Dorcy Changed something....

I was at Walmart last night to make a payment. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rant.gif

I looked at Flashlights (everyone acted shocked!). /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/hahaha.gif

Among the usual fare were several Dorcy 1AAA 1LED lights. Upon inspecting all for the best centered LED, I found that the new ones have different rubber grips. They have a diamond pattern now instead of striped. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thinking.gif

Everything else seems the same. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif

I bought a silver one that looked well centered. Alas, the beam is not what I thought it would be. I have a months old red one on my desk that is nearly perfect of beam. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Oh well, such is life. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon3.gif

No, wait, PJS, you may be onto something. I hadn't seen any 1AAAs in my local Walmarts for months, and then, suddenly, yesterday, there they were-- in new decorator colors and yes, the rubber grips were indeed different. The silkscreened DORCY is gone from the body of the light; now it's molded into the main grip, barely visible.

When I got it home I saw that the gold is not the gold of yore; it's more like brass. What mystery is here, I wondered.

Now, get this: this new one, the Mark II, is significantly brighter (and more purple) than my Oldie Goldie. I tested the AAA cells-- the one in my OG was significantly down in current-flinging ability, though not yet finished. I switched cells. The new light was STILL brighter. In fact, it looked just about the same with the new cell as with the old. Interesting, eh?

It's too much to expect that they'd upgrade the circuitry, but one never knows, do one?

Surely there are wide variations in fit, finish, LED aim (tip o'th'hat to Unknown VT for this), LED output/color, and all that, but unless I was only very lucky, it just might be that Dorcy has been working stealthily to improve our favorite $6 light.

Of course, I did use the Unknown VT Method of eyeballing the LED for good centering and thus maximum output-- one feels faintly foolish squinting and holding the light as if reading secret microfilm messages; any moment now someone from Security will sidle up and tell me I've got a call from the Director of the CIA and would I like to step this way? but no, typical Walmart apathy reigns and I stride briskly toward the dog food, with one eye aimed slightly off-center from staring too long... But after all, if one isn't prepared to sacrifice one's dignity for one's hobby...

Finally, the switch on the bottom worked better, with a smaller throw and less wobble. Like I said, you may be onto something.

LMAO wualta,

LOL, did you immediately contact agent Mulder about this conspiracy thingy? Or Scully?(never mind, Scully is pregnant again with genetically altered fetus....Ummm, there's something about a woman who uses a Maxabeam, I confess, I got her pregnant too!)

Hmm, I'll have to go check out the local Wally World tomorrow to see the new model. Hmm, but they still have the same LED in there? I mean the one I have is so pathetically dim you can't see jack s**t with it at night; at least not with my poor eyesight, a 1w LS at 22lm still would not do it for me...I have standards you know /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif. Just waiting, impatiently for the new Cree or Nichia 65+lm/w LED's to come onto the market in the next 6-12mo. Now that would be the killer LED for the $6 1aaa Dorcy.

The one I bought a couple days ago is the new style. Playing with it next to my CMG Ultra tonight and I have to say the Dorcy is significantly brighter.

Interesting discovery... I think this justifies buying a few more Dorcys (for scientific purposes of course /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif).

-Mike

OH OH I can see a new round of dorcy hoarding frenzy buying flashaholics making a mad dash for the local wallyworld and making a beeline for the- ummm I'll be back later.

[ QUOTE ]
wualta said:Now, get this: this new one, the Mark II, is significantly brighter (and more purple) than my Oldie Goldie.
Of course, I did use the Unknown VT Method of eyeballing the LED for good centering and thus maximum output-- one feels faintly foolish squinting and holding the light as if reading secret microfilm messages;

[/ QUOTE ]

ROTFLMAO!
well, there's at least one person who managed to have some success eyeballing for good centering through the blisterpack /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Just a hint on this - if you're going to do this - always compare two side-by-side - note the better one - now change the order/side and is the "better" one still better? - if so - put the loser back on the hook and use the "better" one to compare to the next......

What I look for is good centering and if held to the light right the "better" one somehow looks brighter in its reflections of the ambient light.

