Review: Manta Strobe helmet light (replica)

I've been meaning to post about this for a while. As my regular readers may know, I simply can't get enough lights. I love lights, and illumination. As one of my favourite designers states "Dark Sucks" 

I saw one of these little guys in my feeds and instantly felt the need to add one to my collection. However, there were two problems. First and foremost was one of the banes of my existence. 

"This Item is ITAR controlled and cannot be shipped or carried outside the United States without express written permission from the United States Department of State. We do not export outside the United States. PERIOD!"   

IR products are just so hard to get from American producers because if this. The second reason was almost irrelevant as a result, its a pricey gadget. I was super lucky when I was sent the
CJ Engineering - Phoenix jr IR strobe .

However, the original Manta Helmet Strobe from S And S Precision looks to be an excellent addition to many real-world users kits, so I wanted to see what I could find.

I managed to find a replica-for-paintball version by Canis Latrans Trading, out of China. These are the same folks that supplied me my "Ops-Core like" bump helmet . Now, before I go into the item, let me reiterate, this is how I could get one of these, legally. It is a replica, so is unlikely to have gone through rigorous QC and testing that an original from S&S would have. I wish I could have a real one, but I can't. This will have to do. 

However, that said, it works a treat!

The manta-ray shaped device is 7.5 cm (3") long, 5cm (2") wide and 3cm (1.4") high. It is curved on its underside to mate with the curve of a helmet and is covered in hook-field for attaching to loop-fields.
 
The underside of the unit (the tail) features a textured button which when depressed, triggers the IR strobe. Because of the risk of switching it on unknowingly, or to confirm that it is in fact on, the strobe has a vibrate function, which gives three pulses when it is activated. This is an awesome feature, and can be easily felt with the helmet strapped on, but is essentially silent.

There are two buttons on the side of the tail, recessed, which trigger the "overt" green strobe. This can only occur when the strobe has already been put into IR mode, and then only by a three second squeeze of both side button simultaneously. This is a great feature, especially for those users who may need to be very aware of not breaking light discipline.

The strobe takes one of the CR123a batteries so prolific in high end electronics and lights these days.
The IR strobes uses three IR LED's, which when activated are barely perceptible within 2 meters to the naked eye, as three faint, pale pink blinks. I have pretty good night-vision, and beyond 2 meters in a blacked out room I couldn't see them. 

The overt, green strobe however, was almost painful to look at, with its twin lime green LED's that all but lit up the room I was testing them in. 

I had a go capturing the IR and overt green strobes both directly with my iPhone, and also down the barrel of my Yukon IR scope  and that really demonstrated the efficacy of this light.  The IR LED's cast so much light that the reflection made the blacked out room.

So, for my use as an emergency beacon  when I am out adventuring (like when I was out testing the Aquayak Snapper Pro, or running about through the mountains) I think it will work out just fine. I want to be able to be spotted by Search and Rescue, if the need arises, or just stay out of oncoming traffic's way. It is a rugged little toy, waterproof and bump-capable. I'm going to pack it whenever I go adventuring, and see who is watching ...

Visual light test of Manta

IR test of Manta, through Yukon IR scope

Review: Laser Genetics - ND-3x50

After my visit to the SHOT Expo, I thought it was time to roll out one of my big lights. 

I had seen these whilst browsing the Canis Latrans Sports website (they do "replica" gear, where my Ops-Core style helmet came from ...) The idea of a laser pumped light sounded really cool, but I had no idea what to expect. I took the plunge and ordered one.

It turned out to be much bigger than i had expected (I did choose the bigger of the three versions available.) Here it is, the Laser Genetics ND3x50 laser designator (or a clone of the same)

The fist thing I need to tell you is that it IS large. The objective lens end is 60mm (2.35”) in diameter, and the barrel, whilst the standard 1" ring size gives the unit a 240mm (9.45”) over all length. It's a big light at 380g (13.5oz). However, it gives BIG results.

Powered by two CR123A batteries, the light has a maximum output of 50mW, which is purported to give a visible light at up to 4.8km (3 miles). It manages this by producing light at 532nm (green), apparently the easiest light for the human eye to see. 

So it's a huge laser pointer, so what?  

Built into the base of the objective end is a Rotary Optical Collimator, which allows you to dial in the focus of the beam, from 50mm to 320mm at 300mm from the end of the objective. That then spreads out to about 2m at 11m (see pics below), or , when dialed in tight, leaves a pretty much 50mm spot for as far as you care to through, up to about 450m (500yrd) effective range.

By "effective range" I think they mean when mounted on top of a scope, which, as it happens, they include mounts for with a "weaver style ring", a 1" scope mount (essentially a windage and elevation adjustable double sided mount, a tripod mount, as well as a pressure switch accessory. Lots of tactical options there. Just remember, this is a BRIGHT light, and you can see the beam in the night air, leading right back to the source. 

Tracers work both ways.

That said, the all aluminium body, with its anodised finish, o-ring seals and nitrogen charged lens cavity make for a pretty solid piece. One thing I noted were some imperfections. There is dust on the inside of the objective lens, and when dialed to wide-beam, there is a distinct "gibbous moon" effect where the lens is not quite right. This may be because this is a "replica" rather than a stringently QC'd piece.

Here are a couple of shots of me testing it indoors, from room-sweeping, to tight spot. In its room-sweeping end (or any of the wide angles, it also casts a secondary diameter, giving you a pretty good field of illumination at the "up close" distances, great for trails and sweeps.

I also took it out to the valley near Puffing Billy scenic railway, and had a bit of a play with it.


This is a really cool light, and I really enjoy taking it out and beaming it around. It is very powerful though, and I am always careful to steer clear of aircraft, delicate eyeballs and Sith Lords.