I would like to pass along some nutty discoveries for your amusement and edification.
A Flashlight
The IKEA Ljusa hand crank flashlight looks like a gaudy pepper grinder. IKEA originally marketed it as a child’s toy. Why would a prepper be interested in something like this?
The Ljusa is interesting because of the source of its power. The hand crank does not charge a traditional battery. It charges a capacitor instead. This characteristic gives the flashlight a virtually indefinite shelf life, since it has no batteries to degrade over time.
I first became interested in the Ljusa a couple of years ago. My grandson put a flashlight on his Christmas wish list. My daughter and son-in-law requested that the flashlight be rechargeable, so that they would not have to buy new batteries every time my grandson forgot to turn it off. I started researching my options.
After due consideration, the flashlight that most caught my interested was the Ljusa. My attention was first drawn by the high ratings given to the light by reviewers. They reported that it was good for children because it is durable and not excessively bright. That may sound like a description of my dog, but those qualities are highly desirable in a flashlight for a child. The soft light it produces makes the Ljusa less likely to damage someone’s eyes if a child should happen to shine the flashlight in their face. Its durability allows it to stand up well to abuse by toddlers over extended periods of time.
The problem that I encountered as I sought to acquire a Ljusa was that they were out of stock everywhere I looked. The flashlight evidently went out of production shortly before I heard about it. In the end, I was forced to buy a different flashlight for my grandson.
Now we can fast forward to the early autumn of 2021. My wife recently had a birthday. I won’t comment on her age. I will merely mention that she is younger and better looking than I am.
After my wife opened her gifts, I asked her what else she would like to do by way of celebration. She indicated that she would like for the two of us to go garage-sale-ing and thrift-store-ing together. So that is what we did.
One of the thrift stores we stopped at contained a delightful surprise. Sitting on a shelf, just as if it was some common, everyday, second-hand item, was a Ljusa in mint condition. It only cost a dollar and a half. I snatched it up, and brought it home for testing.
After arriving home, I searched the internet for a Ljusa manual. IKEA manuals tend to be pretty minimalist, and the one that I found for the Ljusa was no exception. The major information provided by the manual is that 30 turns of the crank fully charges the capacitor, and that this full charge can be expected to produce about 90 seconds of useful light.Continue reading“A Flashlight, A Book, and A Knife, by The Novice”
