Thank you for posting this! I had this light for a couple of years, and I bought some 18650 3.7V batteries (not available at Harbor Freight) I noticed that after a few uses the green indicator would go to red on the brightest setting, staying green for low and flashlight end. I had problems with flickering, and then the stripped threads pretty much made this an expensive paper weight. Nice magnet though! Anyway, I replaced this one with a 7 dollar Quantum 7.5" hand held LED light which is almost as bright with a pocket clip and runs on 3 AA batteries.
This is a good case to cite when people ask why a professional tech spends so much money on expensive tools. Often the little things weekenders never think of can make you never waste money on the cheap tools.
We use these lights as well. Between the two of us and the amount we drop them, the hinge breaks off way before we have any other problems. We tend to find them on sale for 19.99 in ct and buy a couple then
Yep - The threads on the cap are machined with a too-loose fit. A touch of paste wax might let them last a bit longer, as would periodic cleaning to get any grit/ground up aluminum bits cleared out, but it's a band-aid. They ought to tweak the threading dimensions and have a tighter fit...
I have one and am largely disappointed with two things. One, the battery fully charged has a short lighting duration even on the second softer light. Secondly, the location of the on/off button. When working with it I frequently touch the button and it either goes off, or cycles to the next lighting location. I am on the Internet looking for a better lighting solution. The flexibility and magnet features are good with the Braun and give those features and A. The light doesn't hold a charge long enough, it's a D for me and D for the location of the on/off button. Have not had cap retention problems yet.
I have the same lights & one of them the charge port died on me; I got a set of the 18650 batteris and double charger from work; (employee discount); I would suggest getting the spare batteries & battery charger off the "jungle website" to save $. I still love mine. I used both of mine to do work under the hood on my 84 K20 Suburban. At 10:30 at night I had no shadows under the hood with over 1,000 lumens on the hood. The threads for the battery cap are still going good for me.
my biggest issue is the plastic middle, one hack that I lucked into was one time I rebought the light the cashier gave me the warranty by discounting the light and putting the warranty on so it was back to normal price. That was a mistake on their part since I've warrantied the light 3 times since then. When they do the return make sure they return the light then sell it to you the same way with the warranty so that it is renewed each time and since it cost me $0 each time it has been well worth the initial cost of the warranty and this is coming from someone who would never ever buy any sort of extended warranty.
The aluminum threads on the bottom and the button switch really let this down in any real common use scenarios. It's a cheap copy of the old AP 31SL, I think Astro recently came out with the 80SL which swaps batteries as well.
@@GearHeadsGarageChannel The button stops working on 2 or 3 of ours intermittently. It changes color like it's turning on but doesn't click, or touching it with your hand makes the light flicker even without clicking it.
@@TorqueTestChannel Interesting, I haven't had any issues with the button every time I had what you are describing it was a bad connection at the battery cap. I even dropped one in a bucket of coolant once, pulled the battery, cleaned it up and let it dry out and it worked perfect for another few months till someone accidentally smashed it lol
@@GearHeadsGarageChannel On ones we've never even taken the bottom cap off we have the button issues, these are quite old ones comparatively. Also, the increase in price isn't due to quality/features likely the 25% tariff, we've also seen prices go up on the China impact wrenches we test on our channel.
I cut new (coarser) threads onto mine with the lathe. A machine shop might do this for you for cheap. But the switch is the thing that goes wrong after you get past the aluminum fine threading issue.
got the same light & its great... but... my issue is it doesnt last very long... wondering if theres a "Better" quality battery i could swap into it? thanx
Had mine a couple years now. Works great for me, but like you say I'm just a DIYer and only charge through the USB port. I have a rechargeable work light that I alternate between when this one dies. Got it at Aldi, of all places... $15 lol
I have two , one charging and one in use , recently got a third because my original one is getting beat up , no issues with bottom threads and my cost for 3 is like buying a streamlight flex head light
OEM makes the same exact light,I saw them the other day at AutoZone,that ones a cool green and black.Honestlty I think you're looking at things the wrong way,just buy another light ,keep one on the charger,than when it does grab another one.Honestly that's way easier than swapping the batteries out.
The price was the biggest reason I didn't check them out more. Seemed inflated. I didn't know about the swappable battery though. That would be very appealing to me. My Astro dies a bit too fast, much as I like it. Those fine aluminum threads stripping is definitely a bummer though. Wonder about a DIY fix like two fine cuts and using a C clip instead, hah.
First thing I noticed when I took the battery cap off is that it was dry. These threads and the o-ring are supposed to be lubed with some silicone lube. Hope that helps.
I've had 2 for a couple years and overall they're worth the money. One of the charge ports got loose so I have to wiggle it or use my external charger. I've also had the swivel get loose and the magnet come off.
I have 3 ($20 black Friday sale). EDIT: Wait 'til the black Friday or ITC member sale and have an additional light to charge instead of removing the battery every time. Yes, I have noticed the cap has to be very tight to make continuity. No more plug-in lights for me.
Have a couple of those HF lights and like them. Hadn't experienced the issue described. Last I checked they were still $25 with coupon. That is about as far as I would go.
My problem with that light Is the adjustable flex head it gets loose after you adjust it afterwhile and the charging issue you talking about. I went thru 5. I went on Amazon and bought something similar to that.
Interesting, the flex head never got loose for me. I suspect if I just kept charging the lights instead of swapping batteries they would have worked well for me. In any case I moved on as well to a different set of work lights I buy on the tool truck. More expensive yes but I have been very happy with them so far, just buy two and swap them out.
Never had an issue with threads, have had 2 lights for about 3 years, biggest issue is the hinge like other people mentioned. Wont take much abuse before it breaks there..
I’ve been using these lights for at least 3 years. I’ve NEVER had that problem. I’ve had charge ports fail, magnets come off and for petes sake you lose them quickly. BUT all of that happens AFTER I’ve already gotten my money out of the thing… except the latter😒Most times, since I’m a full time Automotive Technician I’ll clip them somewhere around the shop and find it a week later😅. So I keep at least 2 on hand. That’s a fraction of the cost of their competition. I think it’s worth mentioning their warranty which is no questions asked and costs like $15 if I’m not mistaken. I don’t work for them, not affiliated, NOTHING! Just love the value in these little things. I recommend getting one or 2 and a cheap 4 cell battery charger from Amazon for the cells! You’ll still be spending 1/3 of a comparable snappy 🔦
Listened to your video was entertaining, but one part you didn't mention on the light is darn adjusting light area there's 2- Philip screws tiny ones on side and you can tighten the movement of light good bit but I got bum light the light part for movement keeps falling down like toilet paper they need to put better felt or spring washer there and light dies out in about 1- hours on full charge
If your solution is to buy two lights off the tool truck, why not buy 3-4 lights from HF on sale and swap in the highest capacity 18650 you can buy? Just recharge by cord like you plan to do with the new lights. Anyway thanks for the overview, might pick one up on sale one day
HF's prices have put a lot of their products on par with top name brands, leading me to start buying brand names instead. Especially since every HF is 80 miles away. All three! Sure, I may pay a little more, but since the savings isnt covering my gas anymore, that's how it is. My purchase history was off the charts, but has plummeted in recent years. How many guys remember buying the US General tool cart on sale for 149.99? I'm talking they're best one? Now its $289.99! The yellow Daytona jack with the included warranty for 179.99, now $289.99. Its a bummer. Oh, one more thing I noticed. The Predator 3500i generator I bought for $649.99 and is now $929.99! For those of us that shopped there when these were new, its sticker shock! Glad I hit it hard before the hikes, but when I need to replace this stuff, its going to suck.
Personally , throw the battery that comes with it in drawer, install a high grade 18650 and light will last much longer and charge using onboard cherge port. Im a flashaholic so batteries I have. But use a button top as I've never tried a flat top 18650.
Lubricate the ends and PROBLEM SOLVED! WARNING ⚠️: If you have it plugged in with a cheap quality USB charger you WILL sooner or later end up burning the lights micro USB port and your light will fail and not charge again. U will end up hanging to keep swapping batteries every time just to use them... I end up burning 2 of these light when they used to cost $12 when they came put, lesson learned 😂 p.s: if you already have a quality battery cell charger (AA,AAA,C,D) you can buy the Samsung (pink color) 3200mhA batteries for a stronger and longer lasting light or just rip old laptop batteries and take the battery cells out and use them as backups!
So now that i know where the weak points are on this light, having 2 again for $20 each (with coupon) i will now reinforce them weak points for a long lasting wear n' tear product 😂
I've had nothing but bad luck with these lights , I bought 3 on the memorial day sale and all 3 have been returned twice before the 90 day warranty was up , 2 of them the on/off switch stopped clicking , and the others would show charged when plugged in and light up but when I unplugged them they didn't work . All of them would shut off when I moved the head to a different angle , or barley bump them . I am about ready to give up on them and get my money back
@@GearHeadsGarageChannel I did find one thing out , the one's I just traded in started acting up right out of the box . I unscrewed the battery cap and pulled the battery out , it looked fine . I rubbed the ends and put it back it and tightened down the cap and it started working . Still doesn't explain the switches going bad . So maybe the battery caps need to stay tight
Great video, Jesse. I'm not a big fan of Harbor Freight tools, for all of the reasons you pointed out in your video. I happen to have the Astro 40SL slim light and it works just fine for me. I don't use it every day, so recharging isn't a problem. I like the idea of replaceable batteries, but the poor quality threads on the cap and body would be a no-go for me. Keep up the good work.
I have several of them in my shop, and have several many backup batts, multiple chargers and I have never had the trouble you speak of. I think it's pilot error.
Maybe they improved it, after this video came out one of the west coast higher ups of HF called me and asked questions and feedback on this and a few other tools, the threads on this flashlight were a major point of issue I told him and they sounded genuinly interested in making improvements. That was about 1.5 years ago from my memory so maybe they actually did make changes. My situation has changed and I no longer am conveniently around any HF stores anymore so I dont buy from them as often as I used to, I have been very happy with a couple of the lights I have purchased off tool trucks since then.
I saw it on Flat Rate Master's channel and was tempted, looks like a good light and I like the ease of charging...BUT I really do love swappable batteries! I want something like that I can keep using and not have to buy two of them
The threads need metal to metal contact for current flow. Teflon would prohibit that especially considering thats already the biggest issue with these lights lol. Even new and not swapping batteries the contact sometimes isnt perfect.
@@GearHeadsGarageChannel How about aluminum foil? not as conductive as copper, but body is made of aluminum so should be similar. Also wonder if the aluminum foil would become one with the threads and help them last longer, although hopefully not like stainless and gall!
i bought one of these for home use and battery connection fails once in awhile too. total pain in the butt. i would not buy another one. i agree it is a piece of junk
They are junk i charge mine and it only last 5 minets is all, napa sells one i fell in love with, and i only charge it every 3 to six month and i do not charge it untell it cuts off on me
Sounds like you must not use it a ton then lol I dont care what light it is none will last a day as a work light. What is the model # on your napa one? Is it Carlyle?
I’ve had them last about a year in a shop environment. 6 of them. I also have a 4 bay 18650 charger. Zero down time. The problems I have are, 1. The magnet will stay on the car one day, making basically useless. 2. The wire in the hinge will fail. I’ve Frankensteined two dead ones to make a good one. About the threads. A touch of anti seize and you’ll never have problems with the threads. They’re absolutely a steal on sale around the $20 Mark.
On these lights specifically? The cap has to make good electrical contact through the threads to work. Even with nothing in the way the contact isn't good often times.
I have one, battery life sucks and honestly I like the half folding mechanism for pointing the light on the HF one better. That being said I still havent bought another HF light since this video and still use my astro light.
Come on man, really? You don't have to take the battery out all the time, mine lasts for hours. Buy a plugged in one if you want to use it all day long. What a joke review
lol relax man, it is just a video about a harbor freight light, I used them all the time for a few years and loved them. The fact you had to comment 3 times in that way says you need to get out there and find some other things to care more about.
Thank you for posting this! I had this light for a couple of years, and I bought some 18650 3.7V batteries (not available at Harbor Freight) I noticed that after a few uses the green indicator would go to red on the brightest setting, staying green for low and flashlight end. I had problems with flickering, and then the stripped threads pretty much made this an expensive paper weight. Nice magnet though! Anyway, I replaced this one with a 7 dollar Quantum 7.5" hand held LED light which is almost as bright with a pocket clip and runs on 3 AA batteries.