Of course I could just be lucky /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Hi Vincent,

Man.. That must take hours. They cost six bucks! Just buy a stack of them and sell the "seconds" to our overseas friends who are clamoring for them. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif

pb

UVT: Your advice to switch positions during the UVT Squint Collimation Procedure is based on an astute observation on the art of observation, which is: Always ask yourself if you're really seeing what you think you're seeing, or if you merely WANT to see it that way. This is especially important if the differences you're looking for are vanishingly small, as they were (or appeared to be) in my case. So you confuse the emotional part of yourself to cancel it out, and try to make your eyes see what's actually there. Flashlight evaluation on the right side of the brain, if you will (with a nod to Betty Edwards).

In fact, I'm not at all certain that the tiny differences I thought I saw were significant or even existent. It could very well be that differences in beam quality I see in my own Dorcies depends more on the alignment of the little reflectors built into the dies of the LEDs than the flashlights' optics. The business ends of the two lights certainly look very similar to me, though their beams are very different.

Still, I had fun playing Optical Bench At WalMart, which is the point. I'm trying to talk myself out of going back for a silver one.

PS: UVT, if you think my description of buying a Dorcy was funny, you should see me try-- *try*-- to eat a bowl of pho with chopsticks. Keep up the great work on CPF.

Walt Brand

I would agree that the reflector is the big difference.

As hard as I tried to find a well centered LED, the newer light isn't as nice of beam as the older one.

[ QUOTE ]
pbarrette said:Man.. That must take hours. They cost six bucks! Just buy a stack of them

[/ QUOTE ]

Nope, takes less than 1 minute to compare up to about 12 of them - if you know what to look for - besides, it's nice to have the ability to find a good one, without actually even switching the light on (kinda like a "magical skill").......



Dorcy #1 was bought "randomly" just for the body color,
#2 was hand-picked by eyeballing (both Nov/2003).

I did pick out a third one sometime in Feb this year - which did have very good centering and even beam - but the tint was much too blue for my liking - so I returned it.

Note: I have since "adjusted" the beam of #1 - by simply rotating the LED ciruit board combination to the only other orientation, and the beam is much improved.....



(if the eyeballing doesn't work for anyone else -
then just put it down to my luck.... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif )

I was in Wal-Mart today (Atlanta) and they only had 2 Dorcy 1AAA of the older (original) style -
have to keep my eye out for the newer style.

I hear Target is putting out the new AA lights also - just not in my area, apparently.

Hey guys. Are the new ones still made in Taiwan? Often when a design chages sllghtly, it's made at a different place than originally. My bet is China.

[ QUOTE ]
wualta said:
UVT: Your advice to switch positions during the UVT Squint Collimation Procedure is based on an astute observation on the art of observation
PS: UVT, if you think my description of buying a Dorcy was funny, you should see me try-- *try*-- to eat a bowl of pho with chopsticks.

[/ QUOTE ]

Comparing one light against another - it's easy for our eyes to see/detect (minute) differences - rather than looking at one light at a time and relying on impressions/memory.

Changing sides/positions in comparison does help eliminate false impressions/emotions - but it is importance because the switching also changes the lighting - even if it may be subtle - since we may be looking at very subtle differences, especially if one light seems to look "brighter" by reflected light....

Hint: about eating pho or any soup noodles with chopsticks -
if you are observant - most Asians also use an (oriental) spoon in the other hand -
get noodles out of the soup with the chopsticks and put on spoon, dip spoon to get some soup - eat from spoon.
Most Asian restuarants - will provide "foreigners" chopsticks (only, no spoon) when requested.....
(and snigger.....
that's why there are also so many Asian run laundry services /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif )

UVT: Yes, it is easy to detect minute differences, and it's also easy to *imagine* minute differences based on an oversimplified (and thus partly defective) mental model of how the unit in question "must" work (which is why we can't usually draw what we see without training).

I really don't see any significant visual differences between *my* two Dorcies, but the reflector isn't likely to make a major difference anyway, is it?

No matter, I like the *idea* that we can hand-pick a giant-killer via in-blister observation, and I'll continue to do it, whether I get stares or not.

