Gerber Lights

Lately I have been buying inexpensive AA lights and have fallen in love with the Gerber line. I recently have picked up an Infinity Ultra, Infinity Ultra-M (Military version...why it is designated this I have no clue), a Tempo, two Trio's (Got two off Ebay for $32.00!!), and last , but not least, an Omnivore! here is a quick impression of each light:

Infinity Ultra: This is my most used light around the house. I actually have had another one for several months. Great lights for lighting up the inside of a computer case or finding your way around at night!

Infinity Ultra-M: This is a nice light but it is not worth the extra $$$ over the standard version. It looks to me like it is same quality metal with 2 "O" rings on the rear cap and a different head. It only puts out maybe half the light of the IU at twice the price. Still a nicely made light and the only one made in the USA!

Tempo: A well built and priced AAA keychain light. Suprisingly bright!

Trio: These I just got and they are an oversized, 2 AA version of the UI and over twice as bright! If anybody owns one I would love to know if you can put a few lithium AA's in them!

Omnivore: This is one oddball light!! When you open the head of the light, there is a separate compartment for one AAA, or one AA, OR one CR123A!! I have never seen anything like it. It is a pretty bright light with a good throw, but not much spill.

None of these are going to light up the entire outdoors, but they all are great for all around use around the house and have nice long runtimes!

Mike

Before Gerber, when CMG produced the Ultra Infinity, you could get a 'M' version, or military grade, from some suppliers like CountyComm, which carried military surplus type products.

The main difference I could find in the military Ultra, was the green color, and the anodizing. A straight Ultra Infinity was type II anodizing, and the military Ultra Infinity was hard anodized type III.

The integrity of those memories, of course, are subject to my advancing age, which should be considered before accepting it as absolute.

I think Empath has got it on the money. You can carry that Ultra-M in your pocket with no worries about it getting ugly wear

I use my Infinity Ultra quite a lot around the house, too. It's definitely a good floody light to have for indoor tasks, and it's a great battery vampire. I kind of wish the LED wasn't overdriven (like the original CMG Infinity design), but it's still very useful.

Gotta love the Infinity Ultra. It rides in my pocket along with a Swiss Army knife and car keys so it's accumulated lots of scratches but always illuminates the darkness when needed. It's my most used light.

I'm a big fan too. I have the IU, Trio and Sonic. The Sonic is a AAA light which was also a carry-over from the original CMG (Course Made Good) company. You can score a deal on those for $3.99 ea. at Smokey Mountain Knife Works right now, as I assume they are clearancing for the new Tempo model which is already out. I don't think the quality of these last Sonics is on par with the IU's and Trio, but they are smaller than the Tempo. I you buy 3, or anything to get over $10, your shipping from those guys is free, but it won't show until the final checkout page.

I don't worry about my IU overdriving the LED, as the one I use is from the pre-CS era, and I have opened and modded it to a CS, and I can't wait for it to get a bit dimmer so I have an excuse to go back in and put in a DS! That is one thing that was VERY hard on the old CMG Infinity. While it was tough, the epoxy potted circuit crimped into the head was a true stunt to mod without hurting it.

Trio: These I just got and they are an oversized, 2 AA version of the UI and over twice as bright! If anybody owns one I would love to know if you can put a few lithium AA's in them!

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Mine runs well on Energizer AA Lithiums ... from day one, in fact. For a low cost light, it is very well built, nicely finished, and a floodmonster. No, it isn't a Surefire L4, but it is the nicest little AA flood you can buy for a $20 bill

precisionworks said:

Mine runs well on Energizer AA Lithiums ... from day one, in fact. For a low cost light, it is very well built, nicely finished, and a floodmonster. No, it isn't a Surefire L4, but it is the nicest little AA flood you can buy for a $20 bill

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I can't believe I missed this one. I must have been blind. Just ordered two of them. Thanks!:thumbsup:

I can't believe I missed this one.

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Mine came as part of a four light package deal on BST, and I didn't know what to expect of the Trio. The head & battery tube are permanently attached to each other, so batteries are inserted or removed at the twisty tailcap. A lanyard hole is already machined into the tailcap. Thread fit & finish are smooth, as is the twisty action. Runtime is claimed at 80 hours, & I'm guessing that about half of that is at full brightness, before the circuit drops out of regulation.

The other Gerber in the package is the Sonic, single AAA, with 5 hour claimed runtime. I haven't played much with that one, but it also looks like a strong value at a cost of only $10.

Yeah, i love these things,too !! I have several,gave one to my brother on his last birthday. Also, got a couple still in the package. The plan was,WAS, to use a couple as Christmas gifts. ( hey,it could happen).
I have one "M" version in red LED, it's the one i reach for when stumbling to the bathroom in the wee hours.
I'm in the middle of a month+ excursion in the third world, and the ONE light that i KNEW was coming with me was a Infinity Ultra !!! ( also brought SF E1L, LM31, and Inova X1,which i've already given away.)
And,yeah, according to some digging around i did on these a while back, the lithiums are A-OK.

I have to recommend the gerber FIRECRACKER. It's not the brightest light in the shed, but it does throw a good tight beam. 1AA battery lasts many hours. One drawback is that I often find it on in my pocket. The twisty action could be tighter.

precisionworks said:

Mine runs well on Energizer AA Lithiums ... from day one, in fact. For a low cost light, it is very well built, nicely finished, and a floodmonster. No, it isn't a Surefire L4, but it is the nicest little AA flood you can buy for a $20 bill

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Thank you!

I am going to load one of mine with Energizer lithiums and one with Panasonic Oxyrides (Foodlion had them in a 12 pack for six bucks!!:twothumbs) and see how they do. This may be the light I end up using while working on PC's. I own an Inova X5 and use that at at work along with an X1 and they work great! I think I like these better than the X5 however as they run on AA's. I just may go crazy and order 2 more of them from the person I got them from on Ebay. They were shipped out the same day I bought them and I got them in 2 days! It does not get any better than that!!:naughty:

Mike

greenlight said:

I have to recommend the gerber FIRECRACKER. It's not the brightest light in the shed, but it does throw a good tight beam. 1AA battery lasts many hours. One drawback is that I often find it on in my pocket. The twisty action could be tighter.

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You know I forgot all about the Firecracker! I have one of those also along with a TX 3.0! Both great lights. This is inspiring me to run to REI tomorrow and get one of the Cornea's!!:naughty:

Mike

greenlight said:

I have to recommend the gerber FIRECRACKER. It's not the brightest light in the shed, but it does throw a good tight beam. 1AA battery lasts many hours. One drawback is that I often find it on in my pocket. The twisty action could be tighter.

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After reading your first thread on the Firecracker, I've wanted it but for some reason haven't gotten it yet. Would Teflon tape help with the twisty?

*Goes off to look for best deal on Firecracker and change.*