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Projects Drop light Possession....... GGRRRRRRRR!!!!!

Discussion in 'The Hokey Ass Message Board' started by 6sally6, Feb 18, 2019.

  1. 6sally6
    Joined: Feb 16, 2014
    Posts: 2,459

    6sally6
    Member

    Seems to be a lot of these "you guys have the same issues I do".....questions. Well here's mine and y'all can "pipe-in" too.
    Doing some work on my old-hot-rod lately...under the dash in particular Well...these old eyes need light soooo out comes the old faithful drop light. Had it since I worked at the Navy yard so its almost a part of me now. Uses a regular light bulb in a metal cage and a damned-old-hook on the top! I have a new-ish florescent one but the light ain't as bright but......still has that damned-old-hook on top.
    WHY.....when you're half in...half out...and half under the dash does that damned-old-hook hang up on EVERYTHING but where you want it??! And when your in the most awkward/contorsionis-ic twisted position the light roooolllls around so it shines DIRECTLY in your eye....or onto your arm so it burns the crap outta you too!!
    Can something like a drop light be possessed ! Jus say'in!
    Am I the only one fighting the "good-fight" with a possessed drop light?!!
    After the better part of 60+ years I haven't found a workable alternative!
    Have y'all?
     
    reagen, BigO, scoop and 4 others like this.
  2. NAES
    Joined: Dec 24, 2008
    Posts: 491

    NAES
    Member

    My girlfriend recently got me a 4' LED worklight that can fold in half that is super bright and doesn't cast shadows, etc. you can just lay it down on the floor or angle it however and it throws a nice even blanket of light. This coupled with a generic "tactical" small flashlight or those super cheapo HF units and you're good to go.
     
    czuch, Boneyard51 and Rusty O'Toole like this.
  3. Three Widow's Garage
    Joined: Jan 18, 2010
    Posts: 230

    Three Widow's Garage
    Member

    Put one of the screw in LED bulbs in the old style drop light. They don't die everytime you bump them, there not glass so they don't make a mess to clean up, run much cooler and the light is not bad on the higher wattage ones. The hook I can't help there.
     
    czuch likes this.
  4. DDDenny
    Joined: Feb 6, 2015
    Posts: 19,144

    DDDenny
    Member
    from oregon

    Drop lights, it's a love/hate relationship, mostly hate!:mad:
     
    reagen, RDR, BigO and 1 other person like this.

  5. 302GMC
    Joined: Dec 15, 2005
    Posts: 7,856

    302GMC
    Member
    from Idaho

    The first time I dropped one in a gas puddle under a car I decided I could do better. Bought a fluorescent which made it almost 20 years, but it was attacked by a fan and died … went to a shorter version equipped with both hook & magnet ….
     
    belair, '51 Norm and 54EARL like this.
  6. Alitterit
    Joined: Aug 7, 2016
    Posts: 1

    Alitterit

    I did the same as three widows said and have been pleased so far... Still have the typical issues with where the light shines but I'll take what I can get Haha

    Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G930A using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
     
  7. Dick Stevens
    Joined: Aug 7, 2012
    Posts: 3,710

    Dick Stevens
    Member

    Head lamps are cheap and some are also magnetic so it can be attached to any metal braces that are handy or worn over your head so it shines where ever you are looking.
     
    RDR, 0351, HellsBells5 and 2 others like this.
  8. Boneyard51
    Joined: Dec 10, 2017
    Posts: 6,442

    Boneyard51
    Member

    I cussed drop lights all my life! My helper would just laught his ass off listening to me and my drop light.... I kinda had fun making him laugh , too! Lol
    I now have several new fangled led lights . They work real good and don’t burn you!



    Bones
     
    Last edited: Feb 19, 2019
    czuch likes this.
  9. junk yard kid
    Joined: Nov 11, 2007
    Posts: 2,718

    junk yard kid
    Member

    Sounds like one of them professional fighting drop lights. I got one of them.


    Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
     
    williebill, czuch and Kan Kustom like this.
  10. Mr48chev
    Joined: Dec 28, 2007
    Posts: 33,861

    Mr48chev
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    I've got so damned many led flashlights and work lights that my wife is known to say "another one?" The long one with about 32 Leds that Craftsmans makes that sells for about 20 bucks works great, I have a flat one with a magnet that stays on the side of my Marquette Scope where it is in easy reach and that bugger works good. I've got a big LED work light from Costco that puts out helatious light and no heat so you can stick it in a car and aim it up under a dash or under a hood and not worry about melting something or starting a fire. The two pack headlights from Costco work good as others said.
    If you want to scare the crap out of someone poking around out outside even several hundred feet away These aren't cheap but they will light up the world in front of you. It will shut the coyotes up 1/4 mile behind the house too or send the guys walking down the road by the mailbox on a dead run for a quarter mile. https://www.westmarine.com/buy/west...hargeable-led-spotlight--17335076?recordNum=1
     
    jnaki likes this.
  11. David Gersic
    Joined: Feb 15, 2015
    Posts: 2,730

    David Gersic
    Member
    from DeKalb, IL

    My drop light got converted to LED thanks to a head transplant from Hazard Fraught. Recently picked up the HF flat folding LED battery lamp for 1/2 price, so far I’m liking it for under dash work. Magnet base, cool, and adjustable to lots of positions, with no cord getting in the way.


    Sent from my iPad using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
     
  12. Rechargeable LED's are your friend. You can get them with a hook and magnet......I also use the headlight LED too for the no hand operations.
     
    bobss396 and egads like this.
  13. B.A.KING
    Joined: Apr 6, 2005
    Posts: 4,039

    B.A.KING
    Member

    Funny this came up. Had a dentist appt today. The hygienist was cute as a button, but thats another story.She of course had on safety glasses and the brightest little single LED lite on them i ever saw. i thought man that would work great up under a dash. So i ask where and how much. WOW at 400.00 I can buy a lot of little flashlights. Sure was bright tho...............
     
    reagen likes this.
  14. exterminator
    Joined: Apr 21, 2006
    Posts: 1,695

    exterminator
    Member

    I ran over my droplight a few months ago when my car I was working on somehow wasn't all the way in park and starts rolling down the driveway. Had that droplight for at least 40 years plus! So sad.:(
     
  15. Drop lights suck! I use a small headlight made by Streamlight that is rechargeable. It has high and low, and spot beam or flood light. Normally it will last all day at work if you shut it off when you don’t need it. I think I paid about $50 for it from the Amazon. For big jobs, I have an LED 20 volt light from Dewalt.


    Sent from my iPhone using The H.A.M.B. mobile app
     
    egads likes this.
  16. The best way to fix those old mains powered lights is to unplug them, throw them in the trash, and get an LED low-voltage equivalent. Only bad part of the LED's is missing out on getting electrocuted when the old bulb breaks and leaves an exposed mains voltage terminal, or the smell of roast pork when you lean your bare arm against it.
     
    Cosmo49 and Boneyard51 like this.
  17. egads
    Joined: Aug 23, 2011
    Posts: 1,419

    egads
    Member

    Haven't used a drop light for about 10 year's,[​IMG]
     
    Finn Jensen, clem, Cosmo49 and 3 others like this.
  18. 41rodderz
    Joined: Sep 27, 2010
    Posts: 6,540

    41rodderz
    Member
    from Oregon

    All of mine have a mind of their own as well . Even my long corded fluorescent likes to drop on my head.:D
     
    nochop likes this.
  19. The little LEDs are the way to go. Small, cordless and most come with a charger. I have an old Dayton fluorescent I got back around 1983, have replaced the bulb and cord once each. Still puts out a lot of light.
     
