vickers214
Enlightened
How it all started!
I Joined the Police force several years ago and went out and bought the obligatory 2aa and 2d Maglights, and thought they were the best torches money could buy, and thought the light and throw on the 2D was awesome!
I look at them now and laugh at how bad the output is, the pathetic so called flood, the build quality, size etc etc.
I look back now and think of the times I have looked for dangerous criminals with a candle in a tube, or searched a factory with little more than a dim doughnut hole and think it was actually quite dangerous as I could see very little!
I wanted something that could fit on my belt that would be as bright as my 2D, and I went with the crowd (in the UK, as Surefires have pretty much priced themselves out of the market) at work and got a LED LENSER V2 Pro (COAST in the USA) and I was truly amazed by the light output, and the hype over runtimes, 100 hours on 3aaa WOW!
Before I go on I don't want to start another Surefire argument, but I know 2 people with them one has a fried lens, and the other person got it when he was in the Marines and when I told him the price he said "Fu****g hell Id never pay that for a torch"
I can say this is the light that changed me from just being a normal guy, to one having an unhealthy (come on guys it is!) obsession with torches due to this being the biggest hit and miss item I have ever owned!
I mean the quality was good, gold plated contacts, great optics getting the best out of a crappy LED, forward clicky, size, quality of holder, and good feel and size.
THEN I realised about dodgy switches, and the killer DIRECT DRIVE!
It was awesome for about 10 minutes, then it was just plain useless for my needs, and I found myself using a fresh set of batteries every set of shifts (which only has 2 nightshifts in) just to keep it in a useable state.
I then looked around and bought a Terralux Liughtstar 220 due to its 'Chinese Lumen' rating, Cree Q4, 2 modes and price, AND regulation!
It turned out to be a fine item for its price £28, but reverse clicky and I soon found out that modes switched by the tail switch is enough to make you pull your hair out!!!!!!!!
I often drive along lighting up door numbers to find addresses, and having to turn the torch ON and have to flash through modes and always finding I had low when I needed hi, was the nail in its coffin! I sold it to a none flashaholic colleague who thinks it is the bees knees (maglite user!)
This is when I started looking on CPF, much to my wife's disappointment at my new 'GEEKY' obsession, as I needed to know what I needed to buy and no more mistakes, I knew it had to be bright/small/regulated/ and forward clicky!
Then I discovered the world of OP, Smooth, UI, CR123's, Anodising, EDC, Beam Tints, LUX etc etc and I needed to know about it ALL to make an informed choice! ARRRRRGHHHHHHH is all I could say as it has had my head in bits on many occasion trying to make an informed choice! And then I saw battery graphs and found myself finding out about discharge rates, shelf life etc and knew I had a problem, but could not stop until I knew it all.
At this time I modded my 2AA with a terralux TLE 5EX and tail switch, and my 2D with a TLE6 EXB, UCL, and after e mailing The manufacturer and finding out this mod ran 50% brighter with 3 cells, did the 3C mod!
The 2AA upgrade was junk, it did not keep the focus like it claimed only a horrible artefact riddled flood with a crappy blue tint, and a 140 lumens? REALLY! This got given away as it made me angry that I had fell for the hype.
The 2D however was a good mod, nice white light (although still a little blue!) and a useful increase in throw, however this has been put at the back of the cupboard never to be used due to that doughnut hole and size of light! this is money I wish I had kept!
After some weeks of CPFing I went for an EAGLTAC P100A2 and I have to say I thought at this point I was done, excellent out put, brilliant UI (twist modes, no strobe) forward clicky, amazing throw, build quality, believable output claims, and good value for money £35.
I was wrong about it being over, but I will get back to you on that, I then felt a sense of duty to my colleagues at work all the Mag/ LED LENSER users and bought some ULTRAFIRE WF 606A Q5's to sell on to them at a very nominal mark up just so they were getting a good light, WRONG, these are junk, crap build, poor regulation, and having to clean threads put foil in switches etc etc, however they are blown away by them and because they are not sad like me they don't see these faults!
But I have to say it has the best beam profile I have seen, they came with a n almost none existent OP finish reflector, very shiny, (not the same as pictured on DX) excellent spill/throw and no artefacts, shame its in a piece of junk!
After a batch of these I then ordered Romisen RC G2 and RC P3's and although theses off DX are the older P series emitters, the quality of these lights for the price is , in my opinion, the best overall quality/price combo out there, and they really do feel like a saleable item, and I think if I had bought one of these before I knew of Eagletac, Fenix etc, say when I bought my LENSER I would have been happy with it and never got into this past time!
I did mod one of these with a Q5 and it was a little better but i think a new regulator would have helped it a lot more.
