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Gerber Mongoose Flashlight

Hiking & Camping > Lighting AccessoriesRated: **** by 1 review.

REI

The water-resistant Gerber Mongoose™ light offers five different colors to let you accomplish nearly any task at hand.

  • Rotating dial lets you choose from five different colored 5mm LEDs to meet your lighting needs; LEDs illuminate up to 12m (30 ft.)
  • Ultraviolet black light is ideal for nighttime activities such as fishing, green light for map reading and white light for general purposes
  • Red light provides visibility without ruining your night vision; blue light helps detect fluids
  • On/off push button allows temporary lighting; sliding switch offers permanent lighting
  • Flexible band with magnetic clip and rip-and-stick strip lets you attach light to just about anything; detach the tail and use the light as a keychain
  • Two CR2032 lithium batteries provide up to 30 hrs. of operation; batteries are included

Batteries:2 CR2032
Battery life at 70 degrees:30 hours
Beam type:Spot
Brightness (lux @ 2 meters):9
Brightness levels:1
Bulb type:LED
Dimensions:7 x 1.5 x 0.8 inches
Material:Plastic
Maximum beam distance:12 meters
Rechargeable:No
Regulated output:No
Strobes:None
Weight with batteries:4 ounces

View other products from Gerber classified in Hiking & Camping > Lighting Accessories.

View all products from Gerber.
View other products classified in Hiking & Camping > Lighting Accessories.

Option Availability:

Use this chart to find which retailer offers this product in the size, color or other options that you desire. Click on the price to purchase.

Color
Black
Black
27.95

Legend

  •     - REI

Gerber Mongoose Flashlight Review Summary:

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Reviews:

Useful, but not without its quirks.

Rating:****
I purchased the Mongoose because I was looking for a red LED light to supplement my headlamp (which also has a red LED mode). I considered the other colors - blue, green, white and UV - to be a nice bonus.
For its size, this light is quite bright. It's perfect for nighttime tasks around the campsite and the ability to switch from white to red ensures you won't be blinding your campmates. It's small and lightweight and since it's so thin it's easy to stow away in any leftover space in your pack.
Depressing the power button halfway illuminates a small indicator light on top so you can be sure you've got the right color selected before you activate the full beam, which is a nice touch. I've found the indicator light itself is bright enough for checking a map or reading a note at night as well.
There's also a sliding toggle which can be used to keep the power button depressed without requiring your thumb to stay on it. Like the switch, the slider has two stages so you can leave either the indicator light on only, or have the main lamp burning handsfree too. There is no way to have the main lamp on and the indicator light off which isn't a big deal normally but might be inconvenient in some situations.

It's not without some other design flaws either. The rotary selector switch takes some getting used to and is impossible to operate one handed. The clip which attaches the light unit to the flexible tail is weak and the light has a tendency to pop off if subjected to any pulling pressure or even swung around too quickly. The rip-and-stick patch on the back is extremely stiff - painful if it rubs against exposed skin and I've had a hard time finding materials it will actually stick to. Not fleece, not webbing and not the waterproof material of my pack. It would probably stick well to a wool cap, but if you need a light on your head just buy a headlamp.

There's also a magnet on the tail end which is a strange choice, since there's not a lot of ferrous metal around the modern campsite. It's a very strong magnet at least. It could definitely be used to magnetize a needle for an emergency compass, and it has all kinds of applications around the house or garage. I wouldn't keep this light and my laptop computer in the same bag though.

Lastly, and most concerning, is that even if you have the selector dial set to 'off', depressing the power button still illuminates the indicator lamp. There's a real concern that accidental pressure on the switch while in your pack could drain the battery, so be careful when packing this light.
Dog Star at REI on 12/18/2008