Having been avidly following the various Lummi threads on this site since I ordered myself a RAW NS on 31st of December last year, I'd like to submit a small contribution of my own. Some of you reading reports of 10 or 11 month waits might be surprised to hear that I have already received my torch; Rob sent it a couple of weeks ago. I did have to apply a bit of pressure, but my paltry 4 and a half month wait does seem to bear out Rob's claim in one of his emails to me that things are improving. I will say that however hopeless a businessman Rob might be, he's not out to rip you off. In one of my attempts to twist his arm I actually offered him an extra twenty quid, just because as I told him, it seemed from the reviews that the torch was worth more than the £55 he was charging. He refused to take it. I still think he should charge more; the torch is terrific, and it might help him get his finances sorted.
Anyway, to my little review. My previous torch (I'm not really into collecting torches, so my experience is very limited) was a Maglite Solitaire – the incandescent version – which I used to think was pretty cool. I now realise it's actually rubbish. OK, it only costs a tenner, but the thing about it that has always irritated me is that when you turn it on, it isn't focused properly – there's a big black hole in the middle of the beam. You have to keep turning the barrel to get the light in the middle, and even then it doesn't look very good. Now, with Rob's RAW, as soon as it's on, the beam is perfect; a nice big cirle in the middle, and lots of flood round the outside. I've found that it works really well as a nightlight. Stood on end, it lit up a room of about 15 feet by 11 well enough for me to see everything in the room clearly. And that was just on low. Turned up to high, there was enough light to read small print by. As I keep my RAW on my keyring (sorry Rob, I know you don't approve of that, but it does mean I always have the thing on me!) I need have no fear of power-cuts. I'd read some blogs that said that the craftsmanship on the RAW was extremely good, and they're not wrong – the quality is top class. And it's really hefty and solid – makes my Maglite feel like something out of a Christmas cracker by comparison. I was a bit surprised when I unwrapped it that there was no information or instructions about it. I've since discovered that there is a very good and informative manual online, but could there not have been something in the packaging to tell me about that?
I've put together a little animated GIF to show the difference between my old Maglite and the RAW on its two settings. It's as near as I can get it to what I actually saw in the garden. The door of the garage at the end of the garden is about 50 feet away. What's nice is that the neutral shade of the emitter that I ordered lets the colours show up really naturally. And 50 feet isn't anywhere near the limit of how far this torch can carry on its high setting – I've lit up rooftops 150 feet away as measured by Google Earth. Not brightly, but visibly. And that's with streetlighting and a full moon to dull the effect. It really feels more like a theatrical floodlight than a torch – but it's not even two inches long. Absolutely amazing.
PS. Just seen your post Rob about your electrical work and your plans to catch up with your back-orders. Good on ya – I hope it works out for you.
Here is my GIF – hope it works...
Anyway, to my little review. My previous torch (I'm not really into collecting torches, so my experience is very limited) was a Maglite Solitaire – the incandescent version – which I used to think was pretty cool. I now realise it's actually rubbish. OK, it only costs a tenner, but the thing about it that has always irritated me is that when you turn it on, it isn't focused properly – there's a big black hole in the middle of the beam. You have to keep turning the barrel to get the light in the middle, and even then it doesn't look very good. Now, with Rob's RAW, as soon as it's on, the beam is perfect; a nice big cirle in the middle, and lots of flood round the outside. I've found that it works really well as a nightlight. Stood on end, it lit up a room of about 15 feet by 11 well enough for me to see everything in the room clearly. And that was just on low. Turned up to high, there was enough light to read small print by. As I keep my RAW on my keyring (sorry Rob, I know you don't approve of that, but it does mean I always have the thing on me!) I need have no fear of power-cuts. I'd read some blogs that said that the craftsmanship on the RAW was extremely good, and they're not wrong – the quality is top class. And it's really hefty and solid – makes my Maglite feel like something out of a Christmas cracker by comparison. I was a bit surprised when I unwrapped it that there was no information or instructions about it. I've since discovered that there is a very good and informative manual online, but could there not have been something in the packaging to tell me about that?
I've put together a little animated GIF to show the difference between my old Maglite and the RAW on its two settings. It's as near as I can get it to what I actually saw in the garden. The door of the garage at the end of the garden is about 50 feet away. What's nice is that the neutral shade of the emitter that I ordered lets the colours show up really naturally. And 50 feet isn't anywhere near the limit of how far this torch can carry on its high setting – I've lit up rooftops 150 feet away as measured by Google Earth. Not brightly, but visibly. And that's with streetlighting and a full moon to dull the effect. It really feels more like a theatrical floodlight than a torch – but it's not even two inches long. Absolutely amazing.
PS. Just seen your post Rob about your electrical work and your plans to catch up with your back-orders. Good on ya – I hope it works out for you.
Here is my GIF – hope it works...