# Who made the FIRST Led flashlight?



## AlexGT (Dec 10, 2002)

Just wondering what company introduced the Led lighting technology first, and what was the name of the first led flashlight.

Thnx!
Alex


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## RonM (Dec 10, 2002)

That is an excellent question. Wish I had an answer.






Someone here is bound to know. Most likely Craig.


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## Icebreak (Dec 10, 2002)

What RonM said.


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## Gransee (Dec 10, 2002)

I heard that the first company to manufacture a LED flashlight (other than the many red lights available) was HP to showcase their (then) high brightness yellow 5mms. It was a squeeze cell type.

The first company to manufacture stepups (single and multiple cells)/regulators and microcontrollers in a LED flashlight was HDS Systems of Tucson AZ. Henry's original design was a multi-LED flashlight powered by 2AA cells. He quickly followed it up with a headlamp powered by a single lithium cell. He also was the first guy I know to make a mag LED (complete with stepup of course) conversion kit. This was all happening way back in 97' and 98'. 

First to sell Luxeon powered LED flashlights was Arc over a year ago.

Peter Gransee


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## Wolfen (Dec 11, 2002)

Hey Peter, You may be the first to do the Luxeon thing, but do you have a patent to "prove" it? Sorry couldn't resist. We are behind you 100 percent.





PS: I want a LS3 by 15 March 2003.


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## Gransee (Dec 11, 2002)

Thanks. Ah patents... I shouldn't get started on that soapbox.

Actually, no one can patent the concept of using a luxeon in a flashlight since we have been selling them for at least one year. Statue of limitations.

This means everyone is now free to design their best luxeon powered flashlight.

Of course, someone with money to burn could patent the housing design, switch or unique software mode of the MC, etc of their LS-powered light. But at least no single company has a monopoly on any lights with a luxeon.

Peter


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## **DONOTDELETE** (Dec 11, 2002)

> Originally posted by AlexGT:
> *Just wondering what company introduced the Led lighting technology first, and what was the name of the first led flashlight.*


<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">The first LED flashlight I saw was distributed (made?) by C Crane Co. This was in 1998. Can't remember the name. Prior to that there was the Photon Micro Light, not what I would call a "flashlight," but I suppose it would fit someone's definition. This came onto the market around 1995.

nk


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## Sean (Dec 11, 2002)

The first one I know of is the Nighthawk Microlight. It has a velcro strap and goes on your finger. I bought it about 8 years ago. It uses a yellow 5mm LED. The instructions say "the same technology used by Desert Storm helicopter pilots". The original batteries still work.


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## McGizmo (Dec 11, 2002)

I bought a red LED key ring light that I believe was made by Techna (made knives) about 15 years ago. It was bullet shaped and had a big lens in one end and the battery tube was titanium. Cool light! Momentary push button from the rear.

- Don


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## INRETECH (Dec 11, 2002)

I converted the Radio Shack 2AA flashlight with the thumbwheel, and making an LED light about 1974 using a 5mm LED that I took from a PCB at a Surplus Store


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## Willmore (Dec 11, 2002)

INRETECH beats me by about 5 years. I used 2AAs form RadioShack and a red LED/resistor. It was in a small jewelry box with a paperclip/brass brads kind of switch. Convinced the poor neighbor woman in was a bomb. Later I convinced her not to look in her garage as we had hidden the missing stealth fighter in there. I'm not sure if it's me or her, but I think it's her.



I'm not *that* convincing.


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## INRETECH (Dec 11, 2002)

I purchased my first Hologram from Edmund, and found that if you go in a dark room - you could view it with the LED

The flashlight looked just like one of those disposable cig-lighters and even had the same thumbwheel action to turn it on and off

My first LED that I ever bought was from United Radio in 1973, the MV-50 for $0.86 - it was just a small round piece of plastic with two very fragile rect leads coming out of it


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## Gene (Dec 11, 2002)

I'm pretty sure Don is correct, (first COMMERCIALLY available LED light), and it was more than 20 years ago when Tekna came out with it. I purchased one around 1980. It was a neat little light. Mine had a red LED. As Don mentioned, it had the then revolutionary use of titanium, (for the body), and was hyped more for that than the use of an LED. I thought ti was very neat but couldn't understand why EVERYTHING else, (except for the metal push button on the back), was made of regular plastic. Alas, because of that, it fell apart after a couple years on my keychain.

