(New?) Victorinox LED lights

[Retinator]

I was just poking around swissarmy.com and noticed 2 things:

1) The LED lights have increased in price (quite a bit)
2) They now have a more detailed list of specs

Back in Jan, I was inquiring on where to find theses lights in Canada, and was told that they were not yet available. I was told to check in June to see if they would be then.

From what I've seen today, it looks like they gave the 3 models (AA, AAA, 2C) an upgrade in the LED.

The AA is listed as a 4.8 watt led and the 2C is listed as having a 5.8 watt led.

The distance (throw) also seems to have improved. However a runtime of 3+ hrs seems a little low but that depends on the performance which I can't find out anything on.

Intresting stuff, as I know they're made by Inova and appear to be built like tanks.

Would love to get ahold of one, but I'm patient (twitch twitch lol)

I'm also wondering if they K2'd these guys or what.
As for the price increase, hey if they're a lot better, sure I'm in

What do you guys think?

 

[Melchior]

I think I've seen a SAK Kit with a 1 AA/AAA 1x5mm LED(not shure which) at the Mountain Equipment Co-Op.

It did not seem all that interesting, also it was not cheap.

I don't know where they pulled those '4.8' Watt specs from but its a place you not want to shine a flashlight on...

LED 5mm = 0.07 Watt Typical. (even factoring heavy losses, 0.1 Watts off a crude Boost circuit)

A 4.8 Watt LED would either have a Luxeon K2, or Luxeon V and a Li-ION/Lithium-Magnesium battery to drive an emmiter at near full power.


In short, nothing you can buy retail will be anywhere NEAR 5 Watts unless it has 2x CR123 cells.

 

[BugOutGear_USA]

FYI...these are made by Inova..

I'm a big fan of the "C" size. Quite a nice light...

Flavio
BugoutGearUSA.com

 

[elgarak]

I got a 2AA Victorinox with a 'Tinker' knife at Target for $35. I don't know if they really changed this light or just updated the specs, or if they did which version I got.

Quite nice light. Sturdy, nice size for a 2AA (most other's 2AAs I find awkwardly dimensioned). Simple twist-head switch. Not sure about the LED; definitely not 5mm; doesn't look like Luxeon either. Nice bright, white. Good beam with enough spill.

Do not know anything about regulation. I don't have the equipment to do runtime graphs, and the whole electronic, LED and reflector are in a closed module that slips into the head (sealed with 3 O-rings). Looks splashproof at least, haven't dunked it yet.

Would not pay $50 bucks for it alone. But the set price was OK.

 

[Retinator]

I think I've seen a SAK Kit with a 1 AA/AAA 1x5mm LED(not shure which) at the Mountain Equipment Co-Op.

It did not seem all that interesting, also it was not cheap.

I don't know where they pulled those '4.8' Watt specs from but its a place you not want to shine a flashlight on...

LED 5mm = 0.07 Watt Typical. (even factoring heavy losses, 0.1 Watts off a crude Boost circuit)

A 4.8 Watt LED would either have a Luxeon K2, or Luxeon V and a Li-ION/Lithium-Magnesium battery to drive an emmiter at near full power.


In short, nothing you can buy retail will be anywhere NEAR 5 Watts unless it has 2x CR123 cells.

Well i figured even a Lux III would be underdriven, The wattage just gives you a good guess as to what it's running.

Thanx for the tip for Mountain Co-op, think I'll poke there next

As for it being expensive, you are paying for the Victorinox name, just look at the price of their coats OMG! I'm not saying they're no good, they better be at those prices.

 

[Retinator]

I got a 2AA Victorinox with a 'Tinker' knife at Target for $35. I don't know if they really changed this light or just updated the specs, or if they did which version I got.

Do not know anything about regulation. I don't have the equipment to do runtime graphs, and the whole electronic, LED and reflector are in a closed module that slips into the head (sealed with 3 O-rings). Looks splashproof at least, haven't dunked it yet.
.

Combo packs are usually not bad deals, but I've yet to see one that includes the 2C model

I emailed Inova about regulation when I first poked around back in Jan, they said it was power regulated (type of regulation I don't know).

I've seen graphs of the X1 (I also have one), and it looks semi-regulated.
My X1 does dim slightly overtime, and there is no sudden drop (I'm only using alkys in mine.

But even some regulation is better than none.

As a side note, are the new Bolt models replacing the Radiant (Vented heads) models, or are they a step inbetween the X series?

 

[elgarak]

I think I've seen a SAK Kit with a 1 AA/AAA 1x5mm LED(not shure which) at the Mountain Equipment Co-Op.

It did not seem all that interesting, also it was not cheap.

I don't know where they pulled those '4.8' Watt specs from but its a place you not want to shine a flashlight on...

LED 5mm = 0.07 Watt Typical. (even factoring heavy losses, 0.1 Watts off a crude Boost circuit)

A 4.8 Watt LED would either have a Luxeon K2, or Luxeon V and a Li-ION/Lithium-Magnesium battery to drive an emmiter at near full power.


In short, nothing you can buy retail will be anywhere NEAR 5 Watts unless it has 2x CR123 cells.

Melchior, I am not aware of any 1AA/1AAA 5mm lights sold under the Victorinox brand. The lights I usually see referred to as Victorinox lights are the ones on this page. It's a 5 mm keychain light, and 2AAA, 2AA and 2C high power LED lights (though not Lux, I gather). They're pretty nice lights, though the MSRP are a tad high for my taste.

It could be that the kit you saw was packaged with a non-Victorinox light. I just want to clear up any confusion that seems to have occured in this thread. (like the 4.8W value, which refers to the lights on my link, which are definitely not 5mm LED lights.)