Anyone use K-Max portable Fluorescent Lighting?

[dsms]

I decided today I need to lighting in my garage mainly to aid in paint correction, my regular halogens arent cutting it and they get way too hot. I found these lights on top of the line and they seem to be perfect. There called K-Max portable fluorescent.



This is off Top Of the Line...



"The new K-Max Fluorescent Light offers more versatility than the K-Boom, folds to a more compact size, and is a more stable. This unique fixture can brilliantly light up any area of a vehicle no matter how dark the environment.



The bulb fixture angles and pivots. The telescopic height adjustment of the entire fixture reaches 1-12 ft, with 5 ft of vertical travel.



A K-MAX costs about a nickel, per 8 hour shift. The fluorescent bulbs last 16 times longer than regular incandescent or halogen. Also keep in mind, only fluorscent bulbs offer broad, gentle light with no glare or shadows."



It looks very versatile and the base would be able to slide under the body with the lights hanging above the paint.

Looking for any feedback on this light.

 

[Accumulator]

They'll probably work fine for general illumination, but I can only see the nastiest marring under fluorescents...they always make the finer flaws invisible to me (and I've played around with a lot of different fluorescent lights).

 

[dsms]

They'll probably work fine for general illumination, but I can only see the nastiest marring under fluorescents...they always make the finer flaws invisible to me (and I've played around with a lot of different fluorescent lights).

What type of light/lighting do you suggest for optimal swirl and defect finding? I really get annoyed now when I do correction and think I can move onto a finishing polish because in my garage everything looks perfect and then I bring the car in the sun and find there are still swirls or holograms left on the paint. Even with my Infratech and standing halogens I sometimes think a finish is perfect until the sun shows me otherwise. I need a better light source for spotting defects that my infratech doesnt even pick up.

 

[Accumulator]

What type of light/lighting do you suggest for optimal swirl and defect finding?

For holograms, I need natural sunlight. I can see pretty nasty ones with the 3M SunGun (used in an otherwise dark shop) for for light ones I simply have to have the sunlight, and it has to be at the right angle too (yeah...what a PIA).



For other marring, I do best with regular old-fashioned incandescent/"normal" lightbulbs! I turn out all the other lights and mess around with the illumination and viewing angle. Sooner or later.. **ZAP** everything is just right and I see flaws that I never spot under other conditions, even in the sun. It can be a little depressing as it seems there's *always* some flaw that I didn't spot before, but at least I know what the paint's condition *really* is.



This works *really* well for me: no more surprises under weird lighting conditions, even on silver.



Metal Halide lights (think gas stations/etc. at night) might work great too, but they'd be a much more involved/expensive proposition.



The incandescents can be as simple as ceiling mounted bare bulbs (a bit limiting as you have to move the car around) or a hand-held work light/trouble light; my local Lowe's has one that takes high wattage bulbs (I use ~300W but even little 60W ones can work great) for maybe $25. Yeah, it's a PIA, especially until you get the hang of it, but I *always* turn out my halogens and do the real inspection with the incandescents.