Tekna was a very innovative little company during those years. When manufacturers in those days just made the same old "blah" flashlights, they always were coming out with really unique lights. In fact I just traded away a couple of their single 123 cell keychain lights, ("Splash-Lite" and "Mono-Lith"), that were the very first to use lithium cells. I still have one of their 4 AA cell, super thick, ABS plastic, orange dive lights. It is still one the most rugged and durable flashlights I've ever seen and still works great. They even offered an unheard of, (for that time), Xenon gas bulb upgrade for it. They really lead the way for some of the neat lights we have today.


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## McGizmo (Dec 11, 2002)

Gene,

I didn't want to date myself and my memory sucks anyway but I felt it was more than 15 years ago as well  I too was disappointed in the use of plastic and my light also died but I kept the Ti cylindar and ended up using it on something. Tekna was ahead of the times but couldn't cut the changes over time, I guess. They had a double edged dive knife with cool locking scabard that was also ahead of its time. As I recall, the light was between $15 and $20 which was a bit steep at those day's prices but the technology was from the future.

- Don


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## Jonathan (Dec 11, 2002)

The earliest LED 'flashlight' that I ever bought was a 'portable safe light' for darkroom use. It was a little pendant with a couple of yellow LEDs, a switch, and space for a couple of AA batteries. Not very bright, but who would want it to be; you'd fog your paper. This was in 1985 or so.

-Jon


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## Gene (Dec 11, 2002)

Don,
I too kept that ti body after the light died! Good point on the knife as I remember that dive knife well. Tekna was as well known for their innovative knives as their lights. In fact I still have one of their old "Extra Edge" keychain knives on my keychain as I type this. Their most popular and most controversial knife however was the "Hidden Edge". The HANDLE retracted exposing the blade. Our wise lawmakers made them take it off the market because it was too much like a switchblade. Aren't we lucky that we have such caring, intelligent politicians that watch out for all us simple folk? :>)


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## Tomas (Dec 11, 2002)

! ! ! 

Thanks, Gene, I'd totally forgotten that ol' "Hidden Edge" Tekna I used to have. 

Even before I had one of those titanium Tekna LED lights, Rockwell (one of our suppliers) was giving out odd little cheapo LED lights for advertising. 

They were about 1/4 inch thick and maybe 1 1/2 by 2 inches with a small, dim red LED. The company name address, and phone number was printed on the side, and there was a ball chain to attach it to keys or whatever. This was late '70's early '80's?

If I recall, some other vendors had similar that they used for advertising.


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## Blackbeagle (Dec 12, 2002)

I seem to recall an earlier "light" sold by Edmund Scientific. If I'm remembering right, it was sold about 20~25 years ago. Small round clear plastic case housing a either a NiCad beer can or a electrolytic capacitor. Single yellow LED. Neat thing about this was that there was a solar cell embedded in the side. You'd leave it sitting in the sun and it would charge the cell. You'd squeeze it to turn it on. Worked well until the storage cell died.


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## Tomas (Dec 13, 2002)

Actually it had two tiny NiCads in it, and one squeezed the case to get light. I came with a short ballchain, and a clear plastic suction cup with a metal hook so you could hang it on a window to charge.



The PC board was blue, and quite thick.

Eddie Bauer and REI both carried 'em, too.


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## AlexGT (Dec 13, 2002)

Wow!

I never thought the led Lighting concept was That old. Anyone have pics of the mentioned lights? 

Thnx!
Alex


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## whiskypapa3 (Dec 13, 2002)

Here is a picture of the Teckna led light (circa1988). Used it until the Photon I came out. Only problem I had was the twist switch wouldn't stay in the off position. It would come on in my pocket, got lots of strange looks walking around in a store in the evening...