This is a good case to cite when people ask why a professional tech spends so much money on expensive tools. Often the little things weekenders never think of can make you never waste money on the cheap tools.
A thought on the stripped cap, cut 2 or 3 vertical cuts on cap and use hose clamp on cap. I'll try it if/when my cap fails.
We use these lights as well. Between the two of us and the amount we drop them, the hinge breaks off way before we have any other problems. We tend to find them on sale for 19.99 in ct and buy a couple then
This right here!
Mine turns red although my battery is fully charged. Anyone have an idea what could be the cause? I use a dmm to see voltage once removed
Yep - The threads on the cap are machined with a too-loose fit. A touch of paste wax might let them last a bit longer, as would periodic cleaning to get any grit/ground up aluminum bits cleared out, but it's a band-aid. They ought to tweak the threading dimensions and have a tighter fit...
I have one and am largely disappointed with two things. One, the battery fully charged has a short lighting duration even on the second softer light. Secondly, the location of the on/off button. When working with it I frequently touch the button and it either goes off, or cycles to the next lighting location. I am on the Internet looking for a better lighting solution. The flexibility and magnet features are good with the Braun and give those features and A. The light doesn't hold a charge long enough, it's a D for me and D for the location of the on/off button. Have not had cap retention problems yet.
I have the same lights & one of them the charge port died on me; I got a set of the 18650 batteris and double charger from work; (employee discount); I would suggest getting the spare batteries & battery charger off the "jungle website" to save $. I still love mine. I used both of mine to do work under the hood on my 84 K20 Suburban. At 10:30 at night I had no shadows under the hood with over 1,000 lumens on the hood. The threads for the battery cap are still going good for me.
What about installing a set screw on the cap?
my biggest issue is the plastic middle, one hack that I lucked into was one time I rebought the light the cashier gave me the warranty by discounting the light and putting the warranty on so it was back to normal price. That was a mistake on their part since I've warrantied the light 3 times since then. When they do the return make sure they return the light then sell it to you the same way with the warranty so that it is renewed each time and since it cost me $0 each time it has been well worth the initial cost of the warranty and this is coming from someone who would never ever buy any sort of extended warranty.
The aluminum threads on the bottom and the button switch really let this down in any real common use scenarios. It's a cheap copy of the old AP 31SL, I think Astro recently came out with the 80SL which swaps batteries as well.
I'll look that one up thank you!
Also while I agree on the aluminum threads, what is your issue with the button?
@@GearHeadsGarageChannel The button stops working on 2 or 3 of ours intermittently. It changes color like it's turning on but doesn't click, or touching it with your hand makes the light flicker even without clicking it.
@@TorqueTestChannel Interesting, I haven't had any issues with the button every time I had what you are describing it was a bad connection at the battery cap. I even dropped one in a bucket of coolant once, pulled the battery, cleaned it up and let it dry out and it worked perfect for another few months till someone accidentally smashed it lol
@@GearHeadsGarageChannel On ones we've never even taken the bottom cap off we have the button issues, these are quite old ones comparatively. Also, the increase in price isn't due to quality/features likely the 25% tariff, we've also seen prices go up on the China impact wrenches we test on our channel.
I have that light and love too, but have the same complaint. What are your thoughts on the rechargeable astro one and charge pad? I'm considering it.
Honestly I dont know yet, it is intriguing. I am considering getting it.
I cut new (coarser) threads onto mine with the lathe. A machine shop might do this for you for cheap. But the switch is the thing that goes wrong after you get past the aluminum fine threading issue.
got the same light & its great... but... my issue is it doesnt last very long... wondering if theres a "Better" quality battery i could swap into it? thanx
Yeah just go buy a higher quality higher capacity vape battery, it is an 18650.
They sell a 3800 mah 3.7 volt 18650 battery on Amazon that last a long time reducing the need to thread and unthread the magnetic base.
Had mine a couple years now. Works great for me, but like you say I'm just a DIYer and only charge through the USB port. I have a rechargeable work light that I alternate between when this one dies. Got it at Aldi, of all places... $15 lol
I have two , one charging and one in use , recently got a third because my original one is getting beat up , no issues with bottom threads and my cost for 3 is like buying a streamlight flex head light
Thanks for the review, great job
Thank you!
