# What's your favorite thing about incandescent lights?



## knightrider (Nov 20, 2009)

My favorite thing about incandescent's is how simple they are. And easily repaired.

If you are anywhere and your flashlight dies you can fix it. First you check your batteries, then the bulb. Make sure you have another bulb and extra batteries with you. Replace the lamp and you're good to go. Pretty simple. A switch on your incan could go bad, so there is one weak link, but twisty switches seem pretty robust if you stick with them.

I'm just fascinated by the ability to rebuild a flashlight, get it going again no matter what. Complete serviceability. Just thought about this recently and how cool it really is. 

What's your favorite thing about incandescent lights?


----------



## kramer5150 (Nov 20, 2009)

I'm just now getting into ROPs.

High CRI and cheap USA made hosts:twothumbs

I am sure I will find more as I get further into it.


----------



## leukos (Nov 20, 2009)

knightrider said:


> My favorite thing about incandescent's is how simple they are.


 
I'm not sure Edison would have agreed with this statement....


I've added regulation circuits, soft starts and multiple level outputs to a lot of my incans, so they are not so simple anymore. Plus, some of the batteries that power my incans have protection circuits that are complex and can fail. I do still have a few KISS setups on primaries, but I like the added features and safety that circuits can provide. But, even with all that, my incans have been much more reliable than most of my LED lights. I have much higher failure rates with LED lights.


----------



## flashfan (Nov 20, 2009)

I like the way incan light just seems to saturate/penetrate an area...as opposed to LED light, which makes things appear "flat"...to my old eyes anyway. Doesn't mean I don't like LEDs though--each type of light suits different purposes/situations.


----------



## knightrider (Nov 20, 2009)

leukos said:


> I'm not sure Edison would have agreed with this statement....



Pretty funny! Sorry Edison, your invention rules! 

I forgot that there are some pretty sophisticated and complex incandescent setups too. I don't have anything like that, only simple SFs like the C2 and M3.


----------



## Dioni (Nov 21, 2009)

I'm Fascinated how it burns! :devil: 

I also like the range of the beam, the throw, just because I have lights with 700 lumens wich lighting a target 100 yards away and I can't define what it is, unlike my incan of 300 lm.

I love incans!


----------



## My3kidsfather (Nov 21, 2009)

I can tell you one thing about my incans that I like... I like the way my incans can show up dog poop on the lawn in the dark despite fallen leaves, debri, and loose ground cover bark. My best led's do not show browns in the dark well- leds tend to wash out brown objects, which can lead to you stepping in it.


----------



## sed6 (Nov 21, 2009)

My3KidsDad! said:


> I can tell you one thing about my incans that I like... I like the way my incans can show up dog poop on the lawn in the dark despite fallen leaves, debri, and loose ground cover bark. My best led's do not show browns in the dark well- leds tend to wash out brown objects, which can lead to you stepping in it.


 
My experience is the opposite. I count on my LED lights to find dog poop. Under any of my LED lights the poop in my yard stands out light hunter orange in the forest. In fact I ONLY clean up dog poop at night, it's that effective!

Back to the OP, my favorite thing about incandescent lights is that they can all be replaced by brighter, more efficient, longer lasting, smaller, LED's :twothumbs Seriously any incans I have just collect dusk.


----------



## bigchelis (Nov 21, 2009)

I have had Mag builds that were LED based from 200~1700 plus confirmed OTF lumens. Yet, none absolutely none could ever compete with color and throw of even the least powerfull Incan Mag I have: the 3854L of course.

Incan to me = nice color and tons of throw.

I just got back from the indoor shooting range which is dark and without my ROP High I could barely see the target. It did go through 4 IMR 18650's over a 1.5hour period, but it is the price you pay for perfection.


----------



## LuxLuthor (Nov 21, 2009)

They are wonderful for illuminating Jack-O-Lanterns.


----------



## Kaamos (Nov 21, 2009)

How can you replace the film noir indoor urban night atmosphere without underdriven clear glass incan bulbs at the end of a rotten wire hanging from the roof of a dusty warehouse? Out on the streets there are of course the flickering neon tubes, but indoors you just NEED the incans and overloaded grid at the brink of brownout. You can almost feel the color temperature even in black and white.

About flashlights? For me, it's leds nowadays. Maybe because I've never had a real high-end incan. Just off the shelf Maglites and some older Pelis. There are warm feelings about some of those old, very low quality flashlights made of thin sheet metal that I had as a little boy. But useful portable light is leds now, for me.

Oh, well... Just thinking about it, maybe, just maybe, one day I'll make one of those Mag conversions with a REAL powerful halogen bulb. Need a lot more experience with flashlight mods than I have now, though.


----------



## lctorana (Nov 21, 2009)

That's two.


----------



## Billy Ram (Nov 21, 2009)

Plain old hot wires are something I can relate to. I can take my multimeter, see what's going on and keep them burning:twothumbs I also like the usefull beam and instant on. They can keep them HIDs:thumbsdow
Billy


----------



## NeonLights (Nov 21, 2009)

knightrider said:


> My favorite thing about incandescent's is how simple they are. And easily repaired.


Same here. Doesn't get much simpler than a tube, bulb, batteries, and switch. The tube seldom fails, batteries are cheap to replace, as are bulbs most of the time, easy to use, easy to repair. I've had several LED lights fail. Most of the time this requires either sending it back in for warranty work or chucking it in the trash.


----------



## Mjolnir (Nov 21, 2009)

If some type of EMP knocks out all electronics, unregulated incans will still work.


----------



## Kiessling (Nov 21, 2009)

I like the fact that they are stable. No bin and LED of the day, no unnerving tint discussions, not a new light any 37 minutes.

In our modern times, this is something relaxing and easy on the stress level.


----------



## computernut (Nov 21, 2009)

I prefer my E2E and A2 for outdoors work, it's nicer for walks through the forest. Even my fiancee is starting to prefer an incan over a LED when we're walking the dog at night.


----------



## RobertM (Nov 22, 2009)

Two things I love most about incans:

1. Color rendition. I EDC LED lights pretty much everyday due to their compactness and runtime (both incans and LEDs have their place), but outdoors, an LED still can't touch a quality incan!

2. No tint lottery. When I pick up a new incan, I don't have to worry about getting one that's unusually cool or has a mutant green tint. 

-Robert


----------



## kelmo (Nov 23, 2009)

I'm sad to admit this but I am old enough that incans were the only game in town back then.

I grew up with ringy beams, crappy discharge curves, fragile bulbs, and batteries that you knew would bleed out on you. So carrying extra lamps and batteries is comforting because it reminds me of my youth.

When I look back at my EDCs now and then, E2e vs an Eveready AA penlight, I realize how far I have come!

Incans are me 35 years ago!


----------



## 1pt21 (Nov 23, 2009)

knightrider said:


> What's your favorite thing about incandescent lights?



My favorite: The fact that they literally turn night into day... AKA; color rendition. :candle:


----------



## 325addict (Nov 25, 2009)

Back online again... just repaired my blown computer-PSU, no less than TEN fried parts had to be replaced...

back on topic:


For me, the main reason is the color of the light. It is so.... natural!

Every time I switch on a LED flashlight, it's  WHAT an ugly COLOR!

Sometimes, however, LEDs do have their place, even with me. There's always a small Fenix in my wallet, but.... one is none, two is one, and three is even better, so I always wear two extra incans: I have a wide choice, that will include an E1E, a modified A2 (with REAL warm white LEDs!), a C2 and a C3 Centurion, a 9AN Commander, an M3, M6 and a Megalennium :devil:
Or I can take a MagCharger or a Wolf Eyes M90 Rattlesnake....

