What's the latest in magnetic variable ring type flashlights?

[jon_slider]

wow, thats a Fatty
fwiw a google of the email handle he posted
https://www.google.com/search?client=safari&rls=en&q=elbertsonlights&ie=UTF-8&oe=UTF-8
brings up a number of listings that may be the same guy

my guess is it was not worth his time to continue producing lights due to low volume sales

I have not tried a QTC light, I know Peak makes some... they are probably less fickle about exposure to environmental magnets

dont get a Jetbeam magnetic ring light light too close to another light with a magnetic tail, or you may get a HotPocket from the Accidental Discharge..;-)

I believe models with tailswitches such as the V11R are immune to magnets when switched off at the button. The RRT-01 can be immunized by locking out by unscrewing the body half a turn.. but thats not very fun

 

[Archibald Tuttle]

Don't forget old solenoid door actuators, ask me how I know
I'll bet stadium speakers and auto salvage yards may be hot pocket situations too!

 

[ironhorse]

I now wish I would have picked up a couple of spare RRT-01 while they were available.
From barely glowing to full on, one hand operation, no clicking then twisting. It is still one of my favorite lights.
I still can't see why they no longer make them. Do you think we could get enough support to have them bring it back?

 

[Archibald Tuttle]

I now wish I would have picked up a couple of spare RRT-01 while they were available.
From barely glowing to full on, one hand operation, no clicking then twisting. It is still one of my favorite lights.
I still can't see why they no longer make them. Do you think we could get enough support to have them bring it back?

Its only anecdotal evidence, but I don't think much of the JB hierarchy, that produced these lights, is still around. There are still infinitely variable lights being made. Thrunite TH20 and the sleeper NiteCore EC22 are nice, useful tools. Not seeing much in the way of ring selectors.

 

[jon_slider]

I now wish I would have picked up a couple of spare RRT-01 while they were available.

you might find the NiteEye 10 suitable, and it is still available.

here is some info about it

and a review of the Niteye 10

to put a positive spin on the detents, they would allow consistent and repeatable access to 10 specific brightness levels. That way I could learn, using my light meter, what each detent level's output is, and have the ability to Know, instead of guess at, what brightness levels I like to use in each situation.. that would reduce the number of times I might move the dial back and forth to find a sweet spot for my repeated use scenarios.. basically, a form of Mode Memory, with known Lumen steps, Like an HDS!

---
for entertainment:
check out this review of a Niteye Eye 10 TIC

These are NLA, but I just thought it would make a good addition to this conversation about magnetic ring models.

It has a great video segment. The EYE10 TIC (titanium and carbon fiber) has a smooth ramping control ring, like the RRT-01
plus trit slots!;-)

to see the pictures:

I was able to go through and save the reviews as html+files before the hosting service went down. ... here's the link to this one:

https://docs.google.com/uc?authuser=0&id=0B-IDTPwIgRDvdVdkSVRUN29CU1U&export=download

If I did everything right, you should be able to download that file, unzip it, and open the .html file to see the page as it was when I saved it. Let me know if it works or if you have any trouble.

 

[ironhorse]

Not interested in the Niteye with the detents.. I would hate the detents.
Gotta be smoooooooth.

 

[jon_slider]

Gotta be smoooooooth.

check your inbox

fwiw, the Eye10 TIC does have smooth dial, no detents, but its made of unobtanium

here are some cutomized ones that sold a while back, check out the pics, there was a tripple Nichia mod!!!!

 

[Fireclaw18]

Not interested in the Niteye with the detents.. I would hate the detents.
Gotta be smoooooooth.

I think I could make my Eye10 smooth pretty easily if I wanted to. Just need to disassemble the loot and put superglue in the extra detents.

 

[Cosmodragoon]

... there aren't very many small lights that do this, namely small AAA or AA size lights, so the next best are the single CR123 size lights. I have several types but it seems that most are hard to find now. Just the Sunwayman brand.

I only recently started looking at these. I missed this whole class of light because my initial exploration of modern LED flashlights was based on AA and AAA batteries. (I had already invested in Eneloop Pro batteries.) One thing I dislike about a lot of multi-mode lights is having to click through a bunch of modes and/or not remembering which mode will be activated when I turn it on, especially when trying to preserve night vision in the dark. Having a separate hardware control is quite appealing to me and the visual reference is just gravy. This, and the fact that it comes in a high-CRI neutral white, makes the Sunwayman very attractive.

I don't know how accurate this is but I did see a YouTube review which claimed that the separate clicky switch on the Sunwayman prevented battery drain versus the rotary-only control on the Jetbeam. Is this true?

Also, are there any drawbacks to the magnetic rotary control?

 

[night.hoodie]

are there any drawbacks to the magnetic rotary control?