I also ordered a C3 Stainless as I liked the thought of a stainless light, but after 6 weeks of waiting, even though it was 'in stock' I cancelled it and ordered a ITP A3 SS which is brilliant for its size, but the PWM is off putting and another missed opportunity for a great light about an 8 out of 10, but well built and good looking, although the straight ridges instead of diamond knurling make it a 2 handed task to change modes as you fingers just slip.
Then it was a C78 from DX as I tried an Aspherical lens for my 2 D mag but its focal length was about half an inch off the threads of the torch, WHY? So instead of shortening the height of the bulb I ordered the C78, and I have to admit I liked this a lot, and find then an intriguing oddity, great throw, great flood, small size, and speed focus…………………and then true to form of anything from DX the switch sticks all the time so this has been given away I found how to fix it but it was too late for it to be saved in my head!, I have ordered an 80 lumen Golden Dragon aspherical, and I will just have a nosey at the emitter on it and give it away, and probably keep the Rc29 I have coming from KD, but who knows!
After all this somebody then went on to ruin my P100A2 for me, ignorant to a good piece of kit a colleague asks what's so good about it? And he doesn't listen to what I am saying, and says lets compare it to my LED LENSER Police Tech Focus, the true test of any torch to a layman, and on fresh batteries the LENSER performed as good if not better than the P100A2, and he says " And yours doesn't even focus" that was it I had to get some thing that would simply stamp on anything anyone I would encounter.
So after a disappointment with an Olight T25 which did not do it for me at all, I looked around and got the EAGLETAC T100C2 Mk 1 with 12000 LUX (Light reviews), nearly double my P100A2's, but I had to now go to CR123A batteries, something I was holding off on as I cannot get these supplied free, but WOW!!!! I am now at the top of the heap at work so I suppose im a bit chuffed with that! Just go to find him again on a dark night now!
I am out the other side now and with my little collection (T100C2, P100A2, ITP A3SS, RC29, and Modded Mag) I would like to stop it, but I can resist now, but I find myself thinking I need alight with a TIR lens as well, and I don't have an R2/5 binned light, or a P60 drop in host……………………………………..will it ever end!!!!!
This is not really a usefull link, just my experience to date, and hopefully I will only peak now and again, and think I will dip my toe back in when EDC's get to 500 Lumen! But I just wanted to share it and hopefully some of you guys may want to do the same.
Before I go I would like to say thank you to Alun at the Torchsite.co.uk for all his help, Antony at Flashaholics.com for good buying/exchange experience, and the man himself Selfbuilt for replying to the unenlightened PM I sent him!
Thanks for listening!
:wave:
I Joined the Police force several years ago and went out and bought the obligatory 2aa and 2d Maglights, and thought they were the best torches money could buy, and thought the light and throw on the 2D was awesome!
I look at them now and laugh at how bad the output is, the pathetic so called flood, the build quality, size etc etc.
I look back now and think of the times I have looked for dangerous criminals with a candle in a tube, or searched a factory with little more than a dim doughnut hole and think it was actually quite dangerous as I could see very little!
I wanted something that could fit on my belt that would be as bright as my 2D, and I went with the crowd (in the UK, as Surefires have pretty much priced themselves out of the market) at work and got a LED LENSER V2 Pro (COAST in the USA) and I was truly amazed by the light output, and the hype over runtimes, 100 hours on 3aaa WOW!
Before I go on I don't want to start another Surefire argument, but I know 2 people with them one has a fried lens, and the other person got it when he was in the Marines and when I told him the price he said "Fu****g hell Id never pay that for a torch"
I can say this is the light that changed me from just being a normal guy, to one having an unhealthy (come on guys it is!) obsession with torches due to this being the biggest hit and miss item I have ever owned!
I mean the quality was good, gold plated contacts, great optics getting the best out of a crappy LED, forward clicky, size, quality of holder, and good feel and size.
THEN I realised about dodgy switches, and the killer DIRECT DRIVE!
It was awesome for about 10 minutes, then it was just plain useless for my needs, and I found myself using a fresh set of batteries every set of shifts (which only has 2 nightshifts in) just to keep it in a useable state.
I then looked around and bought a Terralux Liughtstar 220 due to its 'Chinese Lumen' rating, Cree Q4, 2 modes and price, AND regulation!
It turned out to be a fine item for its price £28, but reverse clicky and I soon found out that modes switched by the tail switch is enough to make you pull your hair out!!!!!!!!
I often drive along lighting up door numbers to find addresses, and having to turn the torch ON and have to flash through modes and always finding I had low when I needed hi, was the nail in its coffin! I sold it to a none flashaholic colleague who thinks it is the bees knees (maglite user!)
This is when I started looking on CPF, much to my wife's disappointment at my new 'GEEKY' obsession, as I needed to know what I needed to buy and no more mistakes, I knew it had to be bright/small/regulated/ and forward clicky!
