Anyone know anything about this light? 1W regulated Luxeon, single AA....
http://www.terralux.biz/products/LED_Flashlights.htm
http://www.terralux.biz/products/LED_Flashlights.htm
Terralux Minimax?
- Thread starter louie
- Start date
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LEDninja
Flashlight Enthusiast
A search cannot find the old posts about this light.
The reports were not good. Paint that flakes off. Dim bulb. People who bought the light were taking the LED module out and installing them in a
minimag. (The module is just a tweaked ministar2)
Terralux is supposed to introduce a new 1AA luxeon light called the chromestar with a better body later this year. However the early reviews are not that hot. (NOTE: I am expecting the Minimax & Chromstar to perform similarly)
http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/terralux_chromestar.htm
The $6 NEW Xnova 1AA 8LED from lighthound beats it handily.
http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/sz_8led_1aa.htm.
Here is a comparison in performance between the Chromestar and the Fenix.
http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showpost.php?p=1082760&postcount=52
I recommend looking at the following lights depending on how rich you are:
For $6 NEW Xnova 1AA 8LED from lighthound
http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=90684&highlight=8LED
For $30 Fenix L1
For $45 Fenix L1P
http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=90540&highlight=Fenix
The reports were not good. Paint that flakes off. Dim bulb. People who bought the light were taking the LED module out and installing them in a
minimag. (The module is just a tweaked ministar2)
Terralux is supposed to introduce a new 1AA luxeon light called the chromestar with a better body later this year. However the early reviews are not that hot. (NOTE: I am expecting the Minimax & Chromstar to perform similarly)
http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/terralux_chromestar.htm
The $6 NEW Xnova 1AA 8LED from lighthound beats it handily.
http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/sz_8led_1aa.htm.
Here is a comparison in performance between the Chromestar and the Fenix.
http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showpost.php?p=1082760&postcount=52
I recommend looking at the following lights depending on how rich you are:
For $6 NEW Xnova 1AA 8LED from lighthound
http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=90684&highlight=8LED
For $30 Fenix L1
For $45 Fenix L1P
http://candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=90540&highlight=Fenix
greenLED
Flashaholic
Chromestar is being sold by Brightguy. I think this_is_nascar posted a review a few weeks ago.
L
LED Supply
Guest
Right, the ChromeStar was TerraLUXs original offering. It was a limited run of a product to see how it would sell. Surprisingly it sold quite well, with Brightguy purchased all of the available stock. After initial reviews posted by you, I spoke with TerraLUX and they decided to move away from the chrome to a flat black. To the best of my knowledge the ChromeStar was the base for the MiniMax. I believe the MiniMax addressed some of the concerns raised in the thread started by this_is_nascars post, but I could be wrong.
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dmkays
Newly Enlightened
I can share a little of my experience with you. First let me say that I have been generally satisfied with the TerraLux Products.louie said:
That said, I bought my Minimax to replace my favorite flashlight that just went to Kuwait with my friend Mike.
I have several issues with the light, so I sent a message to TerraLUX this morning. It was read by Carl Kalin at 8:32 this morning, but he did not respond to my message. that spoke volumes to me about customer service. I have never had a message go unanswered by a flashlight, battery or LED manufacturer until now.
The LED in my light appears to have either come from a 'seconds' bin or a 'cull' bin. The reflector / LED match is horrible. The shape of the light pattern is more like an amoeba than any flashlight I have used before.
No matter how I try to focus the reflector I cannot get more than about 40-50 percent of the 'green' from the led to be in focus at any one time.
The hole for the lanyard in the tailcap looks like it is getting wider and it will soon tear out. And the light is only a couple weeks old. I would recommend waiting until this light is ready for prime time.
Cmoore
Enlightened
Another Terralux 1 x AA light claiming to produce 40 lumens as stated in Terralux's feature description:
http://www.terralux.biz/products/LED_Flashlights.htm
For those who have purchased this light, does it come anywhere close to 40 lumens of output in your opinion?
http://www.terralux.biz/products/LED_Flashlights.htm
For those who have purchased this light, does it come anywhere close to 40 lumens of output in your opinion?
dmkays
Newly Enlightened
No it doesn't even come close. Since TerraLUX has not expressed any desire to answer my complaint, I did the following.
I have a 2 AA-Maglight with an Inretek IL-AA-AK that is over 2 years old.
I abandoned the 1AA Minimax, and put the module in a second 2-AA Maglight.
I first tried the reflector from the Minimax, but the light's shape was aweful. so I took the AA reflector from a TerraLUX 1/2 watt Nichi kit. The light was a little better.
I fed both flashlights a set of 2 Energizer E2's from the same box so Power supply would be equal and did a side by side comparison.
My Inretec IL-AA-AK with a culminator gave me almost twice the light, while the modified TLE-5 heated up my second flashlight and put out about 1/2 the light. After about 10 minutes runtime, the Inretek was still cool, and the Terralux heated my the 2-AA maglight it was in, all the way to the battery cap. I turned them off before the heat caused the TerraLUX to pop.
I have abandoned the case of the Minimax. The lanyard hole was spreading out. As soon as I can, I am going to get a drop in pill for one or both of my lights, and forget about a 'bulb replacement' kit.
Also I found a source for a 1-AA cut-down Minimag who's head gives more room for a better reflector than the TerraLUX. MiniMax.
I hope that helps.
I have a 2 AA-Maglight with an Inretek IL-AA-AK that is over 2 years old.
I abandoned the 1AA Minimax, and put the module in a second 2-AA Maglight.
I first tried the reflector from the Minimax, but the light's shape was aweful. so I took the AA reflector from a TerraLUX 1/2 watt Nichi kit. The light was a little better.
I fed both flashlights a set of 2 Energizer E2's from the same box so Power supply would be equal and did a side by side comparison.
My Inretec IL-AA-AK with a culminator gave me almost twice the light, while the modified TLE-5 heated up my second flashlight and put out about 1/2 the light. After about 10 minutes runtime, the Inretek was still cool, and the Terralux heated my the 2-AA maglight it was in, all the way to the battery cap. I turned them off before the heat caused the TerraLUX to pop.
I have abandoned the case of the Minimax. The lanyard hole was spreading out. As soon as I can, I am going to get a drop in pill for one or both of my lights, and forget about a 'bulb replacement' kit.
Also I found a source for a 1-AA cut-down Minimag who's head gives more room for a better reflector than the TerraLUX. MiniMax.
I hope that helps.
Cmoore
Enlightened
Thanks for the reply dmkays. I'm sorry to say that I expected that answer.
I'll stick with the Fenix L1P until another 1 x AA comes along that has any chance of being a brightness/output contender with reasonable runtime.
I'll stick with the Fenix L1P until another 1 x AA comes along that has any chance of being a brightness/output contender with reasonable runtime.
pfmedic
Newly Enlightened
Minimax: called that for a reason.
I have had my Minimax for several days and since I dont expect any light to be at the level of lumens that the companies claim, I was impressed with the light. I estimate the lumen output for this light to be between 15 and 20 lumens depending on any number of invariables. I take the overall output of the light, which I estimate at 12.00 and multiply it by 1.43 and that being 17.16 we're in the ballpark there. ROUGH ESTIMATE.
It took 13 days to get to my house from Boulder. Anyway, during it's time in transit, the light was inadvertently switched on. I dont know how many days it was turned on in the box, but it is still running on the same battery and it could have been on as much as 13 days. I put in a Duracell Ultra to check comparison for a minute and it made little difference so Im gonna see how long I can squeeze this crappy Kirkland battery.
It puts out almost as much light as my AA TLE-5. The housing and lanyard hole appears solid and it gives me more than enough light than I need. My guess is that they are either making them more solid now, or Louie and dmkays just got their hands on some bad lights. Seriously, how the hell is the landyard hole tearing away when it's a solid piece of machined metal? That leads me to guess that you have a different model than I.
Im definately going to check out some of these other single AA's you guys are talking about, but a decent amount of lumen using one AA makes me a happy camper.
I have had my Minimax for several days and since I dont expect any light to be at the level of lumens that the companies claim, I was impressed with the light. I estimate the lumen output for this light to be between 15 and 20 lumens depending on any number of invariables. I take the overall output of the light, which I estimate at 12.00 and multiply it by 1.43 and that being 17.16 we're in the ballpark there. ROUGH ESTIMATE.
It took 13 days to get to my house from Boulder. Anyway, during it's time in transit, the light was inadvertently switched on. I dont know how many days it was turned on in the box, but it is still running on the same battery and it could have been on as much as 13 days. I put in a Duracell Ultra to check comparison for a minute and it made little difference so Im gonna see how long I can squeeze this crappy Kirkland battery.
It puts out almost as much light as my AA TLE-5. The housing and lanyard hole appears solid and it gives me more than enough light than I need. My guess is that they are either making them more solid now, or Louie and dmkays just got their hands on some bad lights. Seriously, how the hell is the landyard hole tearing away when it's a solid piece of machined metal? That leads me to guess that you have a different model than I.
