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FOG HORN March 2018

Twobirds Flying Publication

COAST Lights, Knives and Multi-Tools


HX5, HX4 and HP3R Rechargeable

Copyright 2018, Towbirds Flying Publication. All Rights Reserved.


COAST Lights, Knives and Multi-Tools -HX5, HX4 and HP3R Rechargeable
2018

COAST Lights, Knives and Multi-Tools -


HX5, HX4 and HP3R Rechargeable

By: Sal Palma

COAST, a Pacific Northwest company, based in


Portland Oregon was founded by Henry Brands COAST’s HX5 is a light weight compact flashlight
in 1919. Shortly after moving to Oregon, Henry that comes in at approximately 2.5oz and 4.125
Brands worked as a sales manager for a large inches with the focusing bezel fully extended.
wholesale hardware company, traveling to
towns of all sizes throughout the Northwest The HX5 features and aluminum housing with
selling hardware—including cutlery—to local O-ring seals at the bezel and battery cap so it is
merchants. After seeing firsthand that the fillet IPX4 rated. IPX4 offers protection from a splash
knives he was peddling were wholly inadequate of water in any direction for at least five
for gutting the Pacific Northwest’s 50-pound minutes.
chinooks, Henry Brands had a better idea. He
This light offers momentary and continuous
teamed up with a local metal smith to design
illumination powered by a single AA battery.
and fashion a new fillet knife. This new tool was
The light will run on a lithium or alkaline
stiffer, had a thicker blade and featured a metal
battery. Rated output with a lithium battery
scoop on the back. Now slicing, cleaning and
installed is 345 lumens with a run time of 45
filleting could be done with one tool. Since then
minutes and 130 lumens with the alkaline
COAST continued making tools for professionals
battery with a run time of 3 hours and 45
and those who work like professionals.
minutes. It’s important to note that the LED is
In this review, I’ll introduce three of the not regulated so light output will change as the
company’s lighting products starting with the battery drains.
HX5 handheld flashlight.

Copyright 2018, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved


COAST Lights, Knives and Multi-Tools -HX5, HX4 and HP3R Rechargeable
2018
The COAST HX5 does not use a reflector to The HX5 ships with a pocket
focus the light beam; instead, the light is clip that can also be used to
focused using a lens. Moving the focusing bezel mount the light to your hat “a
forward will focus the beam and moving it back la” headlamp.
will diffuse the beam, an effect that its
packaging calls flood. Next on the list is COAST’s
HP3R Rechargeable penlight.
Here, kudos to COAST for including alkaline and
rechargeable batteries, USB cable, a.c. charger
and d.c. charger. Literally everything that you
need ships with the HP3R.

At a distance of approximately 45 feet the spot


beam provides excellent illumination but as we
move out from the center of the hot spot we
actually see dark spots in the peripheral
lighting. This is a function of the focusing lens.

Here again, COAST dispenses with a reflector


and concentrates the light beam using a
Universal Focusing Optic that rotates to the
desired beam focus.

The HP3R is a dual output and dual power


source light which COAST markets as a Flex
Charge Dual Power System. The included
rechargeable lithium battery powers this sleek
5.8 inch light to 245 lumens, on high, with a run
Compare the HX5 beam with a comparably time of 1 hour and 30 minutes, and 26 lumens,
priced JET light. When tightly focused, the Jet on low, with a 6 hour runtime. The alkaline
light has zero peripheral lighting and the hot power source powers the HP3R to 86 lumens,
spot takes on a peculiar rectangular shape. on high, with a 2 hour runtime and 10 lumens,
on low, with a runtime of 26 hours.

Copyright 2018, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved


COAST Lights, Knives and Multi-Tools -HX5, HX4 and HP3R Rechargeable
2018
The HP3R is the ideal inspection light and way to regulate the output like the HP3R which
COAST must have certainly had the mechanic in has a high and low mode of operation.
mind, but it works equally well for inspecting However, its 80 lumens of output make for an
your firearm’s receiver, breech or bore. excellent navigation light. Clip it to your hat,
vest or belt; the HX4 generates an abundance of
My only beef with the HP3R is that, unlike the light to help you navigate obstacles. The red
HX5, the pocket clip does not allow the light
light preserves night adapted vision.
seat as deeply into the pocket as I would like.
Personal preference but certainly not a show In conclusion, COAST has done a great job of
stopper by any means. bringing to market a number of lighting
products that outperform similar retail offerings
from competing suppliers, but It would be
disingenuous to present these lights as
professional grade equipment or to compare
them to Streamlight, Surefire or even Elzetta.
The HX5, HX4 and HP3R are general use lighting
products available from Lowes, Home Depot,
Walmart, Target and digital retailers like
Amazon. All COAST lights carry a lifetime
warranty from the manufacturer.

The take away from this review is that COAST


Last on my list is COAST’s HX4, L.E.D. clip-on
lights outperformed its peers by a sizable
light. The HX4 is powered by two AAA batteries
margin, give them a try.
and has two modes of operation, white and red
light. This light has an articulating head that
-SP
moves through an estimated 130° arc allowing
the wearer to direct light as needed.

The HX4 has a white light output of 80 lumens


with a run time of 3 hours and 45 minutes. As
with all of the lights reviewed, the HX4 is not
regulated so output will change as the battery is
drained. It’s also not waterproof rated by the
manufacturer.

The light can be worn on a MOLLE field or it can


also be belt mounted. The clip and articulating
head makes it possible for the HX4 to be worn
on a hat as well.

If I had to describe its proper application it


would not be a task light because there’s no

Copyright 2018, Twobirds Flying Publication, All Rights Reserved

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