EagleTac P10C Review (1xCR123A/RCR) - RUNTIMES, BEAMSHOTS, and more!

selfbuilt

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Reviewer's Note: This is a review of the EagleTac P10C (1xCR123A/RCR) light. The P10C was purchased from lighthound.com, but I know 4sevens is also offering them at EagleTac-store.com.

EagleTac is a new arrival on the flashlight scene. Although their various builds seem superficially reminiscent of a few other makers (most especially Olight), there are a number of distinctive features. Circuity is also interesting, as these are simple 2-stage lights (e.g. reminiscent of the Fenix LxT series, mode switching performed by a head twist). How does the 1xCR123A/RCR P10C light stack up to the competition? Scroll down and see ...

P10C-8.jpg


Packaging is very reminiscent of current Surefire packaging. :whistle:

P10C-0.jpg


Light comes with a removable bi-directional pocket clip, manual, extra o-ring, extra switch boot cover and wrist lanyard.

UPDATE: Some users have reported removing the clip on Eagletac lights can scratch the anodizing in the clip ring groove. But I've found that adding a little teflon oil lube to the area first reduces the risk.

P10C-9.jpg


As you can see, size fits in pretty well with the larger 1xCR123A/RCR lights.

Weight: 67.0g
Length: 94mm
Width: 26mm at the head, 23mm at the tailcap

P10C-5.jpg

P10C-6.jpg

P10C-7.jpg

P10C-4.jpg


The P10C is of very high quality. All components feel very sturdy, and everything fits together well. Screws threads are top-notch, and very smooth. Tailcap threads are anodized, allowing tailcap lockout. Hand feel is excellent. Light can tailstand, and comes with a forward clicky. A real stand-out. :thumbsup:

Lettering is remarkably sharp and clear. Type-III anodizing is perfect throughout the body of the light - although it is somewhat worn off along one edge of the clip on my sample.

P10C-3.jpg

P10C-1.jpg


The light features an attractive stainless steel bezel ring, and the head assembly seems of high quality. The reflector is very deep, with what I would describe as a light orange-peel texturing (LOP). Interestingly, there's a greenish tinge when looking at the reflector, most noticeable when the light is on:

P10C-2.jpg


This is likely due to the anti-reflective coating on the lens - but it doesn't seem to affect beam tint appreciably. The deeper reflector and low level of texturing should translate into decent throw. To get an idea, here are a few beamshots - below is a comparison to the Fenix P2D (Q5) and JetBeam Jet-II IBS, all lights on max (pics taken ~0.5 m from a white wall).

P10C-Beam1.jpg

P10C-Beam2.jpg

P10C-Beam3.jpg

P10C-Beam4.jpg


As you see in the pics, the P10C throws very well – better than the P2D, but not as well as the Jet-II. Surprisingly for a light OP, it also has a very nice beam profile with minimal Cree rings. For a more detailed throw/output comparison, see my Summary chart below.

Testing Method: All my output numbers are relative for my home-made light box setup, a la Quickbeam's flashlightreviews.com method. You can directly compare all my relative output values from different reviews - i.e. an output value of "10" in one graph is the same as "10" in another. All runtimes are done under a cooling fan, except for the extended run Lo/Min modes which are done without cooling.

Throw values are the square-root of lux measurements taken at 1 meter from the lens, using a light meter.

Throw/Output Summary Chart:

P10C-Summary.gif


As suggested by the beamshots, throw on the P10C is very good – it rivals that of my Surefire E1B and NiteCore Extreme. The Jet-II lights (also OP reflectors) remain the throw champions, however.

Overall output is quite interesting. The P10C is very close to the max output of the NiteCore Extreme and Jet-II IBS/PRO on RCR (although my Jet-II IBS still has a slight edge).

On primary CR123A, there is no contest – the P10C is the clear winner. Simply put, the P10C's initial output on CR123A is even slightly higher than its RCR output. :eek: That's a new one for me - it is certainly something none of the other contenders can match.

