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HF free flashlight not so shabby

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stricht8

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Apr 20, 2008
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1,714
I was repairing a fuel leak on my diesel Mercedes today and the small black free HF flashlight that I was using fell into a container of diesel. It was completely submerged. It still works fine! :)
 
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cf2004

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Jun 2, 2010
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mine was a complete POS. Broke about 4 hours after I got it. No joke.
 
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Cheapskate

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Oct 2, 2010
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I love mine. I have one in every room of the house. Only had one flicker but it still has the original Chinese batteries in it. The rest are working great. :beer:
 
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mojo_13

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May 30, 2010
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268
Location
Iowa
Ya I have one in both cars and then in every tool place I have and a couple in the house. They work good for what I use them for and are still on the original batteries.
 
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Kev442

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Jan 15, 2009
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Wi
Only had one crummy one out of 5, only half bright.
 
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nismomans13

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May 1, 2008
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Location
Pittsburgh, PA
I got one everytime I saw the coupon. I put them in my bucket for work this way when they fall 300 feet to the bottom of the boiler i don't care. I also have a ledlaser which is awesome. Its like having a mercedes HID headlight in my pocket.....
 
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KenS

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Oct 21, 2007
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Mine went through flooding earlier in the year. Dropped in the drink several times while wrestling a faulty sump pump in two feet of water and it kept on shining. I plan to replace the three Chinese AAAs with lithium in each of the seldom used ones to give them each a 10-year shelf life. I figure not much can go wrong with the LED array.
 
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therealwormey

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Oct 18, 2010
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486
Stick Figure said:
Which is great but the thread was about the free HF lights.

QUOTE]

just so i dont piss off the thread rule sticklers this is HF related

tried lights,lots of lights,including HF lights but i always go back to ol faithful maglight on my hip at all times. i do like one HF led light that has a magnet on the back,always stays stuck to the garage door so i can see to get the key in the lock,so if the light is stolen i'm only out a couple bucks,i think they sell the same one at tractor supply for about 5 bucks
Click to expand...
 
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metal1313

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Apr 28, 2009
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3,416
Location
clinton NJ
who the hell spends 756 and some change on a flashlight? thats f'in ridiculous. im good with my fenix lights and mag lights
 
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Danglerb

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Sep 6, 2007
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9,736
Location
SoCal
Only issue I've had out of the dozen or two we have around the house is that one set of batteries leaked and wrecked most of the insides of that flashlight. Tail switch is fine, battery holder trashed, and LED kinda corroded on the solder side, but kept and maybe good.

They last an amazing time even on the junk batteries. My son was working on his PC using one, left it on, face down so it was hard to tell, and it was still going fine the next day.

Don't wait for the batteries to leak, toss them after a few months. The flashlights have no orings, so a leak could be messy or damage anything under it.

I've got better flashlights, but I don't want to forget them someplace, so they tend to stay on my flashlight shelf, unless I actually need a brighter light.

$30 buys an incredibly good flashlight these days, maybe better than the best just a few years ago, but I never would have guessed I would be happy to pay $30 for pocket flashlight. Haven't yet.
 
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gbfan10

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Jul 19, 2010
Messages
224
Location
Minnesota
If you ever carry them in your pocket with change be careful.. A quarter fits perfectly over the lens as is almost impossible to remove!
 
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Ditchdigger

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Jan 22, 2010
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297
Location
Eugene, Oregon
This is a great thread and very typical of garagejournal. OP says hey this free thing is surprisingly durable and useful and is immediatley told "No it isn't" and that he should spend at least $300 on its replacement.

To the original poster. the reason nothing happened is that diesel is non-conductive. You could fill the battery compartment with it and it would still be fine.

There is a free HF light in my pocket right now. It helps me see things that are poorly lit and if I lose it or run over it with a fork lift I will just grab another out of my toolbox and smile.
 
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nismomans13

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May 1, 2008
Messages
438
Location
Pittsburgh, PA
Ditchdigger said:
This is a great thread and very typical of garagejournal. OP says hey this free thing is surprisingly durable and useful and is immediatley told "No it isn't" and that he should spend at least $300 on its replacement.

