Dimensions & Weight
Case Material
Case Features
Case Access Type
Switch Type
Reflector Type
Lens Type
Bulb Type
Circuit
Beam Type
Beam Characteristics
Overall Output
Nominal Color
Battery / Power Type
Battery Life (advertised)
Environmental Protection
Accessories
Special Items of Note
Warranty
Retail Availability & Cost

1- Modern interpretation of the late 20th Century keychain pocket flashlight - having a short 'stubby' form factor , hefty build and punchy beam.
2-The entire light is essentially a cylinder with aggressive knurling on the 'head' section and pentagonally faceted rear portion comprising the only variations in the silhouette of the light.
3- The flashlight is a truncated junior sibling to numerous Luxeon flashlights currently on the market of nearly 1" in diameter
4- It is fully supportable by only the thumb and first two fingers of any youth or adult hand.The entire light may fill 1/3 of a small hand (*1) . It is categorized as a Three-Finger Light .
5- Knurling on the fore-section or head is divided by a shallow groove that may further improve gripability as well as breaking up the monotony of a large expanse of knurling. This aesthetic feature clearly pays homage to some custom pocket lights of its genre and era.The pentagonal faceting of the rear portion, however- seems to be unique to the KC1.
6- The aluminum wall thickness of the battery tube is 5 mm.
7- The two sections fit together extremely well with smooth threading action.
8- Black type II (glossy) anodizing on the outside and throughout the inside offers protection against corrosion.
9- Except for the key ring there is no 'play' or rattle anywhere.The single midship 'O' ring seal provides some shock absorption, a snug fit and a seal against the elements- especially water.
10- Very rugged look & feel with substantial heft. It 's a solid pocketable and purse-friendly personal accessory and companion to larger flashlights

1- Ambidextrous.
2- Almost any size hand can manage to hold the KC-1- with the thumb and first finger- naturally indexing into the fore-section groove that divides the knurling and the second finger providing rear-section support. Its ideal for small hands but quite hold-able by larger handed individuals as well . It may be hand-held in various positions including: Rogers Flashlight Technique, forward, upward and downward pointing 'standard' flashlight hand-held modes.
3- It is eminently useful on a keychain, lanyard or other tether.
4- A simple Twist On/Twist Off switch allows for constant On or Off light activation.
5- The light may be pressed into momentary activation through firm pressure on the rear section when the light is very slightly turned Off.

1- Stowage- A recessed 2mm diameter key-ring/lanyard hole is the only attachment point
2 - A chrome plated steel keychain with wire spring gate clip furnishes attachability to keys or other rings or devices that have a maximum width of 4mm.
3-The head is threaded to the body section, allowing for user accessibility to the emitter assembly and optics via plastic retainers in the head section (tools required)
4- The removable rear-section protects the battery compartment and emitter module from the environment by a single 'O' ring and thread lubrication.
5- The front bezel is the front half of the light and integrates the optics and emitter in one compartment.

1-Satin black anodizing protects a surface that is finely machined throughout. In addition, the anodizing and cylindrical contours of the KC-1 give the surface a hard ,luxurious and gripable feel in one's hands.
2-The Vortex KC1 logo and serial number are located on the flat tail of the rear section.
4- We did not perform a 'pull' test but we judged the combination of diamond pattern knurling and faceted rear section as being effective preventatives to hand slippage. Indeed- even though turning the KC1 is best done as a two handed operation, it may still be activated and deactivated with one hand only .Even wet, the KC-1 was easy to manipulate securely.
5- The diminutive weight and bulk of this light make it suitable for all purposes that do not require a large and more powerful hand held flashlight.It's viability in water-sports or underwater is probably good (untested)-due to the impressive, medium duty 'O' ring and precision threading.
6-The simple switch activation procedure requires little if any instruction. It is relatively intuitive to use and the cognitive model is simple and easy to remember.
7- Good multilingual documentation instructs on battery replacement, use, troubleshooting and maintenance / warranty. Text is too small for some people to read.

The Vortex KC-1 scored Maximum Distance for Object Identification or MDOI at 145 feet -more than adequate for general searching and illumination, much more than average for a keychain light and very much an adequate amount for back-up tactical use.
Beam-shots Page >>

1- The Vortex KC-1 is a medium/heavy duty personal flashlight that's ideal for general flashlight tasks in a number of everyday and several demanding applications including: security,back-up law enforcement (police), general personal pocket carryable illumination and outdoor use. Due to its robust build and water-resistance combined with punchy beam , we judge it to be an excellent choice for weight conscious everyday carry as well as short-term outdoor activities.
2- An extraordinarily elegant package is comprised of a circular tin with a clear plastic viewing window or 'porthole' in the lid. Medium density black foam surrounds the KC1, it's keychain and accommodates a single CR2 battery that's included. We imagine that the KC1 will make its way into the gift sections of shops in a big way. The gloss coated card outer-box is unmarked, making it the ideal gift package - requiring only the attachment of a card or some ribbon to complete the entire gift packaging look.
3- A nearly perfect overall 'package'- it deserves some small refinements in its next iteration. The addition of a 1/4"X20 thread on the facet below the key-ring hole would widen mounting options for customers, without really affecting the minimalist look.
4-Value. With new flashlights in the Luxeon market space -being released weekly- it's hard to define a relative value when comparing non-comparables.

Footnotes:

(*1) Medium Men's glove size- Also, a Standardized Flashlight Hand Size Metric (SFHSM)

		Small A-B = 4.5" or Shorter
		Medium A-B = 4.5"-5"
		Large A-B = 5"-6"
		X-Large A-B = 6" and Longer

(*2) Maximum Distance for Object Identification (MDOI). The maximum distance that a person without the aid of magnification-can with normal or corrected vision, under a given ambient level of light, identify an object of known size, and clearly distinguish it from its surroundings. We have tentatively identified the following scenarios for such measures:

• A single average sized person/body identification scenario
  • Urban (city, inside buildings, dark alley, lit streets)
  • Rural (countryside,farm residential backyard)
  • Environmental (dessert, woods, wetlands, over water)
  • Natural & manmade disaster (fire, flood/mudslide,earthquake, hurricane /tornado,bombing scene, collapsed structure etc)
• Small Inanimate Object (smaller than a shoe-box)
• Medium Inanimate Object (Black Plastic 33 Gallon (124Litre) Garbage Bag stuffed with a big sleeping bag)

(*5) Context Inclusive Illumination Window (CIIW) as compared with a Context Exclusive Illumination Window (CEIW) .

• CIIW describes a subject illumination paradigm wherein the illumination target is the focus of the beam's brightest disc or 'Hotspot' and peripheral objects to the target are more dimly illuminated in a larger disc that surrounds the focus or hotspot. This outer region is also referred to as a corona or penumbra.
• CEIW describes a subject illumination paradigm wherein the illumination target is the focus of the beam's brightest disc or 'Hotspot' and peripheral objects to the target are not sufficiently illuminated to be easily discernable at the periphery of subject beam's focus or hotspot.

© 2004 - Imägo Metrics - All Rights Reserved
Original standards designations (including acronyms) depicted in this, as well as all of our evaluations are the exclusive intellectual property of Imägo Metrics LLC and subsidiaries. Reproduction without prior written permission is strictly prohibited.

BELOW

Left Side - Test scene in daytime. Red Arrowhead marks target location 140 (xxx Meters) feet away from camera location. Inset shows target as it appears from 6 feet away.
Right Side - Simulates test scene as it would appear at night.

All Photographs © 2004 - Imago Media