OEM makes the same exact light,I saw them the other day at AutoZone,that ones a cool green and black.Honestlty I think you're looking at things the wrong way,just buy another light ,keep one on the charger,than when it does grab another one.Honestly that's way easier than swapping the batteries out.
To make the thread's last longer use dielectric grease, have you reviewed the ICON version of this light?
Yep, silicone grease basically
The price was the biggest reason I didn't check them out more. Seemed inflated. I didn't know about the swappable battery though. That would be very appealing to me. My Astro dies a bit too fast, much as I like it. Those fine aluminum threads stripping is definitely a bummer though. Wonder about a DIY fix like two fine cuts and using a C clip instead, hah.
Not a bad idea, it'd have to be held tight though to maintain good contact for the current to flow!
First thing I noticed when I took the battery cap off is that it was dry. These threads and the o-ring are supposed to be lubed with some silicone lube. Hope that helps.
I've had 2 for a couple years and overall they're worth the money. One of the charge ports got loose so I have to wiggle it or use my external charger. I've also had the swivel get loose and the magnet come off.
I have 3 ($20 black Friday sale). EDIT: Wait 'til the black Friday or ITC member sale and have an additional light to charge instead of removing the battery every time. Yes, I have noticed the cap has to be very tight to make continuity. No more plug-in lights for me.
Hmm, I wonder if you could coat the threads on a new one with some sort of thread sealant to give em an extra barrier of protection 🤔
Yes, silicone grease. Like we do on flashlights
Have a couple of those HF lights and like them. Hadn't experienced the issue described. Last I checked they were still $25 with coupon. That is about as far as I would go.
Best light I ever had. Dropped it several times, still working
My problem with that light Is the adjustable flex head it gets loose after you adjust it afterwhile and the charging issue you talking about. I went thru 5. I went on Amazon and bought something similar to that.
Interesting, the flex head never got loose for me. I suspect if I just kept charging the lights instead of swapping batteries they would have worked well for me. In any case I moved on as well to a different set of work lights I buy on the tool truck. More expensive yes but I have been very happy with them so far, just buy two and swap them out.
It’s definitely good for diy. I only use it for maybe a few hours at a time
Have you looked into the Milwaukee M12 or M18 work lights at all
No, they look too big and bulky to use as a mechanics work light. I know some people do but I'm not a fan of that style.
Tool truck coming to you is great, as long as tool breaks on wed. Thur. and truck arrives on Fri.
Yeah, I'm convinced. I'm buying two and using one at a time.... it'll work for me.
Never had an issue with threads, have had 2 lights for about 3 years, biggest issue is the hinge like other people mentioned. Wont take much abuse before it breaks there..
I’ve been using these lights for at least 3 years. I’ve NEVER had that problem. I’ve had charge ports fail, magnets come off and for petes sake you lose them quickly. BUT all of that happens AFTER I’ve already gotten my money out of the thing… except the latter😒Most times, since I’m a full time Automotive Technician I’ll clip them somewhere around the shop and find it a week later😅. So I keep at least 2 on hand. That’s a fraction of the cost of their competition. I think it’s worth mentioning their warranty which is no questions asked and costs like $15 if I’m not mistaken. I don’t work for them, not affiliated, NOTHING! Just love the value in these little things. I recommend getting one or 2 and a cheap 4 cell battery charger from Amazon for the cells! You’ll still be spending 1/3 of a comparable snappy 🔦
Astro has some similar but it has a magnetic wireless charging pad that can charge 2 at a time
Listened to your video was entertaining, but one part you didn't mention on the light is darn adjusting light area there's 2- Philip screws tiny ones on side and you can tighten the movement of light good bit but I got bum light the light part for movement keeps falling down like toilet paper they need to put better felt or spring washer there and light dies out in about 1- hours on full charge
I have a suggestion put some anti-seize on your threads should save them
Not a bad idea, maybe I'll try one more time with that method and see how long it lasts 😛
I’d recommend the Astro 52sl w/ wireless charging
If your solution is to buy two lights off the tool truck, why not buy 3-4 lights from HF on sale and swap in the highest capacity 18650 you can buy? Just recharge by cord like you plan to do with the new lights. Anyway thanks for the overview, might pick one up on sale one day
HF's prices have put a lot of their products on par with top name brands, leading me to start buying brand names instead. Especially since every HF is 80 miles away. All three! Sure, I
may pay a little more, but since the savings isnt covering my gas anymore, that's how it is. My purchase history was off the charts, but has plummeted in recent years. How many guys remember buying the US General tool cart on sale for 149.99? I'm talking they're best one? Now its $289.99! The yellow Daytona jack with the included warranty for 179.99, now $289.99. Its a bummer. Oh, one more thing I noticed. The Predator 3500i generator I bought for $649.99 and is now $929.99! For those of us that shopped there when these were new, its sticker shock! Glad I hit it hard before the hikes, but when I need to replace this stuff, its going to suck.