This is conjecture, but I believe that due to the nature of the technology, regulated brightness with magnetic control rings is hit or miss, depending on which cardinal direction you are facing, or whether you're standing still, or spining in circles.

See the link to the post to the link of a video of V11r in jon_slider's post above.

I do not know, so I am taking a position to see if it stands: magnetic control ring lights have difficulty maintaining brightness regulation due to the Earth's magnetic force lines.

Knock it down, CPF

 

[jon_slider]

This, and the fact that it comes in a high-CRI neutral white, makes the Sunwayman very attractive.

I did not know there is a High CRI version, can you share a link please?

I do not know, so I am taking a position to see if it stands: magnetic control ring lights have difficulty maintaining brightness regulation due to the Earth's magnetic force lines.

The V11r was modified to 219c, and the difference in vF from the stock LED made the light drift so much that I could see the change, as much as 100%, with my naked, but trained eye, plus I have a meter for reference. The light would go from about 60 to 120 lumens, depending which way it was facing. That is what I call a change of 100%. Generally our eyes notice a change of 50% as a slight increase in brightness. A change of 60 lumens is not that easy to see, unless youre an experienced whitewall hunter.

On my stock RRT-01 the change is 10%, this is not visible, and the light does not drift as severely as the modded V11r, after I let go of the dial.

I like the infinitely variable ring on the RRT-01, however, there is no way to set it twice in a row to the same brightness level, unless I use a meter, and even then, it is difficult to be precise. So now Im interested in trying the Eye 10, and I offer to sell my RRT-01, or possible trade for an Eye 10. PM me if interested. My interest in the Eye10 with detents on the ring is so I can repeatedly set the light to the same position on the dial, by counting detent clicks.

Yes the RRT-01 has "parasitic drain". It is very low. YES the V11r has no parasitic drain when the tailswitch is off, plus, the tailswitch can be used to repeat a previous setting, IF the dial has not moved since the last time it was turned on.

I prefer the RRT-01 to the V11r, because I find the tailswitch operation requires me to change my handhold, when I want to turn the dial. On the RRT-01 the interface does not make me change my grip, just turn the dial and Viola! Bob's your Uncle.

I have learned recently that changing LEDs on some lights has unexpected consequences, for example, I had a N219b 4500k installed in a Utorch S1 Mini. The light cannot maintain high mode, and the battery life was cut in half on Medium. Had I known, i would have chosen a different host. For those reasons, and the result on the V11r swap to N219c, I cannot recommend changing LEDs on those lights, nor on the RRT-01, unless provisions are made to solve the circuit problems caused by the change of LED.

The fancy Eye10 Tic, which is titanium, and has a smooth dial with no detents, pictured above, makes me wonder about its Lumen stability. I dont own one to test. That maker also modifies V11r to tripples with nichias. I wish somebody with a light meter would do some tests on how stable the output is, when the light is rotated 180 degrees. The whole light, not the dial.

 

[Cosmodragoon]

Here is the neutral white version of the Sunwayman v11r at Battery Junction:

https://www.batteryjunction.com/sun...MI1-LEoKia3QIVyI2zCh2UNwduEAAYASAAEgKnEPD_BwE

Now that I look at it, I don't see CRI specified. I got the idea from the following review, which has it in the title:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mzXfVIA9fsM

 

[night.hoodie]

According to this pdf data sheet, the Cree T6 is neither neutral white nor high CRI. It is cool white, and 80 CRI.

This does not mean that the light batteryjunction is selling is not neutral white, but it does mean that it cannot be High CRI. The sales page must be wrong about the name of the LED as T6, or that it is neutral white, if the data sheet is correct and current: the T6 does not come in neutral white nor High CRI, and the neutral white emitters listed in the data sheet are not high CRI. Only the warm white LED from that family is 90 CRI.

Another possibility involves the definition of "neutral white." Is 5000K neutral? Then it is possible there are T6 selections that are neutral white, but they will still not be high CRI

Another possibility, batteryjunction advertised XM-L incorrectly, that the LED is actually XM-L2, which is available in neutral white. See this thread, I believe it is discussing this very light and the differences between stock emitter and high CRI Nichia 219b.

 

[eh4]

Aside from being able to set the ring befor turning on the light, is there a meaningful advantage to magnetic variable rings vs the Narsil style D1/D4 interface?
That uses a momentary electrical switch instead, but you've got low, high, med, and a very effective ranping interface between them.
Considering that you can order a driver with those abilities, along with an eye bleeding turbo, and a thermal ramp down, for something like 16$, that seems like it should really open up the range of possible lights for what you want.
Sorry it's in a momentary switch interface instead of a magnetic ring.

 

[Cosmodragoon]

Thanks for the clarification/correction. This is part of why I joined up here. Marketing does not always match reality and sometimes, the reviews get it wrong.

BTW, I'd like to see more mechanical switches in general. I might be dating myself slightly but I remember analog flashlights from back in the day before people said "back in the day" with ring, slide, and rocker switches. You always knew where the crappy incandescent bulb was set, off or on. I feel like modern manufacturer's could borrow from the past...

 

[jon_slider]

@Cosmodragoon
thank you very much for the links to the information you had seen on youtube

fwiw, I once bought an LED that I was told was High CRI. I assumed that meant 90+ cri, but it turned out the LED was rated@ 83CRI, it was an "old school" xpg

@night.hoodie
thank you very much for the information you share, including supporting links

major respect for the high quality of both your contributions.



@eh4
thank you for mentioning electronic ramping as an alternative to magnetic ring interfaces
> is there a meaningful advantage to magnetic variable rings
imo yes
I can hand my RRT-01 to anybody, and all the instructions they need to operate it is "turn the ring"

otoh, electronic ramping is not easy to teach to a newbie, it is a sophisticated and complex interface, suitable for experienced flashoholics, that are well versed in complex variations on a simple button press, similar to HDS, where the operator needs to use an instruction manual to access all the features.

 

[Archibald Tuttle]

Despite the disadvantages of most magnetic ring lights, slightly less efficient, etc. It's a very simple user interface. I really liked the SureFire T1A rotary, which does not use a magnetic control. But found out the hard way that that design was far from water proof. Sweat soaked pockets did in two.
@Jon_Slider , before you sell your RRT and possibly regret it, I've got a NOS Niteye 10 I'll loan you for testing purposes. Pm me if interested.

 

[tintofino]

Hi Orion,
I too prefer "infinitely" variable output so i can pick exactly the brightness I want at any given time. They are my favorite lights to use as opposed to some high end lights that mostly sit around looking really good.

I had the same question as you about current options available these days. So this thread was nice to read.

My favorites, with some notes:

Niteye Eye 10 TIC
Used as EDC for 5+ years now, super smooth ring action, and only the ring movement interface is needed, from off to 500+; no click required. One handed operation via thumb and forefinger on the ring is easy. My favorite light by far. If it were not so complicated to take apart (unlocking threading, messing with the driver, disassembling the ring, etc.), i might get the gumption to install trits. oRAirwolf's post on his attempt makes it look pretty daunting for someone with only basic mod experience.
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?372837-Niteye-EYE10-TiC-w-Noctigon-XM-L2-U2-1A-Ice-Blue-Tritium-Mod

Sunwayman V11R, neutral white
Used at my home desk for whatever is needed around the house. The click to light at the current output setting is nice at times. But would be even nicer not to have to click at all as on the Eye10 TIC. My V11R was purchased in 2012, and sometimes the ring gets stuck if not used for a while, even at a middle range outputs. and a wrench required loosen it, and gets sticky at the max output end. The metal colored marks from nicks on the black finish are not very appealing. I wish they would do a Ti edition, or at least a raw aluminum finish. I saw the link on this thread for incoming stock at BatteryJunction. At least the current release has a metal clip, whereas my dinged up black clip looks like crap after 6 years. Still $50 for a new one now, when i Paid $90 back in 2012, is not bad at all. Hopefully they improved the ring action from my old version.

Veleno Design Quantum DD - Ti Limited Edition Ti
Used as keychain EDC, Doesn't have a ring interface, rather a threaded twist for variable brightness. Not as precise as the Eye 10 TIC or V11R for adjusting brightness, but perfect for unobtrusive lighting to read restaurant menus, wine labels of whatever discreetly in a darker, public setting.

So annoying when some oblivious guy pans his harsh phone light in your face or across the room in a dim restaurant as he blasts the hell out the menu trying to read it.
Get a proper light, buddy!

 

[CelticCross74]

I had high hopes when I finally ordered the V11R. Boy were those hopes dashed! THAT...is supposed to be impressive how? The dial itself felt like it was going to break all the time.

Nightcore SRT line. YES I will take the heat for actually saying that through the several years of my ownership of the SRT line except for the SRT5 and SRT9 that they STILL have the best variable dial user interfaces. Easy to find in the dark and surprisingly well designed. I have dropped mine many times could have sworn they would be broken. NOPE all the SRTs I have variable ring UI actually still work perfectly.

SRT6 is my personal favorite. Just strobe, mail beam and SOS none of the RGB secondary emitter BS like in the SRT7 to mess up the beam profile. That and the 2xpowersource 2x16340 gives both the 6 and the 7 an average increase in ouput of 70 extra lumens.

 

[cyclesport]

Thought I'd bump this thread to let those of you who do like the Sunwayman V11R know that Battery Junction seems to be closing these out right now at the lowest price I've ever personally seen at just under $30. And...they have several of the neutral tint versions as well as the cool!

Just a "heads up" for those that may have wanted one of these seemingly vanishing species of lights.


and...the neutral's are gone!