new lamp found

woollydigger

woollydigger

New member
I have found very cheap caving lamp and it's the brightest light i've seen on any caver i've caved with it's on ebay for ?30.09 the item number is 290693300121 so have a look and i do rate is lamp i have used it caving and works well :clap:
 
Rob

Rob

Well-known member
HK096-1m.jpg


That's quite a lot of gear for ?30!

Not convinced of the detail of the description thought....
Battery Type: Li Battery and NIMH
Click to expand...
 
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dunc

New member
I'm no expert but not sure about mixed "hybrid" batteries..  :confused:

Had a nosey at the listing and it says "Li and NiMH", but then further down only mentions Li (twice) - so I'd guess it was just Li..
 
woollydigger

woollydigger

New member
i have a look inside at the battrey monday and let you know which type of battrey it is. i cant have a look at it now cuz you need a key to open and get to the battrey ( oldham type ) and i haven't got one with me.
 
tony from suffolk

tony from suffolk

Well-known member
Thought I might as well order one of these here lights (love lights me, even if I don't go caving at the moment...).

How long did yours take to come please Mr Woolydigger?
 
JeremyG

JeremyG

New member
I am unsure if there is a simple conversion between lumens and lux, can someone help?

This lamp is quoted as being 25,000lux
 
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potholer

New member
JeremyG said:
I am unsure if there is a simple conversion between lumens and lux, can someone help?

This lamp is quoted as being 25,000lux
Click to expand...
There isn't a conversion as they're measuring different things.

Lumens is a measure of total light output in all directions.
For a given LED running at a given power level, the lumen output will be independent of the lamp's beamshape (except to the extent that things affecting the beamshape like reflectors or lenses might absorb some light).

Lux is a measure of light intensity at a point, normally at the beam centre, and at a particular distance.
For a given LED running at a given power, lux will be hugely dependent on beamshape, being higher the more 'spotty' the beam is and lower the more floody the beam is.
 
Eejays

Eejays

New member
Looking good!

Does it come with the strap?! It doesn't say in the description...

What's the beam like? Is it well spread or more concentrated to one point? Also is the beam adjustable?

Thanks

:-D
 
A

ALEXW

Member
I ordered one on the 18th and it arrived on the 23rd.

Single LED and a narrow beam, measured 12 feet away the spot is about 8 inches. At the same time there is a cone of light about 45 degrees that is a lot softer than the main beam. I would have liked less beam and more spread but I may be able to fit some sort of diffuser. Doesn't seem to have any way of switching power but I turned it on when it arrived and it is still going strong 17 hours later. It comes with battery, charger, car charger, plug adaptor and head strap but no instructions.

Seems like a solid bit of kit, I think good value for money but I've not used it underground yet.
 
tony from suffolk

tony from suffolk

Well-known member
I've got mine too. A good description Alex, it certainly seems a solid bit of kit. My only reservation might be the durability of the battery case (it looks like it might be somewhat brittle, but that may just be the way it's moulded). As you state, a more diffuse light would be preferable but, my, that beam's got a stonking range! I certainly startled a few hares when I took the dogs for a walk last night.
 
woollydigger

woollydigger

New member
sorry for not replying to this post till now ( had no boardband again )  I've used the lamp caving and it's holding up well I'm mod'in mine to fit on just the helmet i upload a photo when it's done
 
Addy

Addy

Member
Having built quite a few lamps over the years, I thought "why not?"
It arrived yesterday. First impressions were good. It seems quite solidly built and I would suggest it meets the claimed IP65. It was on overnight and still producing a good light after 12 hours or so - on the residual charge.

The beam is, as has been suggested, a narrow point generated by the reflector along with a lower level but quite adequate flooding giving what appears to be a useful light (I've not been underground with it yet). The single output level is, by current standards, antiquated but as the duration is so good, probably not an issue.

I have a couple of concerns...

Firstly the mains charger and the 'car' charger are of different output voltages - both wrong for Li-Ion batteries. The mains charger is rated 4.3v 1A and the car charger a concerning 5V 500mA. Li-Ion batteries are easily damaged by overcharging and usually the chargers limit at 4.1V or 4.2V depending upon the exact technology. The 4.3V may not be such a huge issue but the 5V will do the battery no good. I've yet to break open the internal sealing plate on the battery box to see what's inside. The charging may well rely on a battery protection circuit (if there's one fitted) but it's not a great system.

Secondly, I'm a bit concerned over the safety of the mains charger. It's of typical Chinese design/construction. This one actually has an isolation transformer (as opposed to a unrated capacitor I found in another Chinese mains adaptor I bought some time back). The creepage and clearance distances are almost certainly below the requirements so safety might be an issue. The charger has the Double Insulated symbol and the letters CE in capitals - they've not even tried the usual attempt at the European CE mark or even the similar (but closer together) China Electronics/Export symbol so clearly illegal to import into the UK. Caveat Emptor...

I'd be interested to see what others made of it.
Value for money - 9/10 (mainly for the lamp alone)
Light output/beam - 7/10 (highly subjective!)
Duration - TBA...
Charging kit - 3/10 (safety and suitability)
 
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potholer

New member
Does this light charge via the headset, or straight to the battery pack?

Regarding charging, I seem to recall recently seeing pictures of one a light rather like these (or possibly one of the similar integrated-battery ones) opened up, and it looked like there was probably more electronics in the headset than was obviously necessary to run the LEDs, so charging control (and possibly battery protection) might be being done there, with the 'chargers' really just being PSUs for an internal charger.

Don't take that as a statement of fact - I'll try and locate the thread/pictures I was thinking of.
 
jarvist

jarvist

New member
potholer said:
charging control (and possibly battery protection) might be being done there,
Click to expand...

Integrated single cell Lithium charging circuits are cheaply & widely available, just a single 8-pin chip to do everything along with a driving FET and a few support passive components. Certainly this is what you see in little (branded) MP3 players and such like to charge the battery from the nominal ~5V of a USB line.
 
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potholer

New member
It might make sense to integrate the charging, not so much to make the overall price lower for units sold individually with mains and 12V 'chargers', but for industrial uses, to have an internal charger tailored to the battery, allowing all kinds of different current and future lights to charge off a 'standard' 5V DC rack.
 
G

ghost

New member
potholer said:
Does this light charge via the headset, or straight to the battery pack?

Regarding charging, I seem to recall recently seeing pictures of one a light rather like these (or possibly one of the similar integrated-battery ones) opened up, and it looked like there was probably more electronics in the headset than was obviously necessary to run the LEDs, so charging control (and possibly battery protection) might be being done there, with the 'chargers' really just being PSUs for an internal charger.

Don't take that as a statement of fact - I'll try and locate the thread/pictures I was thinking of.
Click to expand...

http://chinamining.blogspot.com/2011/02/li-ion-yellow-and-grey-with-100-lumens.html
 
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