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## McGizmo (Dec 13, 2002)

Whiskeypapa3,

Thanks for the photo; brings back memories





Oldest LED lights I still have are pictured below. The larger one has a red LED and is likely somewhere around 10 years old. The smaller one has an orange LED and is probably 7 years old? Anyway, these preceeded the Photons and all of the superbright key chain lights, to the best of my recolection.






Very simple circuit; LED leads straddle button cell(s) and squeezing the light makes the contact.

- Don


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## Gene (Dec 13, 2002)

Yes, thanks whisky for the pic! My early model had a "clickie" type push switch in back that had a small hole drilled in it for a split ring or lanyard. These later "twist" switches must have a been a cost cutting exercise as were the plastic parts in both. The plastic parts were this light's BIG downfall and I'm sure, what led to it's demise. A neat piece of LED history though!

Don, 
Were those pre-Photons "give-a-ways" or actual production models?


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## McGizmo (Dec 13, 2002)

Gene,

These "Squeeze" beams were both available through distribution channels and we carried both models in a chandlery I was managing at the time. If I recall correctly, the red LED unit was close to $10 and the orange, cheaper unit was around $6. The orange LED unit showed up a couple years after the Red had run it's course. We sold a bunch of these and I used them as stocking stuffers a couple years until the novelty wore off.





- Don


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## Lighthouse (Dec 13, 2002)

McGizmo,
The light on the left side of your photo is available at Pepboys autoparts stores in the south Florida area. I purchased a two of them about 3 months ago and am still using the same batteries that they came with. Would you believe they only charged $1.99 each!! I've been pricing replacement batteries and can't find them that cheap! Go figure. These are actually nice little lights, we got the red leds, didn't see any other color choices in the two stores that we were in. Been toying with the idea of swapping the leds myself, but other things keep intruding on my spare time. I did have one that kept lighting up in my shirt pocket and like WhiskyPapa3, I got some strange looks and interesting comments.


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## McGizmo (Dec 13, 2002)

Lighthouse,

I'm surprised these are still around! We had many customers who considered them disposable as they couldn't or didn't bother, trying to find replacement batteries. I too had trouble with the "non-lock out" squeeze feature





- Don


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## Saaby (Dec 13, 2002)

Many many years ago, before I realized I was a flashaholic, I made my mom buy herself one of those squeese lights--the one on the left. It had red casing and a red LED--Energizer or Eveready if I recall. I win the value award--it cost all of $1

Great little light, I completely disassembled and reassembled it several times. Don't know what happened to it exactly--but I think all the reassemblies and the years of pocket carry (Probably only 1 year) wore it down until the case just didnt' stay togerher anymore.


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## INRETECH (Dec 14, 2002)

I had the Teckna led light also

It was a nice light, but the switch mechanism was really cheap and wore out


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## Tomas (Aug 22, 2003)

Heheheheh ... 

My mom just asked me if I wanted one of my old lights back rather than just throwing it away, since with her CMG, Arc, and Opalec lights she doesn't really need it anymore. 

I said Sure!

The one she handed me was the one mentioned earlier in this thread *and the darn thing still works fine!* 

Here's a pic of an early LED flashlight: The FOREVER LIGHT by Solarts (mid-80's).






I'm really surprised the two NiCd cells inside are still willing to give it a go. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif (It has been kept charged, though.)


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## JohnK (Aug 22, 2003)

Peter

First to sell Luxeon powered LED flashlights was Arc over a year ago.>>>>

Durn, I had NO idea this was so ... fresh, I've only been here for 6 months or so, good gosh, what a change; we've got commercialy produced lights popping up everywhere.


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## tvodrd (Aug 22, 2003)

I have a Streamlight mm copy from the '70s-early'80's with a really dima*ss red LED. Does it count?

Larry


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## paulr (Aug 23, 2003)

A while ago someone posted a scan of an article by some military guy making his own LED flashlight (red led) for covert ops circa 1974. It wasn't commercial of course, but it explained the circuit for readers wanting to build similar lights. I think the light was a modded 2AA penlight or something.


