Princeton Tec Aurora

“Forget the trip report for now Fritz. Give ust he important info first. How'd your new toy work out?

I got the chance to play with one of these at Campmor the other day and it does look like an improvement over the Tikka. They got mad at me for drooling all over it.”

“One thing I did discover is that one needs to be somewhat carefull about how the Aurora is stuffed into the pack - it is possible that the switch can get depressed and the first mode that comes up is the brightest mode - if one does not notice it is possible to use up the battery life rather faster than one thought. Removal of the batteries of course will work but it is also a mild PIA to do on a regular basis - since the case is "water proof" it is almost user proof too.”

“who wants to sell their tikka??

i might be interested in buying several (if the price be right)....”

“Violin, howdja know I was working on a trip report? ;-)

I like the Aurora in every way except one...and maybe this is a defect of my particular unit. It is a little bit hard to push the button. I can't do it with gloves on. I'm a little surprised that HOI would worry about it coming on accidentally in the pack--I don't see that happening at all, with mine.

I didn't spend much time walking around after dark. But from what I saw, this light does provide a very good beam to trees at least 50 feet away. It is not a toy!

Again, I don't have anything to compare it with, so this is just my "rookie" observations.

YMMV, and I'll be interested to hear others' feedback, but I am happy. ;-)”

“Just got mine and did the closet test ...can't wait for it to get dark so I can see how it really works 8) The pivot adjustment works very well and the strobes are weird enough for any TTer!”

“Its not that I worry about it coming on in the pack in abstract - it really did happen that when I stuffed mine in the pack the first time it was apparently turned on somehow - probably pushed against something hard when I strapped the top down. Anyways I had to get a bottle of water out a little while later and noticed that the Aurora was turned on. With respect to pushing the button I agree - it is not the easiest thing to push by finger - probably by design to mostly prevent the accidental turn on that I experienced. The design of the plastic could have been tweeked a little to help the accidental turn on issue by putting the button between a couple ridges in the hard plastic case but then it would have been that much harder to turn on deliberately.”

“I took a couple of pics of my Aurora...The beam is more concentrated than the Tikka.

And the pivoting adjustment will let you point the light straight down.”

“What's the deal with these? I still have an REI refund check that I wanna blow on this thing but my local REI doesn't seem to stock them. I thought I read somewhere there were some defects or shumshing and REI yanked 'em off the shelves for now. Can anyone confirm this? I NEED ONE!!!”

“I bought one from Campmor. Love it. Works great.”

“REI pulled the Aurora off the shelves because it was discovered that they are actually an ALIEN BRAIN PARASITE known as a Thullsur.

The Thullsur's skin is thick and rubbery, especially on the bottom of the body, so the rather flat brain is FAIRLY WELL PROTECTED. However, the movements of the Thullsur do tend to bend and flex the brain area. Here the Thullsur uses a MAT-TYPE OF STRUCTURE, having the brain constructed of nodules connected by blood vessels and nerve fibers (ganglia). The spaces between the nodules are made of the same sort of spongy tissue that surrounds the cones of the HEARING ORGANS. This "packing tissue" protects the brain nodules and absorbs shock and pressure from bodily movement.

So far as they can tell, the Thullsur's brain has separate areas FOR PROCESSING INCOMING SOUND and other sensory data. It also has a large area devoted to manipulating the FOUR FRONT TENTACLES. Another area controls the tongue and its taste buds. The Thullsur uses the tentacles to latch onto its victim’s skull while it inserts its proboscis to EXTRACT NEURONS from the frontal lobe. It only appears to do this for reproductive purposes.

REI is still studying the Thullsur's brain and its INTERESTING but UNFAMILIAR structure.”

“I had one on backorder through REI.com and just got it yesterday. I'm sure they are intransit to the stores. The last time I was in my local REI they were sold out of it.”

“Toooooooo funny Marvy!”

“Go get ya one! (ALIEN BRAIN PARASITE that is)”

“A month ago the REI in Madison didn't have any, then two weekends ago it had a bunch. Supply chain problem surely with a hot new product -- or they wanted to hold it back while selling off stocks of other headlamps.”

“the new ones have a much better switch on them. as long as the swivel holds its tension, it should be a good lamp.”

“swivel can be adjusted using a small phillips screwdriver which I discovered when my Aurora started slipping with each step - fortunately for me I had a small phillips screwdriver on my small Swiss army knife - first time I ever needed it but whatever (grin)”

“I found out the purpose of the strobe feature.
Most adventure races are now requiring each person to carry a strobe light in case they have to be rescued at night by helicopter.”

“Caution: Gear Review

My rankings of 3 headlamps (2 I own and one is a friends).

#1. Princeton Tec Aurora. It has 3 different lighting levels and two strobes. The brightest setting of this light almost equals the next brightest light...

#2. Black Diamond Moonlight. This light has 4 LEDs and may be just a bit brighter than the Aurora (but I like the ability to dim the light to three different settings on the Aurora vs. no changing the setting on this model.) The Moonlight is a little heavier and has a strap that runs over the top of the head -- but this light is designed to be used on the trail, not for reading in your tent.