More than enough to choose from... I like them all, some due to their compactness (anyone stating there's no EDC-able incan should take a look at that excellent E1E), some due to their brightness (Megalennium with 1185) and some due to their excellent mix of good properties (good blend of runtime, size and brightness? Take a C3 Centurion with P90...)


Timmo.


----------



## RichS (Nov 25, 2009)

3 words sum it up for me - *Quality Of Light*.


----------



## whitedoom34 (Nov 25, 2009)

Sleeper Mag Hotwires :devil:


----------



## Drywolf (Nov 26, 2009)

Wow! factor. I have to say thank you to all the CPF'ers who made it so simple to make a really powerful light without a lot of fuss. All it takes is money and waiting in line. 

Frank

lovecpf


----------



## Juggernaut (Nov 26, 2009)

knightrider said:


> My favorite thing about incandescent's is how simple they are. And easily repaired.
> 
> If you are anywhere and your flashlight dies you can fix it. First you check your batteries, then the bulb. Make sure you have another bulb and extra batteries with you. Replace the lamp and you're good to go. Pretty simple. A switch on your incan could go bad, so there is one weak link, but twisty switches seem pretty robust if you stick with them.
> 
> What's your favorite thing about incandescent lights?


 
That’s almost exactly what I was going to write.
 
Also very good surface brightness for throw, and lots of lumens for little money!


----------



## knightrider (Nov 26, 2009)

Juggernaut said:


> That’s almost exactly what I was going to write.



Cool! It really is nice to have some simplicity in life.

The beams are so white and clear, just such high quality light. I love this hobby!


----------



## BlueBeam22 (Nov 26, 2009)

Their excellent price to performance ratio in terms of throw and output.


----------



## Chrontius (Nov 26, 2009)

Bang/bulk, and to a lesser extent, bang/buck. You can build some truly tiny incans with IMR cells that run maybe ten minutes, but oh how glorious those ten minutes are!

Though I have spent nearly as much on the incan setups as a modern P7 would cost, the incans had a lot of fiddling and optimizing along the way. And mine _are_ just that simple.


----------



## mvyrmnd (Nov 26, 2009)

There's something fantastically oldschool about a high-powered incan.

The light, the heat, the theater of it all.

LED's just seem sterile to me. Incan's just seem to have a bit of character about them.


----------



## BT132435 (Nov 26, 2009)

To me, an incandescent light is like holding a wooden stick with fire on it. It seems like a more natural source of light is what i guess i'm saying.


----------



## Jarski (Nov 26, 2009)

Colour rendering rules on incans :twothumbs Much better in nature than cool white leds. That's the most important thing for me. Of course simplicity is other thing I like, there is only two things which can fail, bulb and batteries. Both easily replaceable.


----------



## Nubo (Dec 1, 2009)

I like the way powerful incandescent bulbs continue to glow down a few seconds after they're turned off. It's like a little man-made sunset.


----------



## ampdude (Dec 1, 2009)

The simplicity and the better 3D perspective it gives you.

It's especially important on a tactical light to be able to recognize a friend or foe quickly.


----------



## bouncer (Dec 15, 2009)

Color rendition all the way I only switched to led's because surefire lamps were getting so expensive to replace when they blew. Now I have a ROP low and I love it.


----------



## ampdude (Dec 16, 2009)

bouncer said:


> Color rendition all the way I only switched to led's because surefire lamps were getting so expensive to replace when they blew.




How many lamps have you replaced? I've only replaced one in the past ten years and it went after a few minutes of runtime. (was a bad P90 bulb).

I use P90's more than anything, but I use plenty of MN03's, MN02's, P60's, P61's and P91's. I use P90's at work at night on rechargeables. Problem free for years now.

I remember the first time I fired up a P90 on a set of Battery Station RCR123a's. It was amazing to me that you could run a P90 *for free!*

Of course I moved on to AW RCR123a's and in the past couple of years to AW IMR16340's.


