Flashlight Review: Borealis

[black bear 84]

Hi Cerbera

It just happened that I have finished doing some testing comparing the BOREALIS with some spotlights that I have around, including a 2 million one.

And here are the results:

Spotlights Versus BOREALIS flashlight


Except for some HID’s barely portable lights like the “Beast” from Surefire (a $3,000 light working on 20 disposables batteries, outputting 2,000 lumens) and others HID’s that don’t qualify as flashlights as they are considered “searchlights” and take quite a few seconds to get them going, no other flashlight that you can get in the store can compete in lumens output with the BOREALIS 1050 lumens flashlight that is made in the 3 D format.

So the question arose as how the BOREALIS will compare with an incandescent two million candlepower spotlight.

I have a closet full of spotlights of 15 years ago, lights that plugged into the cigarette lighter of a car and at that time were state of the art at 250,000 and even 500,000 candlepower’s.

Later the portable, rechargeable 500,000 and one million spotlights come about and of late you can get a good spotlight by LSI or Q. Beam of 2 million candlepower.

How does the little 2” reflector and 35 watt bulb compare with the monstrous 5 ½ inches reflectors and 50 to 75 watts bulbs in those spotlights?

To find out, I did a round up of what I have in the house: a couple of 1 million Q Beam I had disposed off when the batteries ran out of life, but I have a brand new LSI Nite Tracker 2,000.000 million candlepower, a 1 million spotlight from Aid Auto Stores and a new PN 46224 5 million from Heartland America catalogue.
Actually this is the second one, because I returned the first as the light don’t seem to my eyes to output more than a million, the second is still delivering the same output, so maybe where they come from the candlepower’s have a different value than the American ones!

I gave all the spotlights and my light a good charge to run a fair test.
The shootout was made against a tool shed at 30 yards and my appreciation of what I saw is this: The Aid auto Store spotlight seems to be a thru and thru one million candlepower light as the output is well matched against what I have seen before from other one millions.
The BOREALIS will overpower this spotlight plenty, washing the beam of it when the BOREALIS beam is made to coincide.

The second spotlight I tried was the LSI Nite tracker, 2,000.000 million; this is a great light (but also great in size and weight) and is obviously what the BOREALIS has to compete for.
I have found that the BOREALIS beam is more useful than the LSI as the spread is wider (more floodlight), I can see much more landscape to the sides of the shed than with the beam of the LSI. As per the intensity at the shed door, here are the pictures so you can judge it yourself.

Of the Black and yellow 5 million light from Heartland, to my eyes it is barely 1 million, maybe 750,000 more likely.

Yes, the LSI two million can do almost the same as the BOREALIS, but that light is much more compact, lighter and of incomparable quality in its components, the modified switch, reflector and battery carrier are a work of art and the power source are the best high current high capacity Nimhs in existence.

The Contenders, from left to right; My red BOREALIS flashlight 1050 lumens,
the 5 million Heartland of America black and yellow spotlight, the LSI Nite Tracker 2 million, and the Aid auto stores 1 million spotlight.

And I am going to show the beamshots in the opposite sequence:

Aid auto stores 1 million candlepower

LSI Nite Tracker 2 million

Heartland of America 5 million (The text explain what I think of this light)

BOREALIS 1050 lumens rechargeable, 50 minutes run time.

cheers
black bear

 

[JohnKSa]

Impressive results...

I did some comparisons to other flashlights and rapidly reached the conclusion that there is NO COMPARISON.

That was when I started comparing my Black Bear Search & Rescue to my car's headlights. I was curious about how it would compare to a searchlight--it appears that 2 million candle-power isn't enough to beat it...

Neat shootout--saved me the money of buying a searchlight and doing the test myself.

Have you ever tried to characterize your lights using candlepower? I'd say from the photos that the Borealis is putting out something more than 2 million candlepower easily. Is there any way to get more precise numbers?

 

[MrBright]

Im happy that you have made these homemade high quality flashlights for a realy cheap price. I searched for the most powerful flashlight and found one that was 2000 lumens for almost 5,000 dollars. Its output is probably 1800 lumens. Id rather buy this transformed Maglite. Ive sent an email asking if you take payments per month. Also Id like to mention if you would be interested in starting a store on ebay and selling these flashlights, I can help.

 

[Syntax360]

How much is this unit, anyway? Very impressive!

 

[JohnKSa]

There are three models of the Borealis available--click on the link in my sigline for more information.

I have a Search & Rescue and a Bear Cub from Black Bear--both are very well thought out products, so I would expect exactly the same from the Borealis.

 

[black bear 84]

JohnKSa,

As you know, lumens is a better meassure of light than candlepowers, as the latest is the intensity of the hot spot at a certain distance, and doesn't take in account the side spill (or flood).
While the lumens is the meassure of total light emanating from the source.

The lumens are meassured in a very expensive lab instrument called a Integrated Sphere Spectotometer.

Candlepowers:

Of course the most candlepowers are found in spotlights as they have those big reflectors that concentrate light in a tight beam, (the bigger the reflector the tighter the beam).
However a laser will put more candlepowers at 1,000 yards than the biggest Thor 15 million candlepowers, that is because the laser will have a more concentrated spot of light at that distance

Flashlights are more useful for police officers and other proffesionals, because they have a side spill (or floodlight) that illuminate also the immediate surrondings, the BOREALIS and most of my lights are sold with a choice of four reflectors, to customize the beam to the work of the operator.

They are the only lights that are offered with a choice of reflectors.
For example, the SMOOTH reflector will throw a long beam (it also have a good side spill) this is the reflector favored by rural police officers working lonely roads, wildlife officers doing deer census in the field (replace a spotlight) and firefighters wanting to punch a hole in the smoke.

The Orange Peel reflector, also have a good throw, but better side spill.

The Light stippled reflector, curtail a little the throw, but have a wonderful side spill that makes it the favorite of police officers clearing houses.
The Medium stippled is even more floodlight and can take a whole back yard.

Respectfully
black bear

 

[JohnKSa]

Thanks for the information!

 

[KD5NRH]

So, how much for an extra reflector and lens? I work two sites, one of which is a large, but almost entirely indoor production facility with most areas having some usable degree of lighting at all times, and the other is several smaller buildings on a huge lot with long alleys and long narrow warehouses and lots of dark areas that I prefer not to approach blindly, so it would be well worth the cost to me to buy an extra host light and put a smooth reflector in its head for the larger facility, but use either the orange peel or light stipple for the smaller, better lighted one.

Also, what is the difference in overall battery life between the fast charge and slow charge? Do you see any extra life with the Maha 777, and how long does it take to charge a full carrier?

I should probably stop reading your posts until I have the money in hand and I'm ready to order, since it seems that every time I read through, I convince myself that I need one more option

I guess it's like a carry handgun; I may not really need some extra feature, but I'll feel really stupid (briefly) if the one I decided against turns out to be the one that would have saved me.

 

[JohnKSa]

I can't really address the question about the charger, but I asked the same questions about the reflectors when I bought my S&R.

If I were you and I needed a way to change out reflectors, I'd either buy an entire separate flashlight head from Black Bear with the reflector you want already installed (I believe he also changes out the plastic lens for a tempered glass lens since the plastic won't take the heat) or, if that's not an option, he might sell you just the reflector and the lens and you could put them into the head of a maglite you purchase.

Then you could swap out heads rather than fumbling with the reflector. The problem with handling the reflector is that it's polished aluminum, so you have to handle it VERY carefully to avoid getting fingerprints on it. There's not really a good way to remove the fingerprints if you get them on there. It's also not exactly the right shape to put in a pocket or a holder. A separate flashlight head would be much simpler to handle.

I wouldn't worry about not picking exactly the right setup on your initial purchase, nearly anything about your light can be changed later by purchasing the proper option items from Black Bear.

 

[black bear 84]

KD5NRH,

The reflectors are made of thick walled aluminum, they are not really delicate, but the coating is. The coating is a metalizing process that leaves a highly reflective surface, but will wipe away easily if you rub it or will degrade it if you leave fingerprints on that surface.

You don't really need a separate reflector, or need to try different reflectors; the BOREALIS will put so much light all around, that even with the smooth long throw reflector you still have LOTS of side spill (flood).

