Not impressed with the armytek viking pro 2.5

jakepen

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I received my viking the other day, and the quality, and the anodizing is awesome on this thing. But I'm not impressed with the output of this light. It reminds me of me led lenser f1, which is just a backup around the house. The spill is very small, and the hotspot quite large. It doesn't throw far, or even light up a large area. My tx25c2 blows it away in every category. I'm sending it back to Amazon and getting something else. I saw vihn had a customized four sevens light, might look into that.

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Swedpat

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Hi jakepen!

I recently received the same light! I have to say that I really like this light and purchased it because my liking of Predator pro 2.5 and Barracuda. I love the body coating which provides a good unslip hold. While Predator and Barracuda are pure throwers Viking is not at all. I find the wide hotspot great for allround use. I can agree about the spill of Viking: while the narrow spill is perfect on extreme throwers like Predator and Barracuda it could have been a bit wider with Viking. The max output of my sample(warm version) is ~600 OTF lumens(the output of cool white is slightly higher) which I find good, though not the highest for it's class.

Sorry you are not satisfied with the Viking. I will keep mine.
 
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TEEJ

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Vinh's X10vn is a killer small thower...insane considering the ~ 5.5" length.



If you want more flood, the X3vn is the 3 LED version that's pumping out ~ 3,000 LED Lumens, and if you get the dedomed version, it gives flood AND throw (More flood, but there's still throw)
 

mcnair55

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I received my viking the other day, and the quality, and the anodizing is awesome on this thing. But I'm not impressed with the output of this light. It reminds me of me led lenser f1, which is just a backup around the house. The spill is very small, and the hotspot quite large. It doesn't throw far, or even light up a large area. My tx25c2 blows it away in every category. I'm sending it back to Amazon and getting something else. I saw vihn had a customized four sevens light, might look into that.

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You are lucky that you can send it back just because you do not like it,personally i would only refund you if the light was faulty or damaged.
 

jakepen

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You are lucky that you can send it back just because you do not like it,personally i would only refund you if the light was faulty or damaged.

Well I guess I'm glad I didn't order my light from you than?

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oKtosiTe

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I guess it's a double-edged sword. I've previously bought new items that had signs of mild usage, i.e., had been tried and sent back by others. Kind of a damper on that "new gadget"-feeling. At the same time I do like the ability to try things out before deciding to keep them. In my country of residence, that's called "öppet köp".
 

jakepen

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I guess it's a double-edged sword. I've previously bought new items that had signs of mild usage, i.e., had been tried and sent back by others. Kind of a damper on that "new gadget"-feeling. At the same time I do like the ability to try things out before deciding to keep them. In my country of residence, that's called "öppet köp".

Ya, it's a good and bad thing. But I've talked to the seller already, and he is giving me a refund, but ten percent less than what I paid for it, because they are going to sell it used.

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TEEJ

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I'm a bit surprised that the difference in performance was that dramatic.

Is this one of the Armytek's that used head tighten/loosen and programming for which cell you loaded into it?
 

subwoofer

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The tx25c2 is an impressive performer, but its maximum output automatically steps down by 25% (info from selfbuilt's review) after 200s. Looking at the ANSI output reported by seflbuit, and the runtim graph, I suspect that the ultimate output of the tx25c2 will be under 700lm. The Viking Pro, if set to fully regulated, outputs 644lm for as long as the cell allows it.

The full programmability of the Armytek S-tek driver used by the Viking Pro is so versatile, the Viking Pro and Predator Pro are firm favourites of mine.

How often do you use the tx25c2 at maximum output? Personally I don't use the Viking Pro at maximum output all that often, and when I do, I love the fact that it runs at a constant output.

Especially with single cell lights, you have to be aware of the 'long runtime'-'small size'-'high output' trio where you can only have two out of three. I would always compromise over 'output' in preference to the other two. If I want excessive output levels I choose something else where the size will be bigger.

I would say, that if I had to choose between the Predator and Viking, it would be the Predator I would go with, as it is a great little thrower.

Regarding the whole, returning a product you have tried question, there are rules for 'distance selling'. It should be possible to return a mail-order purchase, but there are certain categories. The first is that you look at the product box and decide it was a mistake - you have not broken any seals or turned the item on - in this case a full refund, minus the postage is fine. If you have broken any seals, removed cellophane, and turned it on, then it is 'used' and if not faulty, would be up to an individual seller to decide if they can then sell a 'used' product. The refund in this case would be up the the seller's discretion. I am glad your seller has said they will be selling it as used as this at least gives some confidence they won't try to sell it as new. If the seller will take back a tested product with no fault and give a full refund, I would not want to buy from them.
 