----------



## Outdoors Fanatic (Dec 16, 2009)

ampdude said:


> How many lamps have you replaced? I've only replaced one in the past ten years and it went after a few minutes of runtime. (was a bad P90 bulb).
> 
> I use P90's more than anything, but I use plenty of MN03's, MN02's, P60's, P61's and P91's. I use P90's at work at night on rechargeables. Problem free for years now.
> 
> ...


Very well said. I agree 100%. I've had a lot more LED failures than blown incandescent lamp asssemblies...

Cheers.


----------



## KiwiMark (Dec 17, 2009)

I like the way you can scale up the output from incans with a better bulb and more voltage - you just can't match it with LEDs. My brightest incan has 216W of regulated power - no hand held LED that I know of comes close.


----------



## LuxLuthor (Dec 17, 2009)

knightrider said:


> What's your favorite thing about incandescent lights?



*There's a friggin world wide annual Holiday for Incand's.*

Oh yeah, plus they don't kill people like LED's.


----------



## kramer5150 (Dec 17, 2009)

KiwiMark said:


> I like the way you can scale up the output from incans with a better bulb and more voltage - you just can't match it with LEDs. My brightest incan has 216W of regulated power - no hand held LED that I know of comes close.



x2.... the dollar / Lumen scale tips heavily in favor of Incans once you get into the ~400-500 Lumen range.

Halogen spotlights are the kings. ~2000 Lumens OTF, AC/DC chargers, SLA cell included for $60-$100


----------



## Dioni (Dec 18, 2009)

LuxLuthor said:


> *There's a friggin world wide annual Holiday for Incand's.*
> 
> Oh yeah, plus they don't kill people like LED's.


 
I didn't like when they (Gazette Xtra) said "_old incandescent_"! :scowl:

Incan rules! :devil:


----------



## mdocod (Dec 19, 2009)

I like the higher surface brightness combined with the 360 degree (spherical) emission pattern that results in a larger percentage of the total emitted light to be captured and projected by the reflector, rather than emitted as spill beam. Great example of the difference is taking something like a 1.5" reflector with a ~12W incan and comparing it to a P7 in a 2" reflector running around the same 12W of power consumption. The P7 produces more than double the lumens, but the useful range outdoors is basically the same. And the P7 requires a heavier head to dissipate the heat.


----------



## ltiu (Dec 19, 2009)

Kills batteries fast. I love it. Helps me go through my stockpile of old batteries.


----------



## LuxLuthor (Dec 19, 2009)

ltiu said:


> Kills batteries fast. I love it. Helps me go through my stockpile of old batteries.



Now that's the spirit!!! Hell Yeah! Charge, Rape and Pillage those batteries without refrain, toss 'em carelessly into landfills, and do your civic duty to keep sanitation engineers employed during this recession! Not to mention it gives all the environmentalists something to worry about and gives meaning to their lives in fighting for a just cause, drafting new regulations, and gleefully imposing their will on all of us moose-shooting neanderthals. 

Join us on the dark side...er...umm...wait...we are on the light(er) side....oh....umm....maybe.....never mind, or something. Long live Incands!


----------



## ampdude (Dec 20, 2009)

ltiu said:


> Kills batteries fast. I love it. Helps me go through my stockpile of old batteries.



Try an MN02.


----------



## knightrider (Dec 20, 2009)

ampdude said:


> Try an MN02.



Just picked up an MN02 and love it!


----------



## greenLED (Dec 20, 2009)

My favorite... they make great hosts for LED mods! 
:nana:


----------



## ShineOnYouCrazyDiamond (Dec 20, 2009)

I started off as a LED guy because of the variety and all the new lights that keep coming out. I didn't like the coldness of the angry blue lights. I tried the warm tints (fyi - 4-7s neutral tint lights are the only ones I still own - they are really nice even in the forrest) but still my wife even side they were harsh and hurt here eyes.

