My new MYO XP makes me very happy, and retails for around $70 dollars, actually. I haven't seen a 3watt light for less than that, but maybe I'm not looking in the right place. I like it better than the Apex by Princeton Tec because I found the Apex to have dark rings in the light, and the Petzl Myo XP has a nice even light. Everyone is taking bets that the diffuser lens on the Myo will be the first part of it to break, but I've beat it up pretty good (Maple Run might be a small Texas Wormhole but it's not easy on equipment trip after trip) and flipped it around a bunch and its doing just fine. These are both 3 watt (I know the Myo XP is, pretty sure about the APEX) and we'll find out if they are bright enough when I hit those Mexican pits next week or so. I don't like the heat sink casing on the Apex, seems like it will trap mud. Also, you need a tool to open the battery pack (built into the strap adjuster) and it is more bulky and heavier. Plus, the Apex retails for $10 more. On the upside, the button switch has moved to the bottom of the lamp on this model, which only makes sense. I do like the battery indicator on the MyoXP, and while the booster button seems like a fancy feature, I'm unconvinced it actually provides a brighter light for enough extra time to be useful. The switch on this light is protected when the lamp is positioned in the neutral (I"m talking about the tilting ability of the light) position, and theoretically it can't be accidentaly turned on in your pack. Also, this light takes AA's and is very small and lightweight. I do seem to run through batteries faster than I would expect with the MYOxp but I have considered going lithium.... any input on that? The princeton tec Eos is bright (1 watt), retails for a reasonable $40, but is a very focused beam, and sometimes not diffuse enough for my purposes. Also has the same trouble with accessing the battery pack (does not have the built in tool as far as I can tell...) and requires AAA, a downside to some. I'm most impressed by the Princeton Tec Corona. Not a 3 watt light, but has 8 smaller leds and is sturdy, bright, and versatile.If i recall, its more waterproof than the Apex or Eos. Princeton tec is also very good about repairing and replacing broken and malfunctioning lights for little to nothing, although it takes them a while.
I've explored these options because while the Stenlight looks fly, it is definately in another orbit than my caver light budget allows. Kara --- Bill Mixon <[email protected]> wrote: > That "perfect caving light" costs $300! That in > itself seems to me to be > considerable imperfection. Of course, I'm old > enought to remember buying > Justrite carbide cap lamps for $3.85. (I'm still > using one.) You can get a > light with one 3W LED in it and three levels of > brightness for something > like $40, I think. Certainly less than $50. The one > I bought from IMO at the > NSS convention last summer would suffice for > essentially any caving, seems > to me. It's a Princeton Tec light; doesn't have a > model number on it. Holds > three cheap AAA bateries internally; no cables or > connections. Appears > reasonably water-resistant, but shouldn't be > submerged for long. Could have > somewhat wider dispersion of the light, but for the > difference in price > compared to the "perfect caving light".... > There's a review of the Stenlight S7 in the > November NSS News.-- Mixon > > > _______________________________________________ > Texascavers mailing list > [email protected] > http://mail.texascavers.com/mailman/listinfo/texascavers_texascavers.com > __________________________________ Yahoo! Mail - PC Magazine Editors' Choice 2005 http://mail.yahoo.com _______________________________________________ Texascavers mailing list [email protected] http://mail.texascavers.com/mailman/listinfo/texascavers_texascavers.com