And even with the Medium stippled reflector (which is an option for those wanting LOTS of flood) you still have a decent throw of more than 100 yards.

The Orange peel or light stippled will give you a flood like the Surefire M-6 or M-4 (they have the same or similar finish) and you don't hear complaints about the beam of those lights that don't have optional reflectors.
The four reflectors came about because I also make these lights for my flashaholic friends that are perfectionists and always look for the perfect beam to use in their white wall hunting.

The beam of a smooth reflector at short distance is not perfect (at longer distances it doesn’t matter). The smooth reflector, being mirror polished, will show the shadow of the filament at short distance.

Here is a picture that has the beam of the light stippled reflector on the left and the beam of the smooth reflector on the right.
Notice how the edges of the beam are cleaner in the light stippled, also notice how the shadow of the filament comes out of the smooth reflector (on right) at the 8 and 10 and at 2 and 4 o'clock.

If you are working with the light in conditions of heavy fog or smoke (as the firefighters), you want a more concentrated beam and the smooth reflector is for you.
The same goes if you are using the light to hunt varmints at night (coyotes), and you need the light to reach 220 yards.

If the shadow of the filament at short distance bothers you, a cleaner beam can be had with the Orange Peel reflector, without altering the long throw much.

If you are a police officer clearing houses and back yards, the more flood of the light stippled will let you see more real estate around the back yard, for the average room the smooth reflector will illuminate all you need.

The eye of the camera doesn't open as much as the human eye, and I can see much more of what the pictures show, but the camera is good for comparisons as it portrait the differences in amount of light, you can also appreciate part of the side spill, (your eye will let you see much more illuminated area).

Here are three pictures taken at 23 yards, the BOREALIS use here have the light stippled reflector, same finish as the other two, the Surefire M-4 and M-6.

Surefire M-4 (350 lumens)

Surefire M-6 (500 lumens)

BOREALIS 1050 lumens

I reiterate, you will see much more area than what is shown by the camera.

CHARGERS:

The slow 10 bay charger, have a 250 mah charging current, that means that to charge the new 2700's it will need about 12 hours or a little more. That 250 mah current is very gentle on the batteries, (they barely get warm) and they for sure will last the 1,000 recharges advertised by the factory.

The RC Fast charger have a double setting, .900 amps and 1,8 amps, it will do the batteries in a little more than 3 hours or in 1 1/2 hours.
The RC slow at 600 mah will do it in 4 1/2 hours.
These chargers feature pulse and reverse pulse charging, and the batteries will remain just warm until the very end of the charge.

The MAHA 777 plus II charge at 800 mah, about 3 hours or so, the advantage of the MAHA is that it will do any battery (camcorders, two way radios, lap tops, etc) and any chemistry (Ni Cads, Nimhs, Lithium Ion)
This charger doesn’t use pulse charging, but it has a heat sensor that will stop the charge if the batteries pass certain temperature, and then continue when the batteries have cooled down.

It all comes to what your needs are, if you are a police officer using the light on duty, you will not have time to bother with the 12 hours charger, and if you get your batteries to last 800 recharges instead of 1,000 it is well worth while.

RUN TIME:
The new Maha Powerex 2700 mah batteries will give the BOREALIS fifty minutes run time (after a few charges-discharges~~up from 45 minutes),
As the manufacturer states 1,000 recharges, that will give us 833 hours before a new pack of $30.00 is needed.

As the BOREALIS was conceived as a rechargeable solution to powerful lights like the Surefire M-6, (500 lumens, 20 minutes run on six 123's batteries) it is not out of place to comment that the M-6 will spend $36.00 in batteries per hour (at $2.00 a battery), it will cost $29,988 in batteries before it can run 833 hours.

Before I come out with the other three options on the reflectors, I make and sold over a hundred with the smooth reflector, and the customers are happy with them as they fullfill all the situations that you can put them too.

Best regards
black bear
Juan C.

 

[black bear 84]

I have received some P.M’s and E-mails asking about the performance of some of my others lights in comparison with what is already available in the street.

