Hyper Tough Work Light

[Nashcat]

Normally, I wouldn't post about something I bought, but this one exceeded all expectations. While strolling through the tool section in Walmart, I noticed these lights on a shelf, and since I'm a sucker for a new flashlight, I bought one. It's the size of a standard drop light, but without the cord, but wait....there's more. It's rechargeable, and pretty cheap, like me. It comes with a charger with detachable micro USB cord. My toolbox has USB outlets, so it's convienent to hang it on the handle of the tool box to charge. An indicator light changes from red, to green, when fully charged.

It has a folding plastic hook that I'm not sure how long it will last. There are 2 magnets, that are actually strong enough to hold the light where you need it. They claim 4 hours of use, that I can't verify yet. I only used it off/on for about 6 hours, as needed. It's plenty bright, and in my opinion it works better than than holding a flashlight, to see in the nooks and crannies under the Tupperware. The yellow color makes it easy to spot where you lay it down and the handle makes it easier to handle than a flashlight. Under $20.

John


Link to website

 

[larryg]

I have something similar, bought from Harbor Freight. Very bright and lasts hours.
But when working on the ST, I get very frustrated trying to find places to attach it - everything is aluminum .
A better solution is a "miner's light" (The kind that you strap on your forehead).
The light is always right where you're looking , and that's a good thing .

 

[ST Gui]

Normally, I wouldn't post about something I bought

I hate it when people do that. Because if it's something nifty it ends up costing me money. My name is ST Gui and I'm a flashlightaholic. One thing I don't have is a decent trouble light. This may cost me. But $20 is two Quarter Pounder Deluxe meal deals so it's not too bad.

 

[Nashcat]

A better solution is a "miner's light" (The kind that you strap on your forehead).
The light is always right where you're looking , and that's a good thing .

My problem with a miner‘s light is that I can’t always turn my head far enough to aim the light.

 

[SMSW]

My problem with a miner‘s light is that I can’t always turn my head far enough to aim the light.

Reach up and slide the light to one side or the other. Or do you mean tilt it down or up? Some of the better camper's lights are on a hinge and you can aim it exactly where you want.

 

[Uncle Phil]

I've had one for about 1 year - great piece of gear - and the hook hasn't broke yet!

 

[caldercay]

Interesting post.

I was in Home Depot one day and as I was browsing, I found this flashlight on an end-cap.

As you can see, it fits easily into the palm of a hand, has LED lights, is incredibly bright, and runs on two AAA batteries. It has a clip (see index finger) to hang inside a pocket or upper seam of jeans, and is small enough to wedge into very tight places or walk around to light up the attic

 

[Nashcat]

Interesting post.

I was in Home Depot one day and as I was browsing, I found this flashlight on an end-cap.

As you can see, it fits easily into the palm of a hand, has LED lights, is incredibly bright, and runs on two AAA batteries. It has a clip (see index finger) to hang inside a pocket or upper seam of jeans, and is small enough to wedge into very tight places or walk around to light up the attic

Yep, got one of those, too. I told you I was addicted to buying flashlights. I have a hard time finding where I put it down. Mine has a magnet on the clip that just barely, nearly, almost, sometimes holds it to the side of the toolbox. I spend a lot of time picking it up from the floor.

 

[caldercay]

. Mine has a magnet on the clip that just barely, nearly, almost, sometimes holds it to the side of the toolbox

Holy Moses ... you're correct ... i didn't realize it is also magnetized!

 

[czarwolf]

This is the light i carry with my in my backpack and on my bike. Its about 3 years old Bushnell brand. Its brighter than all hell, Has a high and low setting, Strobe mode for blinding people and signaling for help. Has a lock so you can keep it from turning on if you hit the power button accidentally. Roughly 7 inches long. Its also rechargeable which is a huge plus for me. Very solid built, Ive dropped mien down stairs, into water and even used it to whack things when they weren't cooperating. Bought mine 3 years ago during that one big storm that came thru FL as i worked overnight at the time.

60 bux at wallyworld during a 'hurricane' mark up, 49 or so after. Still use it to this day, The single LED is crazy bright and casts a long clear light.

 

[drtyrrel]

I keep a small LED flashlight in the right pocket of my motorcycle jackets. I need a new light for my shop that looks like a nice one. What are you doing to that poor Verseys?

 

[SMSW]

The problem with a lot of these LED flashlights now is they are rechargeable. I prefer small emergency flashlights that use AA batteries. If I want rechargeable, I can buy a charger and batts (I have both) or I can swap out the batteries that are running down in less than a minute (even with my eyes closed). This is more useful to me than having to find a power source and waiting....

My best find was the Ozark Brand (walmart house brand?) two AA aluminum bodied LED flashlight. Now they are all rechargeable. Those advertised 200 and a later iteration 250 lumens and were bright enough for most of what I need a flashlight to do.

 

[Slydynbye]

Hi I'm Slydynbye and I'm a Flashlightaholic Too.

I bought the OP's Hyper light of course. It has worked well, it is sometimes more light than I need.
Nothing has broken and it is scratched and well used. I just wish it had a magnet at a 90 degree angle from the Beam.

Also have one of Calder rays Flashlights. It resides in my right saddlebag.

I have had more of my share of Maglites, large and small. Most of them died from corroded Batteries.

I submit for your Esteemed approval the a9r coast pen light. It is more of an inspection light as it has a well defined Beam with low Glare
It is perfect for looking under the Carbs for Boot clamp screws and such.
One slight Flaw is the cool charging attachment needs a little adjustment of the contacts inside that connect to the flashlight.

 

[rwthomas1]

Oh boy, more flashlight junkies! I knew I was in the right place! I have a work light thats real similar to that, works great. Most recently I've been using a https://maxedbuy.com/en/detail/81887-ov-led-802100-broadbeam-led-headlamp.html?msclkid=2f6962394d9d185ea6aa03188a8b9e9a. to work on stuff. Very wide area light, great working outside at night. Ozark isnt a Wal-Mart brand, as far as I know. One of my weapon lights is an Ozark and its decent for the price. Ive got a bunch of Surefire, Streamlight, and bunch of off brand stuff. You want flashlight porn, check out malkoffdevices.com I've got a Malkoff head on a Surefire, and its nuts.

RT

 

[Sparky1971]

I have a total of ten flashlights, a small AAA led on each bike, a larger one in the shop. A search light to spot skunks, and many, many more around here and there.

 

[Slydynbye]

After throwing out too many Maglites and others due to corroded batteries destroying a fine flashlight I'm looking for something rechargeable.

 

[SMSW]

After throwing out too many Maglites and others due to corroded batteries destroying a fine flashlight I'm looking for something rechargeable.

If you use your flashlight a lot, this never happens. The light grows dim long before the batteries leak. As an electrician I used my flashlights almost daily, absolutely, more than once a week. Yes I went thru batteries, but its easy to change them with spares from your pocket in an attic or crawl space. If you don't use your flashlight regularly, and the batteries corrode, with a rechargeable you might kill the batteries.

Good thing is rechargeables will not corrode, but they will spontaneously combust. Seriously, they don't catch fire, but eventually the rechargeable battery will die, and many cannot be replaced. Check your flashlight for this feature (replaceable rechargeable battery(s)). In another thread, @rwthomas1 extolled the Malkoff brand. They are tactical flashlights, though Malkoff makes replacements (swap bulb for LED) for some Maglights. I'm sold on the brand, but do not need the reliability and power of those tac lights. (I know I'm paranoid, but am i paranoid enough? Probably not). Many of the Malkoff lights use replaceable Lithium batteries. I am sure some of the folks on this site will choke, or worse, at Malkoff's pricing. Using the wrong battery or using the wrong charger can indeed, lead to a fire. To paraphrase the Sarge in Hill Street Blues, ya gotta be careful out there....

I prefer headlamps - I, unlike some others, don't have a third hand to hold the light. Black Diamond is my current fave, but go to REI's website and look at all their offerings. They have a compare feature that makes selecting the light of your choice easy. I bought a cheap ($20) magnetic light from Advance Auto a year ago. One of the weak magnets has already fallen off the back of the case, it goes through AA batteries so fast that one good use results in 'need to change batteries time'. Yes, its better than nothing, but it's weak points outnumber its plus's. My advice is to skip the cheap junk and go with a good brand. It's like tools. Buy good ones and they last, buy cheap an you replace them soon. (Wait a minute, flashlights ARE tools....)

 

[Sparky1971]

I like my stanley.

 

[rwthomas1]

This all depends on what you want and expect out of a flashlight. Tactical flashlights generally have very powerful output and limited battery life. Most of the time they only have on and off. They have limited utility beyond tactical use. Bright enough to cause permanent eye damage is not what most want for general use. I have a Malkoff https://malkoffdevices.com/collections/surefire-drop-ins-for-6p-g2-c2-etc-6-9-volts/products/m61-mod-to-fit-surefire-and-malkoff?variant=39330372747462 head on an old Surefire body. Its the M61L which is low enough in output that while still considered "tactical" its battery life is pretty good and not searingly bright. If you have an old Surefire, this is a great way to bring it back to life.

For everyday carry, the Malkoff https://malkoffdevices.com/collections/malkoff-small-led-flashlights/products/mdc-ha-2aa-flashlight or Streamlight https://www.streamlight.com/products/detail/index/protac-2aa I have both. The Malkoff is better, but is it $100 better? To me, yes, but the Streamlight is a bargain for what it is. The nice part is that they both are "tactical" bright on high, but if they always start on low so used normally the battery life is excellent and unless you toggled up to the higher output you'd never know it was there. I'm currently carrying the Streamlight for work, and use is many times each day. The Malkoff is in the pocket of my non-work pants. I'm never without a flashlight.

Not everyone wants to spend $100+ for a flashlight. Olight, Streamlight, Fenix, etc. all make reasonably priced lights that work well. I consider flashlights tools, and I don't mind spending money on good tools. My expensive lights have never let me down, but I've had plenty of cheap ones fail. Battery corrosion is a problem for alkaline cells, but again, for a light that sees regular use this is not a problem. I also like the ability to drop in new batteries available everywhere is a plus. Some of my lights have CR123 lithium cells. I've never seen these leak or corrode so these are nice for lights that are used infrequently, tactical, etc. They are expensive, but can be purchased by the box and seemingly have a very long shelf life. I've been considering moving to the rechargeable lithium ion batteries. Some of the Malkoff's can use CR123 OR lithium ion, but that is more money to spend....

RT

 

[ST Gui]

I've got three Olights – two small enough for EDC and a larger one with a bit more 'throw' as the cool kidz on candlpower like to say. But Olights and the one Fenix I have use proprietary rechargeable batteries so I'm looking for something else that uses one or more 'standard' 18650s. I've also got a bunch of 3xAAA cell '200' flashlight from Costco that are great for around the house or the car glovebox.

That little Streamlight looks nice – 2xAA cells so batteries aren't hard to find if the need arises though I do use rechargeables. I also have a couple basic Duracell 2xD cell lights for some ridiculously long run time and they'er big enough that I can hold one under my arm will doing something else and not have to tied up one hand holding a light.

My de.power flashlights use 2xC cells and 2xAA cells. I prefer that config because they're less noticeable in a pocket and I don't have the 8-hotdog/six-buns problem when buying a pack of batteries.

The Olights and Fenix charge via USB and I keep a supply of charged Eneloops on hand. Supposedly IKEA sells rebranded Eneloops for nearly half price.

I don't use Durecell batteries ever. In many many years of having/using flashlights the only batteries that have leaked and damaged lights are Duracells. So never more. Well maybe if I was really really really desperate.

Most of my flashlights fall into the "tactical" category though some of them have ridiculous programing patterns.

What I really want is a USN battle lantern that uses an LED instead of the 6V seal beam (IIRC). I'd even settle for a replica though it likely wouldn't be as sturdy and the milspec version.