New Ra Lights products (Part 5)

[gsxrac]

Well I ordered a Clicky about 2 weeks ago and it has still yet to ship but since then I have spent the better part of 5 hours reading various threads and now im a little worried that my light might come in and have a crappy switch? Im REALLY hoping that since I just recently ordered it, it will have hte new and improved design maybe?

Thank goodness I also purchased a new 85-Tr from UT friday morning and according to USPS it is ALLREADY in VA! So If I have to send the Clicky back I wont be as heartbroken and my Twisty can keep me company:grouphug:

And also after explaining the reason for such a high price on Ra lights to my fiance and another good friend they both laughed and said "For such a high-tech high quality light they couldnt find better names than Clicky and Twisty?" LoL I then explained that the clicky has a clicky switch and the Twisty opperates with a twisting motion... needless to say they still werent impressed I guess youve gotta be a flashaholic to truly appreciate the Clicky and the Twisty :thumbsup:

 

[sappyg]

Based on my experience from the old switch to the new, a properly working switch shouldn't miss any commands. The only exception to this is when after turning the light on you immediately try to give it a command - it seems like the light likes to have a brief pause after turning on before any command is given.

the "random" switch commands are still random yet more frequent. at 1st i thought that maybe it had something to do with using momentary and then switching to on. momentary always works.
sometimes it's now a failure to switch on or off. sometimes switching from one level to another it will turn off. or from off, it will not turn on or vise versa. i started picking up on this several weeks ago when i would holster it and people would tell me that my light was on. much to their pleasure i might add.

 

[member 6142]

I agree it is a little tricky to enable customisation but once you have it, never disable it! Program the light as you wish but leave customisation enabled to make fine tuning adjustments to your settings later.

 

[Ralls]

the "random" switch commands are still random yet more frequent. at 1st i thought that maybe it had something to do with using momentary and then switching to on. momentary always works.
sometimes it's now a failure to switch on or off. sometimes switching from one level to another it will turn off. or from off, it will not turn on or vise versa. i started picking up on this several weeks ago when i would holster it and people would tell me that my light was on. much to their pleasure i might add.

Mine was doing the same thing. I would let Henry know and I'm willing to bet that he'll take care of you.

at people having fun at your expense!!!

 

[callmaster]

Henry said he'll change the switch, etc if it's malfunctioning.

I just gotta get the light to him. Dang shipping!

 

[StandardBattery]

Ralls, great pics! Did you try opening the tail-cap to see if it is user servicable/replaceable? I suspect you did and it was pretty solid, since you mentioned possible Loc-Tite. It would be nice to know if the cap is threaded, there is still a chance it's not I'm guessing.

 

[Ralls]

Ralls, great pics! Did you try opening the tail-cap to see if it is user servicable/replaceable? I suspect you did and it was pretty solid, since you mentioned possible Loc-Tite. It would be nice to know if the cap is threaded, there is still a chance it's not I'm guessing.

Thanks! I was just about to say that it can't be done and then at your prompting I tried one more time and it budged!!! I ran upstairs and took the clip off and sure enough...it came off! It is indeed threaded and here's a pic to prove it:

 

[StandardBattery]

WOW! :twothumbs

Thanks Ralls!!!

That looks perfect!!!

Give that switch a workout ! How do you like the feedback from the switch?

Now we just need to to confirm it will be the same for the flat switch.

I see an Ra with a push-button in my near future now.

 

[sappyg]

Thanks! I was just about to say that it can't be done and then at your prompting I tried one more time and it budged!!! I ran upstairs and took the clip off and sure enough...it came off! It is indeed threaded and here's a pic to prove it:

MAN!... that is some quality workmanship!
are the threads the same size as on the other end of the tube? they look really stout.
do you think the switch had locktite or was it just screwed on tight?
do you still have the other switch that you can take apart and show us?

 

[Ralls]

WOW! :twothumbs

Thanks Ralls!!!

That looks perfect!!!

Give that switch a workout ! How do you like the feedback from the switch?

Now we just need to to confirm it will be the same for the flat switch.

I see an Ra with a push-button in my near future now.

No problem! I've been playing with the switch quite a bit and it is much better. As far as feedback goes, it seems about the same, maybe slightly easier, but it is hard to quantify. I can't imagine the flat switch would be any different mechanically.

MAN!... that is some quality workmanship!
are the threads the same size as on the other end of the tube? they look really stout.
do you think the switch had locktite or was it just screwed on tight?
do you still have the other switch that you can take apart and show us?

The threads are exactly the same - I just took it all apart and the tail cap fit on the opposite end. I do not think that Loc-tite was used...I was just too chicken to try turning all that hard when I first got it as I have a tendency to mess things up that would be better left alone. I tried taking apart the old tail cap and it does NOT come off. I was using vice grips and a pair of beefy pliers and it just spins.

 

[matrixshaman]

Thanks again Ralls for confirming this excellent news on the new tailcap. This brings up the big QUESTION of whether it would be possible to put a Novatac or similar style clip under the tail cap since it can be unscrewed and has no signal wire at the edge. That would be awesome if this could use a Novatac clip since it could then be carried bezel down and the Novatac clips are typically $5 or $6 (if YCS or Lighthound gets more and YCS is saying end of June). I guess it will depend on whether the addition of such a clip will change any contact clearances to the tail piece.

 

[grinsekatz]

Thanks Ralls for the pics! :thumbsup:
That looks even better than the previous design.
(I recently 'opened' one of my Clickys since a lot of people doubt that it's waterproof - but it is!)

Alex

 

[Ralls]

Thanks again Ralls for confirming this excellent news on the new tailcap. This brings up the big QUESTION of whether it would be possible to put a Novatac or similar style clip under the tail cap since it can be unscrewed and has no signal wire at the edge. That would be awesome if this could use a Novatac clip since it could then be carried bezel down and the Novatac clips are typically $5 or $6 (if YCS or Lighthound gets more and YCS is saying end of June). I guess it will depend on whether the addition of such a clip will change any contact clearances to the tail piece.

Happy to help! I just backed off the tail cap a little bit to simulate a Novatac-style clip being installed and the switch no longer worked. But, if you were willing to modify the tail cap and shave off a millimeter or so, then I could see it working.

 

[turbodog]

Well pardon me for being the voice of dissent, but this seemingly has all the looks of a huge step in the wrong direction, and for those of you who know me that's a hard statement to make.

He's using those darn springy signal-type wires from the twisty. I'm currently on my 3rd one of those because of solder failure and wire fatigue.

He made and sold a crap load of lights using the switch assembly (whole tailcap assembly) of the HDS/novatac variety. What the heck was wrong with that setup? I get far better results from that than I do my current prototype and clicky models.

This has all the looks of a Henry-designed-and-manufactured switch. What's next... making his own capacitors?

Mark my words... stock up on his lights now, while he's still making anything. I don't know what the heck is the problem on his end, but this just adds to the endless list of current problems.

 

[gsxrac]

Well I got my Clicky Tactical from Ra Lights and my Twisty 85-Tr from Unique Titanium both in the mail today and my first impressions, both are extremely solid! The Twisty was a little tough to turn when I first got it but I cleaned the threads off and added some Nyogel and it loosened up a lot better!

And as for the Clicky I was wondering why everybody was so opposed to the styling of the clip but after I put it on I realized... ITS HIDEOUS! I Love clips and lights with clips but good lord that thing is ugly. I will keep it for camping but I wouldnt dare carry that thing in my pocket on a regular basis. Other than that I love it! Havent really gotten into the programing yet and I doubt I will. But It is a great replacement for my Novatac for sure and im glad I finally got one.

Now where is that updated Twisty... 140lm Twisty where arrrree youuuu?

 

[streetmaster]

Well pardon me for being the voice of dissent, but this seemingly has all the looks of a huge step in the wrong direction, and for those of you who know me that's a hard statement to make.

He's using those darn springy signal-type wires from the twisty. I'm currently on my 3rd one of those because of solder failure and wire fatigue.

He made and sold a crap load of lights using the switch assembly (whole tailcap assembly) of the HDS/novatac variety. What the heck was wrong with that setup? I get far better results from that than I do my current prototype and clicky models.

This has all the looks of a Henry-designed-and-manufactured switch. What's next... making his own capacitors?

Mark my words... stock up on his lights now, while he's still making anything. I don't know what the heck is the problem on his end, but this just adds to the endless list of current problems.

I agree. Looks like a step backwards. Didn't he stop using the wires in the Twisty for a reason?(or are they still being used? I don't remember.) I think he's making things over complicated, thinking too much...

Are these switches gonna cost even more because all that crap in there?

Well I got my Clicky Tactical from Ra Lights and my Twisty 85-Tr from Unique Titanium both in the mail today and my first impressions, both are extremely solid! The Twisty was a little tough to turn when I first got it but I cleaned the threads off and added some Nyogel and it loosened up a lot better!

And as for the Clicky I was wondering why everybody was so opposed to the styling of the clip but after I put it on I realized... ITS HIDEOUS! I Love clips and lights with clips but good lord that thing is ugly. I will keep it for camping but I wouldnt dare carry that thing in my pocket on a regular basis. Other than that I love it! Havent really gotten into the programing yet and I doubt I will. But It is a great replacement for my Novatac for sure and im glad I finally got one.

Now where is that updated Twisty... 140lm Twisty where arrrree youuuu?

I totally agree on the clip. I don't care how "functional" it is, it makes the damn light twice as fat and un-natural/uncomfortable to hold. Once again, a little bit of "overthinking" going on in that design.

 

[gsxrac]

For sure. And my main argument was that it is uncomfortorable to hold with the clip like that. And I forgot to mention that this seems to have the updated button design without the holes in the tailcap.

 

[fairway1]

I picked up another clicky, this time a 120 edce from cpfmp. The tailcap is not registering every click, I emailed Henry and he is sending me out a replacement. In the meantime, I took the tailcap off of one of my other clickys to play around with the 120edce.

One thing I noticed with this one that none of my other ones do is that if I shut it off, and then turned it right back on it comes back on at the last setting, but if I turn it off and wait a second or two it comes back at the default of medium. I did a factory reset and it is still doing this.

I have 4 other clickys besides this one and none of them do this.

 

[streetmaster]

I picked up another clicky, this time a 120 edce from cpfmp. The tailcap is not registering every click, I emailed Henry and he is sending me out a replacement. In the meantime, I took the tailcap off of one of my other clickys to play around with the 120edce.

One thing I noticed with this one that none of my other ones do is that if I shut it off, and then turned it right back on it comes back on at the last setting, but if I turn it off and wait a second or two it comes back at the default of medium. I did a factory reset and it is still doing this.

I have 4 other clickys besides this one and none of them do this.

Do you have to send back the bad tailcap?

 

[fairway1]

Henry said to send it back to him after I receive the replacement.