Why do people collect flashlights?

Because flashlights create happiness.

Doing your psych thesis, are ya?

I don’t get the whole “prepper” connection a lot of people have concerning flashlights. Same with knives. People are so often in need of them, let they look at you as if you’ve got a .45 stuck in your waistband if you use/offer one.

I’ve seen our IT guys at work threading cat5 cable through drop-ceilings in the dark, else using their phones (or trying to) to get some light up there. :person_facepalming: The receptionist at the time asked me for a light and they used mine.

And just last week or so, grubbling around behind my machines to disconnect an unused kvm switch, in the dark, trying to go by feel alone. I used “ceiling bounce” on the bottom of the overhead cabinets to indirectly light up the area, and he was done in seconds.

Knives? I can slice open Amazon boxes or peel a orange so easily, when others are trying to use one blade from scissors to open boxes, or trying to hack away with a styrene knife and making a mess.

They’re just handy, and weigh next to nothing compared to the benefits of carrying them.

Love when people try to use keys to open boxes.
Rips it like a Beaver tooth.

Never get tired of seeing that one. :slight_smile: Needs the higher res version, though:

Oooooh! And now that you mention it as I forgot about it. I wouldn't say that owning a light sabre is ultimate 'thing' on any guys wish list, but I reckon it'd be close, especially if you're the only one of a select few to actually own one (fanciful thinking only - yes, I am aware they don't exist in a real deal form). See your cartoon there with the 'Fwoosh' effect is just about as light sabrish as any of us are going to get. So, here's another reason to add to the list of why people collect flashlights. At night, you can have your very own light sabre - minus the ability to cut people in half or cut through multiple inches of steel. How cool is that?

Unfortunately no. I am just a casual but acute observer of human nature and having thought about it, put those observations and ideas to paper. I bet there are a multiplicity of academic papers on why people 'collect' objects though.

Flashlights (as a thing that could light up the darkness) always fascinated me as a child, and I never got enough of them… only 2 flashlights (a silver 2C Energizer and a 2D angle light, the latter found by my brother in a feedlot, and it never stopped smelling like **it). Now I can get all the lights I want.

There is something sublime about holding a small object in the hand that can illuminate more than my vehicle headlights. And having a light so small it practically disappears in the pocket, yet is far brighter than anything I had as a kid.

Hahaha! Hilarious.

You seem a bit over analytical. Perfect. Buy a flashlight and before you know it you will have a collection :smiley:

Hummels, shoes, spoons, hats, you name it.

At least collecting utilitarian things like lights or knives have a function. :laughing:

’cause Melbourne gets dark in winter.

And also why people group, as they do… for certain causes or beliefs. To the point of “binding” their identity to it such that any challenge, no matter how logical, is treated as a threat and fought back with total blind stubbornness. Sorry, that’s “OT” for intent and just a general observation. But we need more experts to understand it… and come up with ways to address it.

I don’t believe I collect them, but my reason to as why I have so many is to test and find my favorite EDC, headlamp, lantern etc… so that I have the best light I can for every situation.

I’m wondering if I should sell the ones I don’t use, but then again I might want to try them out again, compare them to newer ones or suddenly I find a use case for them.

I love lights, been loving them all my life, and I’m quite interested in either CRI or output. For example having a LED flashlight that looks exactly like an incandescent light (e.g SST-20 2700K) is my kind of thing. I didn’t know about all these LEDs and flashlights before I joined the r/flashlight subreddit, but now I’m like a kid in a candy store trying everything out.

This. I’ve always got my D4V2, Leatherman Charge+ and a lighter with me, and I can’t keep count how many times my friends have asked for help with either lighting or needed my knife, pliers or lighter. It’s not that I foresee myself stranded in the middle of a forest at any given time, but doing daily tasks that require these, and not having to walk to the car or back into the house to get the right tool every time.

Like you said, just opening packaging becomes a creative game of “what can I use to molest this packaging and extract the contents with” if they don’t have the right tool with them.

I don’t notice carrying them either, so I see no reason to not have them with me as they make everything so much easier.

I had my FIRST torch about 1946/7.
Difference ’t’ween in and a match…. Very little.
It just lasted longer.

Over the decades. I made do. Till I started sailing at night.
“Channel Marker?” Hmm.
Somewhere in that direction. Bump. Oh shit. The hard stuff.
outside of channel.
While also rabbit.fox.Roo Shooting.

The search goes on.

70 ish yrs later. and over 50 torches. Most in a box in back of wardrobe.
Or out in the weekly bin.
I have throwers. Spreaders. and everything in between.

One day. Soon I hope. I’ll see THE ONE. Or so.
But not holding my breathe. I don’t have too many days left hey…. Chuckle.

No matter what you have. Get. or do.
SOMEBODY Always Gets. Does. Have’s.
Something better.
And so it goes.

I’m happy with what I’ve got. SO FAR. But don’t expect to stay there for too long.
Same as my fishing gear. Photography. Knives.

There’s always another one. One day soon. Maybeeeeeeeeee…

But. When all said and done.
After carrying a LOT of different knives and Torches.

In my pocket now.
I have a little flat/Black SOG Micro2.
and one of those dual flat cell things with LED hanging off the end.
Squeeze to activate. (10 for $11.50AUD del)
Does 99.5% of what I need 80% of the time.
With next step ups somewhere near, to take over when needed…

Because I like fine engineering, and can’t afford Ferraris?

One of the founders of Cincinnati Microwave and inventor of the consumer radar detector lives in my old hometown. He collects Corvettes and Ferraris. The crown of his collection is one of two four-liter Ferrari 250 GTs built. It’s been appraised at $40MM.

Because we’re nerds.