@ELJAY@fuzzmanmatt Olight is O-kay but they are not nearly as indestructible as Streamlight. If you are strapping it to a shotgun and expect it to work on the worst day of your life, you may be glad you didn’t cheap out.
@ELJAY@tweezak can’t use a cheap flashlight like a hammer and get the SnapOn guy to warranty it, but he doesn’t think twice about the abuse the Streamlight takes. And I use it for search and rescue, the actual light output is useful sometimes!
@ELJAY@fuzzmanmatt As a follow up, my wife’s Olight Warrior’s base plate switch just crapped out after a couple years of light use. I will save up for a more reliable product next time.
Technically, yes, they’re extremely durable. But the board/LED inside is not. I don’t have any that still work without having to smack 'em around first. Damned parts become dislodged inside.
@tasco HOLY CRAP! You’re right! I still had the boxes from the ones from the Mehrathon and the sleeve was inside. I didn’t dump that out of the box and never knew it was in there. That makes these slightly less crappy! WINNER!
I hate flashlights that force me to go through several modes just to turn it on and off. I seldom need 3 levels of light, have never needed a fast strobe. And every one I’ve had that had an “SOS” mode is really just a “SO” mode. Or “SOSOSOSOSO”. I can’t imagine needing a flashlight that signals SOS, and one that gets it wrong is pretty so-so.
@Trinityscrew@Willijs3 I just tried it on mine (that I bought from meh during the most recent mehrathon). You are right, if you click repeatedly it cycles through the modes with each power on sequence. However, if you wait a few seconds between clicks it stays on whatever mode it was previously on. I’ve got it on high now and it stays on high as long as I don’t turn it off and back on quickly.
@khearn agreed! I’m getting a nice collection of meh-diocre flashlights all of which have that feature, fast strobe, slow strobe with a “soft” click. Glad to see it’s not just me that can see any use for these at all, ever. My slightly better Feit Electric flashlights (very bright) have that same useless feature. And now all I got to do is give them a shake to get them blinking away. Shake them again to get them to cycle through back to solid. Fun!
According to some extremely casual research on the interwebs, these are probably about 900 lumens - more than the typical 60W incandescent (or 9W LED or 15W CFL) but I’m not convinced they’re super mega bright.
I’ve got a few flashlights from here in the past, and been pretty happy with the ones I’ve gotten, but at this point, I either want flashlights that take at least 4 D-cell batteries or emit at least 1600 lumens (100W typical incandescent/17W LED/23W CFL). More would be even better (though I guess not to the point of needing eye protection).
@yeppers I have a couple of these from a previous Meh sale and while they are far from the brightest flashlight you can buy, they’re still hella bright. They’ll absolutely blind anybody if you shine your light in their face at night.
@akumax It most likely does have the tube. Mine from the last order did. But I think you’re being facetious. The 18650 battery will fit with or without the tube.
When are they going to do a drip coffee machine again? My Krups (that I got here for $10!) is making weak coffee and I need a new one.
Come on, Meh…help me out!
@hchavers square LED array. It’s actually pretty cool; when you have it focused right you can see the diode pads in the image the light throws on the wall
@Felixaurelius@hchavers Yes, Geordie. That’s all well and good, but can you modify it to focus the LED array on the mouth of the volcano on the surface of the planet and save the lives of the primitive peoples whose affairs we’re not supposed to meddle in?
These are pretty okay with an 18650 in them, but if you don’t have a bunch of cells kicking around already, they might not be worth it. Even without the sleeve they hold a cell, I’ve found.
I’d have to say for $5 ea these are not bad. I just hope they don’t have that self-draining feature that a bunch of the Costco Duracell-branded ones did a few years ago.
@pmarin They do not. I use one at work occasionally and I have a rechargeable 18650 battery in it. I charged that battery over a year ago and the flashlight is still working from that initial charge.
@pmarin I fell for one of those Costco Duracell units. Nice flashlight for the price otherwise, but I have to unscrew the end cap when not in use or the batteries die in short order. WTF?
@pmarin you of course now realize buying any battery-consuming device from a company whose primary business model is selling old-school batteries is a fool’s errand, right?
I laugh every time I walk by those Costco Duracell device displays, no matter how many “free” cells they cram into the package.
