Muggles strikes again... *giggle*

I have been trying to “bring my buddy along”, you know… into the LIGHT, lol…

alas, he is a muggles.

he was my first “gifted a light” recipient. Couple years back? it was christmas, and i was just got into the home depot thingy. They had these “650s” on sale for christmas, and i got myself one. Got HIM one too, poor guy needed a half decent light.

i cant get him a lithium, he runs his budget NiCd tools down to NOTHING, then he “cooks” them on the charger for weeks at a time… then wonders why his tools “dont last”, lol…

i wanted him to have a decent light, and after i saw how decent the home depot 650 was for myself? i went and got him one too.

since it was “3 D cell”, he could get normal batteries, and he couldnt screw anything up… or so i thought.

after his initial “wow, this is a really cool light!” thing (under driver xml2, decent reflector design) he liked the light for the couple years he had it. Mentioned it every once in a while as he would use it, how he liked it. He wont let me MOD IT for a couple amps to REALLY enjoy his light? but… whatever, at least he has something so he need not be completely embarrassed.

but he IS a muggles, after all.

=

they went on vacation… “something wrong with the light”. They took it to the beach. “let me guess, kids put it in saltwater for a week?”

“no… light went off on the kids, i went to change batteries? they wont come OUT…”

“Alkaleak batteries…”

“uh, no… i use the alkaline batteries… what are alkaleaks?”

“THATS why flashlight dudes use LITHIUM batteries! tghey dont LEAK and ruin flashlights when you let them sit!”

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i had to take 2 strap wrenches to get the light apart, and drive the middle D cell out, lol… i brought the light body home so i can run a reamer thru the battery tube, cause i cant clean out the hard gunk from it, LMAO

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i almost cried… when he tried to get the batteries out that leaked?? he POUNDED it on the asphalt… the battery tube end under the tailcap? looks like a BEAR chewed on it, lol… i’m gonna see if i can chuck it up in my lathe dont knbow if its too long for my little lathe or not. I might have to file it off carefully, or, see if i can mill it off flat again.

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the light STILL HAD the original batteries in it from when i gave him the light, lol… after a couple years of intermittent use? it finally leaked.

i am thinking of MODDING it, putting a 3 amp driver in it, to replace the 800ma stock under-driver… reasoning? it will drain the 3 D cells QUICKER enough maybe it will need batteries before it leaks next time, LMAO, as well as be a “real light” for him… i figure 3-D cells running 3 amps should stiull give decent runtime…

… of course, i am also considering swapping OUT his XML2 star and swapping IN a LB xml emitter i have here, lol… not like he will ever know the difference or appreciate it… this way when the next set of alkaleaks ruins the light? it wont be ruining a good emitter or driver, LMAO…

=

i cant even give him a lithium light, he would run it down to ZERO VOLTS and it would be like a disposable light to him, lol… thats what he does to all his NiCd tool packs, he just kills them then COOKS them for weeks on the chargers, lol…

You need to stop giving him things otherwise he will never learn. If he wants to waste money let it be his own :smiley:

well… everyone is GIFTING lights on here, and many of us have non flashaholic friends… we have to give them alkaleak lights or its not safe for them.

i tried… maybe NOW that he had a light he kind of liked, and the alkalines LEAKED and about ruined his light… maybe he learned something.

its kind of funny though… hes a dyed in the wool muggles, but… he tries to imitate me too… he bought a cheap DMM, but, i have about given up trying to explain what i use it for, and what voltage and amps are, i guess his meter is more for ME when i am working on electrical around him and i dont have my own with me.

i am going to try to get him to take the DMM to the BATTERIES so he can see the voltage go D-O-W-N as the D cells lose life, and maybe it will “click” for him… if i could get him to understand taking a simple voltage reading on his batteries, then kick him over to rechargeable NiMH cells for his flashlight…. i could then trust him to use and charge a cheap lithium light, so he could have a SMALL light thats more powerful than his 3-d cell light…

but, thats either a long ways off, or, not going to realistically happen, i suppose.

