Best emergency Strobe option?

[nigeltlee]

Hi there, Im also planning a dive trip at the end of the year. I wanted to get an emergency strobe primarly to attract a boatmans attention or (touch wood) an air search party.

Reading through the forums folks seem to prefer the IR Srobe 200 - i was wondering if this actually floats upright like the PT. I only imagine I would use this if I really needed to so having it float upright makes sense.

thoughts?

 

[String]

Most strobes ive seen float light-up due to the air space inside the bulb area vs the weight of the battery area.

 

[HenrikBP]

Reading through the forums folks seem to prefer the IR Srobe 200

From a quick search, the IR Strobe seems to be infrared?? - which would probably not be an ideal general use safety strobe.

I believe the IR vs. white strobe is discussed in this thread:

http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/ge...ignalling-equipment-searchers-point-view.html

Henrik

 

[altaskier]

I made a short video showing a Princeton Tec Aqua Strobe and a Tektite Strobe 200. Both are flashing. When the whole frame gets blotted out with light, it's the Tektite. The Tektite is much, much brighter, flashes more frequently, and lasts longer (30 hrs. vs. 8 hrs. claimed) but it's also noticeably larger.
Utube video

 

[JBRES1]

I like the Tektite Xenon Strobe 200 light the best.
I clip it off and innertube it to right chest strap of my BP/W set up for all open water dives. On my left chest strap is a Scout LED backup flashlight.
I have never had a reason to use the strobe light to be found, but then again I have never used my life insurance either.
Jim Breslin

 

[FredGarvin]

Hi there, Im also planning a dive trip at the end of the year. I wanted to get an emergency strobe primarly to attract a boatmans attention or (touch wood) an air search party.

Reading through the forums folks seem to prefer the IR Srobe 200 - i was wondering if this actually floats upright like the PT. I only imagine I would use this if I really needed to so having it float upright makes sense.

thoughts?

IR would be a bad choice. Only those equiped with IR sensitive observation lenses/scopes/binos, such as military types, would be able to see you. That would eliminate many potential sources of rescue. The best is normal visual spectrum white flashing light.

Garv

 

[FredGarvin]

I just returned from my Palau trip. I had purchased a new Tektite 200 (2 c-cell) strobe.

My thoughts: The Tektite has a ABS plastic body which on first blush seems or feels somewhat fragile. My guess, however, is that it is not. The unit has a double O-ring which is a very good sealing mechanism. One can see the O-rings too to be sure the seal is tight. The unit is significantly heavier and larger than the Princeton Tec. The Tektite uses 2 C-cells compared to the Princeton Tec 1 or 2 AA cells. The Tektite flash is significantly brighter and longer lasting as mentioned before. However the unit is a bit ungainly and thus cumbersome as a result. I found it difficult to find a suitable place to mount it save for simply attaching the metal base ring to a clip and having it dangle and bang against my chest or shoulder. The advantage of having a light or strobe made using AA cells - like the Princeton Tec - is that the unit can be made to conform to a curved appendage of a human. Finally, there is no protective cover for the clear plexiglass dome of the Tektite - none for the P-Tec either, but it seems somehow more resilient to scratches than the Tektite - so it can be scratched if one is not reasonably careful. To protect mine, I had a special "strobe condom" made for me out of neoprene that worked quite well. Maybe a new gizmo to sell?

Finally, I wish some strobe on the market used a button rather than the usual twisting head on/off mechanism. I find it difficult to activate many of these types of devices. Sometimes I am not sure if I am turning the head the correct direction of when turning these devices off, if I am turning the head too far and thus flooding it. This would really be an issue especially if one looses the use of a hand during an emergent situation.

Overall, I am very pleased with the unit and its value but I would love to see Tektite put some engineering into making a unit just for the dive community.

Garv

 

[nigeltlee]

I also got back from my weeks diving trip to Peurto Galera Philippines. I bought the Tektite 200 from the dive store. Felt pretty good about this purchase, popped the batteries in and took it for a night dive.

The strobe works very well at night. After our dive I turned the strobe on (after telling my fellow divers to look the other way) I managed to get the attention of 3 other dive boats before ours arrived.