The POLAR BEAR, particularly figured in several of the inquires, and more than a couple of people wanted to know how it compares with the Ultra Stinger.
Also the newer BEAR CUB was mentioned several times.

So having decided to do a shoot out, I recharged my Ultra Stinger and set up to do the testing.

Here are the lights
Left to right, the Bear Cub the Polar Bear and the Ultra Stinger

It was drizzling at 6 p.m. when I went to the back yard, it causes the beam of the lights to reflect in the droplets of water and outline the beam in a way I have never taken pictures before.

The target was 30 yards away, and was a tool shed 12x8 feet.

I set the tripod and holding the lights alongside and at the height of my head initiated the shoot-out.
(The beams seem to come from much higher, that is why I mention the fact)

The Ultra Stinger, 75,000 candlepower, 295 lumens (claimed)

The Polar Bear, 426 lumens run time 75 minutes

The Bear Cub, 220 lumens for 90 minutes

Of course all my others lights, live on the shadow of the BOREALIS, at the last minute, I decided to bring it up into the shoot-out, so people can see what this light is all about.
Of course the lens of the camera don’t open as much as the human eye, and consequently it sees less. What I am seeing with my eyes is more illumination with any of the lights, than the camera capture, but it is good for comparison between the lights.

And yes here is the beamshot with the BOREALIS 1050 lumens light.

Kind regards and Happy Holidays to all members
Black bear

 

[FirstFreedom]

I've now decided I must have both a Borealis and either a Polar Bear or Bear Cub 720. Hmmm, maybe a late christmas gift to myself, if my business picks up the 2nd half of the month.....

 

[JohnKSa]

I have a S&R and a Bear Cub from Black Bear. I find that the two flashlights compliment each other, in size, performance, runtime and "shelf-life".

The Li-Ion cells in the Bear Cub mean that the flashlight can be left in a "ready-to-go" state for much longer than the NimH powered flashlights since the self-discharge rate is much slower. Also, the Li-Ion batteries are very light and put out a lot of voltage for their size. That means that even if I screw up and let my S&R batteries run down, I still have over an hour of 220 lumen runtime in a very compact, light package (2C-Cell Maglite size) from the BearCub.

 

[FirstFreedom]

K, JohnK, thanks for the info...helpful.

 

[black bear 84]

I've now decided I must have both a Borealis and either a Polar Bear or Bear Cub 720. Hmmm, maybe a late christmas gift to myself, if my business picks up the 2nd half of the month.....

Hi First Freedom,
The Bear Cub is 220 lumens for 90 minutes, it is made in the 2 C format (9 inches long 13 oz weight)

The Black Bear 720 is the one that have 720 lumens.
Here in this piece I did yesterday is more information about that light.

THE BLACK BEAR 720 LUMENS FLASHLIGHT

Of course all my others lights live in the shadow of their big brother, the BOREALIS 1050 lumens torch.
But one that stands up for it own merits is the BLACK BEAR 720.

At one pound 4 oz. the Black Bear 720 is smaller and lighter and its length of ten inches makes it a natural for glove compartments and pockets in overcoats and hunting jackets.

The light runs on six rechargeable high current NIMH batteries, my latest batteries are Powerex 2700 mah, with them, I am getting 40 minutes of run time (after a few charges-discharges).

The lumens output and throw is superior to the Surefire M-6 (20 minutes run time on six disposables 123’s batteries for 500 lumens).
And you can see that the run time on the rechargeable batteries is double than the disposables 123’s also the cost of running the M-6 is $12.00 per 20 minutes, while the Black Bear 720 will run double that amount for free.

The M-6 is still smaller than the BLACK BEAR 720, but as you can see in the pictures the difference is not that much.

Pictured too are the battery carriers that each light uses, the plastic carrier of the M-6 hold six 123’s while the metal and delrin carriers of the Black Bear 720, also holds six of the AA rechargeable batteries.

The Rolls Royce battery carrier have a charging port at the back in which the RC charger is plugged, this will charge the batteries in 4 ½ hours, without the need to take them out of the carrier.

The Black Bear 720 is offered with your choice of four reflectors to customize the light to your needs, the smooth reflector offers maximum throw, the Orange Peel improves in the quality of the beam and give more flood without altering the throw much.
The Light Stippled is very much the same surface treatment as the M-6 reflector, it have a good flood without curtailing the throw.
The Medium Stippled is all flood, rivaling a pair of backyards floodlights.

Here is a picture of the lights and the battery carriers each one uses.

Yesterday I did a shoot out between the Black Bear 720 and the Surefire M-6 at 30 yards against my 12 by 8 feet tool shed.
Here are the results.

Surefire M-6 (500 lumens)

BLACK BEAR 720 LUMENS

The Black Bear is made with the same high quality components than the BOREALIS, the high temperature switch, the small hole parabolic solid aluminum reflector, Pyrex lens and the shorter version of the Rolls Royce battery carrier and of course the super-bulbs and the high current high capacity optimized Nimhs batteries.

Best regards
black bear

 

[Zeebrahed]

I have had the opportunity to use my new Borealis for a few weeks now, and I have got to say that this is one very high quality, high output light. The pictures really do not do much justice to this light, it must be seen to be believed.

The output of this light easily surpasses the heavy and bulky 1 and 2 million candlepower spotlights I had been using in my applications. This flashlight unlike all my others gives me the reach and power that I have wanted in a portable package for years. This is literally the brightest, longest lasting, most economical flashlight I have ever seen. My Borealis lasts a good long time at full intensity and is easy to throw on the batter charger when I get home. On a year to year basis, I would spend many hundreds of dollars on CR123 batteries that I no longer need. My Surefire's are collecting dust.

In addition, Juan's pricing is fair for the product you get and his attention to customer service is refreshing in the realm of big business where the customer counts less than the bottom line. In my contacts with Juan, I have no doubt that he stands behind his product 100%. Just look at the feedback received in this thread on the Borealis. The folks who have adopted Juan's lights are pretty fanatical. We believe we have the best flashlight system that can be purchased currently.

 

[JohnKSa]

Rechargeable NiMH battery storage test.

I've seen several people argue that rechargeable batteries aren't a good solution for flashlights since power outages can leave a person without the means to charge their batteries.

I've mentioned this before, but I have some hard numbers this time.

I charged two sets of batteries on the 22nd of December (57 days ago).

I put one set in the refrigerator (not the freezer) and another set was left out at room temperature. Both sets were 2700maH NimH rechargeables, one set by Sanyo and the other set were Powerex.

The room temperature stored batteries (Sanyo) measured 3 out of 5 leds lit on my battery checker. The unloaded voltage (average of 5 batteries) was 1.295V

BTW, before testing this set, I put them in my Black Bear Search & Rescue--they showed no performance degradation in terms of brightness output. So at least with this battery, even 2 months at room temperature isn't enough to drain them to a useless state although clearly they're down a bit from fresh.

The refrigerator stored batteries (Powerex) were allowed to warm to room temperature. They measured 5 out of 5 leds lit on the tester. The unloaded voltage (again the average of 5 batteries) was 1.355V

So if power outages are a major concern, you can buy a few sets and put the spares in the fridge for storage. They'll keep a LONG time (at least 4 months, probably more like 6) and when they come out, it's as if they're fresh from the charger (after you let them warm to room temperature.)

As long as you can remember to have a charging session three times a year or so you're good to go.

 

[Cerbera]

Service at its best!

Zeebrahed is right about Juan (black bear):

customer service is refreshing in the realm of big business.

Recently, the cable for my charger was broken for unknown reasons. I contacted Juan and he offered to send a replacement. It is nice knowing that if something goes wrong, Juan is there to help.

I should have followed JohnKSa's advice and put my batteries in the fridge while I waited for my replacement!

 

[JohnKSa]

It is nice knowing that if something goes wrong, Juan is there to help.

I agree, Juan takes customer service to a new level! Not only is the product very technically impressive and well thought out, the maker stands behind it.

 

[skeeter1]

I'm in a mood tonight

Is it just me, or has anyone else noticed that moderator JohnKSa has been pimping for Black Bear flashlights? Witness the sig line:

__________________
Did you know that there is a TEXAS State Rifle Association?

Check out Black Bear Flashlights.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

They might be good, but I have a feeling there's a conflict of interest here.