What's the best trouble light?

[evintho]

Another question. What's the best trouble light out there? I want excellent lighting, good impact resistance, something not too big that'll hang and can be jammed into tight spaces. I used to use the cheap, metal housing drop lights that you burn your hands on, then moved up to plastic drop lights where the bulb burns through the plastic and finally graduated to a florescent trouble light that's pretty much on it's last legs! I want something that's good and will last! Suggestions or comments on your experiences, please.

 

[chevy302dz]

The new LED lights are probably your best bet. Just find one with a housing style that you like.

 

[Charles (in GA)]

While the LED may be OK, I have never liked the light a LED gives off, at least not for work. I have several flourescent lights that use the 13 watt bulbs. I prefer the ones with a ballast in the cord near the plug, they are smaller than the ones with the ballast in the handle, and those have a switch is that is always getting bumped off. My favorite is a simple round plastic tube with a push on/off switch hidden under the soft plastic end cap. Small, no fuss, can jam it into any tight spot and I don't break the bulb when I drop it.

Charles

 

[kartracer55]

Incandescent trouble lights are outdated and dangerous, especially when doing fuel related work. LED or flourescenet are you best bet.

I have a Central Tools Super Bounce light, That is probably your absolute best choice for impact resistance. If you search central tools light or something along those lines you can probably find my review. The Bayco's with the ballast in them are fairly bulky, and The housings break after a few drops. LED lights are nice because they are small, but sometimes the light given off is too intense and can sort of hurt your eyes. Eventually I will get a cordless LED for the convenience aspect of it, but Im with Charles.... Corded Flourescent with ballast near the cord are my favorite. Central Tools Super bounce light was around 40$ and has held up well so far.

Jim

 

[Mario]

I used to like the fluorescent corded lights but the last two failed after a couple of months of low usage. Plus the fluorescent bulb doesn't always want to light up in the cold.

I just bought the smaller LED rechargeable Bayco. It was in promotion for 20$ at Canadian Tire last week. I did play with it since then and I like it! No cord in the way, it stay cold, run almost forever on the battery plus it also come with a 12V charger. Also perfect for camping or late night repair on racing week-ends...

 

[Cutch]

What's the best trouble lite out there?

I find that Coors Lite seems to get me in the most trouble

 

[turbotank]

yea just stay away from the ght....stick with lite

 

[wreckerboy]

I received the Sears rechargable LED light as a Xmas present this year, and while it is a nice light, it doesn't put out much of it. You have to have it right on top of whatever it is you are looking at in order for it to work. At least it's small size makes that a possibility. Otherwise, it's not nearly as good as my larger corded flourescent unit. The Sears piece is destined to become "track only" equipment, where it's portability will outweigh it's effectiveness.

 

[Willy Victor]

I find that Coors Lite seems to get me in the most trouble

Bud lite or Miller lite works for me.

Willy

 

[evintho]

Thanks for the replys, and a special shout out to kartracer55. Just ordered the Bounce light #12006 from Amazon.com - $39.83 shipped to my door. Looks like it'll fill the bill quite nicely!

And, before I quit drinking, MGD was my brew of choice.

 

[JLS1]

Amazing! -this may be the world's best trouble light, although it is pricey -it was designed for professional technicians and is available from tool dealers for around 100 bucks. You have got to check out this video -
http://www.maxxeon.com/ws1200video.html

 

[Jeeper]

I have the round one 2 bulb florescent light from home depot. Works well but the fact that it's round annoys me. If I'm working under my car and i put it on the ground facing up, it rolls all over the floor. Might have to looking to one of those wider flatter lights.

 

[kartracer55]

I had one of those Bayco-style LED lights burn up on me about a week ago. I was using it, and all of a sudden it went out and It smelled. I released the magic blue smoke... Pulled it apart and It looked like a resistor had shorted out or something like that and there was a big dark line on the board. Oh well.

Jim

 

[ImportTuner]

Amazing! -this may be the world's best trouble light, although it is pricey -it was designed for professional technicians and is available from tool dealers for around 100 bucks. You have got to check out this video -
http://www.maxxeon.com/ws1200video.html

Wow, really nice light; but at suggested retail of $145, it's kinda steep ..

 

[TNToy]

...And I'm really tempted to buy one.

 

[iiibdsiil]

You can buy the Maxxeon here for $100.

So... tempting...

 

[Roospike]

The Maxxeon light is a nice flash light but i dont know if i would call it a trouble light. IMO

 

[TxDoc]

HF runs these 24 LED lights for $19 every so often. I bought two. They are bright, think and run a long time. I drove off with one on my truck's toolbox and it fell off at 30 mph, or so. Ding it, but works fine. Can be charged in a 120 volt outlet or in a cig lighter.

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=95181

Good luck on your search.

 

[Roospike]

I still use the HALOGEN 250w and 500w shop lights and also have a self retracting cord reel trouble light w/ work tuff bulb mounted in the ceiling i pull down when needed.

I like a lot of light , i just dont find the fluorescent lights to fit my needs. I'm open minded and always looking tho.

 

[daveinwestland]

Amazing! -this may be the world's best trouble light, although it is pricey -it was designed for professional technicians and is available from tool dealers for around 100 bucks. You have got to check out this video -
http://www.maxxeon.com/ws1200video.html

I think I smell a salesman...

 

[bmwpower]

I think I smell a salesman...

Doesn't look bright enough for me, although it seems like a nice design.

 

[LEDPros]

Can I sneak in as another salesman? 5 years later?

Hand made in USA, and it beats the snot out of any corded drop light on the market. I promise!! http://ledpros.us.com

I am still looking for my competition. This light is in a class of it's own.

 

[u118224]

That's a nice looking light, welcome to the forum. I recently bought a Bahco cordless but I don't dare drop it.

 

[Badger 13]

I gave up on getting burned with my old incandescent bulb style, and switched over to a two tube florescent. Very happy with the new one, and no more burns. I also use a Streamlight "Knucklehead" LED light and find myself grabbing that most of the time.

 

[LEDPros]

Thanks for the kind words. I actually developed this light because my father, who owns a shop, was spending hundreds on tube lights that just simply broke after a few months.

You can't even buy a high quality LED corded drop light- they don't exist- outside of explosion proof rated lights. Those go to the tune of $600+ though. And sure, there are nice cordless lights, but for mechanics that need BRIGHT light all day long there simply isn't a battery good enough to last that long.

So I just created one. I source all the parts myself and build them as many as I can at a time. I only use high quality parts, most of which is american made and american sourced. The feedback has been tremendous from those who actually use them. This is what an 'ultimate' LED troublelight should be.

If anyone wants to just try one out, I can ship them one for $20 as long as you promise to return it within a few weeks... or buy it

 

[Steve in Louisiana]

Bud lite or Miller lite works for me.

Willy

COORS Lite

 

[HaroRider]

Led Pro - How much per light? I may be interested.

 

[LEDPros]

$139.95 and comes with 1 year full warranty. Also fully serviceable so if anything does go wrong in the future, which should only happen if greatly abused, it can be fixed. Download the sales sheet and the owners manual from the website to get details about the light.

http://ledpros.us.com

I will also soon have a few refurbished units up on the website that I will sell for $89+ shipping.

And, use code 2FREE to get free shipping when you buy two lights.

Also, I have proven these work just fine using National Electric cord reels. I am going to sell a kit soon, where the light will be combined with the USA made cord reels. Stay tuned for that!

ledpros.us.com

 

[RacerX]

How about if we mention 7173mustangs.com and get a 15% discount? Or what about a group buy?

Sent from my SM-N900W8 using Tapatalk

 

[Flat-rate]

I have the Milwaukee m12 stick light. Just as bright as those 15 watt fluorescent lights. The light is also more focused and the color about the same. would not mind trying that corded led light though.

 

[LEDPros]

How about if we mention 7173mustangs.com and get a 15% discount? Or what about a group buy?

Sent from my SM-N900W8 using Tapatalk

A group buy may be difficult, these are hand made in low quantities... mainly because the parts are expensive and take a few hours to build each one.

So, instead, how about for the next 20 orders a 20% off discount for entering a code at checkout- GARAGE20

Also, the last couple days I have been advertising these lights online and my stock is already almost gone! There is about a 2 week lead-time on these. I will ship as fast as I can, but it takes a week to source all the parts and then a good full weekend to build these things... I can only do about 20 per week. I work a full time job on top of this!

 

[duanedragon]

Streamlight Knucklehead FTW.

 

[LEDPros]

I have the Milwaukee m12 stick light. Just as bright as those 15 watt fluorescent lights. The light is also more focused and the color about the same. would not mind trying that corded led light though.

There are tons of great cordless LED lights. My focus was to make a great corded version that mechanics need to use all day everyday. There are many good fluorescent tube corded lights, but those don't hold up so well over time under harsh conditions... and the lack of corded LED lights astounds me. I don't know why manufacturers think there isn't a need. I am proving them wrong my the day lately.

I have only been selling these for a couple months word to mouth too! It took me a year to get from prototype to final design that I am capable of. If I take this to mass market there will be a few changes, but the overall design will stay the same... what I am most worried about is the durability keeping up if mass made. The thing about hand made with the type of components I use is the guarantee of quality. Dad has had a couple in his shop for 4 months now, being used and abused every day, and they are still working great!

 

[Flat-rate]

How many lumens is the ledpro?

 

[LEDPros]

Hasn't been tested yet. They are definitely equivalent to an 18w CFL, or 75w incandescent- if not more. The first thing people notice after trying these are how bright they are. The output of this LED light is unique in that it simulates a tube bulb. Light is emitted from all directions. The light reflector/shield prevents light from shining into your eyes, so the usable output is only 180deg in all directions, but that is far better then any other LED light you see on the market. Most diodes only face one way, and have a viewing angle of 120deg. Also, there are 69 individual SMD's on the core. This give an even lumen coverage with high redundancy.. if you smash the light brutally it will still have most of the diodes working. Built to last even when abused.

I need to upload some pictures of the diode arrangement. I have been working on getting the patent done before I do that. I figure if someone wants to steal my idea in the meantime, they will have to at least buy a light to do so

 

[RacerX]

How about if we mention 7173mustangs.com and get a 15% discount? Or what about a group buy?

Sent from my SM-N900W8 using Tapatalk

Sorry, meant to say garage journal.com but you got the message. Using Tapatalk I forgot which site I was reading from. Thanks for the 20% offer, very generous for what looks to be a very well made light and we'll worth the value.

Sent from my SM-N900W8 using Tapatalk

 

[LEDPros]

I'm trying If I could go lower on the cost I would. Truth is there is over $45 in parts alone. I did this out of frustration, making money on them was a side thought. Never thought I would get to a production stage, but everyone I was showing wanted one so I refined the process and cosmetics and just started making them. Price reflects the quality! What I find most surprising though is there are other lights out there similar in price... fluorescent tube lights anyway, and I feel my lights are every bit as durable and bright. Being LED and low voltage driven puts them over the top.

I have plans for a 4ft long version too... something that clips to the hood of a car for shadetree mechanics. I don't think it will cost more then $200 either... but it all depends on how long they take to build. Will have to make a couple design modifications, but I think I can do it.