Frequently Asked Questions

If you choose the option “only flashlight”, the package will include the flashlight, instruction and additional stuff (like leather half-belt for a turnout gear, battery cassette, battery tubes, additional frosted protective glass and standard protective glass, spare silicone o-rings. Rechargeable batteries and charger are not included! If you need rechargeable batteries, charger and/or retractor, you should pick these options particularly. Why not to make the full package as standard? Our flashlights run on standard Li-ion rechargeable batteries (18650, 21700 or 26650) and suitable chargers. You may buy it elsewhere if you want. Moreover some of our customers already have it. So there's no point in overpaying if you only need the flashlight.
*This does not apply to the camera - it has an original rechargeable battery, so the package includes it along with charger.

We produce the flashlights with great light output. It takes a large energy intake to achieve high photometric characteristics. It leads to heating of the flashlight's inner components and needs effective thermal dissipation into the surrounding. For this purpose materials with high thermal conductivity coefficient are used. Plastics make it impossible to use high capability LEDs. The flashlights with plastic body are usually provided with no more than 3 W LED. Our chest flashlight LS-A2M has two LEDs with 20 W capability in total. Our tactical flashlight LS-CT65M - 24 W. Such a great capability is impracticable in plastic body.

Metal density is higher than plastics density. But it needs less metal than plastics to accomplish the same strength. Therefore having the same characteristics the metal body is weighing less than plastic one. Unlike plastics, metal doesn't crack, melt and it's much more resistant against external influences.

Plastic doesn't heat as fast as metal does. But this fact has a very slight impact on the speed of heating of inner components since the thickness of the flashlight's wall is only 2-3 mm. In a few minutes of operating during a fire the high temperature of surrounding and the temperature of a plastic body become equal (just like with metal). The process of equating of the temperatures of surrounding and the flashlight takes place in the conditions of both high and low temperatures. Unfortunately using of plastic doesn't give an advantage as thermal isolation requires surrounding with far lesser thermal conductivity coefficient. In case of a thermos it's vacuum, in case of a glass unit it's air-space insulation. As for the flashlights it's usually an air-space between the body and the power components. Except for the power source all other components are resistant against heating. The LED's working temperature is up to 150°С.

Operating temperature of Li-ion batteries is usually -20°C to +60°C. While operating within manual temperature limits rechargeable battery provides specified characteristics (as a rule it's 500 series of charging-discharging until effective capacity decreases to 50%). Operating beyond temperature limits may shorten the lifespan and effective capacity (not only permanently, but also temporarily, i. e. in normal settings it may revert to normal values). Batteries must conform to UN38.3 standard and other standards under which the effect of temperature up to 150°C doesn't lead to battery weight loss, leak, gas release, damage or crack of the body, ignition or explosion. Li-ion batteries are widely used in firefighter's flashlights, in Streamlight FIRE VULCAN®LED LANTERN for instance.

That's true, the effective capacity of an average Li-ion battery usually halves in temperature below -20°C. However even with 50% capacity decrease Li-ion battery stores up more energy than equivalent NiMH or lead-acid battery. It is reasonable to use special Li-ion or NiMH batteries provided that it's purposed to operate in permanent temperature below -20°C.

Mostly because it's cheaper. In order to produce plastic item the manufacturer needs to produce casting mould - that's quite expensive. But the prime cost of plastic element (without the cost of casting mould) is much lower than the prime cost of a relevant metal element. The casting mould is way more difficult to modify, this is why to produce a new flashlight a manufacturer has to produce a new expensive casting mould for every new component. It makes sense in case of bigger items, but it's unprofitable in case of an item consisting of many little details. Instead of that flashlights can be made of standard metal workpieces processed by CNC machine. It allows us to modify every assembly of the flashlights basing on firefighters' feedbacks and using the latest models of LEDs and optics. Using of this technology allows us to be at the peak of progress among LED flashlights.

Metal body is not forbidden by explosion proof standards. Different methods of explosion proof are acceptable, for instance: flameproof enclosure, sparkproof electric circuit, burst pressure relieve device (explosive valve), sealing compound etc. There is plenty of explosion proof equipment made of metal.

Specifics of firefighter's job demand spot beam for working in smoke and flood beam for emergency rescue work in normal visibility conditions. If the size of the flashlight is appropriate it's possible to make one LED for spot beam and another one for flood beam. This way we can use good optics, LEDs and other components for each beam specifically. This approach is realized in our lantern flashlight LS-CT65M and our chest flashlights LS-A2 and LS-A2M. The body of a helmet flashlight should be light and compact, so it's quite complicated to provide it with two high-power light sources. There are flashlights with spot beam and bottom light at the market, but capability of the bottom light isn't enough for effective firefighters' work. instead of that we use focus control that allows to run the whole capability of LED into either spot beam or flooded spotlight. This way provides 382 lm light output in unfocused mode, which is practically unreachable for helmet flashlights with bottom light source.

Apparently, they mean explosive valve. It works only in case of inside explosion and it’s necessary for a single relieve of inside burst pressure. If the valve was used for periodic equalizing of pressure caused by rapid change of temperature than water from the upside of the body would get inside of the flashlight and lead to damage. The explosive valve is set in explosion proof equipment but isn't necessary for firefighter’s flashlights.