Showing posts with label torture test. Show all posts
Showing posts with label torture test. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 15, 2012
Monday, January 2, 2012
Details: Mechanical Strength
Hi Everyone,
Happy New Year! I thought I'd start of 2012 by getting into some nitty-gritty details on the Alpha. People often ask me why my lights are different. I usually answer with the question, "how much time do you have?"
Some of you have probably seen the video of my impact testing, but I took some stills to show the damage and explain why the Alpha can stand up to the abuse that you see in the video. This is the actual light and it's still 100% functional. It just looks ugly.
One thing that sets my lights apart is attention to every possible detail. Any design can (and should) be improved and I'm not claiming perfection, but I pay attention to things a lot of people don't. So, here is the first of several mini-segments on the details that you can see......and some that are buried inside...most of which you will probably never notice :)
Read on after the jump for the rest of the details.
Happy New Year! I thought I'd start of 2012 by getting into some nitty-gritty details on the Alpha. People often ask me why my lights are different. I usually answer with the question, "how much time do you have?"
Some of you have probably seen the video of my impact testing, but I took some stills to show the damage and explain why the Alpha can stand up to the abuse that you see in the video. This is the actual light and it's still 100% functional. It just looks ugly.
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| "Busted" but not broken |
Read on after the jump for the rest of the details.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
VIDEO: Drop testing the Alpha
I guess I forgot to post the YouTube video from a while ago...so here it is! I hosted a Candlepower Forums gathering at my shop a few months ago. Just to spice things up I asked everyone in attendance to help me drop test one of my lights. I'd never actually done this before so it was pretty frightening to do in front of a crowd. Makes for good TV though right?
So as you can see, after 37 drops and some pretty massive hits, the tailcap switch broke. Does that mean the light failed? I don't really know. It would still turn on in momentary mode...but the switch would not latch. So, you decide. I think the bottom line is that if your own flashlight ever sees that much abuse...you probably have some other broken stuff that is higher on the priority list.
One other thing to keep in mind is that the McClicky switch is literally the best aftermarket clicky switch that exists. Since my light is designed for easy repair, putting in a new switch is really easy and (if you have strong fingers) can be done completely without tools.
Disclaimer:
This disclaimer is present in order to manage your expectations. Impact is a funny thing and people often have unrealistic expectations with respect to dropping flashlights. For example, in the video above, we dropped the Alpha 37 times and the UCL glass window did not break. I put the light on my bench. When a friend visited the next day I dropped the light from waist high...and the window shattered. Why? Impact is a funny thing.
Flashlights are not meant to be dropped. They are meant to produce light. A good light is engineered in a way that will minimize the statistical probability that something (anything) will break. Engineering is largely balanced by practical considerations like cost and physical size. They key (and the point of my previous anecdote) is that pesky statistical probability. When you drop a light, even from waist high, about a bazillion dice get together to determine the final outcome. Could I make a light that is guaranteed not to break, ever, when dropped from an airplane? Sure, you show me $10,000 and I'll show you an indestructible light. In fact, I'd welcome the challenge :)
I have seen tons of messages on Candlepower Forums where people are irate that they dropped their light, it started working funny, and now they think the light and the entire company are terrible. Do you drop your laptop (or your phone) and then complain to the manufacturer that it broke? No, BECAUSE YOU DROPPED IT. If you drop your light, you should expect it to break. If it doesn't, send the manufacturer a nice letter.
Of course I talked to someone the other day that was really mad at Apple because their iPhone had broken. I said, "What happened to it?" They said, "I dropped it." I had a hard time not saying something really rude in response.
So as you can see, after 37 drops and some pretty massive hits, the tailcap switch broke. Does that mean the light failed? I don't really know. It would still turn on in momentary mode...but the switch would not latch. So, you decide. I think the bottom line is that if your own flashlight ever sees that much abuse...you probably have some other broken stuff that is higher on the priority list.
One other thing to keep in mind is that the McClicky switch is literally the best aftermarket clicky switch that exists. Since my light is designed for easy repair, putting in a new switch is really easy and (if you have strong fingers) can be done completely without tools.
Disclaimer:
This disclaimer is present in order to manage your expectations. Impact is a funny thing and people often have unrealistic expectations with respect to dropping flashlights. For example, in the video above, we dropped the Alpha 37 times and the UCL glass window did not break. I put the light on my bench. When a friend visited the next day I dropped the light from waist high...and the window shattered. Why? Impact is a funny thing.
Flashlights are not meant to be dropped. They are meant to produce light. A good light is engineered in a way that will minimize the statistical probability that something (anything) will break. Engineering is largely balanced by practical considerations like cost and physical size. They key (and the point of my previous anecdote) is that pesky statistical probability. When you drop a light, even from waist high, about a bazillion dice get together to determine the final outcome. Could I make a light that is guaranteed not to break, ever, when dropped from an airplane? Sure, you show me $10,000 and I'll show you an indestructible light. In fact, I'd welcome the challenge :)
I have seen tons of messages on Candlepower Forums where people are irate that they dropped their light, it started working funny, and now they think the light and the entire company are terrible. Do you drop your laptop (or your phone) and then complain to the manufacturer that it broke? No, BECAUSE YOU DROPPED IT. If you drop your light, you should expect it to break. If it doesn't, send the manufacturer a nice letter.
Of course I talked to someone the other day that was really mad at Apple because their iPhone had broken. I said, "What happened to it?" They said, "I dropped it." I had a hard time not saying something really rude in response.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
WIN!: Tried to bust it...can't
I hosted an open house at my shop last night. A great crowd of my random friends and a bunch of folks from Candlepower Forums were in attendance. Part of the diversion for the evening was drop testing one of my lights. I'd never tried anything like this before soooooo...the day before I took one of my lights and gave it a private beating in an "attempt" to no look foolish in front of the crowd in case it busted on the first drop.
After throwing it around for a while I started to get bored and thought I'd try something different. They drive cars over products to prove they are tough right? Pre-test I gave this a 50% chance of success, 30% chance of significant damage, and a 20% chance of catastrophic failure.
Turns out it wasn't an issue at all; the Alpha didn't even flinch. It did not deform at all and the threads are good as new. The photo shows the full weight of my 4Runner on top of the flashlight. This tire is not touching the ground at all (see the daylight underneath) and is fully supported by just the flashlight. Win? Win!
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| My Toyota 4Runner weighs in at 4,800 lbs, putting 1,200 lbs. of weight on this Alpha light. Alpha light says, "meh." |
Turns out it wasn't an issue at all; the Alpha didn't even flinch. It did not deform at all and the threads are good as new. The photo shows the full weight of my 4Runner on top of the flashlight. This tire is not touching the ground at all (see the daylight underneath) and is fully supported by just the flashlight. Win? Win!
Wednesday, April 20, 2011
WIN! 90 Minutes run time on High--Tested!
One of the main questions I get is about "run time" and exactly how much you should expect. I'm an applied science type of person and I like to test my assumptions rather than just guessing...and I finally got around to some testing! I tested three lights with fresh batteries and ran them on high. I'm excited to announce you should expect approximately 90 minutes of run time on high. Please keep in mind, the hotter the light gets the less efficient the LED...and the lower the run time.
I added a few ice cubes to keep the light from getting really hot. A 90 minute run on full blast produces a lot of heat. Holding the light in your hand (like submerging it in water) helps draw the heat out of the light and keep it cool. If you ran the light on high for 90 minutes and left it sitting on a table it would most certainly overheat. In general, do not run the light on high for more than 10 minutes if you are not holding it in your hand!
I conducted 3 trials: lots of ice, 4 cubes, and room temp water. The three lights I tested came in at 115 minutes, 93 minutes, and 85 minutes respectively. The room temp water was noticeably warm at the end of the test. Many factors contribute to run time so your mileage may vary...especially if the ambient temperature is high. The cooler the light, the longer the run time!
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| A well lit beverage! |
I conducted 3 trials: lots of ice, 4 cubes, and room temp water. The three lights I tested came in at 115 minutes, 93 minutes, and 85 minutes respectively. The room temp water was noticeably warm at the end of the test. Many factors contribute to run time so your mileage may vary...especially if the ambient temperature is high. The cooler the light, the longer the run time!
Monday, April 18, 2011
Back from 10 days in the Utah back country
Hi folks,
Just got back from Utah last night. It was a great trip and a real torture test for my lights. My friend Adam and I did a lot of hiking and fishing in the middle of nowhere. It was beautiful, fun, and really really dark. It was also really really sandy, cold, wet and otherwise inhospitable. I wasn't sure how the lights would hold up in the sand but I was careful to keep the threads clean and had no problems at all.
The light in the photo is a special prototype. I'll be introducing a titanium pocket clip option with my next production run. Shhhh. Don't tell anyone, it's still under development.
Just got back from Utah last night. It was a great trip and a real torture test for my lights. My friend Adam and I did a lot of hiking and fishing in the middle of nowhere. It was beautiful, fun, and really really dark. It was also really really sandy, cold, wet and otherwise inhospitable. I wasn't sure how the lights would hold up in the sand but I was careful to keep the threads clean and had no problems at all.
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| My light with a Waterworks ULA reel and Sage SLT rod |
Tuesday, March 29, 2011
Torture Test: Frozen in ice for 8 hours
I've had some personal concerns, and I've had some people ask, about cold weather performance. Full of confidence coming off of my 300 ft pressure test I decided to create a new "torture test" segment. For my next act I will freeze my light into a block of ice...and really cross my fingers.
There is a lot of risk here: my ego, the flashlight's reputation, and the flashlight itself. Sure, if the test fails then I just never tell anyone I did it right? That's not how this works. I've made the choice to be transparent with this process and you will see my fails along with my wins. For the startup/small business owner, it's kind of like riding a tiger through a hoop of fire. So far I've been pretty lucky AND I'm trying really hard not to fail.
FINAL RESULT: I let the light run on "high" until it melted itself free from the block of ice. That took about 20 minutes and meant now it was sitting in a cup full of ice water. I shut the light off and let it sit for another 20 minutes. I pulled the light out and inspected for damage to the lens or water intrusion into the light and found none!
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| The Short Story: Takes a freezin' and keeps on tickin' |
FINAL RESULT: I let the light run on "high" until it melted itself free from the block of ice. That took about 20 minutes and meant now it was sitting in a cup full of ice water. I shut the light off and let it sit for another 20 minutes. I pulled the light out and inspected for damage to the lens or water intrusion into the light and found none!
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Torture Test: personal best (300ft for 5 hours)
OFFICIALLY TESTED TO 300 FEET FOR 5 HOURS
This post is an update to the original pressure test post.
I had some more time today and took one light down to 300 feet for 5 hours and it passed without a problem. I did have to remove the safety pressure release valve that was preventing me from going above 110 PSI.
I should note this does NOT mean the MC18-B is a dive light. The rubber tailcap switch collapses around 50ft and will render the switch inoperable. This does not damage the switch and does not compromise the seal...it just means the button gets stuck down. A different type of switch would have to be used for dive applications.
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| The only thing I can think to say is BOOYAH! |
I'm pretty sure the MC18-B is now THE most waterproof land-based flashlight in the world. I'd be happy to have someone prove me wrong; just send me a link! If there is competition out there, I want to know.
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