MacTech
Enlightened
Yesterday, I stopped off at my local Target to pick up what looked like the last of their NOS (new old stock) Inova X03 lights, since Inova decided to ditch the TIROS optic for a reflector, it's sorta made the old TIROS lights a bit more unique/collectable
from what I can gather, there were two TIROS models of X03, one with a LuxIII, one with a K2, this light came in the newer packaging, proudly proclaiming it as a "3.9 watt LED" light, so I'm assuming it's the K2 version, or is it only the new reflector models that are using the K2?
how can you tell from packaging which model it is?
that said, I knew the X03 wasn't the brightest light out there, especially when I compared it against my reflectorized/Seouled E1L-SR, but it still did well, it was able to throw a visible spot on the ceiling of the Target store, even with all the ambient light and while still inside the packaging
when I got into the car, I quickly opened the packaging and shined it onto the roofliner of my car, I had forgotten how *ringy* the TIROS was and how much I disliked TIROS beams, I contemplated taking it back, but in the back of my head, a little voice kept saying "wait until dark, don't give up on it yet"
I have to admit, the X03 is a *solid* light, with the classic Inova "Built like a tank" feel to it and some nice heft, it's pocketable, marginally, but would be better off as a jacket pocket light or a nightstand light, perhaps toss it in my tacklebox for those evening fishing trips....
Once night had fallen, I took it out and lit up some treetops and generally played around with it, that tightly focused TIROS collomating lens can really *throw*, the X03 is arguably my best throwing LED light, and used outside, the tight, throwy beam doesn't feel so tight
I took it back inside the house, and as expected, the beam profile left a lot to be desired up close, as the ringiness and tight focus really made the beam less enjoyable to use indoors, if I needed throw inside the house (like for in my hallway beamshots) however, the beam of the X03 was quite usable and the ringiness was acceptable
I had prejudged the TIROS optic badly, my first good light, the light that started my obsession with bright shiny objects, was an Inova X0, an original Lux1 TIROS light, and thanks to the tight, throwy, ringy beam of the TIROS optic, I decided I hated optic lights because they had "bad beams"
the thing was, I wasn't using the X0 for it's intended purpose, I was using a throwy light like a flooder, and expecting it to be useful for short distances indoors, I traded it for an X5 and was much happier, as I wanted a floody beam for inside use, I made the standard newbie error of trying to force a light designed for one purpose to fit another, and I erroneously pre-judged the entire TIROS line as having "bad beams", and ignored them until they were no longer available
Now, at least, I realize I was wrong about the TIROS, I'm glad I own one now, it's a unique light
Now, if only they weren't so bloody hard to mod, I'd love to drop in a Seoul P4 to widen up the hotspot a bit
from what I can gather, there were two TIROS models of X03, one with a LuxIII, one with a K2, this light came in the newer packaging, proudly proclaiming it as a "3.9 watt LED" light, so I'm assuming it's the K2 version, or is it only the new reflector models that are using the K2?
how can you tell from packaging which model it is?
that said, I knew the X03 wasn't the brightest light out there, especially when I compared it against my reflectorized/Seouled E1L-SR, but it still did well, it was able to throw a visible spot on the ceiling of the Target store, even with all the ambient light and while still inside the packaging
when I got into the car, I quickly opened the packaging and shined it onto the roofliner of my car, I had forgotten how *ringy* the TIROS was and how much I disliked TIROS beams, I contemplated taking it back, but in the back of my head, a little voice kept saying "wait until dark, don't give up on it yet"
I have to admit, the X03 is a *solid* light, with the classic Inova "Built like a tank" feel to it and some nice heft, it's pocketable, marginally, but would be better off as a jacket pocket light or a nightstand light, perhaps toss it in my tacklebox for those evening fishing trips....
Once night had fallen, I took it out and lit up some treetops and generally played around with it, that tightly focused TIROS collomating lens can really *throw*, the X03 is arguably my best throwing LED light, and used outside, the tight, throwy beam doesn't feel so tight
I took it back inside the house, and as expected, the beam profile left a lot to be desired up close, as the ringiness and tight focus really made the beam less enjoyable to use indoors, if I needed throw inside the house (like for in my hallway beamshots) however, the beam of the X03 was quite usable and the ringiness was acceptable
I had prejudged the TIROS optic badly, my first good light, the light that started my obsession with bright shiny objects, was an Inova X0, an original Lux1 TIROS light, and thanks to the tight, throwy, ringy beam of the TIROS optic, I decided I hated optic lights because they had "bad beams"
the thing was, I wasn't using the X0 for it's intended purpose, I was using a throwy light like a flooder, and expecting it to be useful for short distances indoors, I traded it for an X5 and was much happier, as I wanted a floody beam for inside use, I made the standard newbie error of trying to force a light designed for one purpose to fit another, and I erroneously pre-judged the entire TIROS line as having "bad beams", and ignored them until they were no longer available
Now, at least, I realize I was wrong about the TIROS, I'm glad I own one now, it's a unique light
Now, if only they weren't so bloody hard to mod, I'd love to drop in a Seoul P4 to widen up the hotspot a bit
