Black_&_Decker LED Snake Work Light Comparison Review for the 5 Snake/Flexible Lights I've Used/Own

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I have/used 5 snake/flexible lights including: Pictures of all the snake lights I have used are at: http://s208.photobucket.com/albums/bb277/cptcanuck2/Snake Lights/

1) This new LED Black & Decker snakelight
2) The older Black & Decker filament bulb snakelight model from the 90s which can aim stiffly and grab vertical poles no problem; however, it only has 2 inches clearance shining straight down.
3) The filament bulb Grip Light (found on eBay), which has a snake section on par with the older Black & Decker filament bulb snakelight meaning it can aim stiffly and grab vertical poles no problem, but in addition, its unique swiveling head can rotate about 60° to give it a superior 6 inches clearance shining straight down.  The ends do not lock together like the two Black & Deckers can, but it does have a removable snake grip if you just want a conventional flashlight.  The only disappointment is that it has the smallest light beam, which is yellowish.  The beam is satisfactory as a spot light but not an area light.
4) I have experience with the Dewalt snake light.  I like the Dewalt for its perpendicular bulb for maximum clearance pointing down, a stiff snake grip that can grab vertical poles, and a heavier flat battery base; however, the total cost of a light, a charger, and 2 batteries is $200 Canadian/$150 U.S., too expensive if you are not a tradesman.
5) The LED Wholesalers 14 inch (length of snake section) Aluminum snake light (From eBay).  It didn't meet my specifications because it has only 2 inches clearance pointing down and can't grab vertical poles at all.  It can aim in any direction, so it can wrap around you neck to aim in front of you, or it can wrap 1 1/2 turns around a long horizontal pole to be securely aimed (just like the new Black & Decker LED snakelight).  It's snake section is removable to make a conventional flashlight.  I notice the Sears / Craftsman 17 inch LED flexible light model on Epinions looks exactly the same but is 3 inches longer, giving at least 1.5 inches more clearance because of the need to bend 180°.  Through testing I did, if the Sears picture is realistic, its snake section bends better than the one I have: http://reviews.sears.com/2328/03493677000P/reviews.htm

Simple light beam test standing in my bathroom doorway 2.36 m/7 feet, 9 inches from the shower wall:
1st place) The new LED Black & Decker snakelight in worklight mode practically can replace the bathroom light, with no flickering.
2nd place) The LED Wholesalers 14 inch Aluminum snake light (From eBay) which had a 1.5 m/59 inch beam with a small amount of flickering.
3rd place tie) Both the new LED Black & Decker snakelight in flashlight mode & the old filament bulb Black & Decker snakelight had a 1.09 m/43 inch beam with no flickering.
4th place) The Grip Light which had a 48 cm/19 inch yellowish beam with a small amount of flickering.

Note:  Not included yet in this test is the Dewalt which I don't own, but I remember it as having an excellent light beam.  Anyways, when I made parking garage foundations, any of these light beams would have done the job for me because what was more important was hands free operation, so I could drill out screws with both hands holding my drill in the darkness.

Both the flashlight beams and the worklight beams are nice and bright.  When I couldn't open my mom's car door to see if a dog muzzle was in her car, I had no problem using using this light, especially the 14 bulb worklight to locate the muzzle from outside the car in the dark.  The worklight is bright enough to light up a general area with multiple people working.

I prefer to keep my old Black & Decker snakelight that cost $4 (Can) in a thrift store and $12.47 (Can) for a new bulb from my local Black & Decker service centre.  I like it because of its perfectly stiff snake grip, which is why, although discontinued, they still sell well on eBay for over $20 (Can).  I know from losing 2 bids.

This Youtube ad video shows how the older Black & Decker snakelight could grab and stiffly aim: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jc2Doeozw_M

The new snake grip is springy, and slippery.  It can stay in place well around your neck by bending 180° or on a horizontal pole by turning 1 1/2 turns.  However, it can't stiffly aim nor grab vertical poles at all like the old Black & Decker snakelight could even though there is a picture of the new Black & Decker LED snakelight grabbing a vertical pole on the box???  How could Black & Decker get the snake grip right with the old model, and get it wrong with the new model?
 
