Ian F
UberDork
6/11/12 2:42 p.m.
...but turns out to be really cool:
http://www.lowes.com/ProductDisplay?partNumber=309603-47309-CUB3-278725&langId=-1&storeId=10151&productId=3435260&catalogId=10051&cmRelshp=rel&rel=nofollow&cId=PDIO1
A cap with integrated LED's.
Holy crap, this thing is useful. I've had head-lamps for years, but this works so much better - mainly for the easy to access switch on the brim. And you don't seem to notice the extra weight like when wearing a head lamp since everythign is spread around the hat (battery pack is in the back).
So far I've only been using it while working on the house renovation (I bought it to try when I was about to run wiring through an unlit attic), but I can't wait to try it out on the cars. Especially when working under them.
Jaynen
New Reader
6/11/12 2:44 p.m.
Sometimes you dont have enough room for the brim of a cap tho
Ian F
UberDork
6/11/12 2:46 p.m.
True... but fortunately, those situations have been few.
They are handy, I am sure Red Green approves of their use
What makes it better than an LED head lamp under my own hat?
My battery is in the back, only my hat is way berkeleying cooler than that hat and I can optionally remove it for clearance purposes and still see where I'm looking.
I've had something similar for years. REALLY came in handy when I was wiring the basement. No lights down there, except exactly where I needed it.
mndsm
PowerDork
6/11/12 4:53 p.m.
Jaynen wrote:
Sometimes you dont have enough room for the brim of a cap tho
My hat brims are bent up at the front, sort of like a duck bill if you will, for that very reason. Lights there would sadly, be useless for me.
Ian F
UberDork
6/11/12 5:31 p.m.
Giant Purple Snorklewacker wrote:
What makes it better than an LED head lamp under my own hat?
My battery is in the back, only my hat is way berkeleying cooler than that hat and I can optionally remove it for clearance purposes and still see where I'm looking.
Personal preference, I guess. Like I said... I've had head lamps for years... Just never cared for them, for some reason... Always seemed to slip and were uncomfortable. I have a bag of the damned things from everytime some new style or technology would come out.
Plus I knew they were there. Since I'm usually wearing a cap anyway when I'm working to keep dust off my head, this is less intrusive to me.
Yeah, I've got some of those that fit under the brim of your hat. Note that the one you linky-ed to takes 4 button batteries. So does the one I use. However, the batteries last like maybe an hour or two, then you need 4 more batteries at $$$$. I solved this problem by hot gluing a 9 volt battery to the thing and putting a 1K-ish resistor in series. Now I just need a $1 9V battery that lasts a LONG time instead of $$$$$ batteries that last an hour. Oh, and disconnect the connector to the 9V when you're not using it, because the thing is always "on," waiting for you to push the button. Your $1 battery will last a year that way.