To the original poster. the reason nothing happened is that diesel is non-conductive. You could fill the battery compartment with it and it would still be fine.

There is a free HF light in my pocket right now. It helps me see things that are poorly lit and if I lose it or run over it with a fork lift I will just grab another out of my toolbox and smile.
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gotta love GJ..haha Anything over 50 bucks for a flash light is a little insane. The Led Lenser i have says 'pipefitters' on it, and i'm a boilermaker :D. They gave all the forman Pelican flash lights one job but it was to bulky for me. There's ALWAYS 2-3 el-cheapo HF lights in my tool bucket though. For the price (free) who cared if they only last one job :dunno:
 
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peterbilr98

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Aug 20, 2008
Messages
356
Location
oakley,idaho
american lockpicker said:
You need a real light like WiseLED or mPower.
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if i whanted a real light i would go for a streamlight i have 5or6 of the free hf lights use them till they quit then throw them away and try a nother one or the kids loose them or misplace them eny way get hf ads and coupons in every sunday paper around here so get lots of free lights gloves wood clamps multimeters.
 
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ultgar

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Jan 11, 2005
Messages
1,119
Location
New Jersey
I've received dozens of free flashlights over the years. Compared to the ones today with new LED technology (the latest Cree, Luxeon, Luminus, etc),
the old ones are junk.

You need at least AA or CR123 batteries to be effective and if you're going to use Lithium batteries, make sure they have PTC protection.
 
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american lockpicker

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Nov 24, 2009
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Wood County, WV, USA, NA
ultgar said:
I've received dozens of free flashlights over the years. Compared to the ones today with new LED technology (the latest Cree, Luxeon, Luminus, etc),
the old ones are junk.

You need at least AA or CR123 batteries to be effective and if you're going to use Lithium batteries, make sure they have PTC protection.
Click to expand...

You seem to know your stuff are you on CPF?
 
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ultgar

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Jan 11, 2005
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New Jersey
american lockpicker said:
You seem to know your stuff are you on CPF?
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No....I just picked up Olight as a flashlight line for my store. CPF is to flashlights what this forum is to garages. Most of the guys there know a lot more about flashlight technology than I do. I do know from personal experience that there's a lot more to lighting effectiveness than just lumen ouput. Some of the older Q5 lights have better reflectors with nice sharp beam patterns whereas the newer lights are going for textured reflectors with more spread. The new S2 LED's are a bit greenish (neutral white) and on the warmer side.

SD
 
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Wanna Ride

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Jul 28, 2010
Messages
2,790
When I first saw one of them I thought... junk. But they were giving them away at the front door one day, so I got one. I used it a few times and couldn't get it to not work... dropped it, threw it, put it in a bucket of water. Still works like a champ too. Now, I got about a dozen of them and they all work fine. Wish I had a case of them, they're good little lights. And the best part... the price is right too.
 
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american lockpicker

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Nov 24, 2009
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Location
Wood County, WV, USA, NA
Back when I first got cable(a winter or 2 ago) the installer had one and it wasn't very reliable(he had to constantly smack it on things to get it to work) also it had a dim purple beam. I had to loan him a 3D Maglite so he could finish his job under the house. Really though its not that its a HF light its the design thats at fault. I have yet to see any cheap LED light thats that design thats any good.
 
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ultgar

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Jan 11, 2005
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Location
New Jersey
It used to be MagLite was the only decent company out there for flashlights. Then came companies like SureFire, Fenix and more recently Olight producing quality EDC, Tactical and Search & Rescue flashlights which hold up exceptionally well under heavy duty use. LED's are not subject to failure with shock and vibration and can be used tactically attached to weapons. Many have very good seals and are IP68 rated for use below water (the seals still need to be properly lubricated to ensure effectiveness).

Now we just need to see LED lighting technology come down in price for use in our garages. The days of 15 lumens per watt (from 60-100w A19 bulbs) are numbered with Cree and others pushing 120-140 lumens per watt with their latest LED's. SD
 
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