UV Flashlights - Outlandish Claims of Power
I’m really getting tired of all the BS out there. Chinese vendors make outlandish claims about their flashlights and non-technical...
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Flashlights and Accessories
For the Fluorescent Mineral Hobby
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4 min read
What is the Best UV Flashlight for Minerals? (No bias, no clickbait - just the facts)
Longwave, shortwave, midwave flashlights are all the rage lately. 365nm, 255nm, 310nm - some amazing fluorescent minerals are being...
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6 min read
The Next Evolution in Fluorescent Mineral Flashlights - Shortwave and Midwave
(work in progress....) Just a few years ago my feeling was that we would not see SW flashlights "in my lifetime". I was so wrong. They...
Michael Isaacson
8 min read
DIY: Converting a Work Light into a Portable Short Wave Lamp
I'm not sure how many people have built the 18 watt SW conversion from Mark Cole's plans on MinerShop, but if you did or intend to do so,...
Dennis Michael
4 min read
DIY: Converting a Transilluminator into a Short Wave Lamp
My small hand-held short wave lamp is useful, but has its limitations. I was interested in a much more powerful light for display and...
Bruce W (by M Cole
2 min read
Black Display Boxes for Flats
(This is copied from a Facebook post by Bruce W. Black boxes are had to find for our hobby; white boxes destroy fluorescence.): Ever...
M Cole
10 min read
BATTERIES - Selecting the Proper Battery for your 365nm UV Flashlight, Convoy S2, Convoy C8, FyrFly
In general, the Ah capacity of batteries sold from China are not worth the plastic they are printed on. The vendors/manufacturers lie so the
M Cole
7 min read
FyrFly Convoy C8 365nm UV Flashlight - The Next Generation Convoy - an Original Design by Group Cons
The most powerful 365nm flashlight in its class (or any class). Open source design
M Cole
2 min read
What Kind of Flashlight Do I Need? (365nm versus 390/395/400nm Unfiltered UV Flashlights)
Friends don't let friends use crappy unfiltered 390nm flashlights. This is an educational post, directed towards folks new to the hobby....
M Cole
3 min read
Power Claims of Convoy Type Flashlights
A pet peeve of mine is honesty in advertising. Over the past 3+ months I’ve seen companies advertising ever higher power Convoy type...
M Cole
4 min read
Convoy S2+ 365nm False Power Claims - It Ain't 5 Watts (4, 3.5, or even 3)
It's the wild west out there! About three years ago I wrote a blog post about the Convoy S2+ here on Nature's Rainbows. The FLM...
Doug Bank
7 min read
Buyers Guide to the new 365 nm LED UV flashlights
I have happily been using and recommending the Convoy S2+ 365 nm UV flashlight since early 2017 when Mark Cole first posted about it. It...
M Cole
3 min read
Lighting Controls - Automatically Cycle Longwave, Shortwave, Midwave, and White light in your Displa
Over the years I've had requests for lighting controllers that would allow us to remotely control our different wavelength lights, as...
M Cole
9 min read
LED Longwave (LW - 365nm) Lighting for Home Displays
By now the fluorescent mineral community has heard of the new Convoy S2 365nm flashlight that has taken our hobby by storm. It is the...
M Cole
11 min read
Collecting Fluorescent Minerals - The Basics, Where to Find Them, and How to Collect Them
Fluorescent minerals are found almost anywhere there is a good selection of white light minerals. Mine dumps/tailing piles are obviously gr
M Cole
13 min read
Convoy Type S2+ 365nm Flashlight Torch Review, The Most Significant Innovation in UV Mineral Lights
This post was made over four years ago. Since that time it has become outdated. There is a new light - the Convoy FyrFly which is...
M Cole
1 min read
Fluorescent Mineral Light Review - Shortwave Battery Powered Field Lights
Rock collecting is a cheap hobby. Fluorescent rock collecting is an expensive hobby. View the Entire Review Here: Mineral Lights We've...
M Cole
1 min read
Can I Carry my Battery Pack on a Plane?
This question always comes up when we're traveling to some far off, glorious glow rock haven. Luckily, the FAA has published rules that...
D Newsome (posted by M Cole)
5 min read
RIP Wood's Glass Longwave UV Bandpass Filters
Several weeks ago there was a lot of discussion within our Facebook Group about the availability, and where to find, Kokomo 400 LW filter...
M Cole
3 min read
Comparison of 365nm Flashlight to 390nm Flashlight
A friend of mine bought a 385nm to 395nm 100 LED flashlight (presently being sold on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/uvBeast-Intensity-Fla...
Facebook Discussion (post by M Cole)
10 min read
Is there a fluorescent mineral that will allow one to distinguish between different UVA wavelengths
A recent discussion on Facebook evolved about using a mineral to determine if an LED is 365nm or 405nm. The result of the discussion was...
From FB (by M Cole)
5 min read
Ozone - what's that smell??? Is it bad? How do I get rid of it?
(NOTE: This blog post was archived from the Facebook Fluorescent Mineral Group) Graham F: I bought two of these (bulbs) to make a display...
M Cole
2 min read
Cheap Shortwave Mineral Lights on Ebay (and other places) - BUYER BEWARE!
This needs to be said. Over the years a few disreputable sellers have been marketing a little 4/6 watt shortwave light for fluorescent...
G. Fraser (by M Cole)
3 min read
Does your Hoya Shortwave Filter have White Scum Disease?
Graham Fraser on April 3 Graham Fraser posted a significant discovery on Facebook which is worthy of documenting here in the blog. The...
Fluorescent Mineral Group
9 min read
405nm Laser Pointers - Mega-thread from the FLM FB Group
A large thread developed discussing 405nm laser pointers and their use with fluorescent minerals. The text content is copied below. The...
M Cole
1 min read
Ballasts to drive fluorescent bulbs/tubes
Our UV lights are mostly based on fluorescent bulbs. These bulbs require a special ballast to operate. Lots of folks buy surplus...
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