CR2 Ion

Billson

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Update: 9-6-06

I finally got around to taking some pictures of light after being attached to my keys for months. As you can see there are some scuff marks around the bezel and tail due to contact with the keys but other than that, it still looks pretty nice. It actually looks a bit more polished now after being rubbed around in my pocket.
ion001ql9.jpg

ion002wz5.jpg

ion003yl0.jpg

ion004ql8.jpg


Warning: This is a rather long post so read at your own risk.
Disclaimer: This is my own opinion so for other owners/users, your mileage may vary.

I have a titanium and an aluminum bronze cr2 Ion and I'd like to share my thoughts on this light after playing around with them for the past few days. I saw no reason to post any more pictures as they can be found in powernoodle's thread. I also thought of posting this in that thread but I didn't want to risk being accused of hi-jacking his thread so here goes:

IMHO, the design is simple yet classic and elegant. I can't see it going out of style anytime in the near future. Most people know that the design was inspired by the legendary Larry light but that's where the similarity ends. The Ion has a personality all on its own when it comes to the led, electronics, and performance.

Some have commented that the knurling is too aggressive. The appearance may be aggressive but the feel is not aggressive at all. It's quite smooth without any rough or sharp edges. Even the edges on the front and rear of the light have been ground down to avoid catching or getting tangled on anything.

The split ring does not hinder the functions of the light whether it is deployed or not and it does not fall out when you don't need it. I find no problems with the snug fit because it can be taken out easily with a key or something pointed. You either use it or you don't. It's not like it has to be taken out everytime when one has to use the light.

The light has some weight but it's not heavy at all, at least not for me. The aluminum should be lighter but I don't have one to compare.

As shown by Newbie's runtime test on the light, we know what kind of performance to expect from the light instead of wondering if the claims are true or not. Since Newbie already did some tests on it using primary cr2 cells, I thought of doing a runtime test using AW's 350ma protected cells bought specifically for this light. One important thing to note is that these cells are too short to use in the cr2 without modification as it won't engage high even when fully screwed down. I fixed this by using a folded up piece of aluminum foil and dropped it into the bottom of the tube. It's up to the user to determine how far the light can be screwed down by varying the thickness of the foil. I also noticed some rattling laterally with both primaries and rcr2 so I just wrapped the cell in tape until it slipped snugly into the tube.

Using fully charged cells right off my DSD charger, I got 40 minutes on high. I forgot to use a light meter since I was more interested in how long light would run but there didn't seem to be any noticeable dimming until the cell cut out.

Using a second fully charged cell, I did a second runtime on low. It's a known fact that the low using rcr2 is much brighter than when using primaries but the brightness gradually dimmed until it stabilized for the last hour or so at the same brightness at low when using primary cells. The cells cut out at around 4 hours. I missed the actual cut off but it couldn't have been more than 5 or 10 minutes because I was continually comparing the brightness with my aluminum bronze ion using primaries. It may not be as long as the 120 hour runtime (80 hours flat) on primaries but I don't mind since it's free lumens and all throughout the test, I could still engage high which may not be possible with the primaries when they are close to dying.

I like the flood beam of the Ion because even on high, the light is still soft enough without being blinding. It's perfect for all practical uses since I expect to be using this light mostly for close up work. If I wanted a light that throws, I'd definitely be using something with a much bigger reflector and longer runtime. It should be remembered that this is meant to be a keychain light which is not really suitable for outdoor use.

The tint of the led on both my lights falls somewhere between WO and XO. It's a cool white that's a little warm and I like it a lot. I'm very impressed with the Cree led because I can't notice any tint in the beam and no tint shift between low and high. Makes me wonder if just won the led lottery or if this is typical with Cree's binning. I hope it's the latter because Lumileds can't do this even within the same bins and tint shifts very noticeably when running different current levels.

It's difficult to estimate the lumens value of the light because this is my first flood light but side by side with my HDS EDC, low seems to be around 1 lumen but like I said it is still white whereas my HDS shows an obvious yellow tint at this low level. I haven't tried to measure high yet because I don't expect to be using high very much. I'll update this post if/when I get to it.

One thing that got me thinking is that the reflector does not seem to be highly polished as Endeavor stated. Mine seems to be a matte finish. Since it is a known fact that there are always losses due to heat, reflector, and lens, I wonder if any lumens are lost due to the reflector not being coated as heat seems to have been managed as best as could be and we all know what benefits the UCL gives.

I did the runtime test with light submerged in a bowl of water so the light is waterproof. I'd be curious to know the actual depth rating if anyone is willing to do the test since the body (titanium) is virtually indestructible so the o-rings and the lens seem to be the only weak links. This would seem to be a futile exercise though as I doubt a flood beam would be of much use underwater.

In conclusion, this light is not for everybody. For someone looking for a WOW light, you should look elsewhere. The Ion was designed with practicality in mind and it seems to satisfy every criteria I can think of in a task light. It works plain and simple with no frills, bells, and whistles.

PS Moderators, if you think this thread is better to be merged with powernoodle's thread, please fell free to do so.
 
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LowWorm

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The design, to my eyes, is practically a copy of the famous "Larry Light." With the exception of the Larry Light having a tighter, sleeker build.

Good thing for Endeavor that Larry's not MagLite... ;).

Thanks for the review, Billson. It's been interesting to see the various opinions on the functionality of this light.
 

Billson

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Unless I'm mistaken, during the initial planning stage of the Ion, Endeavor stated that he asked Larry for his permission to design a light based on his prior work and Larry had no objections because he had no plans of mass producing his light for public consumption.

As I said above, despite the fact that it's based on Larry's design, the similarities end there as everything else had to be re-designed from the ground up for all the new and improved parts from the optics to the electronics.

Then again, for users like me, does it really matter whose design it is? The bottom line is it's a very nice light with very good functionality.

Endeavor can correct me if I'm wrong about this. I'm real glad he took up the challenge of bringing this light to reality for CPF.:goodjob:
 
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Planterz

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Billson said:
One thing that got me thinking is that the reflector does not seem to be highly polished as Endeavor stated. Mine seems to be a matte finish. Since it is a known fact that there are always losses due to heat, reflector, and lens, I wonder if any lumens are lost due to the reflector not being coated as heat seems to have been managed as best as could be and we all know what benefits the UCL gives.
It's my understanding that the reflector is purposely matte/unpolished. This makes the flood effect rather than the typical hotspot with sidespill most lights have.

Nice review. Makes me get antsy about receiving my Al-bronze (damn Presidents day...).
 

Rudi

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Lowworm said: The design, to my eyes, is practically a copy of the famous "Larry Light." With the exception of the Larry Light having a tighter, sleeker build.

My brass Larry CR2-II is not only a tighter sleeker build. It is, even at first glance, like a fine hand-made jewel as compared to the fine machine tool feeling of the CR2-Ion. Narrower by 1/16" diameter, more compact (about 15% less volume), much finer knurling and threads, noticeably lighter, and M U C H more expensive.

Having said that, I love my aluminum-bronze CR2-Ion and consider it a fair value for the price. It looks good and feels good and performs marvelously for its intended purpose. If you need to illuminate distant tree tops don't get this light, but if you need to read in bed without disturbing the adjacent one, you'll love the CR2-Ion's exquisitely smooth flood beam and extra-long runtime on low --- I get 21 hours from a primary CR2 battery in perfect regulation before it even begins to drop in intensity. On high it will adequately illuminate a large room, but only for about 40 minutes. Now for me 40 minutes is inadequate runtime in a single intensity light, but with a low setting available, overall runtime is greatly extended, making 40 minutes on high quite acceptable. Your priorities may vary.

Well done, Enrique.
 
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Zman

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I've only had the light a very short time (hours), but wanted to chime in as well. I love the low level. Its great for reading, I know my wife always wants to read in the car next to me and it will be perfect for that. I usually carry something too powerful and not so nice to batteries. I'm happy with the fit and finish as well. Forty minutes on high, not sure what I think yet, but I believe most of my use will be taking advantage of the low. Possibly more thoughts later when its dark.
 

CroMAGnet

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I cant wait to get mine! I have plans for it. Big plans! Anyway, I was wondering about the comments on the reflector. I was able to play with the light for half an hour or so and really love it. I wonder if polishing the reflector like the McFlood would affect the beam or just add more lumens and LUX without changing the beam pattern. Any ideas or facts on this?
 

Haz

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CroMAGnet said:
I cant wait to get mine! I have plans for it. Big plans! Anyway, I was wondering about the comments on the reflector. I was able to play with the light for half an hour or so and really love it. I wonder if polishing the reflector like the McFlood would affect the beam or just add more lumens and LUX without changing the beam pattern. Any ideas or facts on this?

I remember someone polished the arc aaa aluminium reflector, so more lumens are reflected forward, but i'm not sure how it will affect the beam in the CR2 ION.

I accidently added too much silicone grease on the threads and created a vacuum seal on the ION whilst i was tightening the head.
So when i tried to turn the head off again, the head itself was untightening, the part where the lens is, instead of the normal part since the vacuum seal made it stuck. I was able to remove the lens, and have access to the reflector. Since there was some slight marks on the reflector, i was able to clean up the reflector. The gasket originally was not aligned that well on my unit as i could see a slither of gasket from the front end of the light, and this was corrected too!. I then put the head back together again. Lastly, with some tight squeezing of the head, I released the vacuum seal, and was able to remove the entire head again, wiping away excess silicon grease.
 
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xochi

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I've polished a few Arc AAA reflectors and I'm pleased with the results . I've also had great results with the infinity which is a bit more dramatic since it entails removing the anodize as well.

While trying to find a way of nondestructively opening up the head of a fenix L1P I tried a DCM based paint stripper which did dissolve the epoxy but it also dissolved the reflector metalization. I'd planned on swapping in a McGizmo flector anyhow so that was no big deal but I was curious about what the matte bare aluminum reflector beam would look like. The effect of the matte reflector on the beam was aparently a loss of lumens and a fuzziness in the beam.

The Ion Reflector is sort of odd in that it isn't a parabola and calling it a cone doesn't seem right either. IMHO any difusion effect of the less reflective surface is redundant as the xlamp already produces a very even spread consistent with its large die size. I wouldn't expect a dramatic change in the beam but I do think that polishing might sharpen the beam a bit and reduce the "soft white" effect. The "soft white" effect was exactly what I got with the matte fenix reflector. The overall flood character of the beam will remain.
 

CroMAGnet

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xochi said:
I've polished a few Arc AAA reflectors and I'm pleased with the results . I've also had great results with the infinity which is a bit more dramatic since it entails removing the anodize as well.

While trying to find a way of nondestructively opening up the head of a fenix L1P I tried a DCM based paint stripper which did dissolve the epoxy but it also dissolved the reflector metalization. I'd planned on swapping in a McGizmo flector anyhow so that was no big deal but I was curious about what the matte bare aluminum reflector beam would look like. The effect of the matte reflector on the beam was aparently a loss of lumens and a fuzziness in the beam.

The Ion Reflector is sort of odd in that it isn't a parabola and calling it a cone doesn't seem right either. IMHO any difusion effect of the less reflective surface is redundant as the xlamp already produces a very even spread consistent with its large die size. I wouldn't expect a dramatic change in the beam but I do think that polishing might sharpen the beam a bit and reduce the "soft white" effect. The "soft white" effect was exactly what I got with the matte fenix reflector. The overall flood character of the beam will remain.
Excellent info guys. SO how do you go about polishing the Ion reflector. Maybe I can get Enrique to send me one with my order.
 

CLHC

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Interesting review and comments. I was looking at this particular light with interest because of its size. But I want something that's bright as my McLux.PD on high and not the high being as low or lower than the low setting on the McLux.PD.

Enjoy! :wave:
 

CroMAGnet

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I just got off the phone with Enrique and he is mailing my Blue Ion!! Yea!!

Anyway we had a short talk over a Starbuck's double lowfat Latte regarding the reflector. :)

He said it did tests with the polishing and preferred the current design. Seems like the CREE shows blueish rings when this reflector is polished. Also the reflector is attached to the assembly so I couldn't just get one, polish it and swap it in. (Enique, please correct me if I missed something) Thanks for going over these details with me.

Best wishes with your recent family events.
 

CroMAGnet

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Just got back into town this weekend and went to the office to pick up my Blue CR2 Ion. It's pretty nice.

The reflector is a bit smoother that I remember from the prototype I saw and used.

When I turn the light to high it shines nice and bright and then drops down about 20% lower after about 3 or 4 seconds to where it stays. Anyone else experience this?

I also remember getting 1-LUX on low but this version gets 7 LUX which is a lot more light than the LionCub on low or a few other lights I have.

The beam color is a nice white.

I'll measure the mA draw tomorrow.

BTW What type of LiON battery can be used with this? A 3.0v or 3.7v or ?

Any runtime graphs on low and high with both battery types?
 

fore

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What kind of primary are you using? I was also surprised by the brightness of the low setting when I used it the first time. I prefer a lower setting than most and the description of the prototype low beam was one of the reasons I purchased it. I thought the same setting was used on the production models as the prototype? Would lightly sanding the reflector smooth out the beam even more?

I've never used an RCR2 in the Ion, but from what I've read 3.7V cells are compatible, but there's not much of a difference between low and high when those cells are used. Perhaps a 3.0V Li-ion would be better? Has anyone tried this? I think I remember a runtime of around 4 or 5 hours on low with a 3.7V RCR2.
 

jar3ds

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hum... thats a bummer... i was expecting the low to be 'pretty dim' compared to other lights that still hurt my eyes on low in pitch black situations... hummmm....
 

coyote

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hey jar3ds,
of all my lights, i like the Ion best for low-light use.
the beam is smooth and seems about the perfect brightness for both close work and walking in pitch black areas.
i live off the grid and when there's no moon, this is the light i use for reading and hiking to the outhouse.
hope that helped,
coyote
 

bwm

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CroMAGnet said:
When I turn the light to high it shines nice and bright and then drops down about 20% lower after about 3 or 4 seconds to where it stays. Anyone else experience this?
No, with a fresh primary and a fresh rcr2 I see no drop in light output up to one minute later from initially turning the light onto high.

