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Just got back from two afternoon dives on the Cypress Sea in Monterey - great boat. Had a fantastic afternoon's diving - saw 5 sun fish or mola-mola (counting the one on the surface that a sea lion had caught and was ripping to pieces in front of us - very impressive nature display), bunches of metridiums, sea lemons, a couple of other nudibranchs, decorator crabs, scallops, squid eggs, massive anemones, harbour seals underwater chasing fish, tube anemones, the list goes on. Anyway I got to try out my new Stealth light from Dan.
The light is a Halcyon 10W HID, with Dan's own Stealth Light canister, which holds a 4500mah battery pack, which is enough for 4 hours of continuous use. Dan was kind enough to do a burn test and recharge before shipping the light, so it was ready to go out of the box. The canister is tiny, about the same size as a Halycon Helios canister, but around 2/3 the price. The canister is solid - something like 1/4" delrin tubing, stainless steel latches, and a robust on/off switch that I could easily operate using 5mm gloves. I bought the light with a goodman handle, which makes using it a breeze.
The light from this sucker has to be seen to be believed - my buddy had a 12W halogen Shockwave handheld (which is the same light I had been using up until now) - the HID just blows it out of the water in terms of penetration of the water column and the color it puts out - halogens looked white to me until I saw this - the HID puts out a genuine white light which leaves the halogen looking a pasty yellow. The head is adjustable for narrow spotlight or widebeam (but not a true flood) - a feature I didn't really think I would use, but the widebeam is great for closeups when you want to illuminate a wider area without an annoying hotspot, and the spotlight was more suited to looking down crevices and for signalling.
The canister has a webbing loop for attaching to the waist harness. I thought I was going to have to dump my beloved right hand side ACB+ pocket to mount the light - but no! The canister is that small (2.5" diameter) I was able to mount the light on the webbing flap of the ACB+ pocket that has the grommet through it for attaching to the backplate, and still be able to attach the flap to the backplate! A very "out-of-the-way" mounting - I did not even notice the canister was there during the dive, and it did not affect my trim at all. The small size of it means it can no longer really be considered ditchable weight anyway. So no extra belt buckle or anything to hold it in place - just remove the bolt holding the ACB+ pocket to the backplate, slide the canister onto the webbing flap, and ziptie the flap back onto the backplate. At the end of the day just cut the ziptie (which came home with me into the trash, not over the side of the boat!), slide the canister off, and put it back into it's padded bag for the trip home.
The quality of Dan's work has to be seen - the canister is very professional looking - people on the boat were suprised to hear it wasn't a "name-brand" light canister. And the price just can't be beat. It's upstaged my Vytec as "purchase of the year" (which incidently, did not experience any problems with the AI transmitter, even though I was holding the lighthead on my right hand, with the ballast only an inch or two from the computer. No interference at all).
Great review.I have been looking at those too.Their prices are pretty reasonable too.I may be looking at one of these later on.But for now im in the process of making a really nice light with plans i received from padipro.But i must admit i like the really small cannister.Hmmmmmmmm....nah wifey will beat me senseless...lol.
That is definitely a sweet setup.Is this the set up for 625.00.I also see they have an 18w for 905.00.I think for the price difference i could live with the 10w.
Yep - that's the 10W for $625 on the website. Honestly, for non-penetration ocean diving, this light puts out tons of light - I've dived with a guy with an 18W light, and if you wanted to get up close and personal with something, you risked cooking it But in a cave with hundreds of feet of vis, you might want the bigger light? Dunno.
Glad to hear your happy with your purchase!! Its nice to be able to buy something of better quality for $250 less. The funny thing though, is there still people out there that would spend the extra $250 just to have the Halcyon/EE's/Helios name on their light. Even know their buying a clone.
That is a sweet light! I would post a pic of my AUL, but the image size limiter won't allow it...my light is seriously big. Everyone asks on the boats if I made it myself...it is the size of a pony bottle. The upside is I can use it as ditchable weight...but...man I want one of those.
The funny thing though, is there still people out there that would spend the extra $250 just to have the Halcyon/EE's/Helios name on their light. Even know their buying a clone.
Of course there are...it's the same with cars, shoes, jeans, etc...there will always be people who place brand name high in their list of important factors when considering a purchase. For my money, I would go with Dan's light and save money where I can to spend on trips and food.
"I'm Warren Miller and about 50 years ago, back in 1946 when I was a senior in college, I went skiing on the second weekend in November. On Monday morning, I went back and dropped out of school. Since then, I've never looked back." - Warren Miller
...actually I'm going to start selling something similar and probably for a little less. The prototype is done, just going thruough the confirmation tests. They are almost identical to the helios, but in your choice of amp hours (the length of burn time). Clear lid, all stainless, etc, etc. You can also go with a halogen bulb if you want to cut the cost.
I'm curious, is he using a "halcyon" light head, or making his own?
Let me know if anyone might be interested. Pricing varies alot depending on what you want. But that is the beauty of it, made to order lights!!
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Stealth Light HID review
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But in a cave with hundreds of feet of vis, you might want the bigger light? Dunno.
