Inova Flashlights

Texas Star

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Inova is a brand that competes with SureFire in very bright LED flashlights. My son has an Inova that looks to be of excellent quality. It also has a very modern, trim design. He has carried it in Iraq, and been very satisfied.

Does anyone here have an Inova, and what has been your experience with it? The model that I have in mind has a 150 foot range at night, and about a five-hour battery life. You can get brighter ones, but battery life is halved.

I'm especially interested in hearing from those who have both Inova and SureFire products.

T-Star
 
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My wife has a small one that she carries in her purse.

I actually prefer the Dorcy lights. 30 some bucks at Target buys a 160 lumen model now, and I've had good luck with 2 out of the 3 Dorcy lights that I've owned.

Anyway, I have a Surefire Devastator and have owned the Polymer "basic" models and combat models. If my life depended on it, I'd rather have a Surefire *if* it was to be mounted on a weapon.

For day to day general use, I'd be willing to use an Inova or Dorcy (and do in fact use the latter).

My main reason for liking them is my dislike for lights that eat (and the Devastator does basically eat them like candy) expensive 123 cells as opposed to using dirt cheap AA and AAA cells.
 
Originally posted by GatorFarmer:
My wife has a small one that she carries in her purse.

I actually prefer the Dorcy lights. 30 some bucks at Target buys a 160 lumen model now, and I've had good luck with 2 out of the 3 Dorcy lights that I've owned.

Anyway, I have a Surefire Devastator and have owned the Polymer "basic" models and combat models. If my life depended on it, I'd rather have a Surefire *if* it was to be mounted on a weapon.

For day to day general use, I'd be willing to use an Inova or Dorcy (and do in fact use the latter).

My main reason for liking them is my dislike for lights that eat (and the Devastator does basically eat them like candy) expensive 123 cells as opposed to using dirt cheap AA and AAA cells.


Yeah, the battery issue has had me using Princeton Tec AA and AAA lights. But I want one of those BRIGHT lights, and the Inova model I saw rates battery life at about 5.5 hours. That's longer than the PT lights will run on the AAA's. (Except for the Impact II, which is a long life LED with 75 hours rated life. But the light output is low. It does work for reading in the dark.)

If you buy a Princeton Tec, keep the rotating heads lubed with marine silicone grease. They run FAR smoother than when dry. (PT recommends this.) I get my silicone grease at a SCUBA shop.
 
The 160 lumen Dorcy claims a battery life, on three AAAs of about 5 hours. I haven't gotten one yet, but my two 65 lumen Dorcys (from back when they had the pocket clip on them) have been running well for years and have a very long battery life. I've dropped them, bounced them off the pavement, ran one through the washer and dryer (wondered what that thump noise was) and left one in the shower for a week.

They're oddly durable creatures.
 
Originally posted by GatorFarmer:
The 160 lumen Dorcy claims a battery life, on three AAAs of about 5 hours. I haven't gotten one yet, but my two 65 lumen Dorcys (from back when they had the pocket clip on them) have been running well for years and have a very long battery life. I've dropped them, bounced them off the pavement, ran one through the washer and dryer (wondered what that thump noise was) and left one in the shower for a week.

They're oddly durable creatures.


I guess that I'll look at a Dorcy. Where are they made?
 
The Inovas are American made and I have heard they are pretty good lights. I have a Surefire 6P that I put a R2 LED bulb in, and it is quite bright and goes a very long time on a set of batteries, and I also have a Streamlight Scorpion incandescent and I rarely use it anymore because battery life is so short. LED is the only way to go in my opinion. I have several cheap LED lights I bought from Deals Extreme and have been very happy with them, and Romisen is one of their brands that is very high quality for the price. Look for a light that has the Q5 or R2 latest generation LED, or the big MTE which is even brighter. I also buy the CR123 batteries from Deals Extreme for $.85 cents each and they cost about 4 bucks each at Walmart, but the newer rechargeables might be the best way to go if you use them a lot. Like Gatorfarmer, I say get a Surefire to bet your life on, then get the cheap lights for everything else.
 
Originally posted by Texas Star:
I guess that I'll look at a Dorcy. Where are they made?

China, same as most things these days sadly. Just save the receipt and do whatever you want to it during the first week or so. If it craps out, return it.
 
Quality on Surefire is tough to beat, I have a number of them. If you don't need a real hard use light, the polymer G2 and/or G2 LED are a pretty good value and excellent lights.
 
