Your Oldest LED Flashlight?

[Johnno]

For me, probably a toss-up between these three which I still have:

CMG Infinity Ultra (1 AA cell light)
CMG Reactor (2 AA cell light)
Tektite (2 C cell plastic dive light)

These are all circa 2002 and still work just fine. The CMG Reactor uses a Luxeon Star LED and has a very dim puke yellowish snot green tinted LED. Probably the very worst tint as far as LED lights go that I've ever owned.

Here's a link to a review of the Reactor: https://www.mountainzone.com/html/indnews/2002/html/reactor.html

Man, LED lights have come a looooooong way since then... Especially when comparing the CMG Reactor to my new Emisar D4.

 

[degarb]

For me, probably a toss-up between these three which I still have:

CMG Infinity Ultra (1 AA cell light)
CMG Reactor (2 AA cell light)
Tektite (2 C cell plastic dive light)

These are all circa 2002 and still work just fine. The CMG Reactor uses a Luxeon Star LED and has a very dim puke yellowish snot green tinted LED. Probably the very worst tint as far as LED lights go that I've ever owned.

Here's a link to a review of the Reactor: https://www.mountainzone.com/html/indnews/2002/html/reactor.html

Man, LED lights have come a looooooong way since then... Especially when comparing the CMG Reactor to my new Emisar D4.

This is hilarious to me, after owning 6 to a dozen lux 1 lights - 2005 to 2008. Well put too.

The horrible lottery lux1 tint is more comical, since it was state of the art. I have seen many worse tints in Big lots lights, Chinese led knock offs. And, I bet there are plenty of horrible, angry blue and pissed off purple and sickly green tints on shelves today being sold. Lights that evoke emotion, at least.

Now, a horrible tint thread, where members share their worst tinted lights off, could be funny. Hopefully someday these poor tints will be collector items and museum pieces, like the horrible cars of 1890s and first decade of 20th century.

 

[ZMZ67]

For me, probably a toss-up between these three which I still have:

CMG Infinity Ultra (1 AA cell light)
CMG Reactor (2 AA cell light)
Tektite (2 C cell plastic dive light)

These are all circa 2002 and still work just fine. The CMG Reactor uses a Luxeon Star LED and has a very dim puke yellowish snot green tinted LED. Probably the very worst tint as far as LED lights go that I've ever owned.

Here's a link to a review of the Reactor: https://www.mountainzone.com/html/indnews/2002/html/reactor.html

Man, LED lights have come a looooooong way since then... Especially when comparing the CMG Reactor to my new Emisar D4.

I totally forgot the Reactor! I still have two and the 3 cell version( It turned out to be a big disappointment). I liked the 2cell Reactor and can remember using it at work during a power outage. My co-worker at the time was impressed with the output,things have definitely changed! Didn't mind the tint then, at least it wasn't blue.The Reactor was superseded pretty quickly especially in terms of output by other lights if I remember right. Not sure how much faith I should put in my recollection considering I forgot the Reactor to begin with! :thinking:

 

[bigfoot]

Probably the oldest lights here are a 9V Pak-Lite or Petzl Tikka. Both still going strong -- guess those 5mm LEDs were built to last!

 

[edpmis02]

Garrity LED Aluminum Flashlight from Target in 2004ish.

Nichia 5mm running off 3xAAA with a beam profile looking like the moon.

I could use it as an electronic candle since the head could come off and just have an exposed LED. It was too floody for seeing my cat on the patio at night, so I went for more power... Rock River 2xC with a Nichia Jupiter LED with the same "Moon" beam. It died of leaky batteries. Then I think I went to the Lux3 MiniMag -> Lux3 2xD Maglite -> candlepower forums -> Fenix L0D/L2D -> 4Sevens Quarks....

The Garrity still works and is fine for very close duties.

 

[degarb]

Probably the oldest lights here are a 9V Pak-Lite or Petzl Tikka. Both still going strong -- guess those 5mm LEDs were built to last!

EDP, I love your dates, and mention of the emitter too. I wonder too about your tint recollection.

I was never impressed enough by any petzl specs, but recall a strong following by 2008,here. I guess 2000 for first led light,they got into it. A very vague history on their website. I am vaguely curious in their early lights.

 

[bykfixer]

 

[Flashlight Dave]

I have a flashlight . It's 20 years old :laughing:

That looks like its from the 1950s.

 

[bykfixer]

A 555 perhaps?
555 was a project in the late 1970's to raise funds for use in "raising the bar" of lighting technology.

 

[Rexlion]

Yep, I actually still have one of those incan/cfl Energizers as well. The tube seemed sooo cool in a handheld flashlight back then. And when the LED came out a year or two later, I had to have it just because it was LED... even though the incan was much, much brighter.

They were well made lights, as shown by the fact that mine still work all these years later.

 

[mbw_151]

Well all my angry blue lights are gone, even the Gerber Trio. So the oldest LED light is a B42 HDS. Yes it's had an emitter upgrade to a SSC P4 a while ago, but it still works great, about 80 lumens on high with a sweet neutral color. I have an even older MiniMag that's had a couple of upgrades, currently the NiteIze UG2, but this wasn't originally an LED, even older, an incan from the 80's.

 

[GuyinWY]

My oldest is a Fenix E11, which isn't all that old.

 

[GarageBoy]

I had a bunch of lights from the early 2000s that I have away or sold. Electrolumens xm3 was my first high power led light. The only thing I have left is my sandwich shoppe bb750ng inside a mininag with a lux iii

 

[flatline]

I've still got my mini-mag from 1999-ish with the NiteIze led drop-in. That was probably my first LED flashlight.

--flatline

 

[mightysparrow]

JetBeam Mk. 1 "Stealth" version

 

[surefire7]

Another vote for the Fenix P1D. It's still the truck light living in the glove box.

 

[BloodLust]

I have some older cheapo LEDs but these are what started me into higher quality LED lights.

2004 Fenix P1D-CE in "brushed natural" finish.
Fenix's 1st CREE light when others were still using Luxeon LEDs. Good tint, quality and size. Quite revolutionary for the time and one of the lights that solidified Fenix as a quality light maker.

2005 Fenix P2D-CE - Their 1st CREE light with tailswitch.

2005 Fenix KM3 knife whe Fenix sold knives too

 

[wjv]

Well I put a LED in this one so does it count?

Eveready 1 Cell Vulcanite Baby Flashlight with Walleye Lens Circa ~1914

 

[degarb]

Well I put a LED in this one so does it count?

Eveready 1 Cell Vulcanite Baby Flashlight with Walleye Lens Circa ~1914

I hope your Great Grandfather spanks you.

 

[CelticCross74]

my oldest LED light? Believe it or not that would be an official US Government issue black pen with the ball point on one end and an LED at the other. Must be 37 years old.