I just love the beauty and warmth of incans - and the runtime isn't as terrible as I had first thought either. I usually carry two lights with me for a walk and can easily get 1-2 hours out of a rechargable setup with a small backup for another 20-30 minutes. Never a blackout here. 

I still have a few LEDs and they are fine for indoors, but I love my incans for it warmth and true color rendition.


----------



## Illum (Dec 20, 2009)

Lamp gets hot
Lamp burns out
Hot lamps will fail if jarred


oh wait....favorite thing, color rendition:twothumbs


----------



## lctorana (Dec 21, 2009)

I count three now.


----------



## LuxLuthor (Dec 21, 2009)

lctorana said:


> I count three now.



As in what comes after two? Congratulations. Let me know when you master four.


----------



## leukos (Dec 21, 2009)

lctorana said:


> I count three now.


 
I'm curious what you are counting as well. For this thread it could be the number of different reasons you found listed for liking incans. When you were counting in another thread, I think you were counting people added to your ignore list, so I give up. :thinking:


----------



## Outdoors Fanatic (Dec 21, 2009)

LuxLuthor said:


> Now that's the spirit!!! Hell Yeah! Charge, Rape and Pillage those batteries without refrain, toss 'em carelessly into landfills, and do your civic duty to keep sanitation engineers employed during this recession! Not to mention it gives all the environmentalists something to worry about and gives meaning to their lives in fighting for a just cause, drafting new regulations, and gleefully imposing their will on all of us moose-shooting neanderthals.
> 
> Join us on the dark side...er...umm...wait...we are on the light(er) side....oh....umm....maybe.....never mind, or something. Long live Incands!


LOL! 

Great post!!


----------



## lctorana (Dec 22, 2009)

LuxLuthor said:


> Let me know when you master four.


Well, when the next LED bigot makes the fourth pointless trolling post in this thread, I'll let you know.


----------



## KarstGhost (Jan 3, 2010)

I prefer the warmer colors. I do a lot of caving and using an LED the whole time can seriously give me the blues. The LED's cool colors make you feel that much colder if you're chest deep in cold water. I do use an LED headlamp while caving, but always make sure to have an incandescent back-up to pull out and cheer myself up.


----------



## rje58 (Jan 3, 2010)

I love the way they make the woods come alive for me, visually. In an urban environment, I find LEDs to be satisfactory for most uses - but superior to incans only in runtime and bulb life, certainly not color rendition. In a suburban environment, LEDs are still fine for most purposes... 

...but put me in a rural setting or, most especially, in the woods or the mountains - that's when I really want an incan! LEDs at that point are relegated to my pocket or pack for backup purposes only - if that. I will still prefer an incan even for backup, unless I am going deep enough into the woods or far enough afield that a super long runtime "survival mode" light is a good idea as a backup.

I was fortunate that the first "real" flashlight I had was a SF G2 incan with a P60. This was followed by several LED lights, but once I compared them in the woods to my G2 incan, I bought my absolute favorite lights: a SF 9P and most recently, an SF M3! Love'em - and they love the woods as much as I do.


----------



## hyperloop (Jan 3, 2010)

flashfan said:


> I like the way incan light just seems to saturate/penetrate an area...as opposed to LED light, which makes things appear "flat"...to my old eyes anyway. Doesn't mean I don't like LEDs though--each type of light suits different purposes/situations.



what he said.


----------



## OfficerCamp (Jan 3, 2010)

Color. Period. 
I don't like the heat factor, efficiency vs an LED, or the fact that bulbs burn out.
But the color rendering is beautiful, and incan lights give me a somewhat nostalgic feeling, even if they are top of the line high output Surefires.


----------



## e-ville (Jan 4, 2010)

because i heard the sun was incand, and i like the sun


----------



## ampdude (Jan 4, 2010)

flashfan said:


> *I like the way incan light just seems to saturate/penetrate an area...as opposed to LED light, which makes things appear "flat"*...to my old eyes anyway. Doesn't mean I don't like LEDs though--each type of light suits different purposes/situations.