A brother has a SureFire (I think that brand) and the push-to-flash switch was activated as he carried it. The batteries soon drained. The Inova has a setting to avoid that. Does the SureFire? I think the idea is just to unscrew the base a little?

T-Star
 
My TI in basic used to like to wake us up at night with one of those amazingly bright lights if our shoes weren't straight or our boots laces weren't perfectly tight etc. Man that was a sick joke.

He was an outstanding TI though..... perhaps that's why flight 355 was honor flight.
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I carry an Inova X1 in my pocket every day. It is a single AA led that is very compact. It's not a blinding weapon light, but it lets me see in the dark. One AA lasts for about 8 hours. They run about 20 bucks at Target and are very well made. i have used and abused mine for a couple of years and have no complaints. If I was in the market for a new compact light with more punch I would get the Fenix LD10.

https://www.fenix-store.com/pr....php?products_id=466
 
I have a couple of Inova lights,,,
But I had a n issue or two a couple of years back, I have since gone to FENIX lights and much prefer them.
Peter
 
Many of us obsess over our flashlights like we do our guns. Its really hard to beat a SureFire for quality and durability. The downside is they're really expensive. And you hate it when you lose one. And because of that idea, we always need 2 of each one that is serving us well.

Someplace along the line I picked up LED heads for both an E1E and a G2. If you want to see, those are great, with the L5 head giving off almost as much light as the standard bulb in the G2, but for a longer time.

But I've noticed a strange thing. The SureFires are stacked on a shelf. Right where I want them, but not handy if I'm out and about.

My EDC (and the key in it is the middle letter, the D as in Day) is a Streamlight KeyMate. Its a tiny LED light which uses 4 of the cheapo ChiCom button cells. A card of 10 of them costs a whole $. And the card lasts about a year for me. That tiny little light gets used daily. Doesn't give off much light, but I don't need much most days.

But I also have Inova lights. The one I've got in my street Jeep is a 2 x 123 cell light with a single strong LED. Its got a fresnel focusing lens and is almost as strong as many conventional lights. And it lasts longer than most. But its not in the class with a Surefire for light output. If you really want or need a lot of light, go first class.

I have an Inova I use everyday. Its my nightstand light. Its an Inova X1 (I think). Its got a titanium color case, and it uses a single AA battery. I use it for navigation around the house a night and in the morning. I use a lithium cell, and it lasts just short of forever. The way I like it.

When I really want light, I use my M6 Surefire. It puts out more light than anyone would think possible. Its also capable of starting fires. Doesn't last long on commercial 123s, but its great.

You can even use rechargeable 123 form batteries in many of the LED lights. They don't work well in incandescent lights.

So I guess the telling factor in all this is my Inova and Streamlight get the most use. I don't like them as well, so I don't worry about losing them.
 
I have a collection of flashlights, Streamlights, Inovas, Surefire, and a Fenix. The Streamlights are in a drawer, the Inovas, several with the Swiss 'Victorinox' brand on them, are in a display case with a few same branded SAKs, along with the collection of Inova X1s (They changed emitters three times!), actually a decent USA-made <$20 single AA light [Target, etc.).

I hate to admit it, but the PRC-made Fenix is a nice light - as are the Surefires and Inovas, both US-made. I carry a Surefire E1b 'Backup' in my pocket - sometimes the E2DL 'Defender'. The simple 6P LED is in my Jeep - or by the bed. They all use CR123s, which I buy from Surefire ($21/12) as their cells are protected and US-made for them. I ordered three dozen from them last year (3/08) - had to pay a couple of bucks for faster than their free delivery - still less than $70/36 delivered quickly. I still have 22 left, despite three 2-cell and one single cell light. They last - and I feel their higher energy storage capacity and always ready nature outweighs the 'economy' of rechargeables.

My Inovas all use either AA or AAA penlite cells. They are warmer in tint - and the Victorinox-branded ones were all bought as closeout 'kits' with a Victorinox Swiss Army Knife in a metal box - for less than the knife's cost. Check Amazon!

I started my Surefire experience with a 6P LED for $65 3/08 at a 'LEO priced' store. Later, I added a new regular incandescent 6P from Evil-Bay for <$40 delivered - intent on adding an aftermarket high power LED - but substituted another P60L Surefire head, making it a '6P LED', too. When I bought my 627 Pro last year, I added the E1b for $76 - a steal! I similarly added the E2DL last September - another bargain. Both list now for $149 - pretty expensive for the amount of finish wear mine show. The Fenix, a single CR123 unit, shows no wear, despite it's age [Bought 3/08.).