The new snakelight is improved over the old model for having LED bulbs that are both perpendicular and in-line.  Perpendicular bulbs allow the light to fit in tighter spaces and for a 9.5 inch maximum clearance when shining straight down although I am able to stand my snakelights up in heavy bottles for maximum clearance also.  LED bulbs themselves last practically forever.  Thanks to the LED bulbs the box says the batteries last 64 hours using the 3 bulb flashlight , and the batteries last 5 hours using 14 bulb worklight.  I know from cycling that my bike light batteries last 2 years thanks to the LED bulbs. 

Both Black & Deckers and the Grip Light light take 2 C cells; wall / pocket chargers do not charge C cells (Tell me if I'm wrong; I searched hard), but on eBay or Amazon, you can buy C cell sleeves / adaptors / adapters / shells / converters / battery holders / spacers (for searching purposes) that fit an AA cell inside.  They range from $1 each plus shipping to the pricier Sanyo Eneloop packages (I just bought one.  4 Sanyo Eneloop NiMH AAs last 3.5 hours in my 2.5 inch 3.7 W Casio model EV-680B color TV, and they charge back up in the Sanyo NiMH charger in 7 hours.  Sanyo claims its Eneloop NiMH rechargable batteries retain 85% of their charge after 1 year, ideal for flashlights.  I've read plenty of positive reviews on the Sanyo Eneloops and other low discharge NiMHs on the internet).  AA/AAA/C/D batteries are all 1.5 volts.  E=IR, so IR(C cell) = IR(AA cell).  The R's cancel, so I(C cell) = I(AA cell), so because P=IE, the C cells and AA cells produce the same power and therefore the same light beam, which agrees with my testing.  Therefore, the reason Black & Decker chose the C batteries over the more common and convenient AA batteries has to be increased shine time, which is important for flashlights during power outages.

The new model has a removable snake grip if you just want a conventional flashlight; however, I don't see myself removing it ever.  The snake grip can fold in two to lock both ends together (like the older model), and the light is not hard to carry as a flashlight that way.

Examples of how I used a snake light:
1) Getting a toilet seat back on.  To help me see and have both hands free to line up the tight fitting pegs with the holes.
2) Making parking garage foundations (cribbing).  I need a light that easily points straight down with good clearance to get deep screws out of wooden concrete forms in the dark.  There is a lot of scaffolding that I would prefer a snakelight to tightly grab.

Way NOT to go Black & Decker.  If only the snake grip could grab vertical poles and aim without any springiness, this light would get 5/5 stars from me and be the light that could finally do everything.  I asked at my Black & Decker service centre if it's possible to switch the new LED Black & Decker snakegrip with the stiffer filament bulb Black & Decker snakegrip, but was told that's not possible.

So, I have/used 5 snake/flexible lights and am not 100% happy with either of them because the snake light I want to buy, that I have not found yet, has 4 specifications:
1) is reasonably priced (eliminates the Dewalt)
2) grabs vertical poles (eliminates the new Black & Decker LED snakelight)
3) is LED
4) has at least 6 inches clearance shining straight down

My 2 Black & Decker lights together can do everything I want for now.  Apart from the Dewalt, it's hard to find snake lights in stores, so this light gets 4/5 stars from me in part by default because of the lack of competition.

Credits:  I'd like to thank eBay seller jr12dog for 100% donating the Grip Light (including $7.61 U.S. for shipping) for this review, which is why I am keeping all of these lights except for the Dewalt in my possession for the purpose of this review, so if you have any questions, go to my epinions.com account and email me. 

If you have more snake/flexible lights that you would like to donate/lend (possibly a manufacturer would be interested in lending with prepaid return postage) for my review, email me for my shipping address in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.  The ones I'm most interested in are the ones that grab vertical poles (I'll reimburse the postage through PayPal for these ones) because they are hard to find with the exception of the Dewalt.

Links: 1) review backed up at with links, pictures, and videos: http://www.myspace.com/cptcanuck2 > Snake/Flexible Light Review
2) http://www.flashlightmuseum.com/