Any recomendations for a cheap thrower suitable for ages 10-14?
prefferably sealed battery, usb rechargeable etc, cost as cheap as possble
Im involved in Scouting in the UK, and most of them have cheap LED and nasty torches ( the type that focus, and project a sqaure of light)
or poor/low output cheap incandescents, typically running on standard batterys
Any ideas? thinking of getting a handful as a prize
Astrolux FT03 below $30 with coupon
tube glued with soft locktite so the battery can’t be easily removed,
but if the cell is aged you can open it with enough force
if you want to go dirt cheap and USB chargeable there are no real good options
Convoy C8 is good but not chargeable
The FT03 is a great budget thrower that has ucb c charging but its pretty freaking large for a 10 year olds hands (and pants pockets).
Do you expect the boys to change lights for different situations? A thrower like the FT03 or even gt mini will be difficult to use around camp. Maybe a more general use beam with some reach would serve them better? I really think the $23 astrolux EC01 would probably be suitable for nearly all scouting situations. You could purple locktite the tail cap to keep them from messing with the 5000mAh battery and other than having a more general use beam (which I see as a good thing) it should meet all your requirements.
I would say all lithium ion cell flashlights need some sort of attention once in a while. Convoy c8 is cheap, has nice throw, and with protected cell pretty save. would buy a spare charger tho.
Funny you should ask because one of my boys (15) just came back from a month long school camp and I packed him a few torches (duh!) and the overwhelming winner was definitely the FT03.
For close up / flood he was happy enough with the head lights (cheapy COB one and a Nitecore NU20)
Education is the key, my kids have been around 18650’s for ages and know how not to mistreat them so I feel I can trust them, but you may need to think about AA/AAA alkaline options instead if you’re dealing with kids who are new to this stuff
You just railed on the ones that I was going to suggest. While a thrower is neat, a good all around light is better.
Might look in to a bone stock Convoy C8 or Convoy S2+ might be a good option. There are going to be very few cheep throwers that are going to out do the Zoomies.
I was gonna suggest a bunch of SC31s (old or new). Great light for The Muggle, doesn’t set anything on fire, can be locktited to make it “sealed” just enough to keep prying hands from dissecting it, and while it’s not a thrower (as with others, not sure why you’d need a thrower vs a more general-purpose light), it does an all-around good job.
C8 / C8+ is a cracking little torch so is the Ft03 id also give the M21A & L21A a look any of these can be had for a really budget price and non of them scrimp on quality
The stock c8 or c8+ (xpl hi) is probably going to be the most abuse resistant I have one with a 4amp driver and xm-l2 and its my go to pocket torch, it’s probably the best all rounder , lots of run time on low settings a bit of kick on high, it wont overheat and your emitter will basically last forever
I’m an eagle scout from here in the U.S. I know as a scout I would have loved a C8, and they would surely work, but I’m thinking there are other better options out there. In general you just don’t need the crazy throw of the C8. You would definitely need to get diffuser’s too, i have a c8, and i hung it from my 6 person cabin tent, and all i had was a bright spot on the floor, zero flood, spill or light anywhere i needed it. Normally 50 yards throw I find is sufficient for walking, and alot of times the throw goes to waste in a forested area. Headlamps are good when your trying to assemble a tent or put up tarps at night, or backpacking, and weight is important. Maybe other member’s will chime in about good headlamps for scouts.
S2’s are a little floodier and smaller and lighter with similar output. Cost is C8’s run $25 and S2+ is $10 to $15, in american dollars (im not sure about your lbs).
I would be tempted to maybe come up with something about giving scouts who make STAR rank an S2+ , you get some better flashlights in the troop, and generally star scouts have reached a little maturity, and it would provide incentive.
I’m not giving a younger scout an astrolux Ft03 (4300 lumen), I have one, and it is ridiculous bright, everyone will be seeing stars, and the same with an EC01(3500 lumen). Having one for a troop though could be useful for field spotting animals, looking for camps sites etc, or putting a diffuser on for a lantern in a common area adult or mature kid.
I would assign a kid and adult who is a little tech savvy to monitor the charging station, this could be something that looks good if you assign a kid to watch it that can look good when the board of review for rank comes around.
Any specific reason you need a thrower? If you’re just looking to replace the torches you mention in your OP then a decent AAA or AA light would work fine and be low maintenance, something like a Lumintop EDC01 or Tool AA/AAA.
Run em off Ikealoops, easy to use, no worries about accidental overheating when someone leaves it on turbo etc.
Convoy C8 is my vote !
How about a Jaxman M8?
Thrunite TH-20 or other quality AA headlamp. One or two throwers for the scouts to play with when they’ve shown they’re responsible enough. A few quality lights for in and around camp use, either NiMH AA or 18650. A tool or tool 2.0 is reasonable for a walk to the latrine. Keep the junkers around so the scouts can compare and learn what makes a good flashlight.
convoy C8+ is my choice, it’s dirt cheap, it won’t burn your hand like other DD driver flashlight, and it’s easy to fix
FWIW, the Thorfire TG06S is a 14500/AA flashlight that has a very respectful throw of around 12,000 cd in High mode. Better than any other 14500/AA flashlight I know. One can get them on sale for less than $10 from Amazon once or twice a year. Be cautious of fakes sold on ebay.
| Manufacturer Model LED/Tint |
Output in lumins Runtime (hrs + min) |
Dimensions | Weight (grams) |
Reflect | Comments | ||||||||||||||||
| Length (mm) |
Diam (mm) |
||||||||||||||||||||
| Thorfire TG06S XP-G2 ~ 5500 K |
|
96 | 20 | 37 | SMO | No mode memory. Always starts in High. Alum alloy body. Submersible to 2 m. No noticeable PWM (to me). Low voltage warning is only available when using a 14500 battery: In High at 3 V, the TG06S flashes several time and shuts itself off. |
The Japan Air Self Defense Force retired the F-4 Phantom this year.
I agree. Its a really good thrower with XPL-HI and not too large to fit in a pocket. Also you can choose the UI between several modes.
I was expecting GT Micro to be suggested by many BLFers but it was not suggested, not even once, how come?
Nice light, but not sealed, not chargeable, and (relatively) not cheap.