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## shankus (Aug 23, 2003)

I wonder how long it will be before _this_ question is asked.

"Who made the last incandescent flashlight?" 


And what do you think the answer will be?

(Mag Instruments)


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## snakebite (Aug 23, 2003)

i could swear i have had an ls nearly 2 years.
or are you going by the date it was first sold to the public?

[ QUOTE ]
*JohnK said:*
Peter

First to sell Luxeon powered LED flashlights was Arc over a year ago.>>>>

Durn, I had NO idea this was so ... fresh, I've only been here for 6 months or so, good gosh, what a change; we've got commercialy produced lights popping up everywhere.



[/ QUOTE ]


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## The_LED_Museum (Aug 23, 2003)

I took some pictures of a prototype Arc-LS on 11-05-01, and I think I got the actual flashlight sometime earlier. (I looked through my system, and it looks like I took many of the pictures on Friday, 08-03-01, and I'm guessing I took these pictures on the same day I received the Arc-LS.)






So it looks like the Arc-LS was born in mid- to late-summer 2001 - I'd guess sometime in July 2001. But the "first run" Arc-LS really didn't take off until spring 2002.
So, spring 2002 is when the Arc-LS was produced and became available to the general public.


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## Silviron (Aug 23, 2003)

I built my first red LED penlights back in 1974, We used them for covert stuff and night vision preservation. Wrote an article on it a few years later, and about 5 months after it was published, a couple of small companies were trying to sell them commercially. Don't know if they ever sold any because they wanted like fifty dollars for one.

I doubt that I was the first guy to do this. I imagine that a bunch of electronics geeks independently came up with the idea long before I did, and probably astronomy guys made some too. However, I like to think that I was the guy that introduced the concept to the SpecOps community though.

There is a copy of the article I wrote over on the Darksbane (Not the forum, but my little flashlight site) 

Edited:
Oh Paulr- I missed your post the first time; that was me. I don't remember actually posting it here, but may have, or maybe you ran across it on my site.


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## Doug Owen (Aug 23, 2003)

I too made one in the early seventies from the first LEDs I saw (red of course). A couple of penlight cells, a bitty microswitch and little reostat. A layer or two of electrical tape rounded out the package.

The company I worked for at the time (Applied Radiation) made therapy X ray machines, and some of the testing was done in the dark. I'd use it to read meters (up real close, of course, they were dim then). I ended up making several for other guys. No telling where mine got to in the thirty odd years since, it's for sure no longer in the bottom of my tool box.

Doug Owen


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## paulr (Aug 23, 2003)

Silveron, yes, that's the article I remember. Cool!


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## Fuchshp (Aug 10, 2015)

It's a pitty that darksbane link doesn't work anymore


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## chadvone (Sep 23, 2015)

I built one seven years before I was born.


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## Glock 22 (Sep 23, 2015)

Surefire


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## more_vampires (Sep 23, 2015)

> Kurt Lehovec, Carl Accardo and Edward Jamgochian, explained these first light-emitting diodes in 1951 using an apparatus employing SiC crystals with a current source of battery or pulse generator and with a comparison to a variant, pure, crystal in 1953.[12]​ [13]​


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light-emitting_diode#Discoveries_and_early_devices



> Electroluminescence as a phenomenon was discovered in 1907 by the British experimenter H. J. Round of Marconi Labs, using a crystal of silicon carbide and a cat's-whisker detector.[7]​[8]​ Soviet inventor Oleg Losev reported creation of the first LED in 1927.[9]​ His research was distributed in Soviet, German and British scientific journals, but no practical use was made of the discovery for several decades.[10]​[11]​



Now, what do I win?


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## Illum (Sep 23, 2015)

holy cow thread bump 

Back from when CPF first began I remember ccrane was a big deal at the time, 4 5mm LEDs, 2 or 3AA body. Anything before that is probably... turtlelight?


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## RedLED (Sep 25, 2015)

Who made the first - non red - white led with a reflector with some practical use to it?


