Former FLL Now MSP Diver
Contributor
This is a copy of the review I just left on Amazon. This is a good, solid light that is now a permanent part of my dive bag.
I went on my annual trip to Mexico this year where I do a combination of ocean, night and cenote diving. I thought I’d get a newer back up light to my older corded Watershot Strykr that I’ve used for years as I have noticed other divers using smaller handhelds that seemed pretty bright. After getting the Orcatorch D550 all I can say is WOW! At 1000 lumen it’s brighter than my corded light – so much so that I ended up using it as my primary light for the rest of the trip saving the hassle of attaching the battery and dealing with a light head and cord. Battery life was fantastic – two 45-60 minute cenote dives didn’t faze it at all – the battery indicator still showed it was ready for more. The beam has a great spot with a lot of light spill that helped illuminate more open caverns. It has a bottom mounted button that easily cycles through 100%, 50% and strobe modes. The 50% mode is necessary as at 100% the light is blindingly bright to look at your computer or gauges. The lower power mode is also good when visibility is down as it reduces backscatter.
The light itself is very solidly made and is the right size to feel comfortable in your hand. It’s sized to fit into a pocket though I kept mine clipped to a D-ring when not in use. It comes with a soft Goodman glove that I found myself using when I had my cameras with me. I was also impressed to see that when the head was unscrewed to remove the 18650 battery for recharging it has 3 O-rings to ensure a good seal.
I also have to give a shout out to the all the extras that come with the light. I comes well packed in a hard case with foam cutouts. It includes 2 3400mAh 18650 rechargeable batteries and charger; wrist lanyard, soft Goodman glove; extra O-rings; and a documentation packet.
This is an excellent light at an excellent price point.
I went on my annual trip to Mexico this year where I do a combination of ocean, night and cenote diving. I thought I’d get a newer back up light to my older corded Watershot Strykr that I’ve used for years as I have noticed other divers using smaller handhelds that seemed pretty bright. After getting the Orcatorch D550 all I can say is WOW! At 1000 lumen it’s brighter than my corded light – so much so that I ended up using it as my primary light for the rest of the trip saving the hassle of attaching the battery and dealing with a light head and cord. Battery life was fantastic – two 45-60 minute cenote dives didn’t faze it at all – the battery indicator still showed it was ready for more. The beam has a great spot with a lot of light spill that helped illuminate more open caverns. It has a bottom mounted button that easily cycles through 100%, 50% and strobe modes. The 50% mode is necessary as at 100% the light is blindingly bright to look at your computer or gauges. The lower power mode is also good when visibility is down as it reduces backscatter.
The light itself is very solidly made and is the right size to feel comfortable in your hand. It’s sized to fit into a pocket though I kept mine clipped to a D-ring when not in use. It comes with a soft Goodman glove that I found myself using when I had my cameras with me. I was also impressed to see that when the head was unscrewed to remove the 18650 battery for recharging it has 3 O-rings to ensure a good seal.
I also have to give a shout out to the all the extras that come with the light. I comes well packed in a hard case with foam cutouts. It includes 2 3400mAh 18650 rechargeable batteries and charger; wrist lanyard, soft Goodman glove; extra O-rings; and a documentation packet.
This is an excellent light at an excellent price point.
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