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Now Available at Campobase! >>
FINAL VERSION - JANUARY 10, 2006
Introduction
The Alpha-9 is a durable, visible illuminator that has
both a high powered concentrated main light to acquire targets
and two integrated navigator lights to provide low light
stealth illumination in pitch-black environments. It is
designed to be mounted on submachine guns and rifles.
Note by the author
I had received a "spec summary" of the Rico
Alpha 9 flash light from Southern Industrial Trading Co.
Ltd., a Hong Kong company that manufactures and distributes
this product. It's a neat flashlight can be mounted under
your rifle adding an extra foregrip (and providing illumination
of course). The specs sounded really good... maybe "too"
good, so I shot them a message wondering if there was any
bias on those specs, along with questions about resistance,
durability, quality, etc...
As a reply, the company offered to send one of these babies
over for me to take it to the field, compare it with other
tactical flashlights, check BB impact resistance, etc. I
received it a few days ago and took it out last weekend
for testing.
The Package
Allow me to start by mentioning that the distributor (Southern
Industrial Trading) was very receptive when it came to packaging
instructions. They packaged it exactly as I asked them to
prevent issues at customs and thanks to that I got my package
from Asia hassle-free and delivered right to my door.
BIG POINTS scored there for listening and taking the
time to package it right.
The box itself was very good. As you can see in the picture,
the flashlight fits tightly into the styrofoam and it's
very well protected all around. It included the flashlight
a and specs sheet with everything you need to know about
its operation, maintenance, tweaking, and warnings.
Specifications
| Weight (w/o battery) |
640 g |
| Weight (w battery) |
690 g |
| Length |
182mm |
| Width |
52mm |
| Height |
145mm |
| Water Resistance |
Operates under heavy rain |
| Brightness (Main Lamp) |
250 lumens Peak |
| Drop Resistance |
2 meter max |
| Continuous Operation |
~ 60 minutes |
First Impressions/Construction
It's black, strong, and very well built. To tell you
the truth I was expecting to receive a low to medium quality
product, but boy was I wrong.
This thing is nice! The 3mm polycarbonate lens makes
it highly durable and suitable in high-risk situations and
is immune to BB impacts. The design is very slick and great
construction all around, I can't stress that enough.
Mounting Procedure
The Rico Alpha 9 is mounted to the underside of the
rail interface system (RIS or RAS), i.e. under the firearm.
The mounting assembly is known as single lever platform
mount.
You first loosen the two screws on the Rico Alpha 9. Align
the axis of the mounting screws with the grooves of your
firearm's rail and point the main lamp in the same direction
of the gun. Then tighten the screws with figures and make
sure the Rico Alpha 9 is perfectly fitted to the railway
interface of the firearm.
As I was taking the pictures for this review, I could only
think how this would light up a dark room and how far the
beam of light would go and I started fantasizing how great
it'd be to finally have that cutting edge at night games...
I finished the photo shoot, mounted it on the top rail of
my gun (it's actually supposed to go mounted on the rail
UNDER the handguard but I don't have one at the moment so
I put it on the top... it actually looks kind of interesting
and I used it there for a night of games and tests with
no difficulty).
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Batteries
It is powered by three CR123A 3 volt lithium batteries...
At first, I had no idea what these batteries were until
I went on the web and was relieved to know I could find
them everywhere... even at local supermarkets and electronics
shops. They cost about 4$ each but I've seen them on e-bay
as low as 1$. If you see some 25$ + prices, don't freak
out, those are for the rechargeable batteries. You'll need
these batteries for any kind of tactical light you get (and
also for many camcorders). They are inserted from the bottom
of the foregrip.
Operation Procedure
Rico Alpha 9 illuminator has 250 lumens xenon lamp and
a pair of LED navigator lamps.
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The main rotary switch has three different settings:
Off (Center)
The lamp is off and does not respond to momentary
pressure pad on the handgrip.
On (Right)
The lamp will be constant-on until the switch is back
to "Off"
On (Left)
Lamp will turn on while you pressure the left or right
pressure sensitive pads on the handgrip.
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Navigator LED Lamps
The navigator light helps you see safely in very dark
environments. It provides low-level illumination for assisting
you to find your way and clear rooms of "enemy"
presence without giving away your position.
Just press the pressure pad on the back of the Rico Alpha
9 and a pair of LED lamps go on. The light will go off once
you remove your thumb from the pressure pad.