This happenings same way to me ? Is better buy on snap on tool
Personally , throw the battery that comes with it in drawer, install a high grade 18650 and light will last much longer and charge using onboard cherge port. Im a flashaholic so batteries I have. But use a button top as I've never tried a flat top 18650.
I have it. So far no issues. Love the flexibility of it.
I realize I am kinda randomly asking but do anybody know of a good website to stream newly released movies online?
@Jesiah Jakob i would suggest flixzone. You can find it on google =)
Lubricate the ends and PROBLEM SOLVED!
WARNING ⚠️: If you have it plugged in with a cheap quality USB charger you WILL sooner or later end up burning the lights micro USB port and your light will fail and not charge again. U will end up hanging to keep swapping batteries every time just to use them... I end up burning 2 of these light when they used to cost $12 when they came put, lesson learned 😂
p.s: if you already have a quality battery cell charger (AA,AAA,C,D) you can buy the Samsung (pink color) 3200mhA batteries for a stronger and longer lasting light or just rip old laptop batteries and take the battery cells out and use them as backups!
Happened to 2 of mine. No more from HF.
This light also rotates at the mid-section as well as bends, in case you were unaware.
So now that i know where the weak points are on this light, having 2 again for $20 each (with coupon) i will now reinforce them weak points for a long lasting wear n' tear product 😂
Thanks for telling me why mine is working so shittily rn/.
That flaw would really piss me off. Glad they at least give you a second option and you aren't forced to charge the battery itself.
Yeah, like I said its a good light if you use it that way! Im just impatient I guess.
I've had nothing but bad luck with these lights , I bought 3 on the memorial day sale and all 3 have been returned twice before the 90 day warranty was up , 2 of them the on/off switch stopped clicking , and the others would show charged when plugged in and light up but when I unplugged them they didn't work . All of them would shut off when I moved the head to a different angle , or barley bump them . I am about ready to give up on them and get my money back
Dang thats rough! I wouldnt have thought you would see so many issues mine have been good other than the thread issue from the way I use them
@@GearHeadsGarageChannel I did find one thing out , the one's I just traded in started acting up right out of the box . I unscrewed the battery cap and pulled the battery out , it looked fine . I rubbed the ends and put it back it and tightened down the cap and it started working . Still doesn't explain the switches going bad . So maybe the battery caps need to stay tight
Great video, Jesse. I'm not a big fan of Harbor Freight tools, for all of the reasons you pointed out in your video. I happen to have the Astro 40SL slim light and it works just fine for me. I don't use it every day, so recharging isn't a problem. I like the idea of replaceable batteries, but the poor quality threads on the cap and body would be a no-go for me. Keep up the good work.
Yeah I am going to be looking more at the astro lights. Thank you for the kind words Stephen!
Harbor freight now came out with a new light that has a different design and from my understanding that threads have been fixed
Got to use mine once before it stopped working
I have several of them in my shop, and have several many backup batts, multiple chargers and I have never had the trouble you speak of.
I think it's pilot error.
Maybe they improved it, after this video came out one of the west coast higher ups of HF called me and asked questions and feedback on this and a few other tools, the threads on this flashlight were a major point of issue I told him and they sounded genuinly interested in making improvements. That was about 1.5 years ago from my memory so maybe they actually did make changes. My situation has changed and I no longer am conveniently around any HF stores anymore so I dont buy from them as often as I used to, I have been very happy with a couple of the lights I have purchased off tool trucks since then.
