The 10X arrives! ........ After 10 months. (first impressions)

[John N]

Well, I was working late tonight and while coordinating I got some totally unexpected news.

"Oh, and you have a package here from Arizona Gun Runners."

Attempts to get her to check it out were met with disinterest.

Well geez, I can't even go home and check it out.

So, getting home after midnight I check it out. Turns out to be only one of the two 10X lights I ordered (back in October '01), but were talking progress here!

So I stuck it in the charger thinking I'm done for the night.

Hmm. A few mins later the green light comes on. Well hey, it was mostly charged.

Needless to say, the dog got a bonus walk!

Well, I haven't really had time to check it out much, but overall it seems very nice.

It is smaller than I imagine. Construction appears sturdy as I expected.

It looks like you have to put the light in the locked out position to charge which I don't particularly like.

The low beam seems fairly focused (hard cut-off) and seems nearly identical to my M2 with LOLA but whiter, but that could just be the state of the batteries in the M2.

Needless to say, the LOLA outperforms my 5D Maglite which it replaces rather spectacularly.

HOLA is, well, bright. I'll have to nab my M6 (later) to compare, but it meets expectations. ;-)

The part where the lens is mounted looks a little funky, I'll have to take a closer look when I'm awake.

I didn't notice any alignment marks for locked out / active ala my M2 and M6 but I again, I'll have to take a closer look.

The barrel turns a bit easier than I would expect. It makes me a bit paranoid that it might actually come off by accident, but I suspect this wouldn't really happen.

The up side of the barrel turning easy is that it smoothly and easily engages the locked on feature.

Two O rings.

I didn't get a second lamp assembly like was originally advertised. Just the 60 lumen lamp. Doesn't really matter that much to me as I was planning to run with the 60 lumen lamp anyway.

Nice big, sturdy holes to attach a lanyard.
All in all I suspect I'm going to really like this light. Now all I need is the other one!

Well, I should go to bed now.

-john

 

[BuddTX]

Thanks for the review!

What was the diameter of the bezel?

the pictures make this light look awkward and big,

The spec;s say 20 ounces, how heavy is it acutally!

You have the luckiest dog in the whole world!!!!!!

Is this sucker really as bright as the M6 with the HOLA??????????

 

[John N]

[edited 8/27]

Diameter is a bit hard because it is not round.

Call it 3 1/4 x slightly less than 2 1/2" at the very end (business end) which sticks out a bit.

Most of the head appears to be about 2 1/8" and round.

The "handle" is oval and about 1 1/2" x 1 1/8".

Overall length is about 9 1/2".

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Size. It seems much smaller in person than it does in the photos. I think if you feel comfortable with the size of a two "D" Maglite, you'll be fine with this light.

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Weight. Well, that's a bit harder. I don't think the light is overly heavy, but it does seem a bit weird (awkward might be a bit overstating it). I think this comes down the head being heavier than the body/handle. Since it is tailcap activated, you hold it hear the end and you have a fairly unbalanced afair.

I think this wouldn't be much of a problem for tactial use and constaint on use, but is less comfortable for on/off use (moving from relaxed, light off to light on).

My reasoning is that for tactical use, you are going to be holding the light firmly and for less time.

If you have it on always, you have activated the twist on and you end up getting a grip closer to the center of gravity so it feels ok.

When you go on/off (relaxed, light drooped at your side) it seems you want to let the light droop and you want to bunch up and hold it closer to the center of gravity, but that moves your hand away from the tail switch. If you hold it close to the tail switch and are more relaxed, the light wants to droop and thus becomes a bit uncomfortable*.

This can be addressed by holding the light firmly.

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Yes, I think it is as bright as the M6 with HOLA.

BTW, the reflector assembly is Al embedded in the plastic.

-john

* The problem is probably more that the light is drooping away from the hand instead of towards the hand.

 

[Sean]

Did it have a pyrex lens?

How is the battery holding up? Does it seem to hold a charge when not in use for several days & will this thing really get 3 hours of runtime from the lola?!

 

[John N]

Originally posted by Sean:
Did it have a pyrex lens?

How is the battery holding up? Does it seem to hold a charge when not in use for several days & will this thing really get 3 hours of runtime from the lola?!

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Yes.

I'm not sure, I leave it in the charger and haven't had the chance to run it until empty.

-john

 

[Size15's]

My 10X holds it's charge very well. Far better then any other rechargeable device I own (such as B90s, Shaver, Toothbrush, Mobile phone, Analogue cordless. etC)
Okay the DECT cordless has very good battery life. I hardly ever have to put it on charge.

Al

 

[Sean]

How long does it take to charge a fully drained 10X battery?

 

[Tombeis]

About two hours.