My latest gift to a muggle was a manker rambler with a protected keeppower 26650 in it.
That’s fairly foolproof and he can charge it like his mobile phone with the same device!
I’m still curious, but if it works this will be my new “muggle gift package”:
USB rechargeable light with low voltage warning + protected LiIon cell

Be aware of the fact that there are people who are a threat to themselves and others the moment you give them an instrument or a tool. You recognise them when they say something like: “there must be a screwdriver lying around somewhere”. Don’t educate them by giving them tools. The flashlight you give them most likely ends somewhere in a kitchen drawer with dead batteries. Not everybody is good with things.
Some people are very good in writing books, cooking food, cooking the books, teaching children, running a country.
I met my (to be) brother in law when we were studying at a technical university. Whenever one of us bought something (on the scarce moments money was available) and the other saw the box being brought home, the first instinct was to cry out: screwdriver (not: manual). Warranty? Hah! Several decades later, we are still like that. Always tweaking things in and around the house. Not everybody is like that, like us. Don’t try tweaking people who are not natural born tweakers!

This topic is the reason I am investigating lights with build in chargers
FastTech send me a Convoy BD01
So far it has done 23 charging cycles and when the little LEDs showing the state turn green the cell is a consistent 4,23V at first and 4,21v a little later.
For now I am considering it safe but will continue with the testing.

A light that can use 3*AAA and then use rechargeables seems ideal for now as a gift.

Well, I think it was/is quite popular for certain cheapo flashlight vendors to bundle their usual 18650 stuff with 3×AAA adapters, I have some lying around. However, where are the 3×AA to 26650 ones?

Cheers ^:)

It won’t fit!

The Warson X65 has a holder to fit 3 x AA
It runs for hours on really cheap Alkaline AA cells

AKA: for a 3*AAA (10.50mm) you need 25.349mm, for a 3*AA (14.50mm) you need 35.006mm.

How about set him up with (or recommend) a Convoy/XinTD X3 with a pack of NiMH AA’s? Very nice light, easy to handle batteries, no more alkaleaking.

I’ve been replacing drivers with 1.2-1.5v drivers, so I can give people last year’s flashlights, converted to use “4/3AF” NiMH cells — exactly the same size as current li-ions.
Give them a simple charger that accepts that size cell, and they’re good for a while.

RMM has been thinking about selling an improved multimode 1.2-1.5v driver but it’s just a wishlist item right now. He has a single mode driver for that voltage available.
There are also various other drivers for sale that claim to be good for 1 or 2 “AA” cells, I’ve tried several and they’ve all been a bit flaky so far.

But hey, one mode bright LED using a rechargeable NiMH that can be drained to zero and recharged repeatedly, is plenty good for most people.

And given the “18650-sized” 4/3AF NiMH they can’t easily use alkaleaks.

Tell him the light is ruined and be done with it (or give him another similar light with the knowledge he will ruin it and let him). You can’t fix people like this, you may want to save him but he is not interested. You can lead a horse to water, but you can’t make it drink so stop trying.

I once posted a thread about a friend who wanted to get into lithium lights but is too careless to not blow himself up, there is simply no way to make it safe enough so i persuaded him to get a 4AA eneloop light (Starry light and Coast polysteel 600) with eneloop smart charger

Well, I've got at least a couple of these:

“AAA” to fat ass 18650 adapters. Usually bundled with lots of cheap chinese 18650 flashlights.

I think that, in practice, a combination of some of these factors intertwine to make this possible:

  • They may assume most AAA's are smaller than 10mm in diameter. I really don't know but, know what? Just for curiosity I've measured the outer diameter of my 14500s and, in fact, they're ∅13mm; huge difference.
  • The internal diameter of those hosts is large enough for them to fit the AAA equipped adapters, maybe ∅21+mm or so.

With regards to 3×AAs to “26650”, maybe the lanky ones a ∅29+mm tube…

Cheers ^:)

If he is that handicapped in regards to owning battery powered tools….and LOTS of people are so there is really nothing wrong with it…

Just get him a new Mag-Lite every couple years and be done with it :wink: