Ra 85Tr unusual beam pattern! (new information)

I owned a 100 twisty and traded it, now i have an 85 twisty. I thought the 85 was supposed to be a little more of a thrower beam than the 100. I just took the 85 in the woods and i think it looks more floody than the 100. Does anyone have any thoughts on this issue?

Ra85 vs. Ra100 beam?

I owned a 100 twisty and traded it, now i have an 85 twisty. I thought the 85 was supposed to be a little more of a thrower beam than the 100. I just took the 85 in the woods and i think it looks more floody than the 100. Does anyone have any thoughts on this issue?

Re: Ra85 vs. Ra100 beam?

The Ra-85-Tr is "a little more of a thrower" than the Ra-100-T, but the difference isn't as pronounced as some (or many) would expect. Side-by-side, the angle of the two beams appears to be the same, and both beams are equally smooth. But the hot spot of the Ra-100-T is larger and less intense, and the Ra-85-Tr's is smaller and more intense.

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

Coincidentally, I used my Ra 85 only the other night, in the woods for a bit of geocaching. I really liked the combination of throw and flood great for navigating the frozen paths and brambled woods.

It is advertised that the Ra 100 doesn't throw as far as the 85, what they don't say is how the spill measures up to the throw. The shame is that you don't have both for a direct comparison.

Did you apreciate the beam of were you expecting a narrow TIROS like pattern, like the KL1 or KL3. Personally I find both of those a bit limiting in pitch black exterior scenarios. I much prefer a thrower with a bit of flood, like the 85 in fact. Less claustrophobic.

I'm sure you will find a good price for the 85 if you want to change it. I hear they aren't going to be around for long. :mecry:


Be lucky...

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

If you don't like it, how much do you want for it? A dollar a lumen sound fair?

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

Posts #1 and #2 look like double-posting, but they aren't. This is 2 identical threads from different sub-forums, which I have merged.

Please note that cross-posting in this way is contrary to Rule #9:

9. Double and cross posting

DO NOT post the same thread more than once anywhere on the board. DO NOT post a thread whose sole purpose is to link to or refer to another thread on the board, whether it is yours or someone else's. You may look at this as just a few k's of text bandwidth but if everyone does it, we're back to total disorder as to where topics are. Not to mention completely skewing searches. And those "few k's of text" really do add up! Double and cross posting will be edited and/or deleted by the moderators and administrators.

Click to expand...

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

I mean i really like the light, i could have just sworn that the 100s beam was a little tighter even than my new 85. Maybe my eyes are just being funny on me but the hotspot is not very destinct. And the spill is like something i have never seen in an LED before. Its got a crazy amount of spill and it seems like the spill throws almost as much as the hot spot.

Oh goodness a dollar a lumen huh LOL? Well the light is BRAND NEW other than me wondering around in the woods last nite. I think ill just hang on to it for now and maybe ill get used to alot of spill.

BTW why arnt they gonna be around for long? I guess I hadnt heard of anything.:thinking:

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

Sorry DM51, still kinda new here and guess I didnt read all the fine print.

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

Could my light be I dont wanna say "defective" but different? Does anybody esle experience a whole lotta spill with there Ra85?:thinking:

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

Well, the spill size between the 100Tw's and the 85Tr's are going to be exactly the same.

The hotspot and transition into the corona creates the difference between the Tr and Tw versions.

The Tw should have a more even transition from hotspot to spill with less defined center intensity, where as the Tr should have a significantly more defined central hotspot with a nice transition into the spill.

The Tr should throw 20% farther than the Tw. If you don't have the two side by side, then it can be hard to tell, especially because the 100Tw has 15 more lumen to add to the total output. The spot of the 85Tr should reach a bit farther than the 100Tw, but it will be a closer difference between them.

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

The hot spot of my 85 in my opinion is not any more defined than my 100 that I just traded. Maybe im expection a noticeable change when in fact maybe its not hardly noticeable at all? Huh:thinking:

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

So you for sure had a 100Tw beam first, and traded for a 85Tr, and you are not able to distinguish the differences between the two?

I'd say the difference is very noticeable.

Check out this link to see the different beam patterns.

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

Ya positive it was a Ra100 I had it just a very short time and traded it off and few weeks later bought a Ra85. Huh weird.

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

My supplier informed me that they are finding it difficult to get any more of the LEDs they use in the 85TR. Haven't heard it elsewhere until then.

Hope this proves wrong as I think these lights are exemplary.


Be lucky...

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

Personally, the low red is an interesting feature, but not one I actually use. I re-programmed mine to use the lowest white output instead, and that's more than sufficient for my low light needs. I'd be fine if the 85Tr was superceded by a 100 or 120-TN based on the Golden Dragon Plus (like the Clicky).

Incidentally, I originally bought the 85-Tr as a curiosity, and didn't expect to like the longer throwing beam as much as the SSC P4-based Novatac, 100-T, and 100-C. But, I find I actually prefer the little bit of extra throw of the 85-Tr, and the spill is more than adequate and smooth enough for my indoor needs. Maybe I should start grovelling for a 170-CN.

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

I just dont see this "long" throw that is suppossed to be there. My 85 couldnt have 100 style reflector in it by mistake could it? Not sure if thats even possible just thinkin out loud.

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

It's not "long" throw, it's "longer" throw. As in the throw/flood ratio of the beam from the 85Tr reflector is higher than the beam produced by the 100T reflector from the same or similar emitter producing the same number of photons.

Check out the beam shots in this post.

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

camaro09 said:

I just dont see this "long" throw that is suppossed to be there. My 85 couldnt have 100 style reflector in it by mistake could it? Not sure if thats even possible just thinkin out loud.

Click to expand...

The reflectors are the same in both lights. Nothing is different except the LED itself.

It's just 20% more throw with the Tr version at equal output.

A 100Tr against a 100Tw will throw 20% farther.
An 85Tr against a 100Tw will not appear to throw 20% farther, but may edge out a bit more distance.

Does that help?

The outputs are not equal between 85 maximum lumen and 100 maximum lumen, so the extra 20% of throw that the Osram (Tr) LED is producing will not appear as significant unless it is equal or greater in output than any Tw version.

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?

Enzo Morocioli said:

The reflectors are the same in both lights. Nothing is different except the LED itself.

Click to expand...

Seriously?!?!

So the beam profile is only varied by the emission angle/pattern of the emitter?

That really surprises me given Henry's stated desire for flexibility with LED choice.

Ignore my previous post, I guess.

Re: Ra 85 vs. Ra100 beam?



This is my 85Tr at 85 lumen. As you can see, the central hotspot is incredibly visible, and I had to outline where the edge of the spill occurs. If I had a 100Tw I'd do a comparison.