Of course, I expect this will result in a significant runtime reduction as a trade-off ... :whistle:

Output/Runtime Comparison:

P10C-HiRCR.gif

P10C-HiPrim.gif


... and it does. ;) As you can see, runtime for the P10C on CR123A is the lowest of any of my 1xCR123A lights. This is not surprising – something has to give for that kind of output. Its RCR runtime performance is quite respectable, though.

P10C-MedRCR.gif

P10C-MedPrim2.gif


UPDATE SEPT 30, 2008: Upon further testing, it seems I've managed to elicit 2 distinct "Lo" output levels on primaries (shown as 1st run and 2nd run above). Although I've managed to get the higher 1st run output (i.e. ~50 on my scale) a couple of times, most of the time the light has produced 2nd run output (i.e. ~30 on my scale). See the end of this post for a discussion.

The "Lo" mode of the P10C is really anything but :rolleyes: – output is typically comparable to Med on most lights. On RCR, "Lo" is about 40% of Hi output, and with very impressive runtime. The light is clearly current-controlled to achieve that kind of performance. :)

On CR123A, "Lo" is typically also ~40% of Hi - although I've also elicited a ~60% "Lo" mode on couple of occasions (see discussion at the end of this post). Performance for the expected ~40% output level is also quite good.

Although hard to see on the graphs, the light seems to have a low voltage flash to indicate a nearly depleted cell. Looks something like a repeated flicker.

Potential Issues

A couple of minor issues popped up during my testing. Once when switching from Hi to Lo on a new CR123A battery, the light mysteriously dropped to a very low level (far less than normal Lo). It refused to jump back to normal Lo/Hi levels, even after removing and re-installing the primary cell. The light started working normally again after inserting an RCR – after that, the original primary CR123A worked as expected (see end of this post for a further discussion).

Another time, near the end of a CR123A run, the light suddenly began flickering badly (continuously, in a separate manner from the low voltage flicker). Simply handling the light (i.e. picking it up and looking it over) caused it to start behaving normally again.

These two incidents suggest some sort of intermittent contact problem. I've given the light a thorough cleaning, so hopefully I won't see any more of these. I'll keep you posted if the problems persist.

General Observations

EagleTac has certainly impressed with the build quality of this little light. :eek:oo: For a relatively unknown company, their first offerings seem to have been designed with great care and thought. I really can't find much to fault on the P10C build, except perhaps that the forward clicky is stiffer than most - and the clip gets in the way somewhat of easily tightening the tailcap. Other than that, it is a pleasure to hold and use.

Output/performance design is a bit unusual. On Hi, EagleTac definitely seems to be targeting the "Damn the torpedoes! Full speed ahead!" audience. :laughing:

While my Jet-II IBS was marginally brighter on RCR, I believe the P10C really matches the Jet-II and NiteCore Extreme (not EX10) for maximal output on Li-ions. Considering the variability of individual emitters, you could easily have any one of these 3 lights outperform the others by a slight margin, in a given sample.

Where there is no question is on 1xCR123A – the P10C was the clear output king. :cool: Of course, that comes with a price – the P10C has the lowest runtime on 1xCR123A of any of my lights.

The second unusual feature is the "low" mode, which at ~40% of max output is high enough to qualify as Med on most lights. I would think a better descriptor for this light is not Lo/Hi, but a "power-saving" Regular mode and a Turbo mode. While runtime on RCR and CR123A was excellent for this "low" level, the lack of anything actually approaching a real "low" is disappointing. At least the circuit seems well optimized for performance at these levels.

Given the very high build quality, I would be very interested to see what EagleTac could do with more versatile circuit. The amount of throw and smooth spill on such a relatively small reflector/head design is particularly impressive. Not to overdo the pun, but I would think EagleTac should have a bright future in this business ...

----------------------------

UPDATE SEPT 30, 2008:

Ok, I think I've figured out what is going on with the Lo mode on primaries. Initially, I was getting inconsistent results - sometimes Lo mode was ~60% of max output, sometimes it was ~40% of max output. I was also getting a strange unexplained extremely low mode (<3%) a couple of times after switching primaries - something that was only cured by swapping in a RCR.

