Chemlights

[RevDisk]

Anyone have any brands they recommend?  Any specific places to buy from?

I'm not worried about 'cheapest. available', I'm looking for decent price but quality first and durability first.  Probably a mix of colours and sizes.

[S. Williamson]

I always thought that all were pretty much the same, but those with expiration dates (and not soon-to-expire) are generally better... 

[vaskidmark]

Same here.  I've bought what turned out to be the same product (same manufacturer) sold under different trade names for widely differing prices.  All seemed to my untrained eye, which was not measuring precisely how bright or how long each lasted, to be equal.

OTOH, you might not get quite as much value out of the stuff in the dollar bin.

stay safe.

[AJ Dual]

The dollar store ones go bad inside of a year of purchase. Only good for entertaining the kids.

You buy them for $1 or even 2/$1 at the dollar store, then give them to the kids at the fireworks/fair/parade, rather than pay the cart vendor $5 or more for them.

I don't know what a good brand is, but I'm relatively certain the ones from a gear/equipment/LEO-MIL supplier will be "better".

Cyalume is the name-brand/original maker. http://uscavalry.com/Productinfo.aspx?productID=8697&TabID=548 not bad, still close to $1 ea.

[Regolith]

You could always make them yourself:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tItOOpyJP5k

 

[RevDisk]

You could always make them yourself:

...

You make a very very good point...

[Ryan in Maine]

I've always like Cyalume. But I've got to admit that I'm not really up to date on chem lights.

[seeker_two]

I've had good luck with the AmeriGlo industrial grade sticks...I usually buy 20-30 every year at Cheaper Than Dirt...cheaper & more fun to drive to Ft. Worth in person than pay both shipping & in-state sales tax....

[Zardozimo Oprah Bannedalas]

Don't do anything with them that John Ringo would do.

[wmenorr67]

Whatever I can acquire through my military channels.

[French G.]

I have a few left from my Navy time, we'd throw away the expired ones when we PM'd life jackets. Cyalume mfg I think. They still glow for about 12 hours several years after expiration. I give them to my toddler to play with after dark. They are so precious to her that she demands to sleep with them. 

[Perd Hapley]

You could always make them yourself:

Do not feed the mad scientist.

[Jim147]

Don't put them in the ice bucket of your side by side and hit crushed ice. The customer wasn't even smart enough to look in the bucket before calling about the lemon refrigerator they bought giving out lemon colored ice.

jim

[Physics]

Do not feed the mad scientist.

A true mad scientist needs no feeding. 

[RaspberrySurprise]

Don't do anything with them that John Ringo would do.

Like this?
http://loopzy.com/v/polizei_rave

[freakazoid]

I remember throwing some in a fire once and they would glow a glowy florecenty color. It was pretty cool. 

[41magsnub]

Dunno, I'm still working off of the 3 cases I rescued from the trash after a field exercise 15 years ago.  I've found the ones that the foil tube is still air tight on still work great, the rest are hit and miss.

[RevDisk]

Do not feed the mad scientist.

Too late.   Looking into sources of fabrication of bis(2,4,6-trichlorophenyl) oxalate (C14H4Cl6O4).

A true mad scientist needs no feeding.  

Ayep.  Just the occasional tears of the innocent.

I remember throwing some in a fire once and they would glow a glowy florecenty color. It was pretty cool.  

Some of the chemicals, especially the florescent dyes, are carcinogens when aerosolized.    

[Marnoot]

Too late.   Looking into sources of fabrication of bis(2,4,6-trichlorophenyl) oxalate.


Ayep.  Just the occasional tears of the innocent.


Some of the chemicals, especially the florescent dyes, are carcinogens when aerosolized.     

If you find the main ingredient cheap, spare a link to it? Every place I found it would make a glow stick cost a ton...

[RevDisk]

If you find the main ingredient cheap, spare a link to it? Every place I found it would make a glow stick cost a ton...

Laboratory fabrication.

If that's not feasible, then forgot it.  Cheapest I found is $35/g.  Some places are $100/g. 

[PTK]

It's not an especially difficult synthesis, either. :)

[RevDisk]

It's not an especially difficult synthesis, either. :)

Ah'nope, but you need vaccum kit, specialized glass, and preferably a hood.  Especially because I don't need high purity.  Too many other projects on the burner to fully take on chemical engineering and give it the TCL it deserves.   

[Jim147]

Ah'nope, but you need vaccum kit, specialized glass, and preferably a hood.  Especially because I don't need high purity.  Too many other projects on the burner to fully take on chemical engineering and give it the TCL it deserves.   

Yeah, you have a story to write. You don't have time to play chemist.

jim

[kgbsquirrel]

It's not an especially difficult synthesis, either. :)

One of these days we need to fabricate a big batch of TCPO so we can make something obscenely awesome like this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zS4WXKDZ-GE

[PTK]

I'm game for that when you finally get to MT.