I love my Surefire E1b - but - the Fenix line is nice. Check them out.

For comparison: The 6P incandescent puts out 65 Lumens - and eats a pair of CR123s in less than an hour. The 6P LED puts out 80 Lumens for an optimistic rating of 11 hours, although it's a bit dimmer for the last couple of hours. Dick's M6 Guardian incandescent puts out 250 or 500 Lumens, depending on lamp module - for 60 or 20 minutes - from SIX CR123s! Finally, my Fenix P2D special is rated at 220 Lumens on Turbo High, but has a ~5 Lumen setting for days of use on one CR123. It will strobe on Turbo and irritate the stew out of you - or remind you of those sixties college parties with strobes... oops, I digress. It'll also blink out 'S O S' in Morse code. My f-i-l, b-i-l, and older son have them, too.

Surefires are more honest, light output-wise. My E2DL, rated at 120 Lumens, puts out 170+ Lumens, by several testers - more than that P2D Fenix on Turbo, by one-one comparison. I find myself using the CR123 lights more these days - much higher energy density than the best AAs - even the lower voltage (1.75V) Li Energizers (CR123s are 3.3V Li's.).

Stainz
 
Yep, most of us are light junkies almost as bad as we're gun nuts...

I've almost always got at least one light within arm's reach.

My daily carry light is a Leatherman Serac S2; runs on 1 AAA cell and claims 35 lumens on high and 6 on low. I replace the battery once a month whether it needs it or not. Just slightly larger than a tube of chapstick, and plenty bright.

My hunting gear has a Surefire G2L on the belt - I'm still on the first set of batteries for that because it doesn't get much use.

Nightstand light is a Home Depot LED light (Husky?) that runs on 2 D-cells and claims 200 Lumens - and I believe it. Insanely bright, if not the greatest quality of light.

Truck light is a Maglite 4D LED model ... not because it's super-bright (the Surefire is arguably brighter), but because it's a nice tool to have.
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Beyond that there's penlights and headlamps hither and yon. In gear, in pockets, gloveboxes, toolboxes, bookbags, etc.

I've looked at the Fenix lights, but they're not worth the price premium to me. Inova is supposed to be nice, but don't have any experience with them.

Let us know what you end up with!
 
Originally posted by MR .44 Spl:
Any suggestions about where to shop for flashlights on-line?

Brightguy.com sometimes has decent prices. Amazon can be good. Do some work with froogle.com to do some price checking.
 
I have one of these Nitecore Extremes at 200 lumens using a rechargeable 16340 3.6v battery. The light will also use the rechargeable 3.0v CR123A batteries.

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Infinitely adjustable from 2 to 200 lumens with a user selectable default "on" level within that range or full power strobe. Nice light.

Battery Junction has a good selection (but not the Nitecore) and is a great source for all sorts of stuff, excellent service and prompt delivery. I upgraded my Mini Maglite to LED and liked it so much I upgraded my 2, 3, and 4 cell lights to LEDs using this company.
 
Originally posted by Stainz:
Dick's M6 Guardian incandescent puts out 250 or 500 Lumens, depending on lamp module - for 60 or 20 minutes - from SIX CR123s!

Say what you will, its bright! As in blindingly bright.

Back to lumens as a rating system. Because the makers are dishonest, its pretty useless. You can do a good job of comparing products from the same maker, but it ends there. If you believe the BS from Maglite, they've got the best and brightest lights on the market. If you ever use one and then compare it to a SureFire, you'll be shocked. Nasty light, not bright at all. Yes, I've got a few lying around. Maybe the worst thing about them is they use D cells, the most leak prone devices on the planet. They're not really any cheaper, either, since if you don't change your batteries when they run down or every 6 months, they'll leak and kill your light.

Batteries are where you find them. At a gun show last fall some guy had strips of Panasonic brand 123s for a dollar each. I only bought 10 of them. Should have bought him out! Remember, 123s are lithium cells and have a very realistic 10 year shelf life. If you find and buy a couple of dozen, you can just use them as you need them. Better to have them at home than end up going out and buying them as camera accessories at $5 each.

123s are meat for a group buy.
 
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