How Many Can Twist their (RA) Twisty one Handed?

[abarth_1200]

And how come,

I have recently acquired a 85Tr (thanks Bigfoot:thumbsup but its very hard to twist one handed, I cleaned the threads and reapplied Henry's lube worked it in a few twists but it was still kinda sticky for the o-ring so I cleaned all that off and tried nyogel, its a little better but still quite difficult to twist with one hand.

I know they are meant to be tight so they dont leak but the threads could be smoother and maybe a different lube on the o-ring alone?

Anyone managed to get a one handed Twisty, any tips on getting it to twist with less effort?

 

[etherealshade]

Re: How Many Can Twist their Twisty one Handed?

I can twist mine one handed, but I wouldn't say it's especially easy, and I've got quite strong hands. :shrug:

 

[65535]

Re: How Many Can Twist their Twisty one Handed?

You guys might try focusing on only twisting and not pushing. By applying force perpendicular to the axis of rotation you are causing the threads to bind up tighter.

It's not that easy, but improved technique can make it a lot easier.

 

[Barbarian]

Re: How Many Can Twist their Twisty one Handed?

I find the question too personal to answer. :huh:

 

[csa]

Re: How Many Can Twist their Twisty one Handed?

Yeah... I've had no problem with the various twisty lights I've owned over the years, but some were definitely a lot harder than others. 65535's advice is good.

 

[Magnumpy]

Re: How Many Can Twist their Twisty one Handed?

I think whatever you do a twisty will never be as easy to use one handed as a clicky. I can do it if I hold the light in my palm and twist it with my thumb and forefinger, but this is a little bit awkward so in practice I just use two hands. which ends up being faster for me than getting a good grip to twist it with one hand anyway.

maybe it's kind of like being a quick draw with a six-shooter. with practice you could be the fastest light in the west!

 

[uplite]

Re: How Many Can Twist their Twisty one Handed?

Anyone managed to get a one handed Twisty

It very much depends on:

• diameter - AAA is harder to twist than AA, which is harder to twist than CR123
• knurling - a rougher/knurlier twisty is easier to turn
• lubrication - a dab of silicone grease smeared around the o-ring makes a huge difference
• material - e.g. titanium threads will always grind more than anodized aluminum
• programming - e.g. the quark minis require a quick and decisive 2-hand twist to avoid skipping modes

A clicky is always easier to turn on/off than a twisty. Twisties are super cheap to manufacture though.

-Jeff

 

[mcnair55]

Re: How Many Can Twist their Twisty one Handed?

I can do it with my Nextorch K1 but my others i find it easier to do with 2 hands,small aaa clickies i find difficult as well but ok on most AA types.

 

[Bullzeyebill]

Re: How Many Can Twist their Twisty one Handed?

I do what Henry does with one of his Twisty Ra's that he works with; remove the O ring if you are not going to be around water. Easy to work one handed.

Bill

 

[abarth_1200]

Re: How Many Can Twist their Twisty one Handed?

Mainly about the RA Twisty I should probably change the title eh.

I have heard of people using thinner o-rings, how does this affect its waterproofeness, I would still like to be able to take it swimming with me

 

[mchlwise]

Re: How Many Can Twist their Twisty one Handed?

I've got no problems one-handed twisting my 4Sevens Quark Mini.

 

[Per-Sev]

Re: How Many Can Twist their Twisty one Handed?

I had a Quark Mini AA Ti and if I would try to use one hand it would always change modes on me, the threads were pretty good but the O ring was very snug and I guess I put to much back pressure on it when I turned it. I sold it and bought a Preon II problem solved. The Mini AA was a nice light though just not for me.

 

[chaoss]

Re: How Many Can Twist their Twisty one Handed?

The Ra i had was very easy to manipulate one handed.

The Bitz i have now is stupid easy to twist with just enough friction to eliminate accidental activation.

 

[fisk-king]

Today i'm using the Ra twisty100 for the first time in a while & I was amazed at how smooth the threads were. I can very easily use one hand to turn on the light & the only lube used was No-Ox-Id.

 

[HDS_Systems]

Abarth_1200,

The Twisty was never intended to allow single-handed operation. Although the human hand is very dexterous, holding on to the light with the pinky, ring and middle fingers curled around the battery compartment while rotating the head with the thumb and index finger cannot easily generate a lot of torque.

There are two cases to consider. The first case is immediately following any operation of the light - i.e., twisting to change levels. In this case, the O-ring is well lubricated and there is relatively low stiction. This case requires the lowest torque to rotate the parts.

The second case is after you have allowed the light to sit for an extended period of say 12 hours or longer. The grease is squeezed out from under the O-ring and thus there is very little lubrication under the O-ring. The stiction is very high - many times higher than in the first case. Once the parts have been exercised, the O-ring becomes well lubricated again and you return to the first case.

Given the above, what can be done to reduce the torque? There are several things. O-rings, like everything else, have tolerances. Swapping O-rings may help. Or going to one or two sizes smaller ID will stretch the O-ring slightly, making it smaller in diameter. The normal size is 1.5 by 20.5mm. A 5% stretch is acceptable. So going down to a 1.5 by 19.5 is allowable.

We cannot recommend removing the O-ring because it removes the water seal. However, if you do remove the O-ring and use plenty of grease on the threads, the grease will seal the threads and make the light rain resistant. And you may find the light works nicely with one hand.

We have also tested Krytox. In testing it reduced the stiction with the O-ring dramatically - especially after the 12 hour no movement test. But at $20/oz, it is a bit on the expensive side.

Henry.

 

[gswitter]

I find twisting one-handed with the 123 tube is a little difficult, but it's not bad at all with the 18670 tube.

 

[fisk-king]

I guess it helps when I use these little buggers which may give me unfair advantage.

 

[JWRitchie76]

Henry please keep it that way! If Nancy can't operate his light one handed he should buy a sloppy Quark mini 123!

 

[mossyoak]

Sometimes you just need to set down your purse and buck up. I could twist my ra120 twisty from off to 120 lumens everytime. With grease, mud, blood whatever on my hands.

 

[Theatre Booth Guy]

I've never had a problem with using my Twisty one-handed. It does have a lanyard which works well to give my first finger and thumb extra grip to twist the tail.

I've tried several different lubes in an attempt to make it easier to twist. I must be the odd one (maybe did not clean the old grease off well enough??) but Krytox has not worked so well for me. The grease from Henry seems to work VERY well on the threads but less well on the O-ring. What I've settled on is to use the thick Nyogel on (and under - in the groove) the O-ring to reduce stiction and the thin Nyogel on the threads.

My favorite part about the Twisty is how well it tail stands!!