KR1AA beam is looking good

[jon_slider]

[NLD] KR1AA Raw Aluminum w SFT-70 5000K

While waiting for my V2 Polished Silver KR1AA to arrive, I decided to buy a used V1 Raw Aluminum. It has a Low CRI LED that I would not have chosen myself. I have ordered a High CRI replacement, NTG50 2700K.

Im having fun getting to know how it works.. I like how small it is..

It has a problem when loading batteries through the head, it often goes into the triple blink mode, which is a weak battery detect, and then it only works on a very low output. This problem is avoided by loading the battery through the tail.

[Perception]

I’m on a quest to find the throwiest high-cri light I can in this size factor light. In another thread, someone said the NTG35 in 5000/4200K is brighter and more importantly out throws the high cri options in the KR1AA. Does anyone have that combination of lights that can get some comparison beamshots/ data?

[Northman]

How is it so green? I have the same emitter in a D1K that looks neutral. Does it not have a lens with the green antireflection coating?

[Firelight2]

@jon_slider

It has a problem when loading batteries through the head, it often goes into the triple blink mode, which is a weak battery detect, and then it only works on a very low output. This problem is avoided by loading the battery through the tail.

Neither of my V1s have that problem.

I recommend trying the following:

• Check the retaining rings - Sometimes the retaining rings in these lights can cause problems. If too tight, they can cause the board not to sit quite flat against the inner contact tube. The result is poor connection which can cause issues.
  • Loosen and then retighten the driver retaining ring
  • Loosen the tailswitch retaining ring about 1/8 turn from tight and leave it slightly loose.
• With the head off, screw on the tailcap as tightly as you can.
  • In the V1 version this will push the inner tube forward towards the head and should give a better connection to the driver.
  • Change the battery only from the head.

[Dc38 (The Glutton)]

I’m guessing it’s a cree emitter…

[jon_slider]

@Northman

green antireflection coating?

yes it does have green AR lens

what you call neutral might be different if you were to photograph it during the day at low output like I do, and measure it on an opple, or if you were to shine it on a whitewall during the day.. At high output it does look white during the day.

outdoors at night, green tint is not so obvious.. especially at 5000K CCT and Low CRI, it just makes the grass look greener

@Firelight2

With the head off, screw on the tailcap as tightly as you can.

• In the V1 version this will push the inner tube forward towards the head and should give a better connection to the driver.
• Change the battery only from the head.

I did those things.. I still find changing the battery from the tail avoids the problem..

I have not messed w the retaining rings.. thanks for your detailed suggestions..

I bought the light used, because I wanted to experience the Raw Aluminum.. Knowing I would change the LED.

The light had hardly been used since Jackson shipped it.. so Im just letting it show me what it likes for now..

Im a total tint snob.. and besides that, I cant abide Low CRI (except for outdoor throw, when tint and cri does not matter)..

so even though I have a High CRI 5000K XHP50.3 Hi in house, I wont be bothering to install it.. all that would do is give me High CRI w Green Tint, like this Zebra (that I sold):

Im actually planning to install an NTG50 2700K, eventually.. it is ordered, and will arrive with my “Polish” Silver KR1AA V2..

meanwhile I get to play with this Raw KR1AA V1.. despite the LED, and whatever other personality issues it has.. its shiny

I took the clip off because it is flimsy and has weak retention.. Here are a couple of size comparisons:

Video of KR1AA at 2.5 lm shows video flicker that is not visible to the naked eye.

by contrast the D3AA does not show video flicker at 2.5 lm. And this is how the Opple sees them:

[Tankolai (JJ)]

I also have the V1, but in anodized aluminum. I haven’t had the problem you are having from loading the battery through the head. I have left the tailcap on since I did the o-ring mod on the switch.

Though I do have to make sure it’s tighter than the D3AA or TS10 to make full contact.

I also haven’t had any of the spinning clip problems that I’ve been seeing on reddit, however mine is the V1, and I imagine whatever difference there is in the V2 that allows mechanical lockout is the cause. my clip isn’t as tight as an FW3A, but I only spins if I want it to, not loose like a KR4.

[Tankolai (JJ)]

The raw aluminum looks pretty good.

I haven’t ordered another light from Hank or Jackson yet, I think I’m going to wait for the Ti, Cu, or brass models to get the 3000K SFT-70 one I’ve been wanting.

Seems like there have been a lot of delays and such lately

[jon_slider]

@Tankolai

haven’t had any of the spinning clip problems… mine is the V1

agree
the clip on my V1 does not spin freely.. it will only move if I push on it deliberately..

However, I feel the clip is too thin and flimsy. I dont like that I can feel it flex when Im using the light, and the retention is too weak for thin material.. the light will slide off the bottom of a T shirt, when the light is upside down, hanging toward the ground. so I took it off.

My pants are made of material that is as thin as a T shirt, not jeans.. so I dont trust the light to stay clipped into a pants pocket either. Anyway, I like the handfeel symmetry of the light without a clip..

[Firelight2]

Hopefully, Hank will make an alternate clip with better retention.

The clip’s shape is fine. The metal just needs to be slightly thicker so it doesn’t bend so easily.

[Dc38 (The Glutton)]

Do the PVD coated clips rotate easily? I want to say they feel a tiny bit thicker to my fingers, I’ll check with a micrometer later.

[jon_slider]

@Firelight2

The clip’s shape is fine. The metal just needs to be slightly thicker so it doesn’t bend so easily.

agree!
imo the KR1AA V1 and V2 are not yet fine tuned for best switch and clip function.. here is my somewhat brutal comparison to the D3AA:

The KR1AA will be a better product when:

1. It does not trip the triple blink weak battery error when screwing the head or tail shut. (Hank partly solves this by glueing the V2 Head, but that interferes with accessing the flashing pads, and Im not a fan of the potentially fragile wire loops he added to the driver contact ring)

2. The clip is made of thicker metal

3. The switch button has higher resistance (such as with the O ring mod)…

(I did check the driver and tail retaining rings on my V1, and they are not loose. I have kept them just as Jackson assembled them)

Im not sure why, but I sometimes get unintended missed clics on the V1 switch button.. for example, when meaning to do 7C, I get into Tactical by mistake, which is at 6C.. And sometimes when I mean to do 2H to ramp down, I get blasted by high output instead, which is the result of 2C instead of 2H.

When changing the battery through the head I get a ridiculous number of weak battery detects (triple flash).. from wobbling the head. If Im very deliberate about pushing the head against the body tube when I start closing the light, I can sometimes avoid the weak battery detect.

Changing battery thru the tail usually avoids the weak battery detect issue. But it still happens sometimes. I basically live in fear of changing the battery due to the weak battery detect failures.

I dislike going thru the tail because the clip interferes win turning the tailcap, and the clip moves around. Not a fan of clip rotation.

I have never had a weak battery detect error with my D3AA.. no matter which end of the body tube I load the battery from. This to me makes the KR1AA a finicky alternative, even though I prefer the smooth body. I also never get switch errors w the D3AA, nor do I worry about false activation.

If I was considering gifting one of those two models, I would gift the D3AA, because it is not finnicky about battery loading, nor about switch pressure and operational reliability.

I do prefer the smooth form factor of the KR1AA… just not its functional reliability issues. I dont like the flimsy KR1AA clip, but I dont like the D3AA clip either.. it has better retention, but the body is a cheesegrater.. Atm I dont use a clip on either light.

Honestly, I have considered cancelling my V2 order, but I want the spare LED I added to that order, so I can remove the Low CRI SFT-70 5000K in my V1… Im trying not to be a jerk to Hank.. and just hoping when my V2 arrives, that I can learn to enjoy it.. despite my design criticisms.

fwiw
KR1AA Flicker Index is Lower on Eneloop than LiIon:

[joebob4501]

I’m still waiting for my KR1AA to ship, I chose SFT70 3000k which is the most throwy high cri option at 6,400cd. I don’t have a D3AA NTG35 to compare unfortunately

I’d keep an eye out for the FW1AA re-release, should be much more throwy than the KR1AA SFT70 3000k. I have one with dedomed 519a and I measure ~11,000cd. I plan to swap in either a NTG35 which should increase throw to ~12,000cd, or a sft25r 5700k 90cri which hopefully should be ~20,000 cd

[Firelight2]

The earliest production FW3As had no retaining rings at all. The driver was press-fit into place. The tailcap guts would fall out if you changed the battery at the tail.

Without the retaining rings they actually had fewer issues with switch contact. Sometimes the problem with retaining rings in this kind of light isn’t that they’re too loose, rather it’s they are too tight. They work better with the retaining rings removed completely, or loosened so the boards on either end of the inner tube can float and achieve optimum contact.

[Mandrake50]

@jon_slider

I do prefer the smooth form factor of the KR1AA… just not its functional reliability issues.

I have a V2 version. Of course with the head being glued on my only option is replacing the cell from the tail end. So far, so good. I have not had …

OOPS. While writing this I decided to just take the cell out and reinstall it. Tightened the tail cap down and got the three flashes.

I took the inner tube out and polished both ends with a pencil eraser. Put it back together and it worked as it should.. Now I have swapped cells 6 times with no issues. I will keep an eye on it.

The clip, yes it is quite weak. It stays put OK with jeans or sweat pants. But I can tell it is sketchy with thin materials. Maybe someone will come up with a better clip at some point. It took me a long time and trying many clips to find a good one that I like for my TS 10 lights.

[jon_slider]

Received KR1AA V2, woohoo!

clear ano V2 on left, raw V1 on right :

V2 and V1 look practically identical

both clips are snug and dont rotate. The V2 has an extra O ring in a little groove under the clip, plus the normal O ring above the clip.

Im having trouble closing the tailcap on the V2 far enough to get the light to turn on.. fortunately I had asked the head not to be glued, and by loosening it slightly I can get the tailcap tight enough to seat all the way down.

Then I tighten the head to get contact at that end, confirmed by a single bright flash.. after that the switch works.. true for both my plain tailcap and magnetic tailcap.

sometimes I get the triple blink error and have to start over.. but Im up for a challenge.. LOL.. they are fun lights once properly closed and working.

Flicker Index test w both lights on level 50/150 = about 31 lm. (btw this is also the default startup level after closing the light with factory default configuration that uses automatic memory):

The NTG has lower Flicker Index than the SFT
each LED has lower Flicker on Eneloop than LiIon

Im liking the NTG color and tint, and also glad it has lower Flicker Index than the SFT

The China courier picked up the package the same day Hank emailed me the shipping notice. It only took 9 days to delivery.. one of the fastest shipments Ive ever received.. (except for the delay from ordering until shipping).

Tracking only worked by 4PX for the first 6 days, after that the package reached USPS and their tracking went live until delivery.

[jon_slider]

KR1AA V1 Raw Aluminum mod

removed Low CRI SFT-70 5000K (left), installed High CRI XHP50.3 Hi 5000K (middle), added -green Zircon 803 (right)

Here are my Two KR1AA now, I like having a warm and a cooler pairing:

Now that I have seen the SFT and XHP, I would like to try NTG50 5000K … the NTG has higher CRI, and does not need a -green filter..

[eckyeckypikang]

I’m pleased with the beam on my SFT70 30000K. I don’t perceive and green, just a nice warmth. I am also quite happy with the output & throw.

I think I got lucky with my unit - the tailcap is a touch finicky when tightening, but I haven’t had any connection issues thus far. It feels like a classier, nicer-to-carry update to the D3AA.

[horzuff]

How much does the filter reduce the output? How do You mount it? I have a couple lights I’d love to give a similar treatment

[thefreeman]

@horzuff

How much does the filter reduce the output?

Maukka has tested them somewhere here but I can’t easily find it.

durability test I did of 1/4 minus green and Zircon 803 : Lee minus green and Zircon minus green filters durability test
About -19% for zircon 803