What sort of light primes the lumes best.
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There are different types of light sources, sunlight is actually the best, following that in torches there are many types from incandescent, LED, HID....
LED is good for brightness and longevity both in bulbs and life of batteries, incandescent is inexpensive and dimmer. HID is probably the best as far as brightness, but it is very expensive. and probably a little overkill for recharging a watch. For an all around torch a combination LED/HID would be a good choice....good quality will probably cost a about 250 US or more....If you want a light to keep in your bedstand a good tactical LED would be good for recharging your watch as well as a good first defense tool for intruders..probably 50 -100 US
LED is good for brightness and longevity both in bulbs and life of batteries, incandescent is inexpensive and dimmer. HID is probably the best as far as brightness, but it is very expensive. and probably a little overkill for recharging a watch. For an all around torch a combination LED/HID would be a good choice....good quality will probably cost a about 250 US or more....If you want a light to keep in your bedstand a good tactical LED would be good for recharging your watch as well as a good first defense tool for intruders..probably 50 -100 US
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First off, any flashlight (torch) will charge the lume on your LT and, accordingly, any flashlight putting our a respectable beam, say, 200 lumens, will certainly charge the lume on your watch quite handily.
I use the same philosophy for flashlight purchases as I do watch purchases ... if you are going to invest the money, purchase a quality product! For the application to which you referred, I recommend a flashlight that is not only easily portable, but with a strong beam output.
One of my favorite manufacturers of quality illumination devices is, Surefire, a company that makes several pocket models built to military spec (tactical) specifications. Surefire products are the choice among law enforcement and military personnel and will give you YEARS of rugged, reliable service.
Personally, I have the Surefire 6PX Defender that stays in the door-pocket of my vehicle. It's small enough to easily fit in a jacket pocket, but throws out an amazing light beam. I've used it on several occasions to charge the lume on my watch before exiting my vehicle. Only a few seconds does the trick!
Amazon.com: Surefire 6PX Defender Single Output LED: Home Improvement
Fenix also makes great, rugged flashlights. They are slightly less expensive (for the most part) than Surefire products, but are quality, nonetheless. Google their name and research their offerings. You will find their pocket version flashlights available from around $40 (US) and up.
Hope this helps.
OkeefenokeeJoe
I use the same philosophy for flashlight purchases as I do watch purchases ... if you are going to invest the money, purchase a quality product! For the application to which you referred, I recommend a flashlight that is not only easily portable, but with a strong beam output.
One of my favorite manufacturers of quality illumination devices is, Surefire, a company that makes several pocket models built to military spec (tactical) specifications. Surefire products are the choice among law enforcement and military personnel and will give you YEARS of rugged, reliable service.
Personally, I have the Surefire 6PX Defender that stays in the door-pocket of my vehicle. It's small enough to easily fit in a jacket pocket, but throws out an amazing light beam. I've used it on several occasions to charge the lume on my watch before exiting my vehicle. Only a few seconds does the trick!
Amazon.com: Surefire 6PX Defender Single Output LED: Home Improvement
Fenix also makes great, rugged flashlights. They are slightly less expensive (for the most part) than Surefire products, but are quality, nonetheless. Google their name and research their offerings. You will find their pocket version flashlights available from around $40 (US) and up.
Hope this helps.
OkeefenokeeJoe
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OkeefenokeeJoe is correct one usually gets what you pay for so do buy quality, I use the Surefire lights as well, they are LED
heres some interesting but technical info if you like.....:001_smile:
Charging it up
At first, it seems so simple. Hold the watch under a lamp for a few moments . . . and so to bed, for surely the watch lume will glow all night, right? In truth it will, but perhaps not as brightly or as long as advertised. There are a few variables involved in persuading our watch lume to soak up lots of photons:
The dominant wavelength of the illuminating light
The strength (illuminance) of the illumination
The length of time for which the watch is illuminated
Luminous pigments are charged by the UV content of the light, and there is some UV content in most light sources - some more than others. LED UV lamps deliver a good punch, peaking at 365nm or so. Daylight (D65) fluorescent lamps are pretty good, as are the "cool white" or "bright white" variety. Mercury vapor lamps are rich in UV, but sodium lamps are not. The good old-fashioned tungsten lamps have some UV content, but not a lot.
