GERBER TRIO FLASHLIGHT

Gerber Trio LED Flashlight, retail $28.95 (www.pocketlights.com...)
Manufactured by Gerber Legendary Blades (www.gerberblades.com)
Last updated 09-04-06




The Gerber Trio is an aluminum bodied flashlight that has three screaming white LEDs in the business-end, powered by two AA cells in its barrel.

Remember, this flashlight was made by a company originally called CMG (Course Made Good), so you know it's good.

The barrel is made of aluminum and is not knurled (texturised), but it has a matte finish and two indentations on its sides (one on each side), so retention (the ability to hold the flashlight when your hands are cold, wet, or oily) should not be a huge issue.


SIZE



The light came to me with two Duracell AA cells, just needing to be fed. Do that (see below), and then you'll be ready to go to town.

To turn the light on, twist the tailcap clockwise (as if tightening it). And to turn the light off, turn the tailcap counterclockwise (as if loosening it) about 1/8 of a turn from the fully tightened position.

If you unscrew the tailcap approximately 1/10th 1/12th of a turn from the tightened position (example: as you're looking straight down at the tailcap, where the tailcap is at the 12:00 position fully tightened; you would loosen it to the 10:00 or 11:00 position), you have a momentary or signalling mode available by pressing and holding the tailcap for as long as you need light, and releasing the tailcap to turn the Trio off.



To feed your Trio, unscrew the tailcap until it comes off, throw it in the {vulgar term for feces}bowl, and flush it away...O WAIT, YOU'LL NEED THAT!!! So just set it aside instead. ;-)

Tip the barrel into your hand so the used AA cells fall out. Dispose of or recycle them as you see fit.

Drop two new AA cells in the barrel, button-side (+) positive first. Screw the tailcap back on, and you're finished. Oh, and unscrew that tailcap slightly when your Trio springs to life. You don't want to waste those brand spanken new batteries ya know.
Aren't you glad you didn't flush away that tailcap now? ;-)

Measures 317mA on my DMM's 2A scale.

As of 12:36pm PDT on 08-21-04, I'm running a battery discharge analysis of the Trio, using the Duracell alkaline AA cells that came with it. When the machine poops out a chart, probably later tonight, I'll post it here.


And here's the chart.
Runs for 8 hours 20 minutes to 50% intensity, and 9 hours 30 minutes overall.
Test was stopped when the unit reached 6.5% of its starting intensity.




Photograph showing the business-end of the flashlight.

The Trio appears to be a durable instrument that should provide you with many trouble-free years of service. I whacked it firmly against a steel rod ten times (five on the tailcap, and five on the bezel), and did not cause the flashlight to malfunction in any manner. The only damage I can find is some scuffing on the tailcap and on the side of the bezel; this scuffing does not in any way affect the operation of the flashlight.

I was able to scratch through the finish of the Trio with the blade of a Swiss army knife; showing that the finish is a type II anodizing.
Would I really try to cut up a brand spanken new flashlight?
You bet your sweet patootie I would, if it's in the name of science.

The Trio appears to be water-resistant and even waterproof. When I removed the tailcap, relieved the flashlight of its batteries, and performed that dreadful suction test, the Trio held a vaccume (vacum, vacume, vacumn, vaccuummnne, vacuum, etc.) so it should not leak. Not through the bezel anyway. Let's try the sink test and see what happens...BRB...ok, after submerging the Trio in approximately 1 foot of water at 73.5°F (23°C) for three minutes (to simulate a user dropping it into a creek), no water was found inside the flashlight. Some water was found on the tailcap threads, but it could have gotten there when I unscrewed it to check.

There is a hole in the tailcap, so you can affix a lanyard to the Trio. The lanyard is not provided though, so if you wish to use one, you'll have to procure it elsewhere.

The tailcap is flat, so you can stand the Trio on it (on a flat, level surface of course) aimed up at the ceiling; allowing the reflected light off the ceiling to light the rest of the room up.



Beam photo at ~12".
Measures 56,700mcd on a Meterman LM631 light meter.


Spectrographic plot
Spectrometer plot of the LEDs in this flashlight.
Ocean Optics USB2000 Spectrometer on loan from TWO-CUBED.



TEST NOTES:
Test unit was sent by D.K. of Pocketlights.com, and was received on 08-20-04.


UPDATE: 00-00-00



PROS:



CONS:



    MANUFACTURER: Gerber Legendary Blades
    PRODUCT TYPE: Handheld flashlight
    LAMP TYPE: 5mm white LED
    No. OF LAMPS: 3
    BEAM TYPE: Narrow flood, with generous corona
    SWITCH TYPE: Twist tailcap on/off
    BEZEL: Metal; LEDs inset and protected by collar
    BATTERY: 2 AA cells
    CURRENT CONSUMPTION: 317mA
    WATER RESISTANT: Yes
    SUBMERSIBLE: Yes, to a limited, unknown depth
    ACCESSORIES: 2 AA cells
    SIZE: 5.5" L, 0.8" D
    WARRANTY: Lifetime

    PRODUCT RATING:

    Star Rating





Gerber Trio LED Flashlight * www.gerberblades.com






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