BlackStar Lights?

[Schwob]

@gcarter
Odd that in Pyranha's & Orca's description it says high is 1000Lumen, but in the pictorials in the link in the first post it says 700 Lumen.

You serm to be happy with the light.
Lacking pictures that show it apart (as to remove the battery), could you tell us (or post a pic?):

- Where does it come apart? by the head - or?

- ***Are the surfaces (all, male, female & shoulders) that touch o-rings anodized (black) as well or are they soft aluminum (machined after anodizing for some reason, got one such light unfortunately)?

- Are there decent sized shoulders for the o-rings... are the o-rings a decent size (cross section wise not too skinny so shoulders are not too tiny)... and do the o-ring recess shoulders reach above the center line of the ring (so it stays in place during assembly and does not get pinched)?

- Any chance the put the numbers for the o-ring size into the manual (no idea why that seems to be so rarely the case)?

- If / when you were to replace the o-rings, do they nerd to go over and beyond a threaded portion? If yes, is that thread diameter nicely smaller than the ring diameter (or does the ring have to be stretched and rolled over the sharp threads... seen that too...)?

 

[gcarter]

@gcarter
Odd that in Pyranha's & Orca's description it says high is 1000Lumen, but in the pictorials in the link in the first post it says 700 Lumen.

You serm to be happy with the light.
Lacking pictures that show it apart (as to remove the battery), could you tell us (or post a pic?):

- Where does it come apart? by the head - or?

- ***Are the surfaces (all, male, female & shoulders) that touch o-rings anodized (black) as well or are they soft aluminum (machined after anodizing for some reason, got one such light unfortunately)?

- Are there decent sized shoulders for the o-rings... are the o-rings a decent size (cross section wise not too skinny so shoulders are not too tiny)... and do the o-ring recess shoulders reach above the center line of the ring (so it stays in place during assembly and does not get pinched)?

- Any chance the put the numbers for the o-ring size into the manual (no idea why that seems to be so rarely the case)?

- If / when you were to replace the o-rings, do they nerd to go over and beyond a threaded portion? If yes, is that thread diameter nicely smaller than the ring diameter (or does the ring have to be stretched and rolled over the sharp threads... seen that too...)?

So many questions LOL...

The case and docs all say 1000 lumen, my bet is that Piranha just never updated the pics on their website. The description clearly says 1000, and after using it I can say it is every bit as bright as my DRIS 1k shorty, and my son's DRIS 1k light.

Here is the head, off, and you can see the o-rings and the threads.

Here is another shot of the threads inside the body

The pictures should answer most of your questions. The accompanying docs do not contain the o-ring size, but the light does come with an extra set of three. Easy enough to measure or bring into a shop without having to risk damaging one by removing it from the light.

 

[Schwob]

@garter :

Thanks. Yes indeed, the pics do answer all questions.

Yep, those were a bunch of questions... on all of which my last purchased @$!# light would have failed... had I bothered to check into it instead of going for a black Friday special unchecked...

 

[D_Fresh]

Schwab, That sucks getting burned like that, I've fallen victim before myself.

You've asked some great questions, which also help me out. Considering this "Black Star" light (whether rebranded or not), what is your opinion so far, considering you and I are both basing our potential purchases on gcarter's info?

Think it's worth the chances? So far I'm like 95% go for it. I really appreciate gcarter's input (and yours). The price seems worth the chance....?

And thank you again to @gcarter , much appreciated!!

 

[Schwob]

If I were set on needing a light like that I'd get it. I am almost looking for a light like it. By picture I like the build quality, o-ring size and count etc. What I am looking for exactly is 3 identical, highly reliable, narrowish center beam (6 degrees, maybe 8 not more) lights ideally running of a single 18650 each that (in order of importance):

- Have a way to reliably swich them on and off underwater multiple times, with a single hand w/o them turning around in the goodman-glove-handle (so the twist to remove the battery contact ones are said to a bit of an issue there and even so it can be done often say in their "manual" to switch on before entering the water and off when out off the water).

- Have a high in the 700 - 1200 (true?) Lumen range.

- If possible approach 2h run time at high (that seems a stretch, even if so stated on paper) or , maybe better, have a near half or 1/3 power setting at 2 or 3x the run time.

- If the contacts were such that they don't corrode in seemingly no time, that would be nice.

- If the barrel ID was sized such that batteries can slide into and out (hot and cold) w/o binding (got a light with that issue), that would be good.

- A small head, and a reasonably short barrel, because, pending on runtime I would like to mount 2 or 3 next to each other on a hard goodman handle.

- As few blinking and other modes to click through as possible, although a blinking mode (non-SOS could come in handy for a beacon)

So, except for the small head, this light may do it all. If you use it as a hand held light or glove mounted light, with maybe a spare on your strap or in a pocket, I would not worry about the head size.

Edit: I keep this one in mind if I cannot find a similar, but smaller head one at a similar price. (I have no use for the plastic case..., not sure who does and why they sell that way)

 

[D_Fresh]

Oh you actually brought up a great Criteria, battery removal hot/cold after dive.

I have a light which is nearly impossible to open after a night dive, and if you do, the battery won't slide out for a while. Maybe the fault of the battery? Maybe too small of tolerance in the light body? But definitely an issue.

@gcarter, any input on this regard the Black Star light?

 

[gcarter]

Oh you actually brought up a great Criteria, battery removal hot/cold after dive.

I have a light which is nearly impossible to open after a night dive, and if you do, the battery won't slide out for a while. Maybe the fault of the battery? Maybe too small of tolerance in the light body? But definitely an issue.

@gcarter, any input on this regard the Black Star light?

I certainly didn't find the battery fit to be either particularly snug or loose. That is with both the included OrcaTorch labeled battery and a LG backup I ordered from Liion Wolesale. Both slide in and out easily.

 

[D_Fresh]

Awesome! That's good news!

I'm rather excited for the higher capacity battery that they include, but I also like the LG and Japanese Panasonic batteries. They seem to have good lifespans/cycles.

Anyways, yeah, I will go ahead n go for the light. Hopefully I will receive it in the next month or two LOL (someone will have to hand carry to me in the Philippines).

 

[gcarter]

Just to be clear, what I received was not an OrcaTorch rebranded as a BlackStar. It was an OrcaTorch and branded as such. Not sure why Piranha listed it as BlackStar.

 

[D_Fresh]

Good to know! While it does not affect my personal decision, that's good to note for any others who may read this thread.

Thanks again gcarter, greatly appreciated!