Several months ago I reviewed a LED flashlight that used a magnet
sliding through a coil to generat electricity. There were posts that
stated that some Chinese LED flashlights on the market were fakes using
button cells that could not be recharged. The moving slug was just put
in to look good. The one I bought from PRO Hardware was legitimate and
has worked perfectly for three months with very little charging
required. One way to identify a good moving-magnet flashlight is to
put it near some paper clips or such. The magnet is so powerful that
the clips will jump at the flashlight and stick to the side. The
flashlight in question is 7 inches long is made of clear plastic and
has a black ring at the front. It is PRO Hardware number 736N5950. I
imagine that there are lots of them around and they would make good
stocking-stuffers for those of the Kris Kringle persuasion (not that
there's anything wrong with that).

About four months ago,I saw some of those shake em up magnet flashlights
in the sporting goods department at the Wal Mart store.I shook a few of
them up,but none of them showed any light.
cuhulin

wrote:
About four months ago,I saw some of those shake em up magnet flashlights
in the sporting goods department at the Wal Mart store.I shook a few of
them up,but none of them showed any light.
cuhulin

So True! Nothing but more bulk-imported Chinese made crap
plus they wanted $19.95 for the silly penile-shaped thingie.
(ever notice that you have to 'shake it' like you're whacking off
ole Mr. Johnson to get the magnet to make enuf juice to power
up the ****-weak thingie?) I went an bought the fake one with
the pair of CR2032 Lithium Coin cells inside of it at the local
Dollar Store, although they were actually $2.50 each. I then scavegened
the four lithium coin cells (they were Sony cells!!) and used two of
them
in my two older HF radios to replace the 8+ year old coin cells
inside of them - have to watch those older 80's Icom radios
as they DIE when the lithium cell gives out. so for $5 I got new
lithium cells for the shortwaves and the LED's are now in a holder
over the radio table act as a backlite from the 12VDC with a resistor
in series.
Who needs Radio Shack expensive parts? pooohiy!

ve3... wrote:
Several months ago I reviewed a LED flashlight that used a magnet
sliding through a coil to generat electricity. There were posts that
stated that some Chinese LED flashlights on the market were fakes using
button cells that could not be recharged. The moving slug was just put
in to look good. The one I bought from PRO Hardware was legitimate and
has worked perfectly for three months with very little charging
required. One way to identify a good moving-magnet flashlight is to
put it near some paper clips or such. The magnet is so powerful that
the clips will jump at the flashlight and stick to the side. The
flashlight in question is 7 inches long is made of clear plastic and
has a black ring at the front. It is PRO Hardware number 736N5950. I
imagine that there are lots of them around and they would make good
stocking-stuffers for those of the Kris Kringle persuasion (not that
there's anything wrong with that).

The two that I tried provided a weak light with limited electrical
storage given the size of the flashlight. In an emergancy you want
light shining on the object an hand without having to periodically
shake the light. It's really little more than a gadget for xmas.

) writes:
ve3... wrote:
Several months ago I reviewed a LED flashlight that used a magnet
sliding through a coil to generat electricity. There were posts that
stated that some Chinese LED flashlights on the market were fakes using
button cells that could not be recharged. The moving slug was just put
in to look good. The one I bought from PRO Hardware was legitimate and
has worked perfectly for three months with very little charging
required. One way to identify a good moving-magnet flashlight is to
put it near some paper clips or such. The magnet is so powerful that
the clips will jump at the flashlight and stick to the side. The
flashlight in question is 7 inches long is made of clear plastic and
has a black ring at the front. It is PRO Hardware number 736N5950. I
imagine that there are lots of them around and they would make good
stocking-stuffers for those of the Kris Kringle persuasion (not that
there's anything wrong with that).

The two that I tried provided a weak light with limited electrical
storage given the size of the flashlight. In an emergancy you want
light shining on the object an hand without having to periodically
shake the light. It's really little more than a gadget for xmas.

Well it depends. An ongoing emergency, obviously you want a constant
light since there'll be no other.

But "emergency" can mean a blown fuse, and a need for a light to check
which one. Or checking something in a dark corner merely because the light
isn't good there. The advantage of having a flashlight that doesn't use
batteries is that one can just crank it up when needed to get that bit
of light. Time will tell whether the current crank or shake lights serve
that purpose in the long run.

I can remember with incandescent flashlights, how often when I actually
needed the light the batteries were dead. Maybe bad shelf life, but
I'm beginning to think the switches had too little resistance in the
off position, allowing for a constant current drain without enough for
the bulb to light. So you'd not notice that the batteries were draining,
but the batteries were gone when you needed them.

This is amplified by the bulbs themselves not putting out much light
with the lower battery voltages. When I got an LED adaptor for my
Maglite last year (it just fits in where the bulb used to go), I started
off with batteries that had seen use with the incandescent bulb, so they
were worn out at least partially. The light kept going, until I realized
that "oh, the light has become weak, time to change the batteries". The
incandescent bulb would have changed color and put out less light long
before that.

And of course, the bulbs would break or burn out, and then you'd be
stuck with no light. At least LED flashlights aren't going to have the
breaking problem, and it will be some time before they burn out.

So on some level, the cranks and the shakers may be less necessary with
LED flashlights, since they work better with lower voltage. But then,
that's why the cranks and the shakers have come along at this time, because
the LEDs work better than the incandescent with lower voltage and current.

Michael

There is always candles for emergency light.And they can be stored
forever too.
cuhulin

Stumbling around on the internet,I saw this website,
www.flashlightreviews.com

I guess some of those magnetic shake and bake flashlights are better
than some other magnetic shake and bake flashlights.
cuhulin

Cuhulin,

Hence that that old time reminder
Pre-Flash-Light} aka : hand-torch
Shake It -but- Don't Break It ! )

by the light of the silvery led ~ RHF

Heck, for $1.00 at the local Dollar Store I got a
two pack (2x) of chinese incandescent C-cell
flashlights *with batteries* that I keep one in
the kitchen for the sr and the other hanging on
the wall in the garage next to the electrical panel.
(that's 50 cents a flashlite - yeah their cheap
but they do work and if they go bad all you do is
toss em in the recycle bin and get 2 more for a buck.

Why buy an LED flashlite when their incandescent
cousins are cheap as dirt at Dollar General and prolly
made on the assy line in the next building in Gansu Provence?

I own five battery powered flourescent camp lanterns and three hand held
LED lights,one of them has a little thin,either flourescent or LED light
thingy running up one side of the light.One of my lights is made by
UltraOptix www.ultraoptix.com it is intended for magnafying and
putting some light on small print.Last night,I took my eyeglasses off
and I pushed those two little buttons on the side of the light (doing
that makes the square plastic magnafying lense pop up and the light
turns on) and I held it in front of my right eye.My little doggy,she
went absolutely NUTS!
cuhulin