Strobe suggestions

[BubbleTrouble]

The Jotron strobe finally arrived. It's beautiful - very solidly made and it's compact. Not having too much space on my Transpak, this will make a perfect addition to the kit. Now need to do a try-dive. Also the choice of the solid slide-switch was a winner, it seems very easy to turn-on-off with thick gloves.

Thanks all for your suggestions.

 

[buddhasummer]

Hi there, I second the vote for the Jotron strobe. Superbly well built, smaller than the Tektite (12h runtime instead of 36 hours I think contributes to this), but you can probably take it deeper than you ever want to go. Easy to operate with gloves, built like a tank. My dive buddy and I keep one permanently on our right shoulder strap of the BCD/harness.

Another (untested!) idea could involve a green scuba laser mounted to the line, held against the rope by rubber bands or attached separately with a weight perhaps. I got one of these things for less than $100, and it is just incredibly how these things pierce through the water. Get the lowest power possible, it WILL be enough, and we don't want to fry holes in fish or our retinas either.

Jonas

Hi there,

I keep mine in a pocket, out of curiosity how do you attach it to your BCD? the slot cut in the side isnt wide enough to put a split ring through or do you tie it on?

 

[BubbleTrouble]

Hi there,

I keep mine in a pocket, out of curiosity how do you attach it to your BCD? the slot cut in the side isnt wide enough to put a split ring through or do you tie it on?

I dive in a drysuit normally and have two big pockets on the front of my legs. That's where my strobe goes at the moment. However, I was also thinking of installing a pocket at the back on my Transpac so that I can store it out of the way yet still be able to easily reach it.

Either way will work, it just depends on the criticality of needing to use the strobe. The more critical, the closer to the front (reachable) it goes.

 

[empressdiver]

Hi there,

I keep mine in a pocket, out of curiosity how do you attach it to your BCD? the slot cut in the side isnt wide enough to put a split ring through or do you tie it on?

Just like a backup light, you can use some thin nylon line from your reel to tie a brass bolt snap to the slot on the strobe and then you can easily attach the strobe to a D-ring on your harness or to the upline on a wreck, etc. Much better than using a split ring. And if it gets snagged on something, you can easily cut the line, but you can't easily cut a split ring.

 

[packfan]

The generally accepted rule among tech divers is that you use alkaline batteries rather than rechargeable batteries for your backup lights. You only use rechargeable batteries for your main light. I would suggest that strobes should be treated like backup lights - reliability is the most important factor - if the strobe dies, you could have a serious problem.

As well, NiMH batteries only have 1.2 volts whereas alkaline batteries have 1.5 volts, and I have found that my Tektite strobe just functions better with the higher voltage alkaline batteries.

What do you think about using the energizer ultimate lithium batteries? They should last much longer then alkaline batteries and they are good in extreme temperatures and are leak-proof. They are only available in AA and AAA. I am going to use them on my back-up light.

 

[oldschool]

Earlier this week I was walking around the Ft Hood PX and spotted something that I think is fairly new. It is a waterproof (1000 ft rated) container for the Inova Microlights. It is sold under the name "NITE IZE". I have not yet mastered placing photos on this site so I will describe. The container is approx 10" long. It consists of a top portion, approx 2 " high and 1 1/4" diameter which holds the microlight with a lower attached solid cylinder that transmitts light. The cylinder is approx 3/4" diameter. The microlight has three settings (high, low, strobe) and operates off of 2 replaceable lithium CR2016 batteries. You have to first turn on the light then place it in the container and screw down the cap with o-ring. I have not yet used it however I compared it to the glo-toob which I have on my tank and it was much, much brighter. the microloight is available in red, blue, green, and white. When you buy the container, it comes with a microlight. Separate lights are available. The price was $12.00. Separate microlights are approximately $6.00. Yes, it was in the PX, but those of you who are familiar with them know that the only difference now between PX prices and regular retail prices is that the PX is tax free. I attached a clip on the end of mine so during night dives, I can attach it to my SMB and send it up to the surface with the reel. It is bouyant. I will post a thread as to how it worked out as soon as I have the opportunity to test it out but for $12.00, I couldn't resist.