It is absolutely true. I missed this post on the original read and I can tell you, it's not just your eyes. It's everyone's eyes, provided for a few people that have severe vision problems. We all are adapted to see light the same way. We are most sensitive to green light and the warm light that incans put out, especially a hard driven one lets us see the world in the most natural way we can after the sun has gone down.


----------



## mwaldron (Jan 4, 2010)

I like the way that incandescent light penetrates snow fog and particulate matter. 

I love the color rendition. Everyone always says it's better outdoors, which is of course correct, but then it dawned on me I like it so much indoors because I painted most of my house in very light earthtones, shades of brown. 

I like the ease with which you can focus incandescent light sources. Yes, LEDs are finally getting up to a thousand+ lumens, but I have yet to see anyone collimate these lumens into a real thrower. I admit I have little experience, but I've yet to see any LED that can out-throw my 1185, and that's only a KT4 turbo head.

I think there is a somewhat visceral experience with high power incandescents (and my biggest stick is an 1185 so it's not all that big) going back to controlling fire, etc. It makes the boy in us all giggle. LEDs just don't do that.

All that being said with manufacturers now beginning to dip their feet into the neutral and warm LED waters, I'm probably done with incandescent lights. My A2s are awesome, I'll probably have them forever, but I don't EDC them anymore. My Red A2 is on my nightstand, but that's the only one in daily service. My Megallenium 1185 only comes out for special occasions (although PWM brightness control is awesome in incandescent), and my 6P has been modified with a Malkoff M60W. 

My EDC is a Ra 100ww, and my two latest purchases are Neutral Quarks (Mini and RGB). 

I just don't see any new incandescent tickling my fancy, I have all that I could possibly need. 

Now, HID, there's another animal...


----------



## rje58 (Jan 4, 2010)

Is this what is known as a "back-handed compliment" ?



mwaldron said:


> I like the way that incandescent light...
> 
> I love the color rendition...
> 
> ...


----------



## mwaldron (Jan 4, 2010)

rje58 said:


> Is this what is known as a "back-handed compliment" ?



Nope, not at all. 

Tribute to the past, and acknowledgment that I have all I need and will be moving towards warm LEDs in the future. 

As I said, I don't see them making any new breakthrough in incandescent lighting that will cause me to need purchase another new one. Warm leds, however, are an area in constant development at the moment.


----------



## lctorana (Jan 4, 2010)

OK that's four.


----------



## Rexlion (Jan 4, 2010)

The thing I like best about incans is, there's no law that mandates my using them. :devil:


----------



## lctorana (Jan 4, 2010)

And five.


----------



## Conte (Jan 4, 2010)

I think back to one of my first impression of LED light.
I had one of those new fangled 3W luxeon dealies, shortly after they came out.

Being a tech geek, and flashaholic, I jumped on it cause it was suppose to be the next big thing. And I was right impressed till I noticed something . . . 

I could shine this new bright flashlight at a box across the room and have trouble reading the label on it. 
But then I could bust out a plain old 2D krypton burning all of 1 candlepower ofF a pair of half dead alk primaries and be able to read that same box perfectly. That kind of put a bad taste in my mouth and I haven't invested much into them since. 

Really, this is just a +1 to the quality of light described many times already in this thread. They are essentially a miniature fire, in turn emitting every possible frequency of visible light, so our eyes are naturally alot more sensitive to them.


----------



## Dioni (Jan 4, 2010)

haha.. and the counting continues! :laughing:


----------



## skillet (Jan 4, 2010)

It was 8 degrees when I went out to crank the van to go to church Sunday morning....

Icans keep your hands warm!!


----------



## [email protected] (Jan 4, 2010)

*Q: *What's your favorite thing about incandescent lights? 


Colour rendition
The warm light

Ah... incandescent light! :thumbsup:


----------

