JML
Enlightened
I just got one of these from one of our sponsors, after a long wait for a light with the proper circuit board (the earlier versions had defective boards and strange regulation).
The color is excellent for a Luxeon 1-W (whiter than most others I've seen, but not in the Lux III camp). The new beam pattern is indeed excellent; the reflector does a fine job. Superior in color and smoothness to several Pelican M6 LED lights I have on hand; a similar pattern to the Fenix 3-W light, but not as white and bright.
But Inova continues to be unable to keep dust out of the lens cover. Even though the steel bezel unscrews, you cannot get the lens out -- it seems glued to the reflector (there's no o-ring in here to be seen). I guess I can live with that (or I've given up hoping for better).
But the thing that really bugs me is the incredibly strong spring in the body, under the head. It looks like Inova went way, way overboard on the spring -- the push switch has to be the most difficult to press that I've ever tried -- at least three times more pressure is needed to light the thing than the new X5. You'd end up with arms like Arnold Swarzenneger if you try to use the switch. There's no apparent way to remove the spring and cut off a few coils, and it's not going to get any shorter just from pressure. It makes the push switch virtually useless -- you have to have the tail screwed in almost all the way, and it's only only a momentary-on option because you just can't hold that button depressed for more than a few seconds.
If they plan to marry that reflector with Lux III and the clickie from the T-series, they'll have a truly excellent light to sell. But on this model, the spring has GOT to be changed.
The color is excellent for a Luxeon 1-W (whiter than most others I've seen, but not in the Lux III camp). The new beam pattern is indeed excellent; the reflector does a fine job. Superior in color and smoothness to several Pelican M6 LED lights I have on hand; a similar pattern to the Fenix 3-W light, but not as white and bright.
But Inova continues to be unable to keep dust out of the lens cover. Even though the steel bezel unscrews, you cannot get the lens out -- it seems glued to the reflector (there's no o-ring in here to be seen). I guess I can live with that (or I've given up hoping for better).
But the thing that really bugs me is the incredibly strong spring in the body, under the head. It looks like Inova went way, way overboard on the spring -- the push switch has to be the most difficult to press that I've ever tried -- at least three times more pressure is needed to light the thing than the new X5. You'd end up with arms like Arnold Swarzenneger if you try to use the switch. There's no apparent way to remove the spring and cut off a few coils, and it's not going to get any shorter just from pressure. It makes the push switch virtually useless -- you have to have the tail screwed in almost all the way, and it's only only a momentary-on option because you just can't hold that button depressed for more than a few seconds.
If they plan to marry that reflector with Lux III and the clickie from the T-series, they'll have a truly excellent light to sell. But on this model, the spring has GOT to be changed.