Thanks for the inside info on pho. My Vietnamese-American companions weren't using spoons, and I eventually had to call for one. Dang slippery noodles..

Walt Brand, Atlanta 1971-77

[ QUOTE ]
wualta said:but the reflector isn't likely to make a major difference anyway, is it?

[/ QUOTE ]

Walt thanks for the reply and observation.

I stress I'm no expert - but no, in terms of overall light output - I'm guessing the reflector doesn't make that much difference - with 5mm domed LEDs - since most of the forward light and hot-spot is made up from the dome's own lens characteristics.

BUT it make h*ll of a lot of difference in both centering and eveness of the beam. A good example is the CMG Ultra - I had a regular CMG Ultra where the beam was noticably de-centred - whereas both my Ultra-G's have nearly perfectly centred beams - and the "reflector" of the Ultras are nearly non-existant - since the surfaces are anodized (dark) green.

The reason I look for a Dorcy 1AAA that appears "brighter" by reflected light (squinting through the blisker pack) is mainly because a well centred LED seems to make the head/reflector look brighter.

Like I said all this could be just my wishful thinking, but I got two out of two with very good well centred and even beams - by this "foolish" looking method - it's not that much of a waste of time (at least for me) and the chances of success for the little time and foolishness seems high for me (although a sample of two is not exactly statistically significant).

But I am more than happy to be told that I am just "lucky" /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif.

My new style one says Taiwan

I want at the outset to stress that any Walmartian foolishness was my very own, and I refuse to share it; in fact, I wrap myself in it that thereby I may confound the wise. Or so I choose to think. If we want to be serious about the 1AAA, we need only ask one question: is there any other optical jiggery-pokery going on in the optical path from die to epoxy dome to our respective white walls? I haven't had the thing apart, but you have. The front cover *appears* to have a shallow convex lens molded into it. Is that true? If it is, then centering is very important indeed, and we need to eyeball a yellow phosphor layer of uniform brightness and yellowness across the die as we stare fondly down at it.

I suppose, though I don't know, that the die should also be in perfect alignment with its own epoxy dome (both centered on and perfectly normal to the dome's axis).

Me tell *you* that you're "merely lucky"? Perish the thought. Lucky to be in Atlanta, definitely. On the other hand, someday you should get a 1AAA that's truly bad and scan it alongside your best one. The scanner's light should approximate the overhead fluorescents in the store, and the glass should orient the flashlights' bodies similarly. I'd bet some differences would show up that way. What do you think? Or are we spoiling the fun by thinking about it overmuchly?

Walt Brand

Hi all,

I take it all back. I think it's a great idea to check them before you buy, but let's try to come up with a more scientific method to do it.

I propose that you use a magnifying glass with a crosshair reticle to determine centering. I have a small, easily pocketable, folding magnifier which folds out to have a small base on it. There are similar ones available with small markings to determine thread-counts for sewing applications.

If I were to print out a reticle on some transparency material, I could affix it to the bottom of the base (also the focal point) which would allow me to guage the centering of the LED in a way that is much less prone to "eyeballing" error. There would still be some difficulty since the light is still in the packaging, but at least it would cut down on the perception factor to some degree.

Just my $0.02 (US, pre-tax),
pb

[ QUOTE ]
wualta said:On the other hand, someday you should get a 1AAA that's truly bad and scan it alongside your best one. The scanner's light should approximate the overhead fluorescents in the store, and the glass should orient the flashlights' bodies similarly. I'd bet some differences would show up that way.

[/ QUOTE ]

Walt
you mean like this?


This scan was with #1 (blue) before it was adjusted - it was pretty bad in terms of centering.
#2 ("gold" handpicked) has much better centering.

Yes, there is a perceptible difference in the scan -
but the problem with scanning is that it depends on the position and orientation of the object on the flatbed - sometimes quite critical, and scanners also vary when it comes to subtle differences - I know since I do a lot of "scanner photography".

Nothing beats being able to see/compare in real-life where the eye can see/detect quite minute differences - and we have both emphasized, exchange the positions to confirm the comparison.

Besides I want everyone to look just as foolish as us...
then someone will start thinking there's a
flashaholic conspiracy /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif