Please make sure that the head is NOT glued. Iām fine with having no host option available, but would like the option to upgrade the LEDs myself in the future.
Alsoā¦ is the clip removable? For those of us who donāt use clips, itās just extra weight in the pocket.
Probably not. Every part of this light, including the button, is thinned down enough that a trit slot would likely go all the way through the metal. The only place I know trits could fit is under the optic. Itās also possible that some might fit in the thick part of the tapered body tube.
Most lights have a lot of extra material to drill into, but this one does not. It opts to be smaller rather than unnecessarily thick.
TBD.
The first prototypeās tail end was glued, so no. Not sure if later units will be glued too.
The quoted text is a measurement, not a theory. And yes, the parts are pretty precise.
Where thereās a will thereās a way. Just glue a magnet onto the tailswitch with a trit slot in that and get 3 mods in 1: proud tailswitch, magnetic tail, trit. Iām sure a few people will find space somewhere to carve out a slot if thatās what they really want.
Given a choice between no trits or making the entire light larger and heavier, Iād rather go for no trits. Thatās a matter of personal preference though. I have other lights with a focus on machining, and they feel like bricks in comparison.
I donāt have any lights which are truly similar to the FW3A. The Emisar D4 is closest, but itās significantly heavier. Otherwise, the only lights I can compare it to are designed for AA/14500 or 16340/18350. For example, a Convoy S2+ with 18350 tube is only a few millimeters shorter, and about the same weight when both lights have a battery installed. My Rey Ti has trit slots, but itās heavier even in 18350 form. The FW3A is pretty close to the same size and weight as a SK-68, but it uses an 18650 cell instead of AA.
FWIW, Fritz successfully replaced the button with a rubber one. This makes it stick out, but it can also allow light through if itās a clear rubber boot. Iām not sure if that really helps though.
This render looks to have a grain type finish to it. Like it was spun and someone held some fine sand paper or scotchbrite to it. I think it is nicer than the bead blasted finish.
But, lets face it, this has become too big a run to have a very fine machined finish, that would require frequent re-sharpening of even the best carbide cutters, the best free-cutting alloys, slow cuts, and even then there might be moans about it not being quite perfect.
If it was made of e.g. SS it could be electro-polished, but that would defeat the whole point of this very fine minimalist torch, cut down to the minimum. It seems like a āSwiss Watchā construction, definitely not ordinary.
It looks good to me, preferably tumbled in ceramic media rather than crude bead-blast.
I was going to pull the plug on this light due to how long it is taking to develop, but that pic looks awesome, so Iāll continue to stick it out with everyone!