Has anyone purchased the 2 pack of Duracell Durabeam flashlights from Costco. It appears they are compact, 3 C cell lights, 2 for $19.99~. I think that meets the definition of a budget light, at least to me.
They look attractive, have low, high and flashing modes, controlled by a tailcap switch …I wonder what the blinkie is for…calling in an air strike on annoying neighbors? :bigsmile:
Made in the PRC, of course, but with the Duracell name on them, can they be all bad? They have this strange yellow something surrounding the LED, and I can’t for the life of me figure what it might be for, unless it is a glow in the dark feature.
I posted a thread asking about them awhile ago when I first saw them. Someone said he’d bought a pack and they’re not bad lights, especially for the price. He said that the emitter/pill are directly mounted to the body (the emitter isn’t the sliding part) so there’s at least a thermal path, but he didn’t delve further as they were “for the wife”.
I really don’t need to be buying more lights right now it being so close to Christmas, but I’ll take donations to buy a pair for review. 0:)
I saw the yellow thing too but didn’t question it terribly. My guess is that it’s either just what color plastic was squirted into the centering ring molds, or it’s that color to make the beam warmer.
I bought a 3-pack and returned it. I looked through maybe 20 packages before I found decently centered LEDs. Once I got them home only one worked fine. The second was DOA and the third was noticeably dimmer. One for three is a failure. I have bought cheap lights at Costco before and found some gems. These were not good.
No, Sam7 is talking about another model with a Cree XP-G. I avoided buying those because Lowes had a better version… no electronic switch that may burn out with high current from an Li-ion 18500.
The Duracell 3C has an XM-L. It too, has an electronic switch but functions sufficiently bright on Eneloops and alkalines.
The ‘yellow something’ is an aesthetic insulator for the LED leads and then there is a yellow cylinder that holds the aspheric lens in place as well as keeps the flat, plastic , pop-in lens at the inner rim of the head.
The strobe actually dims in the moment the light is on and effectively is dimmer than the hi output. You may only notice this dimming outside in a dark, wide-open area.
I bought the pair for vehicle use but in trying it out, I think it is better for around-the-house use.