FIELD TESTS
Main Illumination
We were shocked at the lighting power of the main light...
of course I had read that it provided up to 250 lumens and
it was actually designed military training & law enforcement
usage, but it's one thing to read it on paper, and another
to see it action. Let me put it this way... I own a Piaggio
Scooter, I parked it about 10 meters from a wall and turned
on the high beam light... then I stood next to it with the
Rico A9 on and the intensity was comparable plus the A9
was better focused.
Another example... most of the tactical lights out there
around the 100$ range feature lighting power of 90 up to
120 lumens for a higher price. That's less than half what
the light of the Rico Alpha 9... but still, I had to see
it to believe it so I paired it up with a Walther MF-2 Tactical
Light (60€ value with mount ~80$) and what used to
seem as good light turned out to be very weak compared to
the 250 lumens... as if the batteries were running out.
It's like in those detergent commercials when they show
the yellowish "white" of the "other"
detergent and then they show the real "white"
of the one they're advertising and you go like, "wow,
now that's white"... same thing.
Eyes get adjusted to dark environments to try to help you
see... once adjusted, they get very sensible to light. In
several occasions I would use the light to temporarily "blind"
the "enemy" giving me precious extra seconds to
safely position myself where I could easily take them down.
Navigator Light
What everyone said when I first turned it on... "niiiice"...
In our Close Quarter Battle grounds, INSIDE the buildings,
if you shine your main light, EVERYONE will know where you
are... and with the Rico, well, like I said before, you'll
end up blinding yourself for a few seconds once you turn
it off. That's where the navigator light comes in handy.
There's a lot of debris in those buildings and it will help
you walk safely and I also used it a lot to clear rooms
off enemy presence.
RESISTANCE TESTS
BB Impacts: I shot the lens point blank about a
dozen times at approximately 320 fps. Not even a scratch.
Gravity: Our worst foe when it comes to airsoft
equipment... and the most painful of all tests... It took
me a long, LONG time to come up with the guts to do it,
but it's not like I had a choice, I HAD TO since that's
the reason I got it in the first place... to test it. So
I dropped it, again, and again, and not once more. I dropped
it in several angles to try to hit different areas. Once
on the grip, once on the lens part, and once over the rail
mount. Other than a scratch here and there, nothing else.
It keeps working. That DOESN'T MEAN this is a basketball
that you can bounce around! But at least you get the peace
of mind to know it has good drop resistance and it won't
break too easily.
Water & Temperature: No, I didn't sink it in
the bathtub nor do I plan to. But that night I tested it,
it started raining and it was 1ºC, maybe less with
chill and wind factor. It was fun to point up to the sky
and hear the water drops evaporating over the lens surface
(Never touch the lens while the lamp is in use... it gets
HOT). I let the whole thing get very wet to the point it
was dripping, but it keeps working good as of today. I suppose
you could also accidentally drop it in a puddle of water
without fear because the battery compartment is sealed by
a water resistant twist cap that has a water resistant O-ring
seal. However, the rail mount parts are metal, and metal
rusts with water. I don't know if this metal was painted
with some water resistant paint but just to be on the safe
side, always dry it after you're done using it. I haven't
tested it in extreme hot weather and I won't since AT NIGHT
it's never hot here.
Pricing/Conclusion
Around US$200... yeah, I thought it was pricey too,
but when I held it in my hands and compared it to all the
85$ surefire-type tactical lights the other guys had, it
was clear to all of us that the superiority of the Rico
Alpha 9 was beyond discussion.
Besides, it's less than A THIRD of the price of a Surefire
M900 Tactical Foregrip System (over 600$) and they're pretty
much the same thing. Check the following website for details
on it: www.diamondbacktactical.com
If you think 200$ (178€ at Campobase)
is too much for a flashlight you are correct! But don't
make the mistake of thinking the Rico Alpha 9 is "just
a flashlight"... it is a high powered beam beast that
will blind your "enemies" in the dark... with
it's two blue navigator lights, it will light your path
in the dark as well as entire rooms in withOUT giving you
away for optimal stealth maneuvers... AND it will also provide
a vertical handgrip to your rifle making it not only easier
to carry and aim, but it will also make it look entirely
cool.
For information about wholesale options and more, contact
Patrick at southind@biznetvigator.com
(wholesalers in Europe welcome)
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Credits/Acknowledgments
The final edition of this review
was brought to you by TripleA. January 10, 2006. Athens,
Greece.
Item Donated by Southern Industrial Trading Co.
Rm 42 Phase 2 Fu Torloy Shopping Centre
73 -93 Anchor St.
Tai Kok Tsui, Kowloon, Hong Kong |