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## more_vampires (Sep 28, 2015)

Arc with a Luxeon, 2001, according to the wiki. I haven't found any info on 5mm white firsties yet.


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## Aleshander (Oct 17, 2015)

Nick Holonyak has developed first LED working range at the University of Illinois for the General Electric Company in 1962.


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## HDS_Systems (Oct 17, 2015)

More_Vampires,

HDS Systems designed, built and sold the first regulated high power white LED flashlight - the Action Light. It used 24 white 5mm LEDs to generate about 12 lumens on the High setting and was powered by a step-up regulator, which was powered by a D-cell lithium-sulfur dioxide battery. It provided 3 brightness levels (High, Medium and Low) and would automatically step down from High to Medium when the battery could no longer sustain High. The light was designed as a direct replacement for a carbide lamp - complete with flat hook.

Here is the Action Light product description:

http://www.hdssystems.com/Products/Legacy/Action1/ActionLightAIOCV.php

which can be found on the Legacy Products page:

http://www.hdssystems.com/Products/Legacy/

An article discussing the project history and background is available at:

http://www.hdssystems.com/Articles/ActionLightHistory.pdf

We even build a 48 LED version of this light with separate battery compartment.

Henry.


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## LedTed (Oct 18, 2015)

I remember converting and selling several two cell incasescent flashlights to red 10mm LEDs, back in about 1993, for use at the Iditarod. After the original owner finished the race, he sold those lights to a U.S. Air Force Major who competed in the race that year. The Major, in turn, brought them back to base to show his CO, and request they be used in cockpits. I'd like to think this is is the origin of "finger lights".

By 1994 I believe I had five of the first 5mm blue and five of the first 5mm purple LEDs. (Those are the same ones in my avatar.) Later that year, given to me as a Christmas gift, I had six white LEDs. Those white LEDs got put into two cell incasescent flashlights and were given away.

In 1995, I got my first "bright" white 5mm LEDs. The die for each was mounted in the bottom of a cone; the slope of which aligned with the associated dome lens. I made ten 2 X AA conversations out of all of these white LEDs, and donated them to a Boy Scout fund raiser. One gentleman bought the entire collection; custom plexiglass display case and all. I was accused of taking back my donation until that got straightened out. (No good deed ... ) That's when I stopped making and selling LED flashlight conversations.

Though, I have since used much newer 5mm LEDs to put in flashlights at family member requests.


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## SemiMan (Oct 18, 2015)

LedTed said:


> I remember converting and selling several two cell incasescent flashlights to red 10mm LEDs, back in about 1993, for use at the Iditarod. After the original owner finished the race, he sold those lights to a U.S. Air Force Major who competed in the race that year. The Major, in turn, brought them back to base to show his CO, and request they be used in cockpits. I'd like to think this is is the origin of "finger lights".
> 
> By 1994 I believe I had five of the first 5mm blue and five of the first 5mm purple LEDs. (Those are the same ones in my avatar.) Later that year, given to me as a Christmas gift, I had six white LEDs. Those white LEDs got put into two cell incasescent flashlights and were given away.
> 
> ...



Cree was shipping Blue samples in 1991, 5mm, to a fairly wide potential customer base.


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## SemiMan (Oct 18, 2015)

-----


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## LedTed (Oct 18, 2015)

SemiMan said:


> Cree was shipping Blue samples in 1991, 5mm, to a fairly wide potential customer base.



For clarification - the: blue, purple, and white 5mm LED samples from my response to the thread were from Nichia. Also, the time frame from my story should be moved back one year; starting at 1992. 

Excuse my assumption, the Cree LEDs apparently came first.


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## more_vampires (Oct 19, 2015)

HDS_Systems said:


> More_Vampires,
> HDS Systems designed, built and sold the first regulated high power white LED flashlight - the Action Light.


Cool! Thanks for the history, sir. I think this one of the more interesting threads here... where we came from might have something to do with where we're going.