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jakepen

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The tx25c2 you can actually set so it only steps down ten percent instead of 25, which is pretty cool. And I love the build quality, and UI, also the ability to customize the viking is awesome. I guess I was just expecting a brighter light. Also I agree, I wouldn't want to buy from this company again if they were to sell it as a "New product" once it's returned.

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jakepen

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Well, after playing a little bit with the viking, and customizing it how I want, I've decided to keep it.

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wvdavidr

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You are lucky that you can send it back just because you do not like it,personally i would only refund you if the light was faulty or damaged.

I agree with you. I think the buyer needs to research the purchase. I don't know where the "I don't think it's THAT GREAT so I'll send it back" decision became valid.
 

jakepen

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I agree with you. I think the buyer needs to research the purchase. I don't know where the "I don't think it's THAT GREAT so I'll send it back" decision became valid.

I think it's because we live in a country where the customer is always right, and the business simply wants the customer satisfied, so they buy again. Do you also think people shouldn't be allowed to test drive a car before they buy it, only research it on paper? A flashlight has a ridiculously long life expectancy, so if someone uses two hours of it, decides its not for them, and sends it back, I don't think it's that terrible. Especially if it is resold as used. And I did research this light, just like every other light I buy.

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Swedpat

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Well, after playing a little bit with the viking, and customizing it how I want, I've decided to keep it.

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Nice to hear! :) The possibilities with the programming is awesome. Did you discover the lowest firefly? Armytek claims 0,1lm but no doubt; it's WAY lower than than!
 

jakepen

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Nice to hear! :) The possibilities with the programming is awesome. Did you discover the lowest firefly? Armytek claims 0,1lm but no doubt; it's WAY lower than than!

Yes, that's my first output on my first line. And actually I compared it to my sc600 mk2 l2s lowest output, the sc600 is much lower surprisingly. Pretty wild.

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Swedpat

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Yes, that's my first output on my first line. And actually I compared it to my sc600 mk2 l2s lowest output, the sc600 is much lower surprisingly. Pretty wild.

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Really! I compared the lowest firefly of my Viking warm and without doubt it's more than 10, propably 20 times dimmer than my Quark 123 at 0,2lm mode! So I think it's a fair guess that the lowest mode of Viking is 0,01lm or so. How dim can the lowest mode of sc600 be?...
 

jakepen

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Really! I compared the lowest firefly of my Viking warm and without doubt it's more than 10, propably 20 times dimmer than my Quark 123 at 0,2lm mode! So I think it's a fair guess that the lowest mode of Viking is 0,01lm or so. How dim can the lowest mode of sc600 be?...

Same, 0.01 lumens. But the Zebralight looks much dimmer. And I have to put it a few inches from the wall to see the light, and the viking can be a few feet away and I can see the light. May have to do with the reflector though... I'll post pictures later

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pebbles

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I have returned two Eagletacs, a 4sevens and a Fenix for full refunds. When buying, I think it is good to make up your mind within a week and send it back if you don't like it. Alert the seller first, and they will give you a return number. Online, Paypal, credit card etc is the way I have gone.

Why didn't you get a Predator Pro? They are great. The small hotspot, because of the deep reflector, may make the firefly mode look brighter. Default firefly in line 2 of the Predator Pro reflects off license plates from 30+ yards away. Hard to believe but true. And it's not the lowest firefly in its arsenal, but with my eyesight, if I can't read with it, it becomes somewhat academic for my purposes.

But I do like the "How low can you go?" discussion.
 
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jakepen

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I have designated throwers. I find a floody beam more useful in my experiences.

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pebbles

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The Zebralight H602 warm floody is a tremendous flooder. Over a thousand lumens on one 18650 with great run times, and it glows in the dark for a while! I use it for my headlamp, and it has multiple settings within each high, medium and low mode. Believe me, it lights up the whole campsite to the point where it takes the mystery out of the evening if you want, yet can go low as you want. Yes, it is a headlamp, but you can remove it from headband and use as a right angle light which is interesting. Sounds like you have everything covered though.
 
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