EL lithium Vs. EL Elite beam comparisons ?

[AlexGT]

Hi guys,

Do any of you know of an URL where I can compare the beams of this two lights?

I already have an EL Ergo with lithium batteries that was bought a year ago, very nice and bright, but want to compare it to the new Elite, I read they have improved higher rank leds and want to see if they are worth the extra $$$, already know the improvements of the design, just want to know the light output.

I´ll appreciate any url, info or pic´s you can put up.

Thanks in advance for your help

Alex

 

[hotfoot]

Hi AlexGT,

I've got both the Ergo and the Elite, and in a nutshell, go for the Elite!

Firstly, the LEDs *are* noticeably brighter, and in the 2 Elites that I bought, the light was warmer too, less bluish the my Ergo. And because they're using the narrower angled 6400mcd S-Rank Nichia LEDs, the beam's 'spot' seems more pronounced and throws slightly further than the Ergo. I kid you not when I tell you that the Elite's beam is now as bright as, but nicer colored than my new (and much bigger)Lightwave 3000, which is a 7-LED 3C light

That alone, for me, was the kicker

Both my Ergo and Elite are loaded with Energizer lithiums, while the Lightwave was using Duracell alkalines, in case you were wondering.

But beyond the beam and output, the Elite also sports better battery terminals. Instead of the hotmelting naked springs onto the casing directly, they now mount them properly on a metal base, with nice detents for the positive terminal to help prevent battery slippage and misalignment.

Of course, with the brass inserts, much larger stainless steel screws and polycarbonate case, it feels altogether much better built in hand, even when compared to the fairly recent Ergo. All else being equal, the Elite is a little heavier than my Ergo though, but not enough to make a difference.

The Elites I bought came with a decent lanyard and plastic-handled mini-screwdriver(which really didn't provide enough room to grip and open the Elite's case - I used a much longer screwdriver for that) meant to open the Elite with.

When I first got my Ergo, it was the the 'special one' amongst them. Guess if the Elite's replaced it

 

[hotfoot]

AlexGT, you've stirred me to do my first beam comparison photoshoot! The quality isn't great 'cos I'm only using my Intel videoconferencing cam for all the shots, but the pix will tell their own story.

The photos have been cropped and montaged into one large image, but are otherwise unretouched in any way.

There's the usual side-by-side shots, lux output readings and I've thrown in a bonus comparo against my LW3000.

T'was hard (but fun) work, so hope you enjoy this!

 

[hotfoot]

whoops, looks like images have been filtered. so here's the URL instead:
http://203.123.13.14/temp/ErgoVsElite.jpg

and another try at it inline with UBB:

 

[AlexGT]

Thanks Hotfoot !!!

There is a difference !!! I could´t tell apart between the 3000 and the ELE, but compared to the EL ergo it´s way brighter.

You just talked me into getting an EL Elite

wish I jumped the train on the lower introductory price

Thanks!

Alex

 

[AlexGT]

Thanks again Hotfoot!!

I think that won´t be necessary, I am also a gadget nut too

!... but will keep that in mind

Thanks

Alex

 

[carl]

Thanks for the great pics Hotfoot!
-Does anyone know if there is a LED bulb lens protector for the Elite? I know they're recessed a bit but they still stick out a bit too.
-Who has the cheapest prices on the Elite?
-Is the Elite too bulky for the average hand?

 

[hotfoot]

Yo, Carl!

Nope, I don't know of any protective cover for the Eternalights *sorry*. But after having dropped my Ergo a couple of times face first, all I can say that such a cover is largely unnecessary. The recessed design is more effective than it looks, and frankly even if the LEDs impacted, they'd just be pushed in a little and scratched(maybe, depending on what u dropped it on, i guess).

If the LEDs get pushed in a little, its OK. Just open it up and push them back out and realign them again. The LED leads are long and can act sort of like simple shock absorbers for very severe impacts. I've found that even relatively severe (in terms of surface area) scratching of an LED doesn't hurt the beam much, particularly if its a narrow beam model, like the 6400mcd S-ranks. A deep gouge might throw things off though.

I know this doesn't help much in terms of prevention, but hope it'll make you worry less. I do wonder, though - has anyone ever tried polishing a badly scratched LED back to factory or near factory smoothness?

cheers!

 

[AlexGT]

I have!!!

Once a week after recieving it, was checking the car´s engine and got my EL full of grease, didn´t bother since It is immersible I´ll just wash it with detergent.

When I was scrubbing my hands with scotch brite (the yellow-green stuff), it seemed easy to wash the EL with it too, BAD MISTAKE ! I can tell you I severely scratched the leds with the green fiber, After I pissed off at myself for being so stupid, I polished the leds with a baby sponge using regular toothpaste, it took a while but they got as good as new, I have tried this on the photon that goes on my keyring and same good results.

Alex

 

[Elmie]

Yes the Elite is so worth it!!!
Its much more rugged than the ergo. One more thing that I noticed that was improved was the gasket. It was much thicker now.

 

[hotfoot]

Glad to be of service, AlexGT. Hey, and since I'm responsible for pushing ya over the edge, I'll even back it up with my personal 'hotfoot' warranty - if it doesn't perform as you saw in the pix, I'll buy your Elite off of ya

No kidding, I'm serious! I've already got 2 of 'em, but one's for daily use, another for my girl. I'm definitely getting another for the collector's cabinet.

cheers!

 

[hotfoot]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by AlexGT:
I polished the leds with a baby sponge using regular toothpaste, it took a while but they got as good as new, I have tried this on the photon that goes on my keyring and same good results.
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Now *that's* a great tip! Thanks!

 

[hotfoot]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by JollyRoger:
...if you mention code 4X0228, you can still buy the Elite X-ray for the intro price....<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Hope you're right JollyRoger... I've just placed my order for another Elite for my collector's cabinet

 

[AlexGT]

Hey, Thanks JollyRoger!!!

Will order today!

Alex

 

[hotfoot]

BTW, JollyRoger - how did you find out about the code? Didn't notice it anywhere on the website.

 

[carl]

thanks Hotfoot for your input. It puts me that much closer to a purchase. Now just how much is the introductory price?

 

[hotfoot]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by carl:
thanks Hotfoot for your input. It puts me that much closer to a purchase. Now just how much is the introductory price?<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I paid $59.99 for my last two units. Thats $20 off their usual - go for it (being devil's advocate here

)

 

[JollyRoger]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by AlexGT:
Thanks Hotfoot !!!

There is a difference !!! I could´t tell apart between the 3000 and the ELE, but compared to the EL ergo it´s way brighter.

You just talked me into getting an EL Elite

wish I jumped the train on the lower introductory price

Thanks!

Alex<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Alex, if you mention code 4X0228, you can still buy the Elite X-ray for the intro price....but act quickly, b/c this offer is good until the end of this month only.

 

[JollyRoger]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by hotfoot:
BTW, JollyRoger - how did you find out about the code? Didn't notice it anywhere on the website.

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I just dug through an old email I got from them a while back that mentioned the code...

 

[hotfoot]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by JollyRoger:
I just dug through an old email I got from them a while back that mentioned the code...

<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

I dug thru my mail and I found it too! Guess I overlooked it. But (*** Carl, please take note ***) the mail states the introductory price as $64.99, not $59.99, as I had earlier posted. Sorry for any confusion

It's still much better than $79.99, though