Hello guys!
I received a part of the promised Goncz order with highly appreciated help of CPF's MrTedBear and I have thus reviewed the M3 comparing it to a Pelican M6 and a SF M3. As my findings are a bit different from those displayed in this thread and as this seems to be a rather sensitive matter right now, I am posting this review from a flashaholic's point of view in this and the other big Goncz thread.
As I do not know anything about the etiquette at BF, I would not be annoyed if the moderators removed my statements as they may not be approprate because they are complete double posted reviews in someone other's thread.
The CPF thread with my review:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/ub...iew=collapsed&sb=5&o=&fpart=1&vc=1&PHPSESSID=
My review being the first post there:
Impressions about the Goncz M3
1. Construction
The light feels very solid and reasonably well built, although it lacks the sophistication found in other well known brands. It is a little bit shorter and about the same weight as its direct competitor, the SF M3. It is o-ring sealed at all ends with cool red o-rings and comes well-lubed. The batteries fit tight and there is no real rattle in normal use. The lens is some plastic (lexan?) material. It uses a dimpled reflector and a halogen bulb, the whole head assembly seems less sturdy and less sophisticated than other brands and there is some dirt from the manufacturing process found inside the reflector. I personally do not like the rear switch which is a simple metal tube with o-rings gliding in the housing resulting in lubricant leaking at the rear end making your thumb glide quite nicely
. In addition to that the tiny spring does not look too trustworthy as well. That leads us to
2. Function
The switch again. Momentary on works nicely. Constant on ok, too, albeit a bit stiff to turn. But wait! Theres no lockout position! Due to the above described mechanics of the switch a lockout is impossible, a severe flaw IMHO. Focussing can be done by turning the head right or left, it changes between spot and flood infinitely without unscrewing the bezel, a cool feature, although not too effective (see below). The nastiest problem is heat management though. After a few minutes of constant burn time, the front end gets VERY hot and some smoke begins to rise! I checked the lens and it has deformed under the heat! Not good.
3. Beam
The beam color is very yellow, it is a halogen bulb. I tried judging the output without technical equipment as I do not own such, and I think it should be between the PM6 and the SF M3 HOLA, that means I think it is not as bad as some others may have reported, but certainly not nearly as good as the manufacturer claims it to be. Throw should be roughly the same as the PM6 with a less intense hotspot but more flood.
PM6 - Goncz M3
SF M3 - Goncz M3
In general the beam is more of a flood due to the smaller reflector used and is has an uneven hotspot with some artifacts. Forget the focusing feature, it is cool, but the flood setting is useless due to lots of beam artifacts. I prefer the spot setting, which is in fact a flood compared to the other lights.
A very cool effect is the red o-ring at the lens: when activated, it looks like a fire-breathing light with the shiny red o-ring and the yellow beam. This is not important to most of us, but IMO it is worth mentioning because of the beauty of the light coming out.
A note about the presented beamshots: my crappy digicam cannot capture hotspots correctly. The GM3 is inferior to the PM6 hotspot, but is produces more flood in the secondary beam while it is beaten to hell by the SF M3 HOLA in every aspect. Note that all shots are with new batteries, the included Duracells in the GM3, the included Energizers in the PM6 and SF123s in the SF M3. As you can see, distance to target white (but dirty) wall is the same for all contestants.
Overall I would not buy this light again mainly because of the heat issue and the lack of a lockout feature and the lube-leaking switch. This may be a promising design and it certainly has some aspects of its own, but IMHO it is not ready for the market yet.
A note on the manufacturer, Mr. John Goncz: as you are all aware of the recent problems here, I would rather wait for a trusted distributor if you want to buy his products, I waited several months before getting my light with the help of Mr Ted Bear of CPF, and the order wasnt complete as I didnt get the ordered (and paid for) spare bulb. But maybe these problems are history now since Mr. Goncz is trying a new beginning right now and I certainly do not want to spoil this
bernhard
Edited from discussion below:
the difference to the review on BF could be the point that I *do have* a SF M3 to compare it AND that the light ouput of the Goncz M3 is not that bad, it is just yellow. IMHO it should be between the PM6 and the SF M3, meaning it puts out about 120-150lm, but that is only a guess with my eyes, I have no instruments to measure.
light output is not the negative point in my review, the big problems are the melting lens, the missing lockout and the luble-leaking switch.
I do not expect a SF beam-quality from a light that costs a fraction of the price. It is just not wise of John to advertise it as the ultimate winner which it is not.