A couple of charging rules of thumb:
To an extent, the stronger the light, the quicker the charge and the higher the initial brightness of the lume but the law of diminishing returns does apply.
The longer the time of illumination, the higher the initial brightness of the lume but there is a limit for each level of illumination and that limit is reached more quickly at higher strengths of illumination.
heres some interesting but technical info if you like.....:001_smile:
Charging it up
At first, it seems so simple. Hold the watch under a lamp for a few moments . . . and so to bed, for surely the watch lume will glow all night, right? In truth it will, but perhaps not as brightly or as long as advertised. There are a few variables involved in persuading our watch lume to soak up lots of photons:
The dominant wavelength of the illuminating light
The strength (illuminance) of the illumination
The length of time for which the watch is illuminated
Luminous pigments are charged by the UV content of the light, and there is some UV content in most light sources - some more than others. LED UV lamps deliver a good punch, peaking at 365nm or so. Daylight (D65) fluorescent lamps are pretty good, as are the "cool white" or "bright white" variety. Mercury vapor lamps are rich in UV, but sodium lamps are not. The good old-fashioned tungsten lamps have some UV content, but not a lot.
A couple of charging rules of thumb:
To an extent, the stronger the light, the quicker the charge and the higher the initial brightness of the lume but the law of diminishing returns does apply.
The longer the time of illumination, the higher the initial brightness of the lume but there is a limit for each level of illumination and that limit is reached more quickly at higher strengths of illumination.
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The reason I mentioned the ultraviolet torch idea is I can charge the watch at bedtime without disturbing the wife, a regular white light torch might wake her and heaven help us if that were to happen. Think bear during hibernation and then multiply it by ten. LOL
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A small, quality, flashlight will not illuminate the entire room. What I have done is this ...
1) Place the watch on a flat surface, like a nightstand, with the face up. 2) Stand the flashlight directly on top of the watch crystal so that the watch-face and flashlight lens are directly face-to-face, looking at each other. 3) Carefully turn on the flashlight and let it shine directly into the watch-face for a few seconds. 4) TAH DAH ... your watch lume is now fully charged, my friend, without your wife losing not even a moment of sleep. 5) Now, turn off the flashlight and set it to one side and go to bed.
The fact that the lens of the flashlight is almost directly in contact with the watch-face means that your room will not be lit up and your wife will sleep undisturbed.
There is no need for an ultraviolet light, unless, of course, you are simply intrigued by the idea and are looking for an excuse to purchase one. Realistically, though, you will receive far more benefit and use out of a quality pocket LED flashlight.
OkeefenokeeJoe
1) Place the watch on a flat surface, like a nightstand, with the face up. 2) Stand the flashlight directly on top of the watch crystal so that the watch-face and flashlight lens are directly face-to-face, looking at each other. 3) Carefully turn on the flashlight and let it shine directly into the watch-face for a few seconds. 4) TAH DAH ... your watch lume is now fully charged, my friend, without your wife losing not even a moment of sleep. 5) Now, turn off the flashlight and set it to one side and go to bed.
The fact that the lens of the flashlight is almost directly in contact with the watch-face means that your room will not be lit up and your wife will sleep undisturbed.
There is no need for an ultraviolet light, unless, of course, you are simply intrigued by the idea and are looking for an excuse to purchase one. Realistically, though, you will receive far more benefit and use out of a quality pocket LED flashlight.
OkeefenokeeJoe
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I usually use the Flashlight app on my phone which lights up the flash from the camera. Does the job perfectly.
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My Solarforce L2P Golden 820 Lumens set me back $29
i have several of thier lights, couple for over 2 years with
pretty rough back country camping use, work great
i have several of thier lights, couple for over 2 years with
pretty rough back country camping use, work great
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pics pleaze
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691 Posts
Try this ...
Solar Force
Please note that SolarForce is a SureFire knockoff, made in China.
SureFire, on the other hand, is a precision instrument made in the USA.
Just sayin'.
OkeefenokeeJoe
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427 Posts
Shall we pontificate on:
100% US watches?
How about how many
Direct knock offs
Of Rolex subs in the market....
Or Panarai "inspired" watches ??
'Just sayin' .....
100% US watches?
How about how many
Direct knock offs
Of Rolex subs in the market....