  20. chargin03
    Joined: Jan 8, 2013
    Posts: 516

    chargin03
    Member

    The older I get the more light I need.
     
    raven, seb fontana and 1stGrumpy like this.
  21. sloppy jalopies
    Joined: Jun 29, 2015
    Posts: 5,256

    sloppy jalopies
    Member

    Co-worker, Bruce, was fixing a gas leak on his '56, line leaked, dropped his drop light, it landed on his ratchet, broke the bulb, caught his garage on fire, pushed the '55 out, but it burned his garage flat, fire department took over for him and his garden hose to save his house...….
    … LED LIGHTS ONLY IN HIS SHOP!
     
    clem, nochop and egads like this.
  22. Shutter Speed
    Joined: Feb 2, 2017
    Posts: 941

    Shutter Speed
    ALLIANCE MEMBER

    In 1962, hopping-up his Model A, my big brother had the perfect drop light...
    ME! I'd be sittin around in the way watching anyway, so he'd say.."make yourself useful..
    hold this right...here". With minor corrections, and handing him an occasional wrench, I
    was proud to think I had helped. He always let me tag along.
     
    alanp561 and jim snow like this.
  23. Mike51Merc
    Joined: Dec 5, 2008
    Posts: 3,856

    Mike51Merc
    Member

    upload_2019-2-19_8-24-18.jpeg

    Get one of these and you'll never look back.
     
    scrappybunch and rockable like this.
  24. Frank Carey
    Joined: Oct 15, 2009
    Posts: 574

    Frank Carey
    Member

    Still use my 60 year-old drop light. Two problems. 1. I burn myself on the hot metal and 2. When I set it on the floor under the car it rolls and shines elsewhere. Some years ago I saw a droplight with a hex-shaped handle. Can't roll. Shoulda bough it. Never seen one since. At the recent Sears clearance sale of everything prior to store closing I bought a droplight with full cage that covers hot metal. Good. Got a LED bar light for Christmas. But it's a spot light, not a flood light. Don't understand how that can be. Gotta aim it. Rarely use it.
     
    nochop likes this.
  25. Petejoe
    Joined: Nov 27, 2002
    Posts: 12,264

    Petejoe
    Member
    from Zoar, Ohio

    Had a scary experience with a decade old cord reel drop light.
    It had power to the cord always and turned off at the light bulb.
    Was rolling it back into the reel and it shorted out and caught fire.
    How many of us fail to replace or even inspect those old cords from abuse? Yes it shorted out.
     
    alanp561 likes this.
  26. wicarnut
    Joined: Oct 29, 2009
    Posts: 9,052

    wicarnut
    Member

    post #17, egads has the answer, I have a couple of this units, a little different than one pictured, work great for a lot of situations, agree with age, add your glasses, throw in arthritis makes for garage fun, NOT ! PIA, Aggravation maxed out ! [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Feb 19, 2019
    egads likes this.
  27. Matchless
    Joined: Jan 27, 2019
    Posts: 67

    Matchless
    Member

    Friend of mine lost his '34 Chev coupe, garage and almost his home - due to dropping his service light while working on the fuel line.
     
  28. ...picked this up at Menards, very brite, has hooks and 2 real good magnets on back, uses 3 aaa bats,..can stick em up anywhere on metal...about 2 & 5/8" diameter,...I'm buyin more of these.
    magnetic spotlite 001.jpg magnetic spotlite 002.jpg magnetic spotlite 003.jpg
     
    clem likes this.
  29. Gman0046
    Joined: Jul 24, 2005
    Posts: 6,256

    Gman0046
    Member

    Wish I had $100 for every garage that burned down as a result of a broken incandescent light bulb. Throw them in the trash before its too late.
     
    Jalopy Joker, jvo and egads like this.
  30. Another vote for LEDs. Best thing invented since chocolate cake!. I haven't bought a regular incandescent bulb in a couple of years. I converted every fluorescent light in my garage to LEDs this last summer...great, more light, less energy cost and no heat put off by them. Comes on instantly. I broke the last bulb in my drop light a year ago, I won't replace it with a regular bulb.
    As for the hook, remove it and put the hook on a magnet so you can remove it or put it back on when needed.
     

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