Inova BullSpit

[nitesky]

Somewhere you just know that someone is trying to figure out how to mod a carbide lamp with a Cree.

 

[kramer5150]

I actually did try overdriving the Bolt 2 AA. With one lithium 14500 and a nimh rechargeable it pulls 2.5 amps, don't know how long the light will last as it'll get hot. But this is really dangerous as the nimh has higher capacity than the li-ion and will reverse charge it. A possibly safer solution to try this is a nicd AA and protected 14500, with lower capacity the nicd when it dies early won't reverse the li-ion

... that's a recipe for disaster.

I would never over-drive a DC-DC circuit with Lith-ion cells. How do you know what the DC-DC circuit will do when driven to failure/melt-down?

Maybe I'd try an L0D, but that light has been proven to be stout enough to handle it.

 

[NotSoBrightBob]

To the OP and selfishly to help me, is there any of these Target Inova's worth the low entry price?

I was at Target this weekend and I must say they had about 3/4 of aisle dedicated to torches with many different Inova models so while my significant other was shopping I found a place to hang out.

They show assembled in US so I assume they are made overseas.

Bob

 

[kramer5150]

To the OP and selfishly to help me, is there any of these Target Inova's worth the low entry price?

I was at Target this weekend and I must say they had about 3/4 of aisle dedicated to torches with many different Inova models so while my significant other was shopping I found a place to hang out.

They show assembled in US so I assume they are made overseas.

Bob

My fave is the X1-Version 2, not the current generation one. IMHO its well worth the $19, although it takes some modification to the switch cap to remove its spongy feel. I think they are actually assembled in USA:thumbsup:.

-Type III anodize
-made in USA
-Hefty and solid feeling in the hand
-glass lens to protect the emitter
-twist cap switching reliability
-Great regulation
-long running nichia CS emitter
-momentary thumb switch
-Standard AA
-Floody ~10 Lumens

The only thing negative I can say about it is its somewhat fragile. I dropped mine and it now has a random flickering output. Although for the past 2 weeks its been working great.:sigh:

**edit** I dropped it at work today and it seems to have survived just fine:thumbsup:

There is a common miss-conception on CPF that if its dim its worthless, which I completely disagree with.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxgl5QXSfRo

 

[Bullzeyebill]

There is a common miss-conception on CPF that if its dim its worthless, which I completely disagree with.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nxgl5QXSfRo

Second that.

Bill

 

[darknessemitter]

My women came home the other day and announced "I have a surprise for you". Well looky here. Its a cute little Inova 2AAA Bolt 2.0 WATT. Nicely made, compact, nice color shade, nice beam but could have a better center spot. Brightness is not the least bit impressive. I measured the current draw with a fresh set of alkalines and get 250ma or approx .75W. Be lucky if the LED is even getting 1/2W. 2.0 Watt my A$$. Anyone know if the lithium bolts have this same marketing deception.

Unfortunately, the 2xAAA Bolt uses the Luxeon PWT, which isn't the greatest emitter. If I understand the specs sheets correctly, it looks like the PWT is actually less efficient than the Luxeon I.

Or at least the typical luminous flux for the PWT at 350mA is 26 lm while the typical luminous flux for the Lux I at 350mA is 45 lm. Is that the correct way to compare efficiency?

 

[Holepuncher]

Well the point of my original post was not to knock Inova but rather their marketing scheme. In my post I more or less said this is a nice flashlight and its plenty bright but not impressive. I would say its more usefull than the X1 as it has a more pleasing color and a wider beam (note I have the older version X1 with the lens).

And one things for sure, I think most flashaholics here know that if the 2xAAA Bolt were being driven to 2.0 watts the alkaline batteries would be dead in less than 15 minutes.

Overall after fooling with the mini bolt for a few days I give it a thumbs up.