I had some extra 18650s laying around so I bought a 2pk of these from mehs side piece a few weeks ago. Those came with sleeves. Looks like they’re the same ones…
I ordered this a while back (last year I think) from meh. Seems from the comments i’ve scanned that they don’t have batteries? Weird. I like mine a lot. I don’t use them often and I’ve never had to charge them. They’re nice & bright
Picking these up. If they’re remotely as good as the last two pack of “tactical flashlights” I bought from Meh, they should be worth the cost. I like keeping these in all the vehicles and in random drawers throughout the house.
So glad I checked the comments . I had purchased these before they came with a nice case 18650 charger etc so I jumped on this deal … then re read the specs and comments… only the flashlights no case no 18650 no charger
@ws1o the extended capacity photon magazine and fully semiautomatic operation?
Nah, really, they’re black, they’re aluminum, and they have crenellations on the front that you could strike someone/something with if necessary. That probably checks all the tactical boxes.
. I had purchased these before they came with a nice case 18650 charger etc so I jumped on this deal … then re read the specs and comments… only the flashlights no case no 18650 no charger . Not pleased ,will not give these to my new friends .The other friends have the better ones
@breakers28 I had some 1/2" irrigation tubing on hand that seems a suitable replacement. Cut to length, cut a slit up the side, then it slides over the cell.
Received mine today- most definitely meh! Probably the most meh item I ever succumbed to. Have I yet impressed upon you how meh I feel about these mehlights. Also meh on the sleeves and meh on the instructions for describing the not included meh sleeve. I could go on all day about this very meh buy, but won’t. Meh!
Specs
What’s in the Box?
Price Comparison
$24.88 at Walmart
Warranty
90 days
Estimated Delivery
Monday, Sep 20 - Wednesday, Sep 22
3x AAA batteries. Meh. Call me when it’s single AA
@courteousblock or an 18650
@cengland0 @courteousblock Definitely 18650, would have pulled the trigger immediately
@cengland0 @courteousblock @DomoPants Amen
@cengland0 @courteousblock @DomoPants These are 18650 capable. They just dont come with them.
People still sell these? They are awful!
@zenzic they are meh! Duhh
@zenzic it’s great if it comes with lithium batteries lol
#of times I have wanted my flashlight to strobe = number of times I ordered this…hard pass
@tightwad
/giphy rave strobe light
@fuzzmanmatt @tightwad
@DoctorOW @fuzzmanmatt @tightwad
Ok, that was pretty funny.
@DoctorOW @fuzzmanmatt @tightwad that whole movie was better than I could have imagined (it was a very low bar, but still.)
Do they come with 18650s? No? I’m out. I’ll stick with my overpriced Streamlight.
@fuzzmanmatt 18650s are definitely the way to go, but there are reasonable alternatives to Streamlight, which are overpriced imho.
@ELJAY @fuzzmanmatt Olight is O-kay but they are not nearly as indestructible as Streamlight. If you are strapping it to a shotgun and expect it to work on the worst day of your life, you may be glad you didn’t cheap out.
@fuzzmanmatt No they do not come WITH 18650s but they do use them.
@ELJAY @tweezak can’t use a cheap flashlight like a hammer and get the SnapOn guy to warranty it, but he doesn’t think twice about the abuse the Streamlight takes. And I use it for search and rescue, the actual light output is useful sometimes!
@ELJAY @fuzzmanmatt As a follow up, my wife’s Olight Warrior’s base plate switch just crapped out after a couple years of light use. I will save up for a more reliable product next time.
Technically, yes, they’re extremely durable. But the board/LED inside is not. I don’t have any that still work without having to smack 'em around first. Damned parts become dislodged inside.
These are why Luke lost his hand. If only his was powered by an 18650…
I just got a 2 pack of these from Amazon. They include a sleeve so that you can use a 18650 battery.
@tasco Yup.
@tasco Really? I got the 2 pack of these during the mehrathon. I’d love to ditch the AAA carrier for an 18650 rechargeable.
@tasco however, the Meh specs make no such claim of an included sleeve.
Although, interestingly, the Meh Walmart price reference link includes a line about the sleeve:
@tasco HOLY CRAP! You’re right! I still had the boxes from the ones from the Mehrathon and the sleeve was inside. I didn’t dump that out of the box and never knew it was in there. That makes these slightly less crappy! WINNER!
I hate flashlights that force me to go through several modes just to turn it on and off. I seldom need 3 levels of light, have never needed a fast strobe. And every one I’ve had that had an “SOS” mode is really just a “SO” mode. Or “SOSOSOSOSO”. I can’t imagine needing a flashlight that signals SOS, and one that gets it wrong is pretty so-so.
@khearn If you fully depress the button, <click> it turns on and off. if you depress it gently <no click> it cycles through the other functions.
@Trinityscrew That’s true for some versions of these, but not all. I have a couple that cycle through the modes EVERY TIME. It’s infuriating.
@Trinityscrew @Willijs3 I just tried it on mine (that I bought from meh during the most recent mehrathon). You are right, if you click repeatedly it cycles through the modes with each power on sequence. However, if you wait a few seconds between clicks it stays on whatever mode it was previously on. I’ve got it on high now and it stays on high as long as I don’t turn it off and back on quickly.
@khearn agreed! I’m getting a nice collection of meh-diocre flashlights all of which have that feature, fast strobe, slow strobe with a “soft” click. Glad to see it’s not just me that can see any use for these at all, ever. My slightly better Feit Electric flashlights (very bright) have that same useless feature. And now all I got to do is give them a shake to get them blinking away. Shake them again to get them to cycle through back to solid. Fun!
According to some extremely casual research on the interwebs, these are probably about 900 lumens - more than the typical 60W incandescent (or 9W LED or 15W CFL) but I’m not convinced they’re super mega bright.
I’ve got a few flashlights from here in the past, and been pretty happy with the ones I’ve gotten, but at this point, I either want flashlights that take at least 4 D-cell batteries or emit at least 1600 lumens (100W typical incandescent/17W LED/23W CFL). More would be even better (though I guess not to the point of needing eye protection).
/image the goggles do nothing
/image do not look into laser with remaining eye
@yeppers I have a couple of these from a previous Meh sale and while they are far from the brightest flashlight you can buy, they’re still hella bright. They’ll absolutely blind anybody if you shine your light in their face at night.
these are pretty good flashlights until they physically fall apart like mine did.
i mean like the actual casing of the light disintegrates and falls off with use.
@elpepe So the aluminum casing of your flashlight is disintegrating? You’re either:
A. Full of an organic brown substance that is excreted from the body.
B. Excreting something other than sweat from your pores.
C. Describing your actual issue with the flashlight poorly.
@elpepe @Trinityscrew
Clearly A. Or at least Meh believes A. Look at their handle icon.
“< WOOZ >”
if it comes with that clear tube to fit an 18650 i’d be all over it
@akumax The last similar tactical something-or-other light (2 for $10) did come with the sleeve. Haven’t tried to use it that way yet.
@akumax It most likely does have the tube. Mine from the last order did. But I think you’re being facetious. The 18650 battery will fit with or without the tube.
@akumax @pmarin
WTF? Why wouldn’t Meh take credit for this apparently key bit of inclusion?
Every time these are sold, a large part of the comments target this issue.
Perhaps Meh wishes to string out their truckload of these devices to make them the new corn nuts?
@Dave?
‘*candy corn… my corn nut addiction is exposed.
When are they going to do a drip coffee machine again? My Krups (that I got here for $10!) is making weak coffee and I need a new one.
Come on, Meh…help me out!
@Tadlem43 When was the last time you’ve descaled the maker? If never, run some vinegar through it.
@narfcake I did it twice day before yesterday (I do it regularly). Didn’t help.
Any other suggestions?
@narfcake @Tadlem43 Try putting coffee in it.
@Trinityscrew lol Oh… so THAT’S the problem. lol
Since when does a round flash light give a square beam? Something witchy going on here.
@hchavers square LED array. It’s actually pretty cool; when you have it focused right you can see the diode pads in the image the light throws on the wall
@Felixaurelius @hchavers Yes, Geordie. That’s all well and good, but can you modify it to focus the LED array on the mouth of the volcano on the surface of the planet and save the lives of the primitive peoples whose affairs we’re not supposed to meddle in?
@Felixaurelius @hchavers @Trinityscrew only if you use a tachyon beam from the phase array at the precise moment the warp core reaches maximum.
These are pretty okay with an 18650 in them, but if you don’t have a bunch of cells kicking around already, they might not be worth it. Even without the sleeve they hold a cell, I’ve found.
I’d have to say for $5 ea these are not bad. I just hope they don’t have that self-draining feature that a bunch of the Costco Duracell-branded ones did a few years ago.
@pmarin They do not. I use one at work occasionally and I have a rechargeable 18650 battery in it. I charged that battery over a year ago and the flashlight is still working from that initial charge.
@pmarin I fell for one of those Costco Duracell units. Nice flashlight for the price otherwise, but I have to unscrew the end cap when not in use or the batteries die in short order. WTF?
@pmarin you of course now realize buying any battery-consuming device from a company whose primary business model is selling old-school batteries is a fool’s errand, right?
I laugh every time I walk by those Costco Duracell device displays, no matter how many “free” cells they cram into the package.
#eneloop
#18650
I had some extra 18650s laying around so I bought a 2pk of these from mehs side piece a few weeks ago. Those came with sleeves. Looks like they’re the same ones…
No rechargeable battery?
No thanks.
This is $11.95 at Amazon with free shipping and batteries included.
@foreverrestless $13.69 now.
https://www.amazon.com/UltraFire-Flashlights-Adjustable-Tactical-Flashlight/dp/B07BDGD8KR/ref=sr_1_5?crid=11YQDSKF0UMY2&dchild=1&keywords=tactical+flashlights+3+pack&qid=1608393754&sprefix=tactical+flashlights+3%2Caps%2C243&sr=8-5
@foreverrestless 300 lumens, 1xAA or 1x14500, not the same light. Looks nice enough though.
I ordered this a while back (last year I think) from meh. Seems from the comments i’ve scanned that they don’t have batteries? Weird. I like mine a lot. I don’t use them often and I’ve never had to charge them. They’re nice & bright
Picking these up. If they’re remotely as good as the last two pack of “tactical flashlights” I bought from Meh, they should be worth the cost. I like keeping these in all the vehicles and in random drawers throughout the house.
So glad I checked the comments . I had purchased these before they came with a nice case 18650 charger etc so I jumped on this deal … then re read the specs and comments… only the flashlights no case no 18650 no charger
What makes these “tactical”?
@ws1o the extended capacity photon magazine and fully semiautomatic operation?
Nah, really, they’re black, they’re aluminum, and they have crenellations on the front that you could strike someone/something with if necessary. That probably checks all the tactical boxes.
@djslack Seems to me every time you see something advertised as “tactical” it just means it’s black.
The 26650’s are so much cooler than an 18650! They’re between the size of a C and D battery (26mm x 65mm) and don’t need a sleeve! More energy!
@caffeineguy
/giphy more power
These look like the same ones I got off of Amazon a year or two ago. They’re alright and not bad for $5. My complaints:
When zoomed in, the focal point is a square, which is weird.
The charger is an AC adapter, not like a USB one, which is annoying.
@shuthemoody if you look inside, the led array is a square. So if it focused to a circle, a triangle, or a pentagram, that’d be weird.
. I had purchased these before they came with a nice case 18650 charger etc so I jumped on this deal … then re read the specs and comments… only the flashlights no case no 18650 no charger . Not pleased ,will not give these to my new friends .The other friends have the better ones
Let there be “tactical” light!!!
These were supposed to be gifts to neighbors Cant give these they are a downgrade from the others I gave to the rest of my neighbors… unhappy
The 26650 battery fit’s?
@Odorous no, the inner diameter of the main compartment is approximately 23mm
The button on one does not work consistently. The other two work well.
Just got these today, no 18650 sleeves, though they say it is included in directions. Anyone else get sleeves?
@breakers28 no sleeves for me either.
@breakers28 I had some 1/2" irrigation tubing on hand that seems a suitable replacement. Cut to length, cut a slit up the side, then it slides over the cell.
https://www.homedepot.com/p/DIG-1-2-in-0-700-O-D-x-100-ft-Poly-Drip-Tubing-B36/202306118
Received mine today- most definitely meh! Probably the most meh item I ever succumbed to. Have I yet impressed upon you how meh I feel about these mehlights. Also meh on the sleeves and meh on the instructions for describing the not included meh sleeve. I could go on all day about this very meh buy, but won’t. Meh!
Still waiting on my package to arrive
Ordered before Christmas
I ordered 18650 batteries to got in each flashlight. Good enough to keep handy in the vehicle. Will gift to redheaded stepchildren.