3. Petzl Tikka. This is the first one I bought and sadly, now the one I'll leave at home. I'll put it in the car to use when I'm changing a tire. Great for reading in the tent and camp chores. Until the other two (above) came out, I was happy to have it.”

“Any more comparison notes to the Petzel Tikka?”

“Just seen in Campmor: clip-on lenses for the Tikka to preserve night vision.”

“any of these compare to the black diamond gemini/petzl duo LED decision i'm trying to make??”

“The hinge on my Aurora gets loose, causing it to be floppy.

Thank goodness for the little phillips head screwdriver on my little Leatherman...”

“The Aurora is my first and only headlamp so I cannot make comparisons, but I like it a lot...other than what gojo just mentioned. Mine also gets loose which is annoying. But overall...very happy with it.”

“i love my aroura, it hasnt gotten loose but if it does i'll crimp it down with my swiss tool. that'll learn it.”

“I was forewarned about the hinge being a weak point. I made sure the things was tightened from the beginning.”

“I just bought an Aurora last week and used if for the first time on the trail this past weekend.

Double thumbs up, the light is light, and gives off much light. Gotta love the battery and LED bulb life also.. talk about dependability!”

“I love mine, too!

It first loosened at my family's annual tent party in early July - just a week after I got it.

Then it loosened at MTpalooza (thanks, Hodge, for the screwdriver). I tightened it again.

Then, it loosened when I was carcamping in ID. I re-tightened it again, and it's still ok -
then again, I haven't used it since...”

“I called Princeton Tec and a customer service dude they said they had fixed the defect with the loose hinge. But then, what do you expect them to say?

Anyone purchase an Aurora recently? I don't think it'd be a big deal but may as well have the full scoop b/f I buy.”

“Its a sweet little headlamp. Have not had this hinge problem yet, cause its kinda new. The strobes are kinda trippie in a Disco kinda way. It got its first trial run in MT2002. I found the slow strobe worked the best when zipper checking the tents at nights. Heck it rained and lighting almost every night, who would have thought otherwise in a sleepy slumber!! Now the fast strobe that really enhanced my breakdancing with axe routine!”

“As for the hinge thing, y'all ever hear of Loctite? Get a grip (pun intended)! In all seriosity, I haven't had a problem with mine.”

“Last night I retrieved my Aurora from the truck. When I turned it on:
Nothing. Nary. Nada.

The "on" button had appearantly been hit, causing it to come on. The batteries are dead, I reckon - I haven't tried new ones yet.

I was fearing that such a thing might occur, and sure 'nuff...”

“I had one of the little metal clips that holds the batteries in place break off. I made a field repair with some tin foil but I was a little annoyed. I'll be sending it back to them for repairs/replacement.”

“I'll get batteries.

Speaking of the hinge...
I haven't had any problems with mine coming a'loose since I tightened it with Hodgeman's Leatherman at MTpaloosa. Hmmmm... mebbe it's Canadian tool superiority?”

“I know this is an old thread but I been trying to decide on a headlamp and this info helped.
I am going with the Princeton Tec Aurora.
I found them for $22.05 at Low Price 4U. This is even better than Ebay.
http://lowprice4u.com/grouplist.asp?SID=1503

I have purchased from them before and have no complaints.”

“^
^
^
bump”

“kazoontite”

“and the question is ???”

“FYI...

gesundheit”

“Just when I thought I'd made my FINAL decision.
Gee thanks Tilt!! No really, the Auroa sounds like a better headlamp.”

“I have two Tikkas ( 2 sons ) and the Aurora ( mine ) Both are great little lights but I prefer the Aurora.”

“One of these days they'll make a red light that tracks back and forth across your forehead... then we can look like the Cylons from Space Ponderosa, LOL”

“Based on all the great reviews, I bought a Thullsar alien brain parasite (Aurora). Have not had a chance to check it out in the field just yet, but I think it's going to be a great one. No problems with the hinge that I can see. The switch is stiff, but I've had no trouble once I got used to it.”

“Geobeet,

I also have one of the brain parasites - they're pretty cool little headlamps - just had to tightened a loose screw in the hinge after the 5th trip with it. The on/off button is a bit tricky with gloves on but its workable.

Overall, its powerful given its small size and has held up well in the rain and freezing cold - I think you'll quickly fall in love with your new toy!”

“The Recurring Suggestion: you might want to tighten the screw in that hinge. I think that doodad might need a wingnut, or something else that's finger-adjustable.”

“I have Princeton Tec Impact II that puts out a bright enough beam using a magnified LED. It also uses AAA batteries, so carrying spares for both will be simplified. My dinky little Ion may go along as a backup, since it weighs next to nothing.

The Aurora is great for reading the Monongahela trail guide and topo maps.”

“See what I mean? LOL


P.S. Klaatu barada nicto!”

“i had to use a shrimp fork to tighten that dang screw....yes, you read correctly....a shrimp fork! LOL - I don't have a small enough screwdriver and had to get inventive with it!! but hey, it worked, screw is nice and tight now!”

“Packing note: Pack shrimp fork!”

“i can give you a spare shrimp fork! don't even know how i came to have them or why I still have them...just random...”

“j/k, I have my trusty Swiss Army K-nife.”