I remember i always looked for more lumens, i tried to build a fluorescent light that would run on batteries (hard to get parts around here for that), i had many xenon bulbs and built lights to run off batteries, i had several lead acid/halogen spotlights, i even once built a paddle activated light that i wanted to teach the neighbourhood cat to operate
I also bought many of those 5mm leds for specific purposes, i once made a blue light box to treat delayed sleep phase syndrome (the commercial ones cost way too much)
However i never had a satisfactory bike light, the xenon ones were useless, the halogen was too bulky and lasted under 30 mins, this spring i will test a convoy s2 which should be more then adequate
Sounds like you have had fun over the journey Bort with lights. Have you any pictures of your inventiveness? My first led lights will have you in raptures but unfortunately they are stashed away where we go camping. One day I will have to take a picture. They have a massive led and are in a Dolphin(may only make sense to Australians) flashlight.
When I was a kid I made mule lights for my brother and I from a piece of wire coiled around an incan bulb and looped over a battery. Just move the base of the bulb onto the positive terminal for reading under the bedsheets light…
Cheap and simple.
Damned well next to useless, what with it’s size, weight and inefficent incad globe.
The LED one’s are not much better.
The mini versions are ok, they at least float, which is handy
I’ve had an interest in torches for a while, tying into other interests
I got hooked as a kid in the ’50s when a storekeeper gave me a little plastic flashlight for Christmas.
It offered a feeble glimmer with two carbon/zinc AAs, and the sliding switch only made contact if you held it just right - but as a poverty stricken farm kid it was my most precious possession, and I have it to this day.
The advent of LEDs fascinated me, and I bought way too many garbage lights simply to marvel at the technology. Now I can afford ‘the best’ - but even those don’t offer the thrill of that old plastic 2AA gift light. Maybe that’s why we do it. To try to recapture the thrill of discovery, or the original delight getting something precious.
God knows, I have enough flashlights to keep me out of the dark for two lifetimes - but I still find myself yearning for one of those Zebras that haven’t quite arrived yet or struggling to get my hands on Crees latest emitter, or a handful of the latest and highest capacity batteries…
I started back when I was maybe 8 or 9 years of age - with candles and matches. I guess my parents allowed me to use them because I was quite responsible at that age. However, I also started using the cheapie xenon bulb lights. I remember my first decent xenon light being an Arlec rechargeable. That lasted me a good 10 years or so before the NiCad cells started to lose their charge.
When I was able to save up for a bit, I also bought some 1M candle power (!!!) spotlights. Damn they were heavy. I didn’t like the fact that the reflectors also rusted within about a year and the battery was never able to hold a charge for long. I never got into Dolphins, but I did admire the one that my uncle had who was an electrician. It worked for him.
I also never really got into the whole 5mm, shower head, LED lights either. I have only bought one of them, but I have considered trying to get a good quality one as they are simple lights and they can keep on providing usable light for a very, very, very long time.
As I got older, and able to get a PayPal account, I discovered the wonderful world of Deal Extreme. It started off with some “high powered” Cree Q5 lights (single mode) and then CPF started to come into the scene. Reading up there, I began purchasing “branded” lights and entering the world of 18650 li-ions.
Now, I got myself an ok soldering iron, some parts, and happy to try out my hand in modding lights. I have to say, BLF has been a much greater source of information when it comes to modding lights than the other crew. It is probably because the nature of budget lights have forced our hand to try and make them better, or at least, fix them so that they actually work.
when i was kid in the early 90’s in Yugoslavia it was mandatory for kids to have lunch in school and parents were giving us money once a month to pay for it…and suddenly it become “optional” but of course my parents didn’t knew that…(talk about money laundry…) and after a few months of “saving” i was able to buy 2x D cell german Varta flashlight that i “needed” for summer camp and i immediately “modded” by duct taping plastic tube to make it 4x D cell and i ripped a Philips krypton 6V bulb from my grandfathers bicycle (dynamo type bike light) and because it was too big sphere with same thread i had to remove the lens in order to screw down the bulb…it was the ultimate flashlight on the summer camp and one kid offered me “good” price and i sold it… today i would gladly trade my tiny monster TM11 for that old modded Varta if i could…i don’t even have pictures of it…it was same red like this one
Yep. Always liked flashlights and had several; it started with basic AA and D-cell incan lights as a kid, then my first LED light, a Dorcy single-5mm AAA light from Wal-Mart which wowed everyone who saw it. Then I started modding my lights. I swapped a brighter nichia 5mm into my Dorcy. Then built a 36x 5mm insert for my 3-D incan maglite. Then replaced that with an early (P4?) bin XR-E emitter in what was basically a mule config. Then discovered DX.
No pictures, digital camera were not out yet and my film camera did not focus well under 10ft (and i never thought to photograph any of the lights)
I just thought about this the other day, i didn’t wake up a flashaholic, i realized since i was a little kid i was practically obsessed with the potential of lumens
I think my obsession started with Lanterns. Trying different types of mantels, fuels and reflectors to try to get the brightest we could at the campsite or on the houseboat. Just this summer I got rid of all but my dad’s original coleman and a nice duel-fuel that I kept around for ‘just in case’.
Then regular flashlights turned to Xenon bulbs that churned through the 123’s.
LED’s intrigued me initially because of the cool temp of the light and how different it was from natural light or traditional flashlights.
Now I find myself drawn to really bright, natural colored LED’s, and Red/Green LED’s for varminting.
i made one in college that used a sealed lead acid old camcorder battery hooked to a switch and to a taillight bulb from a car. i took a plastic pocket mirror and cut a hole in the center and a slit from the hole to the edge and bent the thing up into a cone shape for a reflector.
it was pretty darn bright for a pocket rig job.
i also had one of those phillips slider lights for a while and it was pretty bright for what it was.
then i had some aa mag lites and had a 5mm 3-led conversion for one.
then i bought one of the coleman lights with cree XRE and i thought it was pretty bright.
then came the energizer with the luxeon rebel.
then i found the XM-L…. and its been all downhill ever since lol.
Seems we all wanted to play with matches .The picture of Foy as a kid reminds me that trying to get a flashlight away from a kid is just asking for a temper tantrum. As a flashaholic you need to recognize that crazy look in their eye and keep a 3$ sipik 68 handy for them to play with so they don't run off with something made of titainium.
< This was a gateway drug
radio shack plastic 5 D cell
Some other scout having one of these on his belt ...he was just asking for trouble .
I loved this lil light ..It had a red cap you could put over the end too.
today i would gladly trade my tiny monster TM11 for that old modded Varta if i could…i don’t even have pictures of it…it was same red like this one
