led light: Inside the outdoors
When Ben Henry was 15, he invented the Pak-Lite, a twin LED flashlight about the size of two sugar cubes. It snaps onto a 9-volt battery to create one of the smallest, longest-lasting and handiest lights you'll ever own.
Henry's first rendition was a single LED light that used an old cell phone battery for power and a 35-millimeter film canister. He came up with it for his brother Barclay, who wanted a super-small flashlight for a 2,600-mile hike along the Pacific Crest Trail.
With standard batteries, commercial versions run from $13 for the basic model to about $25 for the super model I've been testing for several weeks. A lithium battery costs about $5 more.
With a lithium battery, the super model runs 100 hours on high beam and 1,200 on low, Henry said. With a standard battery, the times are 30 hours on high, 60 on low. I've been using the super model with lithium batteries, and Henry seems to be right on.
The Pak-Lite also worked underwater when I was steelhead fishing, although it sometimes continues to glow when it's turned off. The fix for that is to unsnap it from the battery until it dries out, or what some West Coast scuba divers have done -- put it in a condom and tie off the end.
It's not surprising that Henry invented something like this. He, his brother and their parents, Vic and Sheila, live near Grants Pass, Ore., eight miles from the nearest electrical line. They make their own power with a hydroelectric system and solar panels.
The Pak-Lite became enormously popular with U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq and rescue workers after Hurricane Katrina. While word-of-mouth has spread its fame, it still doesn't have much retail distribution outside of Oregon.
In the meantime, it's available at www.9voltlight.com or by calling 541-660-0349.
By Eric Sharp
When Ben Henry was 15, he invented the Pak-Lite, a twin LED flashlight about the size of two sugar cubes. It snaps onto a 9-volt battery to create one of the smallest, longest-lasting and handiest lights you'll ever own.
Henry's first rendition was a single LED light that used an old cell phone battery for power and a 35-millimeter film canister. He came up with it for his brother Barclay, who wanted a super-small flashlight for a 2,600-mile hike along the Pacific Crest Trail.
With standard batteries, commercial versions run from $13 for the basic model to about $25 for the super model I've been testing for several weeks. A lithium battery costs about $5 more.
With a lithium battery, the super model runs 100 hours on high beam and 1,200 on low, Henry said. With a standard battery, the times are 30 hours on high, 60 on low. I've been using the super model with lithium batteries, and Henry seems to be right on.
The Pak-Lite also worked underwater when I was steelhead fishing, although it sometimes continues to glow when it's turned off. The fix for that is to unsnap it from the battery until it dries out, or what some West Coast scuba divers have done -- put it in a condom and tie off the end.
It's not surprising that Henry invented something like this. He, his brother and their parents, Vic and Sheila, live near Grants Pass, Ore., eight miles from the nearest electrical line. They make their own power with a hydroelectric system and solar panels.
The Pak-Lite became enormously popular with U.S. soldiers in Afghanistan and Iraq and rescue workers after Hurricane Katrina. While word-of-mouth has spread its fame, it still doesn't have much retail distribution outside of Oregon.
In the meantime, it's available at www.9voltlight.com or by calling 541-660-0349.
By Eric Sharp