After a thorough cleaning of the light with deoxit on all contact surfaces, I am now only getting the ~40% output level consistently. Based on the RCR results and the reports of others, this seems to be the appropriate Low level.
:party:

I am not sure where the ~60% output level was coming from, but I was able to reliably reproduce it half a dozen times at first. Note that I never got an intermediate value - it was either ~60% or ~40% each time I tried (except for the strange <3% mode that occurred twice). I'm just guessing here, but I wonder if the circuit doesn't have a few extra disabled modes that were somehow accidentally triggered by a contact problem (e.g. like the mysterious SOS mode on the Lumapower Incendio)? :thinking:

A second point is that I was commonly changing the battery by removing the head, since the tailcap is difficult to tighten fully with the protruding clip in the way. I'm wondering if that wasn't contributing to "confusing" the circuit somewhat when switching batteries (i.e. somewhat like the Novatac 120P - most of the time I can switch between RCR and primaries without problem, sometimes I need to do the battery mode reset once or twice to get it working properly). I am now switching the battery only at the tailcap, and have not experienced any more mysterious modes.

I will let you know if it stays this way - but I'm curious is anyone else has experience these issues?
 
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adirondackdestroyer

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Good review as always!

Edgetac sure is going for super high output with the expense of runtime. That has to be the shortest runtime I've ever seen on a single cell LED light.
 

EngrPaul

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I think the green is the reflection bouncing off the inside of the glass back into the reflector, not the reflector itself.

Thanks for another great review!
 

Monocrom

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A very nice review.

The Potential Issues section has me a bit concerned. Please be sure to let us know if they crop up again.

Two questions:
~~~~~~~~~~

1 - How easy is it to pull the light out of a pocket? It seems that it would sit lower in a pocket than an SF E1B, possibly leaving little to grab onto if the light is needed in a hurry.

2 - Would you say this light is a good alternative to an E1B? Considering price and excluding the lack of a true low-mode.
 

SuperLightMan

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A very nice review.

The Potential Issues section has me a bit concerned. Please be sure to let us know if they crop up again.

Two questions:
~~~~~~~~~~

1 - How easy is it to pull the light out of a pocket? It seems that it would sit lower in a pocket than an SF E1B, possibly leaving little to grab onto if the light is needed in a hurry.

2 - Would you say this light is a good alternative to an E1B? Considering price and excluding the lack of a true low-mode.


First post here (or reply for that matter, though i've been lurking and reading around for a while before i decided to create a username :eek:)

I, personally, prefer the low rider clip on the P10C. However, I ended up with the P10A, which i think would suit your need of "quick-draw", as more of the tail sticks out of the pocket than that of the P10C.

I'm preparing a review of the P10A also. Just haven't had the time to do so.
 

MorePower

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I wonder if you got a bad sample of the light. Mev's review showed consistent output on "low" with RCR or primary cells, and runtime with primary on low was longer as would be expected.

Great review, as always.
 

DM51

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Great review. EagleTac has arrived in style. The words "very high build quality" stand out, and surely this promises good things from this company in future.

Moving to the Review section.
 

EngrPaul

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Selfbuilt,

Did you get one of the C2 models ?? (2-cell)

TIA
 

I came to the light...

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Thanks for the thorough review :)

I am wondering about the runtime on CR123 low too. Mev got 8 hours out of it, although the rest of the runtimes matched.

EngrPaul - the green tint is the result of a green antireflective coating, meaning that it does not bounce back and forth, but it rather filtered on the first pass.
 

jirik_cz

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Looks like it deserves some hype after all :tinfoil:
But I don't see much sense in 10% more output in price of 70% shorter runtime than Nitecore Extreme with CR123...
 

cheetokhan

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Hey Selfbuilt, any plans to review the T series EagleTac lights?
I have the T10C and would like to see how it's beamshots compare to your other lights. Mine has a wonderfully smooth, wide beam. I just wish it had a more feature-full UI like my Nitecore EX10GD or my Jet II IBS. I really like the ultra low modes they both have.
 

selfbuilt

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Wow, this review has certainly sparked a lot of attention! :eek:

1 - How easy is it to pull the light out of a pocket? It seems that it would sit lower in a pocket than an SF E1B, possibly leaving little to grab onto if the light is needed in a hurry.
Yes, the P10C bezel down in a pocket is harder to grab than the E1B. The clip is also tighter than my E1B (at least, new), making it harder to extract. Of course, that's not necessarily a bad thing ... I once made the mistake of carrying my E1B bezel down on my belt, and it popped off during a hike in woods. :ohgeez: If a friend of mine hadn't noticed, it would still be sitting with the leaf litter. Since then, I only the carry the E1B bezel down in a pocket. :)

I wonder if you got a bad sample of the light. Mev's review showed consistent output on "low" with RCR or primary cells, and runtime with primary on low was longer as would be expected.
I am wondering about the runtime on CR123 low too. Mev got 8 hours out of it, although the rest of the runtimes matched.
I would certainly expect ~8 hours on primary on low if the output was the same as the RCR low. The problem seems to be mine is much brighter on primaries. It could be my sample is defective to have the higher output ... but if so, I'm afraid that doesn't say much about their QC. I've got another light going in the lightbox right now, but I'll try a few other brands of batteries later and see what happens.

I think the green is the reflection bouncing off the inside of the glass back into the reflector, not the reflector itself.
EngrPaul - the green tint is the result of a green antireflective coating, meaning that it does not bounce back and forth, but it rather filtered on the first pass.
That seems likely ... I realized as I was writing the review that it seemed unlikely to be the reflector - makes a lot more sense if its a coating on the lens. It doesn't seem to affect the overall beam tint much.

Did you get one of the C2 models ?? (2-cell)
Hey Selfbuilt, any plans to review the T series EagleTac lights?
No, I thought I would just try this one out (so I could add it to my 1xCR123A round-up). I'm not really inclined to pick any more 2-stage lights on my own coin (although the T series do look interesting). I would be willing to review them if EagleTac wanted to send them to me. And before anyone offers, I don't test loaners from other members. ;) Too many potential hassles with shipping, insurance, risk of damage during testing, etc. Besides, if a manufacturer is going to benefit from having their products tested, I figure they should be on the hook for covering the costs. :)
 

EngrPaul

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Besides, if a manufacturer is going to benefit from having their products tested, I figure they should be on the hook for covering the costs. :)

Thanks for your answers.

A lot of people wait for [your] reviews before buying lights. I agree, you should be getting the light gratis! :wave:
 

EngrPaul

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My o-rings all have a "flat spot". It looks like they have a weak point, and when they are installed it ends up being thinner than the rest. Anyone else?

Here is the worst one, it looks bad even off the light. I will be throwing it away.

IMG_2109.jpg


The second worst one I put in the gap where I removed the clip. (Removing the clip exposes bare aluminum because the clip scratches the anodizing.) You can see the weak spot in this picture.

IMG_2110.jpg


This will soon be replaced with an GID O-ring from Sigman.

I have some spare orange o-rings from a Huntlight that I used in their place. Looks nice (inside).
 
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EngrPaul

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My only other issue with the light is the very thin material at the lanyard holes. Metal split rings need not apply.

IMG_2111.jpg


Don't get me wrong, I love my light 100% and can live with these conditions.

Mine is clearly brighter than a P3D-Q5 and much easier to twist the head to change modes.

I love how bright and white and smooth this light is. I can't believe such a small head throws so well!!! :party:
 

wacbzz

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Thanks for the review.

Yet another EagleTac review that speaks very positively about the light...now hopefully all the "pre-sale" doubters will come back and enjoy telling us about how good the crow has tasted.
 

Philbee

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I have both the P10A and P10C2.
O-rings are perfect on both.

Great review as always selfbuilt.:twothumbs
Hopefully it will help lay to rest the negativity that has been shown to both EagleTac and the owners of these fine EagleTac lights from certain quarters on this forum.

Interesting to read the opinionated comments of those who have never handled let alone own one of these beauties.:poke:
 

Philbee

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Thanks for the review.

Yet another EagleTac review that speaks very positively about the light...now hopefully all the "pre-sale" doubters will come back and enjoy telling us about how good the crow has tasted.

:devil::devil: Oh how true, couldn't have said it better myself.:thumbsup:
 
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