KCTyphoon did a great write up on the Neiko underhood light. I almost got one but I wanted to wait and see what Milwaukee had up their sleeve. Then I saw the offering from Astro and had to make a decision. I went with the Astro because it was $80 cheaper than the Milwaukee bare tool and I don't have anything but 1.5 Ah M12 batteries so it would have added another ~$50 for the 4.0 XC kit. Thanks to Cobrared I was able to find a vendor with one in stock.
My usage scenarios play a part. I do almost all of my work in my garage so I am always just a few feet from a power outlet. If I were mobile I could see the changeable battery pack being a necessity. But I would hate to be mobile and do the type of heavy engine repair that necessitates an underhood light.
Review
We will have to wait to hear from someone like Eric O about daily shop use durability. I simply won't be using it often enough to give it a true test. The aluminum housing feels sturdy though and it has good spring tension. The brackets are rubberized to protect finishes and seem quite stout. They rotate 180 degrees to provide a wide variety of mounting options. The light rotates easily but has enough tension to stay in place.
The bar is exceptionally bright (the warning label says it's bright enough to cause eye damage) on the maximum setting and still quite reasonable on the lower setting. It also has a good spectrum balance so you won't be confusing an orange and purple wire with a red and black wire. I particularly like the detachable light. It has two magnets on the back and stuck well enough to the panels I tried it on. I did notice the electrical connection between it and the main light is not very tight so it does tend to flicker when vibrated or touched.
The power cord is better insulated than your average low amp consumer device but I am not sure how it would hold up to being dragged around the shop floor all day. It is very long which is a nice touch. It was delivered with the typical 40% storage charge on the battery. I had it charged up to full in less than 2 hours. I did not test the runtime since I will mostly be using it plugged in.
It is pretty difficult to illustrate the light put out by a device in pictures but I tried. Let me know if you have any additional questions/requests.
Overall I think it is a pro level tool and has great features and a good price point. If you are in the market for an underhood light and don't require more than 3-4 hours away from an outlet I think Astro deserves your consideration. We have come a long way from the old, hot halogen work lights and the venerable trouble light.
My usage scenarios play a part. I do almost all of my work in my garage so I am always just a few feet from a power outlet. If I were mobile I could see the changeable battery pack being a necessity. But I would hate to be mobile and do the type of heavy engine repair that necessitates an underhood light.
Review
We will have to wait to hear from someone like Eric O about daily shop use durability. I simply won't be using it often enough to give it a true test. The aluminum housing feels sturdy though and it has good spring tension. The brackets are rubberized to protect finishes and seem quite stout. They rotate 180 degrees to provide a wide variety of mounting options. The light rotates easily but has enough tension to stay in place.
The bar is exceptionally bright (the warning label says it's bright enough to cause eye damage) on the maximum setting and still quite reasonable on the lower setting. It also has a good spectrum balance so you won't be confusing an orange and purple wire with a red and black wire. I particularly like the detachable light. It has two magnets on the back and stuck well enough to the panels I tried it on. I did notice the electrical connection between it and the main light is not very tight so it does tend to flicker when vibrated or touched.
The power cord is better insulated than your average low amp consumer device but I am not sure how it would hold up to being dragged around the shop floor all day. It is very long which is a nice touch. It was delivered with the typical 40% storage charge on the battery. I had it charged up to full in less than 2 hours. I did not test the runtime since I will mostly be using it plugged in.
It is pretty difficult to illustrate the light put out by a device in pictures but I tried. Let me know if you have any additional questions/requests.
Overall I think it is a pro level tool and has great features and a good price point. If you are in the market for an underhood light and don't require more than 3-4 hours away from an outlet I think Astro deserves your consideration. We have come a long way from the old, hot halogen work lights and the venerable trouble light.
