OK I Need One. How Do I Get One?
You know the history of hand crank flashlight technology. You know all the convenience and safety reasons why you should be armed with collection of your own dynamo powered lights. Now lets take a look at what to get, and where to get them.
Great choices for Hand Crank Flashlights
Dynamo Illuminator Wind-Up LED Flashlight
This light is generally affordably priced—around $10.00—and looks like an electric shaver. With no batteries to store power, a single minute of hand cranking provides users with a whole hour of brilliant light. Weighing in at two pounds and with dimensions of 6”x3”x3”, this handy crank light is suitable for cars, packs and around the house.
Etón American Red Cross ARCFR160R
Microlink Self-Powered AM/FM/NOAA Weather Radio with Flashlight, Solar Power and Cell Phone Charger
Etón is a quality manufacturer of safety gear such as this hand crank device, and although it usually costs a bit more than other comparable products, it is well worth the price. The ARCFR160’s attractive design, available in red and white, has a hidden wheel hand crank opposite the face, which contains two radio dials—a tuner knob and a volume knob—an AM/FM band and a NOAA weather band and a speaker. On the top of the unit is a solar panel which can also be used to power the device along with the hand crank, a jack for a cell phone, USB device or headphones, and an antenna for improved radio reception. On the front panel is located three round LED lights. All of this comprises a unit weighing less than a single pound—9.6 ounces to be exact—with dimensions of 1.8”x 5.2”x 2.5”. At $30.00, this unit is perfect for an outdoorsmen’s pack, the RV, with the camping gear or in the car; virtually anywhere readily accessible in an emergency.
Great Online Sources for Hand Crank Flashlights
To shop the internet, one merely needs to enter “hand crank flashlights” into the box of their favorite search engine and the results returned are in the millions of vendors. In addition to consumer reviews, product specs and price, take into consideration any retail or manufacturer warranty; many retailers will provide a money-back guarantee and likewise many manufacturers will provide a limited—or unlimited—warranty for a set amount of time. If it comes down to two choices and one has a retailer and/or manufacturer warranty that could very well be the tiebreaker. There are far too many retailers to have an extensive list here, but there are a few who reliably carry quality hand crank torches.
Ambient Weather - www.ambientweather.com
Carries a fair array of quality hand crank flashlights, including the Freeplay ELC FLCX1R Emergency Light Center. This station comes with three LED hand crank flashlights that all lock into the station for easy access and storage; its AC adapter provides constant charging to the attached lights from a wall outlet, and the unit includes an autonomous red beacon light when AC power is shut off from the unit while plugged in, making it easy to find the unit in the dark when the power is out. The flashlights included in this set feature two autonomous filaments and two separate brightness settings—one for ultra-bright, the other for energy-saving—and last up to 100,000 hours between replacement bulbs. The wheel crank device allows cranking in both directions, and 30 seconds of cranking provides 20 minutes of light. Each flashlight also contains its own internal NiMH battery to store cranked energy, able to power each light for up to 20 hours on the energy-saving setting and 3 and a half hours on ultra-bright. Normally $100.00 but available on sale for less, this unit is a great choice for those who want to keep their hand crank flashlights in a single location and have them able to charge from a wall outlet when not in use.
Amazon.com - www.amazon.com
Amazon is a great site to find a never-ending selection of hand cranking items; from single flashlights to cell phone/USB/radio/siren combos, Amazon.com is a great place to start your hand cranking device search. Rather than carry only a few brands from a single retailer, Amazon.com connects customers with sellers, providing countless hand crank flashlight products. Amazon provides service, support, and shipping for a great many of the products advertised on their site, but for those third-party sellers Amazon does provide customer assistance and information before you buy. For instance, they carry the Kaito Emergency Crank Dynamo 5-LED Flashlight with AM/FM radio, RD-335A, a great combo device that has a hand crank flashlight—one minute of cranking provides 10 minutes of power—with 5 LED lights for ultra-bright light—along with the radio and a 30 day money-back guarantee and a 1 year limited warranty. At around $15.00, this makes a great unit to store with the camping gear, RV or boat.
Many styles of hand crank lamps are available at many retail sporting goods stores such as REI, Sportsman’s Warehouse, LLBean and Cabella’s. Visiting your favorite sporting goods store’s website is a great way to shop locally and look for great sales on these flashlights.
