Novatac 120 Tactical, reprogrammed to 120P

My teenage son just informed me that he has a gold one somewhere that I gave him. Lost in the move.

Just found these photo on my phone. Some that I sold a while back. Wish I would of kept them now.

Thanks for the visuals
including a serialized second run, plus a Triple, Wow!:slight_smile:

a Goldie pic I found online

@jon_slider: I cannot see your pic in post #14.

I seen it sunday, but I am not seeing it today.

thanks to both of you for the heads up on the missing photo in post 14
it also disappeared on my screen today
I posted it again… hope it stays
trying to figure out what happened to my Flickr, it wants to post fuzzy pics from the camera roll, so Im trying to link from the photostream page instead

test:
from camera roll: filename ends with _m.jpg. imo the M stands for mobile, and I dont like it, very low quality

note, Flickr updated the above image URL, here it is, now it works again:
note its filename ends with _c.jpg, where the C seems to stand for Camera Roll. The image quality, amount of detail, not fuzzy, is all good and normal again (Flickr fixed itself overnight and recoded the img urls)

next image, modified camera roll url (I deleted _m from filename):
note, this one is no longer needed… Im only leaving it here because it has been mentioned in other posts

photostream URL
note this is still the highest quality… its filename ends with _o.jpg Note the O stands for Original

I see 1 broken image, then 1 good detail photo, 1 Fuzzy Photo, and the last photo is the highest quality

It seems the bad links yesterday had to do with Flickr not having had time to process the images fully, so I was loading what was a temporary mobile url, before the server had renamed it for permanent storage. It seems Flickr stores an Original quality image, visible through the Photos page, and a lower resolution image, on the Camera Roll page. Depending which img url I post, changes the quality of the photo we see.

bottom line, The Flickr service is working for me again, and I learned how to post higher quality images from the photos page, instead of the camera roll page…

Are there any Novatac available as new lights?

Yes and no
There are New Old Stock Novatac SPA DEFENSE 120T versions available on Ebay, they are usually Silver, or Desert Tan, and tend to have bezels that match the color of the body. And the Knurling is very aggressive.

iow, they were made about 8-11 years ago, but some people still have unused ones for sale

keep in mind that 120T models arrive with a preset tactical program. You need to do a 250click process to unlock the programming features so you can set the light up to use levels you like, and to eliminate the strobe, if you dont want strobe… etc

There is also a Novatac 120P available on ebay, the P models are programmable, they dont need the 250 click unlock.

Prices vary widely, from $40 all the way up to $200, depending on the seller.

There are several different versions of Novatac, 120P, 120E, 120T, 120M, Wichita, Storm, and among the 120P series there are some with serial numbers, and some with no serial numbers, and they came in black, or Peuter colors.

Then there is the subject of whether they were made in USA or not, or whether they were calibrated or not, and whether the ones with tailcaps that say Made in USA were really made in USA or if its just a USA labeled tailcap…

Then there are differences in the reflector design, and which LED is installed, and whether the light came with a pocket clip or not…

Ive been posting a lot of info in several threads, about my Novatac experiences… I suggest you dive in and read all about them :slight_smile:

Oh, and there are details regarding when and whether they Flicker, which is also true for HDS versions that came before Novatac…

there are a lot of details, and also different bezels, the black ones are stainless, the anodized ones are aluminum…

enjoy the research

I only see the 3rd.

+1

thanks again for the photo feedback
post 14 how has a good visible highest quality pic
post 20 lost pic version 1 already, I can still see version #2 and #3
wait, I just reloaded, and now I can only see pic #3… good to know

thanks for bearing with me as I learn to use the newly restricted Flickr
I guess I need to migrate to yet another “free” hosting site… open to suggestions that do not include photobucket and flickr

I think its really cool to be able to see the differences in Knurling :slight_smile:
I like that kind of trivia… LOL

imgur Is what I use now. Someone here suggested it. Did some looking for the Gold Navatac today. No luck.

Sorry to hear your Goldie is still AWOL
thanks for suggesting Imgur, the pics in this post are from that site

I just received a Black Novatac 120T, on the right,

and did the 250 click and reprogrammed it to 120P settings:
Preset A is Maximum
Preset B is 11 lumens
Preset C is 33 lumens
Preset D is 0.33 lumens

no strobe
no memory
no momentary mode
battery detection is set for 16340

In the process I discovered that it has a battery surround spring that was stretched too long, and was causing the switch to be unreliable. I fixed the problem by swapping in one of the springs from the other two Novatacs I have atm.

here are the 3 Novas, you can see the springs are not all the same

I also ordered a couple new springs from UniqueTitanium , which are also different than the others pictured

Oh, that is nice one. Looks to be older version. Does it have numbers? Bezel down carry? Your scaring me.

No serial numbers, here is the other side

and the clip would not stay in that position if it was for me. I take clips off. The light is promised to a friend overseas, and he likes clips… I would put the clip under the tailcap, or under the Bezel, but what you see in the second pic in post 27 is just how the light arrived, with the clip between the head and body tube… to me that is Wrong for pocket carry. The light would get flipped out and lost way too easily, with that much tail sticking up.

this setup would be less scary with a lanyard :wink:

or in my pocket! without the regalia

or this would be more my style, I like HatClips

About pocket clips
A very kind member sent me this Original Novatac Pocket clip,

as you can see it is a different style than the one on the red hat, in the above post.

not to look a gift horse in the teeth, just comparisons
the clip shown on the red hat is stiffer and does not flex when gripped, it also does not ride on the knurling, is not split on the ring, and is thicker

the clip shown in this post is lighter, springier, holds tighter to the body, is slightly smaller, does not stick out as far from the body, and weighs less than the clip on the red hat

I am fortunate to have choices, and also very grateful that both clips were gifts.

.

About bezel mounted clips

Ive carried the Gold Novatac with the clips under the bezel for a while and have a couple pro and con reactions.

I like
the option to clip the light to my hat
that the light wont roll off a table
and the option carry clipped

I dont like
pushing on the crenelated bezel, when Im pocketing the light.
the extra bulk when gripping the light

.

About Titanium Bezel options

A friend ordered these Titanium bezels from RPM and gave me a chance to check them out:

P/N TI-990-350-SP

P/N TI-990-350-SC6-060

I like the smooth one, it is gentler on my hand when pushing on the bezel, and I have less concern about it chewing a hole in my pocket.

I like the crenelated one too, it is not as sharp as the stock bezel, and I like the option to do this:

I checked if I could still fit a clip under the Titanium Bezel, the answer is yes. I note that the clip on the red hat has a much larger hole, and fits easily over the threads, but the ring also sticks out beyond the body of the light more.

The clip with the step on the blade has a tighter hole, and the fit of the ring is closer to flush with the body. the ring is split so it can be forced to thread onto the bezel (I chose not to do that with the Ti Bezel, but I know it works because the fit is the same as on the stock Gold Bezel).

.

About Lenses

A new bezel and a new lens go well together :slight_smile:

I use these 22.61mm x 1.90mm UCL Lenses on my Novatacs

I recently bought a couple Novatacs
one of them is a very early model, with Gen1 serial number, made in Tucson

it even has the positive nipple (later a spring), and the rubber anti recoil bumper in the tailcap (later discontinued)

the ano is very mismatched, which I find entertaining… it has a nice stainless bezel, and a really solid first gen clip

It reads 60 lumens max on my meter, and greatly outhrows my FWAA set to 200 lumens… fun times!

more pics in this album

fun historical Novatac promotional flyer
Note Sales office is in Tucson.

Jon I always smile when I see you post one of these. The EDC/Ra/NovaTac lights were great lights in their era and definitely ahead of the curve.

I carried a 120T in Iraq for awhile before gifting before I came back to the US.

thank you for your service
great little tac lights imo
makes me smile too

Nice find! Where’d you pick up that oldie? Rounds out your NovaTac collection. I don’t use mine much anymore these days, as the FW3A edged it out. Comparatively, the programming is difficult. I definitely need a code image handy to go through it. I like how it has a few capabilities not found in Anduril.