NEW version of Dorcy 2AA- 4 LED

I just came across a new version of the Dorcy 2AA 4LED light. It is distinguishable by the rubber padding that is nicely sculpted and has DORCY molded into it. The old version has rubber grips with stipes. The older version has been sold for at least 6 months. I found the new version at a Sears subsidiary (Orchard Supply Hardware, or OSH for short).

It is notable because it is about 4 lumens brighter than the original and, in my case, it's whiter than the originals. The fit appears to be a bit better, with no machining marks that I could find. The head has been reworked to use the more elaborate contact board that the 1AA-3 LED uses, complete with washer around the edge to ensure good contact with the negative leads of the LEDs.

The original pulled 385ma from a pair of fresh AA batteries as well as from a pair of NiMH that had not been charged in a month. The new one pulled 525ma from fresh cells.

Looking down the battery tube, I can see that the converter board is the same (well, has the same numbers) as the one used in the 1AA-3LED.

OK, time to crunch numbers. 3 volts * .525 amps = 1.575 watts of battery drain. I've seen about 68% efficiency in the past with this board, so I'm gonna guess that it's sending about one watt to the LEDs. That's about 75ma per LED.

I like this because I have it's little brother (the 1AA-3LED) modded to use a luxeon and a 3 volt (one cell from a CRV3) battery. It's also pulling about 525ma. I was worried that it could not handle the current, but I do like the 22 lumens it's putting out.

This new version should make a nice host for a luxeon.



Daniel

Re: NEW dorcy 2AA- 4 LED

You know you have just ruined my schedule for tomorrow. My first stop is going to be OSH to look for the new light that might be my next LUX recipient.

Thanks for the heads up, Gadget!

Re: NEW dorcy 2AA- 4 LED

This light has been discussed in the thread about Dorcy at Target. I've had mine for about a month

I looked through that "Dorcy at Target" thread again. I did not see any mention of the new version of the 2AA- 4 LED model. The old one had rubber grips with straight vertical lines and was much dimmer. The new one is molded rubber grip and is brighter. The new one is more capable of driving a Luxeon at full strength.

Daniel

Gadget Lover,

What was the price?

Is the head on the new version interchangable with the head on the 3LED 1AA light?

The head is interchangable with the 1AA-3led as well as the older 2AA-4LED. As a mater of fact, the black bezel looks pretty good on the silver body.

OSH had them for 16.99 (or therabouts).

I was impressed that the light was built more solidly until I put the batteries in for the first time. There was a single Toshiba brand AA battery in the body of the light, left over from testing, no doubt. That's kind of funny, considering the fact that Dorcy has it's own brand.

Daniel

Would an underdriven Lux3 look cool in it too?
It costs about 1.5 times that of a lux1, but would be very underdriven for super long life.
Here's a pic of a trilight3 triple lux3 underdriven in a 3d mag case versus a 4d. http://www.geocities.com/cpf_3rd_shift/Trilight3_3dcase_vs_4dcase.html?1081707898010
The 3d is only using 1 amp total (333 milliamps a piece) and is still quite bright.
The 4d is using 2.6 amps.
This picture link is a rerun from another thread. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif

Yes, it looks cool with an underdriven LuxIII.

Techically,I'm running a Lux III (TV1K bin) under driven at only one watt (calculated) on the same electronics. With a 3 volt battery supply, I'm getting 27 lumens acording to my home made measuring equipment. It's visibly brighter than my ARC LSH-P.

Daniel

Just bought the "Rev 2" of the Dorcy 2AA 4LED at OSH. As a layperson, all I can say is that it is definitely an improvement over the original-aesthetically, anyway. The molded partial plastic sleeve has a better feel to it. The beam quality appears about the same, however, according to this untrained eye. Tech specs? Not a clue! lol. I wonder why they would issue a new version so soon after it's recent intro in the market? I hadn't heard of any complaints. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon6.gif

I think (just guessing) that the market has changed a little since the original was put on the market. Since then, there's been an influx of cheap LED based lights. I think they wanted to make it appear to be better made. They've probably managed to save some costs by using the converter from the 1 AA unit and, at the same time, achieved brighter output.

Is yours whiter too? Mine is visibly less blue, even if not compared side by side. Whiter than my Inova X5T too.

Daniel

I'd have to say it is slightly less blue than the original Dorcy. But to me it seems equally blue as my INOVA X5T. Very similar beam, actually. Not bad for about half the price!

I went to OSH and did find lots of the a different version of the 2AA Dorcy light. The case for the light was black and looked the same with the exception of the rubber molding. Instead of the ribbed molding I was used to seeing it was the semi-smooth rubber with a large diamond marked rubber grip pattern. Is that considered the new version?

I went to Target, and they didn't have the new version of the Dorcy 2AA yet. However, they did have the much-coveted 1AA 3LED light, and I picked up one of those for $10.

Haveblue; the semi smooth rubber grips with diamonds are the new ones.

I really hope that they have the improved electronics and NOT just the impreoved grips /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

Daniel