Or Panarai "inspired" watches ??
'Just sayin' .....
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2,261 Posts
I'm a sucker for "bigger/brighter/louder" is always better. That's why -- as an increasingly dotty old codger -- I drive the biggest, baddest diesel truck I can afford to maintain, and I carry a handgun that has given me an arthritic hip.
In this spirit of excess, I just gave my one-year-old, semi-nuclear flashlight to my son, Scott, and I've purchased a new "torch," the EagleTac G25C2, which, when placed in "strobe mode," will induce epileptic seizures in anything with eyeballs: There's a cross-section of damaged rabbits, deer, elk and whatnot outside my bedroom window, even as we speak. It's dark, but I can see red eyes and lots of aimless milling around.
I think this thing cranks out about 800 lumens, which means nothing to me, except that it's a bigger number than the SureFire X300 (500 lumen) strapped to the bottom of my Glock's pistol frame, which was what I used to charge my Lum-Tecs with before the EagleTac arrived (removed from the COMPLETELY safety-checked, empty, pointed-in-safe-direction, Glock, of course).
The point is, you want something bright -- as close to old father "sol" as you can manage -- on a three-digit $ budget.
So, I point this thing at my SCB2 around 10PM (I'm up at 4:30 AM and doing important stuff in the garage...) and I give it a thirty second dose, which pretty much liquifies the lume. If my wife's around, I make sure she sees it. If not, it's the window and wildlife.
High intensity and short duration exposure is the formula. Think Hiroshima and/or Nagasaki, but without the collateral damage.
In this spirit of excess, I just gave my one-year-old, semi-nuclear flashlight to my son, Scott, and I've purchased a new "torch," the EagleTac G25C2, which, when placed in "strobe mode," will induce epileptic seizures in anything with eyeballs: There's a cross-section of damaged rabbits, deer, elk and whatnot outside my bedroom window, even as we speak. It's dark, but I can see red eyes and lots of aimless milling around.
I think this thing cranks out about 800 lumens, which means nothing to me, except that it's a bigger number than the SureFire X300 (500 lumen) strapped to the bottom of my Glock's pistol frame, which was what I used to charge my Lum-Tecs with before the EagleTac arrived (removed from the COMPLETELY safety-checked, empty, pointed-in-safe-direction, Glock, of course).
The point is, you want something bright -- as close to old father "sol" as you can manage -- on a three-digit $ budget.
So, I point this thing at my SCB2 around 10PM (I'm up at 4:30 AM and doing important stuff in the garage...) and I give it a thirty second dose, which pretty much liquifies the lume. If my wife's around, I make sure she sees it. If not, it's the window and wildlife.
High intensity and short duration exposure is the formula. Think Hiroshima and/or Nagasaki, but without the collateral damage.
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I have essentially this Fenix's homepages That's PD22 I have the PD20 which they don't make anymore. It puts out 210 lumens for 2 hours on high using one CR123 battery that you can buy online for a dollar a piece. This makes it glow way brighter than my blacklight which is very good. It's small so you can pocket carry it (3.5 inches) and you just cup your hand around it and hold if over the face of the watch without waking the wife for 30 seconds and it will glow like you've never seen. That kind of brightness goes right down to the last layer of lume. Plus it's a great carry around flashlight that can throttle down the brightness for longer battery life and will clip onto a baseball cap if you do the kind of work where a hands free light is good to have.
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I am a fan of Fenix lights. They make a very solid product!
By the way, you can purchase the CR123 batteries at Home Depot at a very reasonable price. I saw them on display there a couple of months ago when I dropped in for some building materials. The price was so good that I bought several spares for my two tac lights.
OkeefenokeeJoe
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:thumbup:
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@a1watch.
Alex I think if I were to use that in bed to charge my lumes firstly the wife would think we'd been struck by lightening, then when she realised it was a torch she'd call me a saddo and divorce me.
On second thoughts where can I buy one of those torches. :thumbup:
Alex I think if I were to use that in bed to charge my lumes firstly the wife would think we'd been struck by lightening, then when she realised it was a torch she'd call me a saddo and divorce me.
On second thoughts where can I buy one of those torches. :thumbup:
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I'd rather get another cobalt chrome & put the left over $250 towards a more-than-adequate smaller light. If I had no self-control, of course.
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