Wot's this? HA XM-3?

hookoo

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Jun 14, 2005
Messages
86
Location
SW Washington
I doubt it is HA3. The owner of batteryjunction.com is a member here at CPF under the handle Mattk. Seems like a pretty decent price regardless of HA3
 

Mags

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Oct 16, 2004
Messages
2,096
Location
NY
For 35$, it doesnt look that bad. The 80 lumens claim is obviously false, but everything else seems to be pretty good. Its supposedly hard anodized, it uses AAs, very affordable, Uses a T bin luxeon.
 

jbfla

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Aug 21, 2004
Messages
150
Location
central Florida
Received a Hydra in today's mail.

The finish appears identical to the XM-3. Not positive, but pretty sure it's not HA3...at least not like any of my other HA3 lights.

Hydra's differences from the EL XM-3:

...body tube has no clip, or holes to attach one.
...the tailpiece is 3-4 mm shorter with recessed reverse clickie swith.
...slightly stiffer spring.
...the reflector is more shallow, without a polished finish.
...there appears to some sort of "optic" over the LED.
...no fiber donut to protect from reverse polarity.
...the back of the circuit board appears to be more crudely crafted.

Now the part that counts (IMHO), the beam: They're very similar...but

My eyeball assessment (with new AA's in both) is that the Hydra's beam is "brighter and whiter". Though the spill (outside the hotspot) is dimmer with a couple of not too noticeable rings.

I've always liked the rugged case of the XM-3, and that it uses AA's. However, all six of the XM-3's I purchased have a slightly greenish tint.

The Hydra's is white (at least this one is).

If you're in the market for this type of light, the Hydra appears to be a viable alternative to the XM-3.

jb
 
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