Ff to 4:40 to finally hear him say the threads on the battery cap strip out.
Problem is probably the charger port on the light my boss had the same problem on his
The Icon light for 10 dollars more is the way to go over this one.
Home depot has a similar style in a Husky brand for $20 excellent lights
I'll have to look at it, does it have swappable batteries?
@@GearHeadsGarageChannel not sure on that part, ill check when I get home today
@@GearHeadsGarageChannel nah boss I just checked, battery is not replaceable.
Those can’t take a drop don’t bother already used it under real world use
I'm seeing that light on HF website for $25 right now.
It says it is a sale till 1/14, regular price is $35. Last time I was at a harbor freight it was $40 in the store.
Just got one on sale for 20.00
Mine actually cooked the battery and the apple brick from being plugged in too long. Otherwise great product.
Go checkout the Astro 52sl.
I saw it on Flat Rate Master's channel and was tempted, looks like a good light and I like the ease of charging...BUT I really do love swappable batteries! I want something like that I can keep using and not have to buy two of them
ICON.... is the catch
How 'bout wrapping the threads with some plumbers tape?
Then they wouldnt ground the cap and the light wouldnt work lol
@@GearHeadsGarageChannel Oh I could get it to work.
The quality of the threads is fine, you just need to put some grease on them. They are aluminum, after all.
Fyi the light also pivots about 300 +%
Use Teflon tape on the threads
The threads need metal to metal contact for current flow. Teflon would prohibit that especially considering thats already the biggest issue with these lights lol. Even new and not swapping batteries the contact sometimes isnt perfect.
@@GearHeadsGarageChannel How about aluminum foil? not as conductive as copper, but body is made of aluminum so should be similar. Also wonder if the aluminum foil would become one with the threads and help them last longer, although hopefully not like stainless and gall!
nieko light better with 4400mah battery but not changeable
i bought one of these for home use and battery connection fails once in awhile too. total pain in the butt. i would not buy another one. i agree it is a piece of junk
They are junk i charge mine and it only last 5 minets is all, napa sells one i fell in love with, and i only charge it every 3 to six month and i do not charge it untell it cuts off on me
Sounds like you must not use it a ton then lol I dont care what light it is none will last a day as a work light. What is the model # on your napa one? Is it Carlyle?
Go buy one at snap on for 800 then.
Price has dropped down to $19 as of today, anyway.
I’ve had them last about a year in a shop environment. 6 of them. I also have a 4 bay 18650 charger. Zero down time.
The problems I have are,
1. The magnet will stay on the car one day, making basically useless.
2. The wire in the hinge will fail. I’ve Frankensteined two dead ones to make a good one.
About the threads. A touch of anti seize and you’ll never have problems with the threads.
They’re absolutely a steal on sale around the $20 Mark.
China makes it and not the store. HF needs to contact the buyer for the store to find another supplier.
They're cheap enough buy 2!!!
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I never had a problem with a 30 or 25 dollar HF light so go by snap on for 120 stop hating the end...
lol I said a lot of positive things about the light it wasnt all hate.
@@GearHeadsGarageChannelo....🙊🙊🙊🙊🙊🙊😏😏😏😏😏😏 love your videos ID see it just read the head line...
Planned obsolescence
Plumbers tape--- that thread stuff, that's what I use, even when new
On these lights specifically? The cap has to make good electrical contact through the threads to work. Even with nothing in the way the contact isn't good often times.
@@GearHeadsGarageChannel Oh, not these exact- but similar. I DO have the actual one you do- just got it actually, I will test.
Why not just buy 2 lights and have one charging? 🙄
Thats too easy
Get Astro way better.
I have one, battery life sucks and honestly I like the half folding mechanism for pointing the light on the HF one better. That being said I still havent bought another HF light since this video and still use my astro light.
Come on man, really? You don't have to take the battery out all the time, mine lasts for hours. Buy a plugged in one if you want to use it all day long. What a joke review
lol relax man, it is just a video about a harbor freight light, I used them all the time for a few years and loved them. The fact you had to comment 3 times in that way says you need to get out there and find some other things to care more about.