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## lumen aeternum (Aug 23, 2017)

HDS_Systems said:


> More_Vampires,
> 
> HDS Systems designed, built and sold the first regulated high power white LED flashlight - the Action Light. It used 24 white 5mm LEDs to generate about 12 lumens on the High setting and was powered by a step-up regulator, which was powered by a D-cell lithium-sulfur dioxide battery. It provided 3 brightness levels (High, Medium and Low) and would automatically step down from High to Medium when the battery could no longer sustain High. The light was designed as a direct replacement for a carbide lamp - complete with flat hook.
> 
> ...




Why did you describe the beam angle in terms of f-stops?
*Beam Angle 1, 3 and 6 f-stops* 20°/40°/80°


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## chillinn (Sep 16, 2020)

Not really about flashlights, but I'm just going to leave this here,  because I can find no other appropriate thread for one, and for two, this is just too good of a thread to leave in 2002, 2003, 2015 and 2017. 



> In 1927, Oleg Losev, a Russian inventor and scientist would introduce the world to the light-emitting diode. This technology would remain dormant for decades. Progress was made in 1962 with the introduction of the first red LED. For the next 30 years, an industry would hunt for the elusive colour blue. Over time the risk of pouring resource and treasure into this pursuit increased - you were chasing the pot of gold at the end of a blue coloured rainbow.
> 
> These pursuits would continue with little success until the early 90s. Then the work of Shuji Nakamura, Isamu Akosaki and Hiroshi Amano unlocked the secrets of the blue LED. So significant was this discovery that in 2004, the trio would receive the Nobel price in Physics.



Weirdly, my father's 1989 Volkswagon Wolfsburg Edition Jetta had a 5mm blue LED in the dash. Having never seen one, I wanted to pull the dash apart and do something with it.


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## Glenn7 (Sep 16, 2020)

CCrane was one of the first to offer them IIRC and doing it 22 years ago, they ran off 2x C cell and had 6 or seven leds and were dive worthy too - I had one and they were amazing at the time. I think the replacemt model is this one https://ccrane.com/cc-trek-4-led-flashlight-yellow/


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## Hooked on Fenix (Sep 16, 2020)

Glenn7 said:


> CCrane was one of the first to offer them IIRC and doing it 22 years ago, they ran off 2x C cell and had 6 or seven leds and were dive worthy too - I had one and they were amazing at the time. I think the replacemt model is this one https://ccrane.com/cc-trek-4-led-flashlight-yellow/



First lights by CCrane were the 3AA CC Trek light with 2 l.e.d.s and the 3C CC Expedition with 7 l.e.d.s. I owned both. No light back then worked on 2 1.5 volt cells. This was before step up circuits when all lights stepped down voltage with resistors (or didn't bother using them at all). I think they came out in 1997. Both had a major flaw. Twisting the head to turn the light on and off cut into the circuit board making the lights lose electrical contact after awhile.


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## Jean-Luc Descarte (Sep 17, 2020)

Dang, chillinn, you just unearthed a time capsule.


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## Glenn7 (Sep 17, 2020)

Hooked on Fenix said:


> First lights by CCrane were the 3AA CC Trek light with 2 l.e.d.s and the 3C CC Expedition with 7 l.e.d.s. I owned both. No light back then worked on 2 1.5 volt cells. This was before step up circuits when all lights stepped down voltage with resistors (or didn't bother using them at all). I think they came out in 1997. Both had a major flaw. Twisting the head to turn the light on and off cut into the circuit board making the lights lose electrical contact after awhile.


Yeah I couldn't remember the exact battery config but was sure it used C cells on mine anyway and yes I remember it had 7 leds now - the contact to battery was just a blob of solder that if you didn't unscrew the head enough it would flicker, but was a tough torch though and quite bright for light from that era - mine was black with a clear head, it ran for ages too.


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## degarb (Sep 27, 2020)

I think the only question now that matters today is, who made the first 100k lumen flashlight?


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## Brightlight20 (Dec 11, 2020)

I read that the first LED lighting technology was back in 1962 by General Electric founded by Nick Holonyyak. Here is the link to the information:
https://www.stouchlighting.com/blog/history_of_light_emitting_diode_led-lighting


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