How do I convert Candlepower to Lumens?

This is a great question that was giving to us by our readers. The answer is, without going into too much depth, you can’t. It’s like comparing apples and oranges. The reasoning is you are trying to measure two different things, focused (candlepower) and unfocused light (lumens). Remember to keep those questions coming.

Happy Holidays

Hey Everyone,

I hope everyone is getting some much need rest and relaxation during this holiday season. I also wanted to update everyone of the status on some of the questions that have been posted in the comments.

Beam Pattern: At 20 feet, the spot is approximately 22″ in diameter and the corona is about 15′ in diameter. The beam illuminates objects well at a distance of 300 feet at 500 feet objects can be seen. There is really no difference in how three LEDs look compared to one LED. The beams from 3 LEDs combine into one.

Durability:Tim LaBorn asks “If we were to rate durability on a scale of 1 to 10 with a traditional Mag light being a 10 and a cheap colored plastic kid’s light being a 1 where would the new “light for life” fall?”

Thanks Tim for the question and while using your scale we would rate the Light for Life a “10″

Please keep those questions coming!

What Happens if Dropped?

This next question comes from Greg, he asks…

I recently saw the L4L at the 511 booth of the IACP conference in San Diego (11/10/2008). I was surprised as to how light it weighed. I am curious as to how much abuse the L4L can take. In the brochure, it indicated it was impact resistant. What does that translate to? Has it been tested in a lab to see if it still functions after being dropped from 5,10 or 20 feet?
 

The flashlight has undergone numerous laboratory and “real world” tests. It survives repeated drops from multiple heights. The housing material is a high strength polymer that is highly resistant to impacts even at low temperatures. The housing material comes from the family of polycarbonates that bullet proof glass is made of.

Thanks Greg for your question!

Size and Weight

Hey Everyone,

This will probably be one of the shortest yet most informative posts Here are the dimensions of the Light for Life UC3.400 Flashlight.

Final dimensions are:
LENGTH - 11.5 in, 29.2 cm
BARREL DIAMETER - 1 3/4 in, 4.5 cm
HEAD DIAMETER (AT WIDEST POINT) - 27.5 in, 7 cm
WEIGHT - Approx. 16oz.

Hopefully this clears up a lot of information and helps to answer a lot of the questions below.

Holding the Charge

This next question comes to us from James Beatty- How long will the flashlight hold a charge when not in use?

James,
The ability to hold a charge is often known as leakage. advanced capacitors have a leakage comparable to NiCad batteries. They will loose more energy when they are fully charged but the loss decreases over time.

There are no negative impacts to the advanced capacitors when it is left off of its charger. If left off the charger for a month, a flashlight could be used for 45 minutes of light or it could be fully charged in 45 seconds. If you left off the flashlight for a year, there would be 25% of the energy left. No negative memory effects or degradation would result. Similarly, if you left a battery to drain down to 50% of its capacity can reduce its life.

If you left your flashlight off for 5 years, it would only take 90 seconds to recharge the flashlight to give you 90 minutes of run-time.

Thanks for the question!