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New 4100 Lumen Flashlight Can Set Things On Fire
i4u writes "Engadget is reporting that Wicked Lasers has introduced The Torch. It is the world's brightest and most powerful flashlight. The Flashlight is capable of melting plastic, lighting paper on fire within seconds, and if you like, fry an egg or a marshmallow on a stick. At 4100 lumens, The Torch is 100 lumens more powerful than The Polarion Helios, the former most powerful flashlight, and retails for around $300. The Torch is apparently also undergoing review at the Guinness Book of World Records."
It would make campfire storytelling even more interesting! "Here's the tale of the man whose face melted off, oooOoooOoohhh AGHH MY FACE IS FALLING OFF!" Subsequently, many camp counselors have crapped their pants at the mere thought.
It pumps out so much light that there is a recoil when you switch it on!
Last time I bought an extension cord it had 4 different warning labels I had to take off. I wonder how many warning labels this flashlight will carry?
Welcome to the Nanny Nation.
Think how much longer your batteries will last by using the light from the fires you start.
OK, I can understand having rather bright spotlights (for example, to go shooting), but I cannot understand what use this sort of light has for civilian usage.
It is far to dangerous to do many of the things that you often do with bright lights (for example, to go shooting), and so why?
Perhaps it says something in the article? Not that I can see... (Though it does say, 15 minute battery life! WTF is the point of it then?)
I wank in the shower.
Do not look into flashlight with remaining eye.
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These are kind of cheap. At first it looked really bright, but I stared into it and after a while, the light is barely visible. I think it's defective.
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Regardless, I'd link to some of them, but the forums there have enough time staying up as it is and they don't need the extra traffic. Here's a beam shot of the Maxablaster shining on some clouds 4 miles up. http://img231.imageshack.us/my.php?image=spotoncloud2dp4ta1.jpg
You obviously have not considered the amount of fun you can have in 15 minutes with a flashlight that can light stuff on fire.
Are you a Peeping Tom? Does the person you're "watching" often tease you through your binoculars because she won't remove that silly bra? Well get teased no more! New from Wicked Lasers, it's The Torch!!! Now, just point The Torch at your obsession, press the button, and burn away those pesky garments in seconds!!! Do yourself a favor and see what you've really wanted to see! Buy The Torch!!! 30 easy payments of $10 per week. Act now!
Mom! Help! Come to the basement quick!
My penis is on fire again!
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I'll assume this is a serious query. It isn't all that obvious.
A 20gauge cord is most likely not capable of carrying enough amperage to power your beer fridge without either A)heating up, or B)outright failing.
Situation A: A 100ft cord that heats up to unsafe temperatures may start a fire with any number of low-flashpoint items between your garage and basement.
Situation B: Failing outright means that the cord heats up to sufficient temperatures in order melt the insulation off, exposing bare, high-temperature, semi-high voltage wires to the environment. They may spark, which can easily start a fire, the insulation might burn or char, and the exposed wires represent an electrocution hazard. This would be unsafe for a 4ft core, but a 100ft cord represents a line of death stretching the length of your house.
Take a look at http://www.interfacebus.com/Reference_Cable_AWG_Sizes.html . Those are conservative numbers for load carrying capacity, and deemed "safe" for 100ft or longer runs. You can potentially multiply those numbers by 2-3 for shorter runs.
Even so, 20 gauge wire should really only be used for a 2-6 amp load; and on the lower end of that scale for a longer (100 ft+) run. A pretty average, smallish home fridge has a "max" current draw of 15 amps. Even your beer-mini-fridge probably draws 7-8 peak. 7-8 is greater than 2, and as such, is a fire hazard. And, with a 100ft run, most people would probably stick it under a rug, which results in even MORE heat buildup.
The thing about it that makes it worse is that the circuit breaker will only protect you against over-current based upon the wiring load (assuming the electrician did a good job), not electrical cords, particularly wimpy electric cords. The only time the circuit breaker will kick in is after the electrical cord has shorted, and it may be too late by that point. If its a ground fault, and not a fire, and not an electrocution, a GFCI circuit might protect you, but it'll probably be too late for that, as well.
That all being said, it's not common knowledge; but it should be. It takes a bit to educate yourself on this stuff, but its important knowledge, and a lot of lives could be saved, and fires stopped, if they taught this stuff in highschool.
IMHO, its a bit pretentious to say that this, stuff is "common sense". The little endian nature of the gauge scale (not to mention that it is logarithmic so 19 gauge is 2x the diameter of 20 gauge), and the unclear nature of the warnings on the stuff is kinda useless. It would make far more sense to make the Amperage of all devices clearer (peak), and simply put "This cable can carrying X amps at Y temperature, and is unsafe for use at higher temperatures" on extension cables.
WhiteWolf666 an exBush supporter. All you new-school,compassionate,save the children Republicans can rot in hell