Did novatac trade quality for price?

[BBL]

I'm about to spend $150 on a novatac edc 120P - a light no one really knows.
So i'd like at least to try finding out, what quality i can expect.

There are several indicators, that the quality is lower compared to the well known hds edc:

electronics: the runtime plot of the hds show a nearly perfect, flat line, while the novatac is much more dispersed. I always considered constant light output an indication for high quality electronics - and this doesnt seem to be the case with the new lights.

There were unspecific comments from HDS-Henry about questionable things regarding assembly of the lights.

The new novatac edc costs much less than the previous hds edc - i wonder if the lower price comes from higher production efficiency alone - or if they cut somewhere.

What do you guys think?

 

[senna94]

I love my HDS U60 GT light, but can tell you that I waited for them to go on clearance before I got it. They were selling at a price that is comparable to what Novatac is asking for their lights. If they were able to sell them at that price and still make a profit that tells me they were inflated when selling at full price. In todays competitive market, they are probably just pricing their lights at a price point that yields a good compromise between sales and profit. Having said that, we will just have to see how good or bad they really are.
:naughty:

 

[karlthev]

I don't think you'll find any compromises in quality and, I do think that the price-point is probably more in line with market affordability. Spell that priced right and I was and still am an HDS fan.



Karl

 

[DM51]

Recce556 did a review of the EDC-120T. AFAIK that is the only hard evidence available to us, and everything else is speculation.

 

[karlthev]

DM51, no reviews from me but no speculation.



Karl

 

[scottaw]

Recce got to do the review b/c he's some kind of military...and novatac said they can now start supplying flashlights b/c they just finished up a large order. Sounds like out military liked them enough to supply a lot of people with them, sounds rugged enough for my edc.

 

[Esthan]

Maybe the previous EDC were "overpriced" because Henry was not making that many of them ?

And now, NovaTac is making more of them hence lower Cost Per Unit. Plus the will to get a
share of the market that is over flooded with low price flashlights from Asia.

As for the Graph, It was done with a beta model

 

[270winchester]

so now the affordable price is reason to suspect it?

 

[Hans]

There are several indicators, that the quality is lower compared to the well known hds edc:

Nobody knows until the first detailed reviews of the production models are in. And if you want to make absolutely sure you'll have to wait at least a couple of months after their release in case there are some hidden flaws.

Hans

 

[karlthev]

I could be wrong (I'm not!) but, I don't believe ANY product "hits the streets" anymore without pre-testing (what I call it) or beta testing (what everybody else seems to call it these days). I realize that these models in beta testing are not production samples and that production can have some quality control issues however, if the military (If?) has this light (they do as I undersatnd) I suspect what they now have is representative of "production" rather than a selected sample. I suspect as well that all will have to wait until we have our hands on these (excluding the beta testers) to see for ourselves. Patience is a virtue but I think NovaTac has way too much riding on this to market a less than stellar product. Looks like a wait and see--for most.



Karl

 

[TORCH_BOY]

One can only try one out?

 

[pokkuhlag]

Someone should send one novatac to chevrofreak for some runtime testing.

 

[underdust]

This is just my opinion... (bear in mind, )

But based on the fact that this light is the direct descendant of the HDS EDC lights, the fact that this version of the light has already earned a military contract, the fact that the company offers a "Guaranteed for life" warranty, and the fact that they have (thus far) very impressive customer service, I have a hard time believing that Novatac would intentionally produce a poor quality light.

I could understand where they might have decided to make some changes for the sake of increasing production. However if those changes ultimately resulted in inferior quality or performance, whatever costs they might have tried to save up front, would no doubt come back to haunt them in the form of warranty repairs and replacements in the future.

Maybe it's just wishful thinking on my part because I pre-ordered two EDC-120Ps, but I'm expecting (hoping?) that my experience with these lights will not be very different from what I've enjoyed with my current HDS lights. Hopefully just a little brighter.

We'll all find out in a few weeks, I guess.

 

[karlthev]

I could not agree more with you! Well said.


Karl

 

[aceo07]

Someone should send one novatac to chevrofreak for some runtime testing.

I think he already did a runtime test on it. I saw the graph yesterday, but I'm a bit busy to look it up now. Perhaps someone will link it. Otherwise, I will dig it up later tonight.

 

[aceo07]

Chevrofreaks EDC-120 beta runtime graph

 

[pokkuhlag]

Thanks for the link, I haven't seen that one yet. I guess someone should send a production flashlight to him to see if it also gives such a crappy regulation.

 

[John N]

While it isn't ruler flat, it isn't clear to me that it is 'crappy'. As previously suggested, it isn't clear you could actually *see* the variation in output.

My take on this is there will be some changes made to reduce production costs (where costs can mean direct changes in materials, and changes to more production friendly/inexpensive processes). I think the most compelling evidence is the tinned contact points on the heads (see photos of EDC 120 proto) and the fact reduced voltage input range. However the light is basically a re-warmed HDS EDC, so the design is pretty well worked out and reliable to start with. As stated, reliability is a key concern for the target market. As a result, I don't have any concerns about quality or reliability.

Would I buy a Novatac? Sure. Will it be built as well as the HDS versions? Maybe, maybe not. But I don't see that it will have much of a discernible effect on performance or reliability.

And for the price? Jeez.

Would I buy an HDS over a Novatac if both were available? Yes. Get busy Henry! I need my HDS 120 with 2x123A and 18650 input options, UC lens, etc. Oh, and consider doing something like working with Don on your mechanicals. Doesn't hurt to purdy it up, eh?

-john

 

[ensile]

i dont wanna pay over $100 for a light that's created by robots.

 

[joema]

While it isn't ruler flat, it isn't clear to me that it is 'crappy'. As previously suggested, it isn't clear you could actually *see* the variation in output...

That's an excellent point. The HDS U60 output (at max) was NOT "ruler flat": http://www.flashlightreviews.com/reviews/hds_edcu60xr.htm.

In fact the Novatac tested by Chevrofreak had flatter regulation at 120 lumens, than the U60 tested by FLR had at 60 lumens (about 12.5% variation for the HDS vs about 8% variation for the Novatac): http://lights.chevrofreak.com/runtimes/Novatac EDC-120 Beta - Max.png

It's true at lower output levels the U60 tested by Flashlightreviews.com seems to have flatter regulation than the Novatac, which had about 15% variation at 60 lumens.

The Chevrofreak data is high resolution, with a large vertical axis. This tends to visually magnify output fluctuations. By contrast the FLR graph is physically smaller, and has fewer resolution points. It's important to compare the differences from a % standpoint within each graph, not just the superficial visual appearance of the graph.

It's very unlikely you could visually see a 15% output variation. Our eyes are logarithmically sensitive, and differences of that magnitude are almost imperceptible.