inluxication
Newly Enlightened
How long do incandescent flashlight bulbs last?
I have the impression that with AA M*gs, the bulbs don't burn out for a long time, but they go weaker and yellower in something on the order of 10 hours, i.e., after one or two sets of batteries. I wasn't scientific about this observation, so correct me if I'm off base.
I have no experience at all (yet!) of the brighter incandescents -- Pelican M6, Streamlight Stinger, Surefire G2 with P60 or P61 bulb, Princeton Tec Surge, Dorcy Spyder, etcetera. Will a bulb in these last for hours, or tens of hours? Hundreds? Will it fail by going dim, or burning out, or the one shortly before the other? Is it relatively constant across flashlights, or do you get longer life with higher quality gear (or shorter life with higher output)? Are there lists or charts of bulb lifetimes for "common" flashlights (common by CPF standards anyway)?
Forgive the newbie question -- I'm decently up on my LEDs, but I'm totally ignorant about this oldfangled incandescent stuff. A quick search here didn't turn up anything promising, and while Surefire and Flashlightreviews and so on talk about battery run time, I haven't seen anything on bulb life. (And at SF's bulb prices, it seems like a reasonable thing to want to know!)
Thanks.
I have the impression that with AA M*gs, the bulbs don't burn out for a long time, but they go weaker and yellower in something on the order of 10 hours, i.e., after one or two sets of batteries. I wasn't scientific about this observation, so correct me if I'm off base.
I have no experience at all (yet!) of the brighter incandescents -- Pelican M6, Streamlight Stinger, Surefire G2 with P60 or P61 bulb, Princeton Tec Surge, Dorcy Spyder, etcetera. Will a bulb in these last for hours, or tens of hours? Hundreds? Will it fail by going dim, or burning out, or the one shortly before the other? Is it relatively constant across flashlights, or do you get longer life with higher quality gear (or shorter life with higher output)? Are there lists or charts of bulb lifetimes for "common" flashlights (common by CPF standards anyway)?
Forgive the newbie question -- I'm decently up on my LEDs, but I'm totally ignorant about this oldfangled incandescent stuff. A quick search here didn't turn up anything promising, and while Surefire and Flashlightreviews and so on talk about battery run time, I haven't seen anything on bulb life. (And at SF's bulb prices, it seems like a reasonable thing to want to know!)
Thanks.