But something bad did happen to the tektite. first point: I noticed at about 30M the strobe turned itself on in my BCD pocket . I guess i didnt unscrew enough to allow for the pressure changes. no big deal unscrew a little underwater. second point: back at the dive store i unscrewed the strobe to ensure that everything was ok and discovered that a tiny bit of water got in. unsure if it was my fault or a 'quality issue' i spoke to my DM. We wiped the insides down and planned to resuse on another dive. After the second dive, where the strobe didnt turn itself on. We inspected again. Sure enough a little bit of water again. This time we had the stores instructor take a look who sad something in Tagalog (I couldnt understand). Apparently they were qustioning the size of the o-rings. They thought the o-rings werent big enough, or possibly a tiny crack in the case that we couldnt see.

So I asked for a replacement, it took some negotiation but they eventually swapped it out and i plan to use this on a 9 day trip in Sipadan in 2 weeks. I'll let you know if I run into more issues.

I also agree with the previous post in terms of size. But for the price point and brightness i don't think there's a better option. (i actually paid around $70US from the dive store)

 

[Web Monkey]

I also got back from my weeks diving trip to Peurto Galera Philippines. I bought the Tektite 200 from the dive store. Felt pretty good about this purchase, popped the batteries in and took it for a night dive.

I've had a number of Tektites and I'm really conflicted.

Good

• They're the brightest strobe I could find that fits in a pocket
• They run for a long time
• Use C cells

Bad

• If you don't unscrew the cap far enough it turns on underwater
• If you uncrew it too far, it leaks
• The switch is really crappy (no switch) - turning the head pushes the strobe against the battery and a bent piece of metal - think cheap flashlight
• The electronics tend to fail for no special reason, with no warning. I had a couple replaced under warranty, then on another one they refused, saying it was too old (maybe a year?)

I've also had a couple of Jotrons.

Good

• Much more reliable electronics (never had a failure)
• Much better switch - uses a magnetic reed switch with a slide button on the outside
• Smaller - uses 1 C-Cell

Bad

• Not quite as bright (almost, but not quite)
• The screw-on battery cover and o-ring is under-engineered. I've had a couple of minor leaks and a cracked cover

If Jotron fixed their screw on cap, I'd pick it hands down. OTOH, if Tektite upgraded their electronics and added a magnetic reed switch so the dome could just be screwed down and left there, I'd pick that.

Terry

 

[FredGarvin]

I've had a number of Tektites and I'm really conflicted.

Good

• They're the brightest strobe I could find that fits in a pocket
• They run for a long time
• Use C cells

Bad

• If you don't unscrew the cap far enough it turns on underwater
• If you uncrew it too far, it leaks
• The switch is really crappy (no switch) - turning the head pushes the strobe against the battery and a bent piece of metal - think cheap flashlight
• The electronics tend to fail for no special reason, with no warning. I had a couple replaced under warranty, then on another one they refused, saying it was too old (maybe a year?)

I've also had a couple of Jotrons.

Good

• Much more reliable electronics (never had a failure)
• Much better switch - uses a magnetic reed switch with a slide button on the outside
• Smaller - uses 1 C-Cell

Bad

• Not quite as bright (almost, but not quite)
• The screw-on battery cover and o-ring is under-engineered. I've had a couple of minor leaks and a cracked cover

If Jotron fixed their screw on cap, I'd pick it hands down. OTOH, if Tektite upgraded their electronics and added a magnetic reed switch so the dome could just be screwed down and left there, I'd pick that.

Terry

Terry et al.

I had experienced the same issue with the unit self-starting underwater. I thought I had not opened the dome up enough while on the surface. But it really is a guessing game when trying to determine the "exact amount" of dome to unscrew. Again, I wish Tektite would do some re-engineering of their strobe, especially for the dive community which places the unit in such high pressure environments. An on/off switch would be great. A better way of connecting or mounting the unit to a BC would be of benefit too. The Tektite unit is perhaps a dozen years old. They have done no improvements as far as I can tell and probably for good reason. There are only two maybe three choices of underwater strobes on the market, a market which is probably small, so there is little impetus to improve the design. Money talks. If the market was bigger, and there were more customer interest I am sure there would be a better strobe option.

Garv