Im definately going to check out some of these other single AA's you guys are talking about, but a decent amount of lumen using one AA makes me a happy camper.
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pfmedic
Newly Enlightened
Well, now I too own a Fenix. What is this illness I possess?:sweat:
dmkays
Newly Enlightened
PF Medic, I don't wan't anybody to think that I am down on Terralux, because I really am not. I have Terralux products in 1-2D Cell, 2-3D Cell, 1-4D cell, 1-2AAA and 2-2AA maglights. Next I want to try a Badboy sandwich. But I take my maglights caving, camping, hiking, biking, and keep one in each car.
If I need a real light source, I have a streamlight sl-35x. I used it fighting fire for 12 years. I could actually see all the thermal layers with it. It was cumbersome to carry but I liked to see what I was getting into. Recently I
PF Medic, you asked: how the hell is the landyard hole tearing away when it's a solid piece of machined metal? My light did not come with a Lanyard.
I took a "3/8 in ring, made from steel and coated with nickel to keep from corroding" off of a keyring dog-whistle that I found in a drawer and threaded that through the Lanyard hole. Then I clipped a whistle lanyard to the ring to hang it around my neck. My flashlight did not come with a lanyard so I had to improvise.
You also said: "I dont expect any light to be at the level of lumens that the companies claim".
My Streamlight Tasklight Luxeon 3-AA claims light output of 35 lumens. I figure that to be about right. My Streamlight SL-35X claims to put out up to 40,000 beam candlepower and I figure that to be about right too.
TerraLUX advertised 40 lumens output from TerraLUX Engine Inside. (TLE-5 Modified). Since they could not deliver on their claim they should have said 15-16 lumens. but my biggest problem with the light is that The reflector is not matched to the light source. In fact there seems to be no point of focus to the reflector at all. I am glad that you like yours. But if I could have tried it before I bought it, I never would have purchased mine.
Dan Kays
[email protected]
If I need a real light source, I have a streamlight sl-35x. I used it fighting fire for 12 years. I could actually see all the thermal layers with it. It was cumbersome to carry but I liked to see what I was getting into. Recently I
PF Medic, you asked: how the hell is the landyard hole tearing away when it's a solid piece of machined metal? My light did not come with a Lanyard.
I took a "3/8 in ring, made from steel and coated with nickel to keep from corroding" off of a keyring dog-whistle that I found in a drawer and threaded that through the Lanyard hole. Then I clipped a whistle lanyard to the ring to hang it around my neck. My flashlight did not come with a lanyard so I had to improvise.
You also said: "I dont expect any light to be at the level of lumens that the companies claim".
My Streamlight Tasklight Luxeon 3-AA claims light output of 35 lumens. I figure that to be about right. My Streamlight SL-35X claims to put out up to 40,000 beam candlepower and I figure that to be about right too.
TerraLUX advertised 40 lumens output from TerraLUX Engine Inside. (TLE-5 Modified). Since they could not deliver on their claim they should have said 15-16 lumens. but my biggest problem with the light is that The reflector is not matched to the light source. In fact there seems to be no point of focus to the reflector at all. I am glad that you like yours. But if I could have tried it before I bought it, I never would have purchased mine.
Dan Kays
[email protected]
Cmoore
Enlightened
I'm going to keep highlighting Terralux's grossly inflated lumen output claims when they appear and those of any other manufacturers I come across.
False falshlight advertising claims should not be accepted or condoned by members of this forum.
False falshlight advertising claims should not be accepted or condoned by members of this forum.
pfmedic
Newly Enlightened
I'll agree with that.
It doesn't mean I don't like the various companies or their products. I just dont like marketing ploys, false advertisement. Sometimes, I fear that companies sidestep false advertising saying that the light is "powered by an 85-lumen LED" for example (you can probably guess what manufacturer that is,) but it doesn't mean it puts out that much.
I'll probably end up putting my Minimax on my shotgun. It puts out enough light to get a bead on a bozo, and doesnt wiggle and jiggle like my MiniMag.
It doesn't mean I don't like the various companies or their products. I just dont like marketing ploys, false advertisement. Sometimes, I fear that companies sidestep false advertising saying that the light is "powered by an 85-lumen LED" for example (you can probably guess what manufacturer that is,) but it doesn't mean it puts out that much.
I'll probably end up putting my Minimax on my shotgun. It puts out enough light to get a bead on a bozo, and doesnt wiggle and jiggle like my MiniMag.
