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See the 15 tests

1. In the box
2. Rechargeable battery
3. Charge time
4. Dimmer key
5. Brightness – lumen output
6. Run times
7. Shine area
8. Light quality
9. Battery indicator lights
10. Handle
11. Portability
12. Waterproofing
13. Drop testing
14. Globe replacement
15. Warranty
16. Pros, cons, recommendations
17. Bonus – MUST read!

In the Box

I walked into a camping shop one day, saw the Barebones lantern, and bought it off the shelf because it looks so cool. Here’s what came in the box:

• Railroad lantern
• Provided USB-C cable
• User guide
• Rechargeable battery

Rechargeable Battery

The removable battery slots into the housing at the bottom of the lantern.

• Battery 2-18650, 4,400 mAh, 3.7V, 16.28Wh

Charge Time

Open the little black flap at the back for the 5V USB-C input, and use the provided USB-C cable.

• Full charge 7 hrs 45 min

Dimmer Key

The dimmer key at the front turns the lantern on and off and adjusts brightness.

Brightness – Lumen Output

• Max brightness 382 lumensmarketed 200 lumens
• Min brightness 0 lumensmarketed 35 lumens

Run Times

• Max brightness 5.25 hrsmarketed 3.5 hours
• Min brightness 522 hrsmarketed 100 hours

Shine Area

On the highest setting the shine area came in at 8.6 feet — the size of a 14-person tent.

The dimmest setting is perfect for chilling in the tent with a little night light.

Light Quality

• Color temperature 3,000 Kelvina warm yellow ambiance

The globe has a gorgeous seeded glass effect, but it’s minimally frosted — it would have been easier on the eyes with more frosting.

Battery Indicator Lights

Four battery indicator lights sit above the USB-C flap. They were somewhat accurate, but not all the time. On the brightest setting:

• 4 lights 100%
• 3 lights 71%
• 2 lights 52%
• 1 light 33%
• 0 lights 0%

Pretty accurate — until you see the dimmest setting:

• 4 lights 100%
• 3 lights 43%
• 2 lights 22%
• 1 light 6%
• 0 lights 0%

Handle

A single handle at the top with ample space makes it easy to carry.

Portability

• Weight 30 oz
• Packed size 6.5 x 6.5 x 9.25 in

Waterproofing

There’s no waterproofing rating on the Railroad, and for good reason. After 15 to 30 minutes of heavy rain, water had got into the entire lantern — droplets all over the place, and I had to take everything apart to dry.

Note Barebones warns that extended exposure to wet conditions may cause rust.

Drop Testing

I dropped it from hand height and it held up without a single crack — that’s what the outer cage is for, protecting it from butter fingers like mine.

Globe Replacement

If the globe breaks you can replace it yourself:

1. Check for globe replacement symbol
2. Unscrew top screw cap and rubber gasket
3. Remove metal hood
4. Unscrew hex nut from center rod
5. Remove water shroud
6. Remove wiring connector and place it into center rod
7. Lift LED module and put it down face-up
8. Remove glass globe and replace it!

I learned how from the official Barebones tutorial.

Warranty

The official website lists a 2-year limited warranty — not the shortest, but I wish it were longer.

Pros, Cons, Recommendations

Now, why do I think this is one of the best vintage camping lanterns ever?

Aesthetic is amazing

The timeless appeal of this Barebones lantern is fantastic — the seeded glass effect, copper accents and edison-style bulb all look amazing. It’s a modern twist on the antique Union Pacific lantern, upgraded a hundred times over.

High quality

The level of detail and durable construction is awesome, and it blew some of my tests out of the water:

Tests	Official specs	My results
Brightest output	200 lumens	382 lumens
Dimmest output	35 lumens	0 lumens
Max run-time	100 hours	522 hours
Lighting area	Unsure	232 sq. ft.

Max output was twice what I expected and the dimmest was lower, giving more than double the brightness range. The 522-hour run-time is more than 5 times the marketed figure, and 232 sq. ft. lights up even a 14-person tent.

Simple-to-use

A single dimmer key that’s completely intuitive.

Completely adjustable brightness

The dimmer turns more than 180 degrees — closer to 225 degrees — which gives a lot of control over brightness.

Replaceable battery

The 2-18650 li-ion battery is replaceable straight from Barebones when capacity drops. That’s very rare on a rechargeable lantern.

Note This 18650 battery is proprietary to Barebones though. For a regular battery-operated lantern, see my review of the Black Diamond Apollo (I typically use Eneloop batteries).

USB-C cable

It comes with a USB-C cable, which is rare across my lanterns — and it isn’t proprietary, so any USB-C cable works.

Long charging time

Almost 8 hours for a full charge.

No charging output

There’s only a single input port — no power-bank output for charging electronics.

Not waterproof

No IP rating at all.

Heavy and bulky

At 30 oz this is easily my biggest and bulkiest rechargeable lantern.

Bonus – MUST Read!

Every figure above is from my own testing — measured by hand, bought with my own money.