteries:
Number Required 3
Number Included 3
Cell Type: Alkaline AAA

I bought this light because I wanted the PR base LED for my Mag 3c.
The way it turns out I'll probably go back and get another one to do that with.

This is a nice little flashlight. The LED emits in a very white color and the smooth reflector (fixed focus) does a nice job producing a tight hot spot with no artifacts.
Side spill is similar to a Mag on tight focus and comparable to a Fenix L1P except the hotspot is tighter and the spill is not as bright.

The 3AAA is very light and fits well in a coat pocket. The lens, reflector and bezel are all one plastic piece. There is a metal ring where the bulb holder screws in. The bezel is rubber armoured as is the rear end. There is also a flat bar on the bezel to prevent rolling. The batteries load easily into a carrier that is easy to load into the light. The carrier loads from the bezel end. The push button switch is a little firm to operate but very positive. It is reverse clickie type.

This light outthrows the Fenix L1P v2.5 and Nuwi Q3 that I have, but the spot is narrow. I pulled the LED after about 10 minutes use; it was warm edging towards hot (you can hold it).

Speaking of the LED, it works well in the Mag 3C. It will focus down quite tight and competes well with a LedBeam 3watt 3c.

There are some photos and beam shots here: http://gbrannon.bizhat.com/sears.htm

The wall in the beam shots is 15 strides away.

Please excuse my poor photography skills (I also have a low end digital camera I have to trick into taking beam shots by covering the light sensor).

Regards,
Greg

Pretty good deal for the money, especially when you get a PR-based luxeon that can be used in other lights.

Thanks for the pics and info.

A luxeon in a PR base... huh! :huh: How is the heatsinking done?

Thanks for the info on this light. I'm going to look into this.

Don't forget about the EverLED!

http://www.leddynamics.com/EverLED/

It's slightly over 2x the cost, but you can use it in any 1-6 cell PR base flashlight.

And you don't have to feel slightly guilty about plucking out the PR potted Luxeon and throwing the rest of the flashlight away...

I saw this light on sale and spent the $15.00. I was impressed. I find it a very nice small light. It's got a nice hotspot surrounded by some spill. I almost regret my spending $20.00 on a river rock 2 aa which is has only a hot spot. The craftsman light is like an led that most people will associate with a "normal" flashlight. I liked it and for the money, on sale, it was well worth it.

Greg, Have you tried it on a 4D mag? I wonder if it would take the extra 1.5V.

I have a 4 D mag but was afraid to try it. I bought a 3 D mag today and it works beautifully with that LED "bulb" form the Sears too light.

tried the 4d mag already, it was great at first but then it started to get dim after 3 minutes so I turned it off. I think I might have damaged it somewhat it doesn't seem as brite anymore I think. Anybody else have any other experiences?

Better check how many amps the AAA push through compared with the D cells. Maybe 4 Ds are too much. Test a 3D for amps.

... it doesn't seem as brite anymore I think...

Click to expand...

And since it was purchased at Sears, and their moto is satisfaction guaranteed or your money back, I bet you could exchange the light.

From the looks of the light there's no way for them to tell that the light has been molested.

I spotted this thread yesterday, followed the link, marveled at how Sears has jumped on the LED bandwagon in the year I've been gone, and immediately ordered the 3AAA online. Just picked it up this evening and you guys were right (are you ever, ever wrong?)-- it's well made for what it is and it's even better for the little PR-base Luxeon it contains. Popped that baby into an old unused Mag 3D and dang, it's impressive. CPF does it again. Thanks!

I just checked Sears website and it looks like this light is now on sale for $12.99 until 10/25/05. You may want to print the page out and take it with you if they aren't showing as being on sale in the stores.

Craftsman 3 AAA LED Tool Light
Sears item #03493673000
Mfr. model #41-5805

PJ said:

I just checked Sears website and it looks like this light is now on sale for $12.99 until 10/25/05. You may want to print the page out and take it with you if they aren't showing as being on sale in the stores.

Craftsman 3 AAA LED Tool Light
Sears item #03493673000
Mfr. model #41-5805

Click to expand...

I'm not able to find it at that price on their website. Could you post a link? Thanks

That's odd. When I clicked on the link at the beginning of this thread it came up at $14.99. I clicked on one of the tabs in the descriptions and the $12.99 showed up. I plugged the Sears product number in the search box and it did the same thing. This link is showing $12.99 when I posted it.

Craftsman 3AAA Luxeon

Wow, thanks for the link. Ordered another one. Think I'll try its "bulb" in an old Dorcy Cool Blue.

This light is a direct drive, right?

mpk said:

This light is a direct drive, right?

Click to expand...

I do not think so. 3AAA direct driving a luxeon would only gove a runtime of 2-3 hours. Even if the flashlight runs 1/2 the 17 hours listed, it would indicate an underdriven LED. There is plenty of room in the base of a PR bulb for a dropping resistor. IIRC the Dorcy 3AAA 1W has a 3 ohm resistor.

At least luxeon based lights no longer have a $10 premium over 5mm LED clusters providing the same output. I'll have to keep an eye out for when this gets to Canada.

Sears Hardware store near me rang up at $12.99. There was no sign on the shelf but it came up on sale at the register.
I wonder if this setup can handle 4 nimh AA's in a 1D Mag? :thinking:

The PR-Luxeon works great on 4 AA alkalines in the old Dorcy Cool Blue (the issue was polarity, but since Dorcy's OEM most likely makes the Craftsman, this turned out to be a nonissue after all).

Mind you, I haven't run it for 3 minutes continuously, but if the original Cool Blue bulb could stand up to 4 AAs (probably counting on the alkaline voltage sag), I don't see why the almighty Luxeon would be damaged, unless of course it simply got too hot. I guess when you see your plastic reflector melting, turn it off.

Of course, the Cool Blue's reflector is a pin spot. It'll be interesting to see what results can be got with floodier reflectors.

Interestingly, "******* Amperage" was my nickname in high school.

The only thing between the batteries and the LED on the Sears 3AAA Luxeon is a 1.2 ohm resistor. It's already overdriven with three batteries. I don't think it'll last too long on 6 volts.