I received a part of the promised Goncz order with highly appreciated help of CPF's MrTedBear and I have thus reviewed the M3 comparing it to a Pelican M6 and a SF M3. As my findings are a bit different from those displayed in this thread and as this seems to be a rather sensitive matter right now, I am posting this review from a flashaholic's point of view in this and the other big Goncz thread.
As I do not know anything about the etiquette at BF, I would not be annoyed if the moderators removed my statements as they may not be approprate because they are complete double posted reviews in someone other's thread.
The CPF thread with my review:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/ub...iew=collapsed&sb=5&o=&fpart=1&vc=1&PHPSESSID=
My review being the first post there:
Impressions about the Goncz M3
1. Construction
The light feels very solid and reasonably well built, although it lacks the sophistication found in other well known brands. It is a little bit shorter and about the same weight as its direct competitor, the SF M3. It is o-ring sealed at all ends with cool red o-rings and comes well-lubed. The batteries fit tight and there is no real rattle in normal use. The lens is some plastic (lexan?) material. It uses a dimpled reflector and a halogen bulb, the whole head assembly seems less sturdy and less sophisticated than other brands and there is some dirt from the manufacturing process found inside the reflector. I personally do not like the rear switch which is a simple metal tube with o-rings gliding in the housing resulting in lubricant leaking at the rear end making your thumb glide quite nicely
. In addition to that the tiny spring does not look too trustworthy as well. That leads us to
2. Function
The switch again. Momentary on works nicely. Constant on ok, too, albeit a bit stiff to turn. But wait! Theres no lockout position! Due to the above described mechanics of the switch a lockout is impossible, a severe flaw IMHO. Focussing can be done by turning the head right or left, it changes between spot and flood infinitely without unscrewing the bezel, a cool feature, although not too effective (see below). The nastiest problem is heat management though. After a few minutes of constant burn time, the front end gets VERY hot and some smoke begins to rise! I checked the lens and it has deformed under the heat! Not good.
3. Beam
The beam color is very yellow, it is a halogen bulb. I tried judging the output without technical equipment as I do not own such, and I think it should be between the PM6 and the SF M3 HOLA, that means I think it is not as bad as some others may have reported, but certainly not nearly as good as the manufacturer claims it to be. Throw should be roughly the same as the PM6 with a less intense hotspot but more flood.
PM6 - Goncz M3
SF M3 - Goncz M3
In general the beam is more of a flood due to the smaller reflector used and is has an uneven hotspot with some artifacts. Forget the focusing feature, it is cool, but the flood setting is useless due to lots of beam artifacts. I prefer the spot setting, which is in fact a flood compared to the other lights.
A very cool effect is the red o-ring at the lens: when activated, it looks like a fire-breathing light with the shiny red o-ring and the yellow beam. This is not important to most of us, but IMO it is worth mentioning because of the beauty of the light coming out.
A note about the presented beamshots: my crappy digicam cannot capture hotspots correctly. The GM3 is inferior to the PM6 hotspot, but is produces more flood in the secondary beam while it is beaten to hell by the SF M3 HOLA in every aspect. Note that all shots are with new batteries, the included Duracells in the GM3, the included Energizers in the PM6 and SF123s in the SF M3. As you can see, distance to target white (but dirty) wall is the same for all contestants.
Overall I would not buy this light again mainly because of the heat issue and the lack of a lockout feature and the lube-leaking switch. This may be a promising design and it certainly has some aspects of its own, but IMHO it is not ready for the market yet.
A note on the manufacturer, Mr. John Goncz: as you are all aware of the recent problems here, I would rather wait for a trusted distributor if you want to buy his products, I waited several months before getting my light with the help of Mr Ted Bear of CPF, and the order wasnt complete as I didnt get the ordered (and paid for) spare bulb. But maybe these problems are history now since Mr. Goncz is trying a new beginning right now and I certainly do not want to spoil this
bernhard
Edited from discussion below:
the difference to the review on BF could be the point that I *do have* a SF M3 to compare it AND that the light ouput of the Goncz M3 is not that bad, it is just yellow. IMHO it should be between the PM6 and the SF M3, meaning it puts out about 120-150lm, but that is only a guess with my eyes, I have no instruments to measure.
light output is not the negative point in my review, the big problems are the melting lens, the missing lockout and the luble-leaking switch.
I do not expect a SF beam-quality from a light that costs a fraction of the price. It is just not wise of John to advertise it as the ultimate winner which it is not.
