New Stuff from Safe-Light and Palight

Some pretty big changes are going on with Palight which is owned by Safe-light. The Palights we all know will be pared down to the black Survival and will only be available from dealers in small quantities. Palight direct will only sell in lots greater than 3 cases (12 lights per).

There is a new light that will be marketed both under the Safe-light and Humvee names that is a re-skinning of the Palight Survival. The new light has a polycarbonate waterproof case, a translucent rubber cap that enables a 360 degree view and a modified Palight Survival circuit. The modes will be off-night light-full-strobe. It will also have a swivel clip that has a magnet embedded.

In the past I've used and given as gifts a lot of Palights and I'm looking forward to seeing one of these 'in the flesh' as it were.

Most of this info was pulled from email I received when I was checking into Christmas gifts for this year. If you have any questions it would probably be best to write Palight directly since they are the source and I've not gotten my hands on one yet so I can't really add much.



Here are some pictures that might help:

Lunal Tic:

I have several PAL eLights with the SOS mode. Too bad they dropped that mode in the new Safe-Light. My red and green eLights have a very ringy blotchy beam pattern. I can't remember how the beam is on my white one. Hopefully the new Safe-Lights will have an improved beam quality.

Also, I see in the blurb in your first picture that they recommend NOT leaving the light in the OFF mode cuz it drains the batteries anyway (!). Better to leave it in the "nightlight" mode they say (2 year battery life anyway).

The clear cap may not be the best idea. I usually end up putting black electrical tape around any of my light bezels that leak light back into my eyes.

Any idea what the little red button is for?

I agree, the clear cap sounds bad. Also, when are they going to add Luxeons?

[ QUOTE ]
sotto said:
Any idea what the little red button is for?

[/ QUOTE ]

Isn't that the switch?

We've already got them in stock by the name of Nite Palm4.

I'm very impressed with the design and the build quality - the whole thing feels much tougher and more solid than the old PALight. Gone is the fiddly metal "girdle" around the middle, access to the battery is via two long screws at the rear, which run the length of the torch and mate with brass threads at the front end. Although I'm no great fan of screws, I liked the way that they didn't fall out onto the floor and roll away when I opened up the light; they seem to be at least "semi-captive". The unit is submersible to 5m / 15'.

The beam is focused with a lens into the same narrow angle as before, although like its predecessor it looks like it's possible for the it to be removed and inverted to give a wider angle beam.

The translucent front end makes the cone no longer necessary for signalling / marking and although some users may complain of "backspill", I didn't find it at all distracting. The rotatable magnetic clip is a great idea IMHO, although it can only be removed by opening up the back end of the light and sliding it out, so at least it won't get lost easily, although the light is less pocketable with the clip attached.

Apart from that, at GB£13.95 it's GB£6.00 cheaper than the PALight !

All in all I give it 8/10 - a great effort, a definite improvement and a worthwhile addition to anyone's collection. And yes, the little red button is the switch.

oh boy.

clear front end might be a minus in my book.

no low beam is definitely a minus.
i think the survival still has the low beam.

Bob

I didn't read the fine print so I didn't know about the "off" mode still drawing power. That's not good. As for the backwash, from the pictures it looks easy to fix. Just get a piece of black tubing and put it around the round part of the head. That way you can take it off when you want the signal mode to be seen. If you make it a little longer, 2mm-3mm, it would double as a impact protector. Did I mention that it doesn't come in all the gum drop colors of the Palight though those will be discontinued soon.

I wasn't a real fan of the metal band closure on the Palight but at least you could get into it without tools. If the new unit used a single screw with a coin slot might have been easier to use.

I'll be able to give a better opinion when I see the real animal.

>> I didn't read the fine print so I didn't know
>> about the "off" mode still drawing power. That's
>> not good.

It's sounds like they are talking about the normal self-discharge that all batteries do. ie: if you use the 'nighlight' mode, you'll always know if
the battery is dead or not.

I have two of the Pal lights. The one I bought many years ago works great. The other one I bought for my wife a couple of years ago. It kills the 9v battery in nightlight mode in a couple of weeks.

Gorn,

Send back that other Palight to be replaced. I've got one I leave by the breaker box that's been going for right at 2 years, well 2 years January.

JJHitt, if they're talking about normal discharge it'd be nice if they phrased it that way rather than some mysterious leak of power.

-LT

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Lunal_Tic said:
JJHitt, if they're talking about normal discharge it'd be nice if they phrased it that way rather than some mysterious leak of power.


[/ QUOTE ]

They do.
That's exactly what the words "batteries slowly lose power over a period of years when not in use" mean to me.

That being said, I am going to miss the Workman, and wish I had bought a few more. My wife won't use a light with "modes" and the auto-off timer made it safe for the kids.

JJHitt, I guess it's a perspective sort of thing. "Do not use this mode to save battery power" makes it appear that it does use as much or more power than night-light mode, of course YMMV.

-LT

Hmmm, just did a google search. Apparently the night palm4 is not available in the US yet at least from what I can find.

I just received a Safe-Light. Here's a comparison pic.



To be honest I think I still like the Palight better. I like the form but for it's size it's still just a Survival in new clothes. Also the magnet is nothing like as strong as the Palight. I realize there had to be compromises with the new design but the 2 screw closure adds too much girth IMO. A one screw tool-less design similar to the one on my GPS would have kept the size down and been easier to get into.

Is the new version still made in USA?

Can that logo be peeled off?

Big Ed, I believe they, Palights, are still made in the US though not in Florida anymore.

JJ, the logo is recessed and I've not tried to get it off. I'd guess it's glued since they are avaiable for "branding".

How do the beams compare?

Beams look pretty much the same to me. The only real difference is backwash. It turns out that the translucent head is soft like a tough silicone. Wonder if it will yellow with time like my scuba masks.

Got mine in today's mail.

First impression: IT'S BIG... I won't say too big, but I've had smaller pagers.

I want to be fair, but I was a little disappointed.

I own seven or eight of the Survivals and OneStars and I doubt that I will buy too many more of the Safe-Lights, unless they come out with a red LED model.