• Descent 310 is out now.

    ....so prepare to see some of the best writing and photography from the caving world

    Including: Into the Echo Chamber, Tim Allen reports on another magnificent Yorkshire Dales find by the Space Miners....and: The Great Geoff Yeadon, undoubtedly one of the greats of the caving world. Following his death at the age of 75, Geoff Crossley, Martin Grass and Mick Nunwick pay tribute to him.

    Click here for details of this edition

has anyone used the Raptor Pro or DL16 Oldhams lamp?

richardg

richardg

Active member
Has anyone used the Raptor Pro or DL16 Oldhams caving lamps?

I'm interested in the brightness and its duration of brightness and how waterproof either of these lamps are for wet caves.

I've been using my scorion P7 which is of course very comfortable to cave with its bright light and spot, though personally I've found it to be not at all suitable in very wet caves. hence deciding to get a reliable waterproof long duration bright lamp, that I can feel safe with.

Richard



 
No experience with either of the lamps you mentioned but as a Scurion owner I'm curious as to what problems you've had with it in wet caves.
 
Andrew W said:
No experience with either of the lamps you mentioned but as a Scurion owner I'm curious as to what problems you've had with it in wet caves.
Click to expand...

thank you for your reply Andrew.
and to answer your question;

Many people own scurions and I haven't seen mention of similar problems on this forum, so if anyone is considering the merits of the lamp please don't be put off by me as one person having problems with the waterproofness of the lamp!

Its an excellent lamp, considered as we know to be a rolls Royce among lights.

The problem I experienced is water entering the headset and causing the electronics to malfunction, and corrosion of the connections in the battery box.

But like everyone says its an excellent lamp, and the cave we're presently working on involves regular submerging and the scurion has frequently been used at one to two feet depth.

I reiterate...It is an excellent lamp, and personally I would like keep my scurion  :hug: whilst having something that is rather more specifically waterproof ,suitable to the wet caves that we work on from time to time.  hence this enquiry.
 
I'm struggling to bring my self to say it - but aren't the Speleoshite Nova's meant to be really really waterproof. The only problem being they have shit battery connectors that look and work as though they were the result of a GSCE technology project (one don in the early 80's at that).
 
Reading the IP ratings chart here, one could easily get the impression that the Scurion should handle that degree of immersion. Does its documentation anywhere state exactly what pressure it is rated for?
 
In reply to the the original post i have a Raptor Pro and am very happy with it. It's been in plenty of wet places but I don't really go fully underwater, although the battery has been underwater for extended periods.

I wash it regularly in a bucket though.....
 
SamT said:
I'm struggling to bring my self to say it - but aren't the Speleoshite Nova's meant to be really really waterproof. The only problem being they have shit battery connectors that look and work as though they were the result of a GSCE technology project (one don in the early 80's at that).
Click to expand...

Thank you Sam. I agree, I had to get rid of  my speleotecnics headlight because of the battery connectors, although I know a guy who seems to  have no problems, with his Nova when we're underground. Again some lights are trouble free for some folk whilst being problematic in use by others.

Our Oldhams were so robust and reliable, are there any lights in that same category that are long duration, very bright and waterproof and light and small to transport, Has anyone here got experience therefore of the Raptor Pro or Oldhams DL16 which might seem to fit the specifications in the advertising blurb.
 
ttxela said:
In reply to the the original post i have a Raptor Pro and am very happy with it. It's been in plenty of wet places but I don't really go fully underwater, although the battery has been underwater for extended periods.

I wash it regularly in a bucket though.....
Click to expand...

Thank you Ttxela, so the Raptor presents no problems when getting some hard scrubbing in a bucket of water,Is it a bright lamp? how would you compare it? and does it do 16 hours on main beam whilst maintaining its brightness?


 
It's bright enough, no doubt the fancier lights are brighter but I've come straight from an old school Oldham and it's enough of an improvement to keep me happy.

I've not tested it's endurance but I must have been underground for 10 or 11 hours over a weekend without the light noticably dimming.
 
Not personally but a mate of mine uses one and it is very similar to the LED Widom that I am using .The difference is in the led set up and focal points.The Raptor appears to have a more pencil light beam and the Wisdom gives a wider bathing of light but I would say that if the reflectors are interchangeable that there wouldn't be much difference between the two,and it is useful to have a variety of lighting between members.I CAN however vouch for the after sales service for Wye Valley Associates from where I procured my lamp.It is waterproof (apparently to 15m) through puddles,just look after your equip' after use.
 
Thank you for all the advise, I've just received a new Raptor Pro Caving lamp this morning, coincidentally I was in the bath as the postman arrived, so was able to test it at shallow submersible depth, happy to say it was thoroughly waterproof, for the 2 hour duration.

I intend to be underground in Wharfedale on Saturday down our new discovery (see next descent :coffee:), so I'll do a review for here then, just in case anyones interested
 
I've had 22.5 hrs out of my Raptor Pro (not underground, I just left it on in my kit box to see how long it'd last). Still seemed pretty bright at the end, I had to recharge it for a caving trip, recharge took 1.5 hrs. It also survived the jet wash I gave the kit after that trip!
 
We prosponed our trip on Saturday taking heed of the severe weather warning, however like Maggot did a test and likewise over twenty two hours extremely good bright light! :thumbsup:
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

royfellows
High efficiency multi mode analogue LED driver
2 3
Replies
47
Views
10K
Benfool
B
Balmerfish
Dowbergill - The Wrong Way.
Replies
10
Views
4K
Alex
Alex
Mark Wright
Is the BCA anchor scheme working as well as it could be?
3 4 5
Replies
88
Views
23K
NewStuff
NewStuff
R
Ogof Pasg - Ogof Foel Fawr
Replies
5
Views
3K
Philip Knight
P
MarkS
The Flatmate
Replies
0
Views
2K
MarkS
MarkS
Back
Top