Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

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loafer
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Re: Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

Post by loafer »

[XAP]Bob wrote:
loafer wrote:a club mate told me of these http://www.dealextreme.com/p/flood-to-t ... -aaa-26800 had them a month now great lights and very bright +cheap.. :D ..had to wait 2 weeks but at the price cant really moan

larry

Looks identical


yes they do but mine come,s with the bike mount ... :D and if you buy a few at the same time you get them cheaper still
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gentlegreen
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Re: Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

Post by gentlegreen »

thirdcrank wrote:It will be interesting to hear any reports about battery life from riders using these on their bikes: a lot of light is coming from 3 small cells. I suppose this may be part of the reason for no elastic bike-holder being included.


The beam pattern would need a lot of reining-in even as an emergency light - which reminds me to pack some foil with it ...
Ayesha
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Re: Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

Post by Ayesha »

Tonyf33 wrote:well I bought a '5W' light that runs on 3AAAs, comparative to my Raleigh 1 Watt it isn't 5 times as bright but then again I paid £5.50 for it including postage and a rear thrown in for good measure(via ebay) Compares closer to a 3W I bought over here and even then I don't think that was what I'd consider to be a proper 3W light in any case. Ithas a carry handle too so doubles as a torch very easily.
With Duracell 1000m/Ah it runs for over an hour though I haven't really timed actual. Here's the light beam comparison, albeit up my stairs..lol
ImageImage


WOW!! it's a light sabre...

"Use the morse, Luke."
thirdcrank
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Re: Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

Post by thirdcrank »

gentlegreen wrote: ... The beam pattern would need a lot of reining-in even as an emergency light - which reminds me to pack some foil with it ...
I like to be prepared for the unexpected, even if that only means having a pen in my pocket for writing things down, and at least a puncture outfit when cycling. And a warm coat in the car boot - the list is longer than I thought :oops: but I never stray into mountain rescue territory these days.

This is the type of thing which I'd have welcomed 40 years ago because even a whacking great Ever Ready lamp with a couple of 'lantern' batteries (the 6V ones with the coiled-spring terminals) came nowhere near this. It's not something to be shone in somebody's face, eg when checking driving documents.
LollyKat
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Re: Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

Post by LollyKat »

What puts me off these lights is that they all seem to take 3 batteries. I use rechargeables which can only be charged in pairs, and trying to keep track of the odd one would be beyond me, particularly as I am not a regular commuter. I always look for lights which take either 2 or 4 batteries. A shame, as these look really good.
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al_yrpal
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Re: Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

Post by al_yrpal »

Got one, plenty left. A real natty little torch, very useful. At the same time picked up another of those Special Xmas puds (absolutely delicious) and a few wines with award stickers to try.

Al
Reuse, recycle, thus do your bit to save the planet.... Get stuff at auctions, Dump, Charity Shops, Facebook Marketplace, Ebay, Car Boots. Choose an Old House, and a Banger ..... And cycle as often as you can......
loafer
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Re: Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

Post by loafer »

hi LollyKat

try here for chargers+batteries used them fast delivery and good stuff... :)
larry


http://www.tantronics.co.uk/acatalog/In ... rgers.html

just spoke to them on the phone as i did not know you could get rechargeable AAA and was wanting to order some +and a charger as mine was AA ... he asked the model num then said it will do both types and said it cant as the AAA are smaller he then explained at the top of the charger where the + is it flips down to the right size for AAA.. :oops: :oops: SEE PIC... left side is AA right side fliped down for AAA dam clever if you ask me had it for 4 years and did not kown... :oops:
fameart 002.jpg
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Woodbridge Pete
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Re: Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

Post by Woodbridge Pete »

If you have 4 sets of 3 batteries, then charge them up when two sets have discharged. Keep sets held together with rubber bands or piece of innertube
Revenge is sweet, but nicer served with custard
LollyKat
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Re: Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

Post by LollyKat »

I know I could do this but I don't need lights every day, and I have eneloops which hold their charge, so batteries last ages. Even keeping them in sets with rubber bands I would still lose track of them at my age! :mrgreen:

I could buy another charger from the link that loafer kindly posted but having bought a fairly pricey MAHA smart charger just a couple of years ago I'm a bit reluctant to cough up for yet another.
Nettled Shin
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Re: Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

Post by Nettled Shin »

LollyKat wrote:What puts me off these lights is that they all seem to take 3 batteries. I use rechargeables which can only be charged in pairs, and trying to keep track of the odd one would be beyond me

I am wary of anything that takes three cells for the same reason. In some cases, if a torch uses a carrier/cradle to hold three AAA batteries, it can use a single 3.6V rechargeable Li-ion 18500 battery, and have increased runtime to boot. You may need to shim out the battery diameter so that it doesn't rattle, perhaps using some rubber rings, or bits of pipe, but it is so simple to do. Batteries and a charger are available over the Internet for just a few pounds, although, in that case, you might as well just buy an LED torch from China with better modes for cycling, and which takes an even number of batteries.
Ribblehead
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Re: Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

Post by Ribblehead »

Nettled Shin wrote:
LollyKat wrote:What puts me off these lights is that they all seem to take 3 batteries. I use rechargeables which can only be charged in pairs, and trying to keep track of the odd one would be beyond me

I am wary of anything that takes three cells for the same reason. In some cases, if a torch uses a carrier/cradle to hold three AAA batteries, it can use a single 3.6V rechargeable Li-ion 18500 battery, and have increased runtime to boot. You may need to shim out the battery diameter so that it doesn't rattle, perhaps using some rubber rings, or bits of pipe, but it is so simple to do. Batteries and a charger are available over the Internet for just a few pounds, although, in that case, you might as well just buy an LED torch from China with better modes for cycling, and which takes an even number of batteries.



Is this any good?

http://www.instructables.com/id/Convert-a-3xAAA-flashlight-to-a-Lithium-18650-cell/
Nettled Shin
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Re: Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

Post by Nettled Shin »



Well, he's a bit invasive, isn't he? I thought a 18500 cell, being 18mm OD and 50mm long might have just dropped in, without dremeling, but I suppose he's gained a bit of extra run time by cramming in an 18650.

BTW, does the Aldi light come with a glass lens? Or is it plastic?
DevonDamo
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Re: Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

Post by DevonDamo »



I've just attempted the above modification with a very similar torch to the Aldi one, and it's not possible. Even once you've pulled out all the plastic etc., there's still not enough room at the back of the torch to accommodate an 18650 battery. I assume it's because these torches have a circuit board on the switch to run the hi/lo/flash functions, which doesn't leave enough room for a bigger battery. The torch in the above link probably just has a simple on/off switch.
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gentlegreen
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Re: Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

Post by gentlegreen »

The lens is plastic. Quite crude compared with the usual refractive optics you get.
I'm not convinced yet about the zoom function, but I've yet to try it outdoors.
TwoPosts
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Re: Aldi CREE torches (5W - £11)

Post by TwoPosts »

In case anyone is interested, there is a relatively cheap charger from Duracell, that has eight individual charging circuits, I have used one for over a year and regularly charge odd numbers of batteries in mixtures of AAA and AA.

Duracell CEFF22 on Amazon link
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Duracell-Rechargeable-CEF22-Multi-Battery-Charger/dp/B001GXVZFY/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1321904209&sr=8-11

I also bought three of these torches as Christmas presents.
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