I also remember getting 1-LUX on low but this version gets 7 LUX which is a lot more light than the LionCub on low or a few other lights I have.
I don't have a light meter but I do have an HDS Ultimate 60GT with an SF04 heavy diffuser. I find that the light output of my CR2 Ion on low with a primary cell is roughly equivalent to level 9 on the HDS (about 4 lumens) and using an rcr2 is equivalent to level 7 (about 8 lumens). Using an rcr2 after about an hours use I compared it to the HDS again and found that level 8 (about 6 lumens) was then closest.

BTW What type of LiON battery can be used with this? A 3.0v or 3.7v or ?
I bought rcr2's from AW and have been using them in my CR2 with no problem (protected 3.7 volt 350mAh).
Any runtime graphs on low and high with both battery types?
Planterz stated in another thread that he was getting 3.75 to 4 hours on low with an RCR2. I have not done any runtime test myself.


jar3ds said:
hum... thats a bummer... i was expecting the low to be 'pretty dim' compared to other lights that still hurt my eyes on low in pitch black situations... hummmm....
Comparing the output of the CR2 Ion to my other lights I find that on low with a primary cell the output is a little brighter than my Gerber Infinity Ultra and significantly dimmer than my Arc-AAA Premium. Remember that the Gerber and Arc have most of their light contained in the hotspot whereas much more of the light from the CR2 Ion is spread across the width of the beam. That said, I do find that I prefer to use the Gerber for middle of the night, avoid kicking the cat, bathroom runs.

For reading with a flashlight I find the low of the CR2 Ion with its flood beam is best. The HDS with an SF04 filter is second best. The CR2 Ion illuminates all of both pages of a paperback while the HDS I find I need to move slightly side to side to get the same illumination of the page.

Lastly, in comparing the light from my HDS U60GT to that of the CR2 Ion I find the HDS puts out what I would call a warm white (very slight yellow cast) while the CR2 Ion in comparison to the HDS is what I would call a cool white (very slight blue cast). Using either light on its own each appears pure white it is only shining both at a white wall side by side that I notice a difference.

Brian
 

jar3ds

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thanks for the great post brian... VERY helpful! Its nice when we have two of the same lights :)

I prefer white or blue-ish white tints to my LED's... good to know about the CR2 ion...

I'll have to give this some thought... man i love small bright lights :)... i got'a get going on my quad LuxV maglight mod though so I can have a real screamer :D...
 

CroMAGnet

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I Spoke with Enrique yesterday and he cleared up a bunch of items. See the blue text below.
CroMAGnet said:
Just got back into town this weekend and went to the office to pick up my Blue CR2 Ion. It's pretty nice.

The reflector is a bit smoother that I remember from the prototype I saw and used. The prototype had a rough reflector and basically no hotspot which I really liked. The final version has a polished reflector which does give a hint of a hotspot as well as neutralize the tint. The prototype was much warmer in color. The 'hotspot' is wide and even but has a faint circle of dimness around it. Only noticable on a white wall if you look carefully.

When I turn the light to high it shines nice and bright and then drops down about 20% lower after about 3 or 4 seconds to where it stays. Anyone else experience this?This is due to the large batch of BatteryStation CR2 primary that came with the light. [discussed in the CR2 Ion thread] I put in a new CR2 and it worked perfectly. [however, I did get some flicker last night after minimal use. Maybe this light only likes Duracells?]

I also remember getting 1-LUX on low but this version gets 7 LUX which is a lot more light than the LionCub on low or a few other lights I have. retesting pending

The beam color is a nice white.

I'll measure the mA draw tomorrow.[I found it difficult to measure the Ma draw but I think I got 75mA on low]

BTW What type of LiON battery can be used with this? A 3.0v or 3.7v or ?Yes but you lose the low level

Any runtime graphs on low and high with both battery types?I heard on a good CR2 high can be anywhere from 1.5hr + and low upto 140 hrs IIRC
 
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bwm

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Regarding the lack of a high with RCR2's the first post of this thread addresses this:

Billson said:
... AW's 350ma protected cells bought specifically for this light. One important thing to note is that these cells are too short to use in the cr2 without modification as it won't engage high even when fully screwed down. I fixed this by using a folded up piece of aluminum foil and dropped it into the bottom of the tube. It's up to the user to determine how far the light can be screwed down by varying the thickness of the foil.
I cut a piece of aluminum foil and folded it small and placed it in the bottom of my CR2 Ion and have both a low and high available.

Brian
 
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