Then I discovered the world of OP, Smooth, UI, CR123's, Anodising, EDC, Beam Tints, LUX etc etc and I needed to know about it ALL to make an informed choice! ARRRRRGHHHHHHH is all I could say as it has had my head in bits on many occasion trying to make an informed choice! And then I saw battery graphs and found myself finding out about discharge rates, shelf life etc and knew I had a problem, but could not stop until I knew it all.
At this time I modded my 2AA with a terralux TLE 5EX and tail switch, and my 2D with a TLE6 EXB, UCL, and after e mailing The manufacturer and finding out this mod ran 50% brighter with 3 cells, did the 3C mod!
The 2AA upgrade was junk, it did not keep the focus like it claimed only a horrible artefact riddled flood with a crappy blue tint, and a 140 lumens? REALLY! This got given away as it made me angry that I had fell for the hype.
The 2D however was a good mod, nice white light (although still a little blue!) and a useful increase in throw, however this has been put at the back of the cupboard never to be used due to that doughnut hole and size of light! this is money I wish I had kept!
After some weeks of CPFing I went for an EAGLTAC P100A2 and I have to say I thought at this point I was done, excellent out put, brilliant UI (twist modes, no strobe) forward clicky, amazing throw, build quality, believable output claims, and good value for money £35.
I was wrong about it being over, but I will get back to you on that, I then felt a sense of duty to my colleagues at work all the Mag/ LED LENSER users and bought some ULTRAFIRE WF 606A Q5's to sell on to them at a very nominal mark up just so they were getting a good light, WRONG, these are junk, crap build, poor regulation, and having to clean threads put foil in switches etc etc, however they are blown away by them and because they are not sad like me they don't see these faults!
But I have to say it has the best beam profile I have seen, they came with a n almost none existent OP finish reflector, very shiny, (not the same as pictured on DX) excellent spill/throw and no artefacts, shame its in a piece of junk!
After a batch of these I then ordered Romisen RC G2 and RC P3's and although theses off DX are the older P series emitters, the quality of these lights for the price is , in my opinion, the best overall quality/price combo out there, and they really do feel like a saleable item, and I think if I had bought one of these before I knew of Eagletac, Fenix etc, say when I bought my LENSER I would have been happy with it and never got into this past time!
I did mod one of these with a Q5 and it was a little better but i think a new regulator would have helped it a lot more.
I also ordered a C3 Stainless as I liked the thought of a stainless light, but after 6 weeks of waiting, even though it was 'in stock' I cancelled it and ordered a ITP A3 SS which is brilliant for its size, but the PWM is off putting and another missed opportunity for a great light about an 8 out of 10, but well built and good looking, although the straight ridges instead of diamond knurling make it a 2 handed task to change modes as you fingers just slip.
Then it was a C78 from DX as I tried an Aspherical lens for my 2 D mag but its focal length was about half an inch off the threads of the torch, WHY? So instead of shortening the height of the bulb I ordered the C78, and I have to admit I liked this a lot, and find then an intriguing oddity, great throw, great flood, small size, and speed focus…………………and then true to form of anything from DX the switch sticks all the time so this has been given away I found how to fix it but it was too late for it to be saved in my head!, I have ordered an 80 lumen Golden Dragon aspherical, and I will just have a nosey at the emitter on it and give it away, and probably keep the Rc29 I have coming from KD, but who knows!
After all this somebody then went on to ruin my P100A2 for me, ignorant to a good piece of kit a colleague asks what's so good about it? And he doesn't listen to what I am saying, and says lets compare it to my LED LENSER Police Tech Focus, the true test of any torch to a layman, and on fresh batteries the LENSER performed as good if not better than the P100A2, and he says " And yours doesn't even focus" that was it I had to get some thing that would simply stamp on anything anyone I would encounter.
So after a disappointment with an Olight T25 which did not do it for me at all, I looked around and got the EAGLETAC T100C2 Mk 1 with 12000 LUX (Light reviews), nearly double my P100A2's, but I had to now go to CR123A batteries, something I was holding off on as I cannot get these supplied free, but WOW!!!! I am now at the top of the heap at work so I suppose im a bit chuffed with that! Just go to find him again on a dark night now!
I am out the other side now and with my little collection (T100C2, P100A2, ITP A3SS, RC29, and Modded Mag) I would like to stop it, but I can resist now, but I find myself thinking I need alight with a TIR lens as well, and I don't have an R2/5 binned light, or a P60 drop in host……………………………………..will it ever end!!!!!
This is not really a usefull link, just my experience to date, and hopefully I will only peak now and again, and think I will dip my toe back in when EDC's get to 500 Lumen! But I just wanted to share it and hopefully some of you guys may want to do the same.
Before I go I would like to say thank you to Alun at the Torchsite.co.uk for all his help, Antony at Flashaholics.com for good buying/exchange experience, and the man himself Selfbuilt for replying to the unenlightened PM I sent him!
Thanks for listening!
:wave:
