Do you want forward clickies to be available on more lights? Yes or No

[gcbryan]

I'm just curious regarding the many posts I seem to recall reading where posters were wishing forward clickies were available on many lights where they were not available.

I've just recently converted a few of my lights and now greatly prefer them. Since it's easy to do I'm wondering why so many seem to wish they had them when they could easily have them. Maybe my recollection is not correct.

I'd just be interested to see if many people wish more forward clickies were available so the answer would be yes...or it would be no. Maybe it's just a few vocal posters and the majority aren't interested.

Feel free to comment in the thread as well as voting in the poll. Maybe you don't like to take your light apart, don't know how,can't find forward clickies, can't find a particular type or whatever.

 

[Henk_Lu]

What I still like best is a nice "tactical" forward clicky and a 3 mode driver with memory which you set on your chosen brightness before clicking the light on permanently.

Most custom lights use that rather simple UI in combination with a McClicky. The switch is important on a forward clicky, it should be neither to soft, neither to hard and the light should come one after a certain travel only, not at the slightest touch...

 

[JaguarDave-in-Oz]

I can't stand reverse click switches where the torch doesn't turn on until your finger is removed from the button. I dislike reverse switches so much that I've fitted forward switches to all my regular quarks and will no longer buy anything that hasn't a forward switch available for it.

 

[jhc37013]

For me it's just depends on the UI if it's like the instant multiple output lights like Fenix, Quark, Jetbeam IBS and others then I prefer the reverse clicky for easily changing modes. If it's a UI where it involves twisting the bezel for selecting all output modes like the Eagletac P/T models or Fenix TK and many others then I prefer the forward switch. Now Surefire has it right for a two mode light where you can select the two outputs with a forward switch by toggling the switch off and on, no need for bezel twist just for one extra mode turbo/hi or whatever some brands call it.

Maybe adding a extra choice on your poll would be good so I could vote NO, it's just right the way it is with the variety of different UI's we have.

 

[shark_za]

Depends on the light.

Single mode of course.
Multimode changed by the same switch then I prefer a reverse.

Multimode changed by the bezel or additional side switch like the iTP SA series, forward is my choice.

 

[kyhunter1]

I hate reverse clickies. :scowl::scowl::scowl:

 

[Yavox]

I would like some new design of a clicky switch:

1) momentary on before it clicks, just for blinking
2) normal click (turn permanently on) when pressed a bit harder
3) possibility to turn temporarily OFF when pressed lightly in permanent ON position (aka changing modes)
4) if pressed a bit harder, click and OFF

1,2 and 4 are normal forward clicky but I don't have any light with function 3 implemented (with 1,2,4 still fully functional). Does such a switch exist?

 

[kramer5150]

On multi-modes I prefer reverse.
Single modes I prefer forward.

I'm split 50/50, as a function of UI. I voted no.

 

[damn_hammer]

I've never been clear on this. What's it called when the clicky juts out from the tailcap?

 

[KBobAries]

Forward for me. While I haven't owned any reverse models, I have played with them and find them awkward to use.

Dan

 

[GreySave]

I use momentary 90% of the time so a Forward Clicky (Or SureFire style twisty with momentary) works for me. I agree that in some cases a Reverse Clicky makes cycling through the modes easier, but for me the benefits of the Forward outweigh the Reverse most of the time.

 

[LukeA]

I've never been clear on this. What's it called when the clicky juts out from the tailcap?

Reverse and forward clickies are visually indistinguishable from one another and the switch action is independent from the switch's placement on the flashlight body. The difference is when you click it into constant-on.

To turn on and change modes with a forward clickie it's press-press-press-click. With a reverse it's click-press-press-press. Maglites have forward clickies.

 

[kramer5150]

I've never been clear on this. What's it called when the clicky juts out from the tailcap?

recessed switch = tailstanding

 

[pounder]

I prefer forward clickies..of course I hardly ever turn my light on other than a momentary press and then off again..I just got a UF C3 that has a reverse clicky..time to mod it

 

[fannin]

my main squeeze is my ld20, it has the nicest clicky i have ever tried but of course, a momentary on 4rd clicky would be even better

other lights, like my p20a2 mk1 and it's stupid strobe would be better off with a reverse clicky

 

[gcbryan]

I guess it depends in part on how you usually use your lights. I usually change modes only at the beginning to decide what the correct illumination level would be given the ambient light.

Once it do that I rarely change modes during that use so forward works for me even with multi-mode. The forward clickies that I've installed are medium I would say with regards to how firm you need to press.

I've learned that for many light you can use generic forward clickies as replacements as long as they are smaller than the stock one if they are held in place by the typical retaining ring.

Mine weren't designed for my light, were designed to be screwed in directly without another retaining ring but since they are smaller they still work perfectly in my lights.

I guess I'd say if anyone is putting up with a reverse clicky in their light and they don't want to it's probably a cheap and easy change to put in a forward clicky.

 

[JaguarDave-in-Oz]

I guess it depends in part on how you usually use your lights. I usually change modes only at the beginning to decide what the correct illumination level would be given the ambient light.

Once it do that I rarely change modes during that use so forward works for me even with multi-mode.

that's exactly how I work and use my multimode lights too. I rarely ever need to change levels once the ligth is switched on. The added benefit of doing it this way for me is that there's then no way I can accidently bump it up or down a level (or even momentarily off) when it's switched on like I could with a reverse switch.

 

[gcbryan]

I really like them. It's funny though that until a few weeks ago I wasn't really sure what everyone was talking about...forward clickies...it's not really self-explanatory.

I had an older Surefire 6P that I rarely used but it has a momentary switch so I understood that I just didn't get what forward clickies were all about.

Now I don't have any reverse clickies except in my Akoray K-109 and that's mainly because the switches I have probably are too big for that light and it's a little harder to take that one apart anyway.

 

[Kestrel]

I guess I would answer in two ways:
Yes, if compared against 'reverse clickies'. :sick2:
No, if compared to 'twisties' - I do love my SF Z41's most of all.

 

[ti-force]

One more yes for you, but looking at the results thus far, the yeses already had it:thumbsup:.