Faraday Flashlights

[Blue99]

Anybody have or use one of these "shake flashlights"?

I'm curious how well they hold-up & if the shaking is a nuisance, say, during a 5 minute use.

Some of these battery-less technologies are very handy, such as the wind-up weather radios designed for camping & storm shelter use.

 

[Al]

My son has one. Kinda' useless.

 

[97f150]

A guy I work with bought one and it is trash. It is cheaply made and very annoying, you have to shake a whole lot for a little light. I am not yet too cheap to buy batteries and replace as needed.

 

[Blue99]

Thanks for the replies. If the things are cheap, I'll stick to D cell batteries or the re-chargeable flashlight models.

Looks like something that will be bought & adapted to use in junior high school science projects to power up DC devices!

 

[JHZR2]

In the USVI, the power is relatively reliable, but it goes out a few times a month. My GF's parents have one of these, and though nowhere near as bright as a big mag-lite, it gets the job done and gets usedrelatively often.

JMH

 

[moribundman]

I bought one about 10 years ago when they first came out, but got rid of it quickly. The magnet in those flashlights will magnetize even most anti-magnetic watches. I much prefer an LED emergency flashlight with crank and rechargable or capacitor over a shakelight. Crank it every 30 minutes for one minute for 30 minutes of fairly bright light.

 

[Audi Junkie]

Not you can get a LED flashlight that batteries will last longer in. The crank-flashlight looks preferable. I have two plug-in rechargables, they are nice. I guess a mix of flashlights types is a good way to go.

 

[2Fast4U]

Got a shake flash light for xmas. Total crap. Thing give about enough light to **** you off when you need to do something.

 

[chas3]

i have a crank LED flashlight. its pretty cool and fairly bright. now the hard part is finding the flashlight instead of a flashlight AND batteries.

 

[1sttruck]

I've kept a Photon light on my keychain for a few years now, and use it often. I prefer the yellow as they use 1 battery that lasts something like 120 hrs. My wife used hers in a shopping mall when the power went out, the store that she was in went pitch black, and no one had a flashlight. I keep several 2 D cell lights around the house in the case of power failure, and one in each car for whatever, all with good quality standard bulbs for better battery life. In the garage I also have a 6 volt light that uses four D cells. In my backpack I carry a pouch for a 2 AA Maglite but carry a couple of 2 AAA Maglites in the pouch instead.

 

[drm7]

I got a 1 1/4 watt LED flashlight for Christmas. Uses 3 AAA and puts out as much light as my 3D Mag. The batteries will last 15-20 hours in this thing. I like the bright white light so much I ordered a 3 watt LED conversion for my Mag. It will put out 2-3 times the light of the Mag and batteries will last up to 20 hours. They are great.

 

[Bror Jace]

I assumed the Faraday light I've seen on TV commercials is a piece of junk ... and this thread seems to confirm that.

I like flashlights ... and have several of them. Each is used at least a few times per year. Dead batteries have never been a real problem for me.

2 mini-maglights (AA)
1 mag light 5-C-cell
1 Coleman flashlight ... 4-D-cell and has a spot as well as flourescent tube. Love this thing.

1 Garrity 4-AA light

The Coleman light has been very useful for the last 15 years.

The Maglights are just a few years younger and recently I had batteries go bad and leak in the AA lights causing both to fail.

Corrosion got onto the rear spring which is also a contact. Once these parts were cleaned (repeatedly) they both worked again.

The Garrity lights (4-AA) are really handy, compact flashlights I found on sale. They have stainless steel bodies clad in a camo covering. Originally they were $8 each but got one for my girlfriend for $5 and a 2nd one for myself for $2.50.

I'm a bit intrigued by the LED lights with the lithium batteries ... but the lithium batteries are SO DARN EXPENSIVE I can't bring myself to buy one ... yet.

--- Bror Jace

 

[springnr]

A search on Froggle.com for "cr123" will bring up stores selling the lithium batteries for around a $1.25.

The STREAMLIGHT ProPolymer 4AA Luxeon is a nice 4AA 1 watt LED light.

 

[AndyH]

Picked up a 5-LED Inova X5 flashlight recently at Target (of all places). A bit pricey at approx. $30, but very bright for it's size and the Lithium batteries have a shelf-life of 10 years.

Here's a review of the flashlight:
http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/inova_x5t.htm

 

[medic]

I have always been a fan of the MagLites. They can be abused in so many ways and continue to work perfectly every time.

A few years ago I received a Pelican Stealthlite as a gift and I began to second guess my previous choice. I have now bought at least 10 different Pelican fliahlights to give as gifts. These flashlights are very durable and there is an unconditional guarantee. If you break it, they replace it, no questions asked. As of yet, I haven't broken the stealthlite and I use/abuse it regularly. It has even been run over by a 20 ton truck. They also make LED flashlights. I haven't tried one yet, but I wouldn't be surprised if they are just as good, if not better than the regular lights.

 

[smthrj53]

I finally bought one. It wasn't made correctly. It worked fine the first time I used it, and out of curiosity I let it discharge completely to see how long it would last. I was initially impressed.

The problems showed up when I recharged (shook) it. The light came back on flickering. Only after I let it sit for a few hours did start working correctly again. Repeating the cycle repeated the problem, so it was not a one time thing.

I believe the concept is great, and the initial results were quite encouraging. But until I believe I can buy one that is made correctly with a perfectly functioning circuit board in it, I will not buy another.

Maybe I will try another one again in 2-3 years after the current manufacturing supply is drained and somebody else comes along and hopefully makes it correctly.

Until then LED lights are definitely the way to go.

 

[Bror Jace]

Anyone try the $5 LED conversion kit available for 2AA Mini-Maglights?

I almost bought one today ... but didn't know what to expect from one.

--- Bror Jace

 

[Bror Jace]

Anybody, anybody?

Bueller, Bueller?

I guess I'll have to try one of these and report back here.

--- Bror Jace

 

[MolaKule]

I have had one for 5 years now and it is very reliable. Don't know if its the made by same company as referenced above. Cost me $70.00 new.

The only drawback is the LED color. It's blue-white and came out before the pure white ones but does the job in a pinch.

 

[Bror Jace]

Well, I bought the conversion kit for $5.

http://www.niteize.com/productdetai...10&PHPSESSID=ed9ed97ee3143195f78b6755c466e27a

It didn't work at first ... not sure why ... but after switching the parts around a few times it lit up fine.

I got the "white" kit but the light is actually a blue-ish white in color. It is a non-adjustable flood light that is very different from the stock blulb and reflector. Having 2 AA Mini-Mags I could compare them side by side.

The conversion is supposed to extend battery life 4-fold.

Target has a nice AA Mini-Mag for $8+ ... a really pretty copper color. The last thing I need is another flashlight but ...

--- Bror Jace