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

L=4.16"(105mm) D=1" (25mm) Weight W/Battery = 2.9oz (8.4Gms)
Aircraft aluminum
Sleek 'Bauhaus' design with control knob, cooling fins and tri-prong tailpiece
Threaded access to battery compartment and bezel
Kroll - Click On/Off and separate proprietary'Var-I-Pin' 3 level variable resistor control dial.
Fraen Collimating Optic . Optional NX017 Reflector sold seperately
Ultra Clear Lens with double anti-reflection coating
Handpicked T-Rank 3 Watt Luxeon III
Proprietary Mr Bulk VIP boost circuit
Medium spot or Long throw with accessory BH & BBH reflectors.
Medium narrow with near to far 'throw'. Extra far throw with accessory reflectors
Variable in 3 levels-Low, Medium and High
5,400ºK - Absolute Daylight - no color fringing
Premium 1, CR123A 3.0 V Lithium
Variable- Tested to 3.5 hrs on Medium and 68+hrs on Low with premium battery.
Black Anodizing HA-III throughout
Bulk Head $30.00, Big Bulk Head,2xAA battery tube & twist tail switch - special order (*)
Limited Edition run of 313- Including 'Special Editions'
None Applicable - Item sold as custom tool - Not commercially available.
Original base price - $159.00 plus shipping

1-The Mr Bulk V-I-P is an example of Bauhaus/Modern design in an early 21st Century flashlight. Conceived as an implementation of a user and performance centered flashlight, the Mr Bulk V-I-P marries form to function elegantly.Its lines are typical of the post modern industrial age sensibility. its circumferential cooling fins and radical trident tail piece echo the desin sensibilites of the futurists in a package that exudes understated elegance. Under the hood its a thoroughbred of the Luxeon flashlight class of 2004.
2- The core silhouette of the Mr Bulk V-I-P is a bilaterally symmetrical cylinder divided into 3 distinct sections and accented by a brighness levels control knob. At the head it's a perfectly smooth cylinder. The entire body is a cylindrical 'heat-sink', comprised of a series of cooling fins separated by equidistant and circumferentially incised grooves. The tail is also smooth and is differentiated from the head by a trident cut fin or 'crown' . This serves to protect the tail switch from inadvertant activation, allows for vertical stance and adds an aesthetic flourish. The entire surface of the cooling fins is roughened for grip by aggressive knurling.Special editions are smooth finned and some are raw aluminum in color.
3- Protruding unobtrusively from just behind the head and to the very front of the body section, is a 'pinched' dial knob that functions as a dedicated levels adjustment control.
4- The V-I-P is a medium sized but very lightweight flashlight that has presence in one's hand without feeling bulky or hefty. The body of the light easily fills a medium (*1) sized palm with no protrusion and yet is substantial enough for the largest of hands and compact enough for or small hands as well.
5- More notable than its modern looking 'skin', is what the Mr Bulk V-I-P lacks. It lacks superfluity to a fault. As such it's a sublime exercise in geometric virtuousity crafted from black anodized aluminum.

1- Ambidextrous.
2- A small or medium palm completely surrounds the body of the Mr Bulk V-I-P with the thumb naturally indexing atop or behind the levels control dial. It's ideal for small, medium and large hands. It may be hand-held in various positions including: Harries flashlight technique and the Rogers hold as well as forward, upward and downward pointing 'standard' flashlight hand-held modes.
3- Surrounded and protected from inadvertent activation by the trident tail crown is a standard Kroll click On/Off , momentary On tail-switch that controls constant or intermittent light activation.
4- No native mounting options for fire arms use are evident. This is a light that is designed to either be handheld or placed on a flat surface for candle or ceiling bounce- hands free illumination, and is not designed to be weapon mounted.
5-The unique contact pattern created by the combination of fins and aggressive knurling on the body of the Mr Bulk V-I-P together make for an unusually sure grip that far surpasses minimum ergonomic requirements- even under the most demanding of circumstances. Whether bare handed or gloved- dry or soaking wet - perfectly clean or oil laden - almost any hand can securely hold this flashlight without the need for force or any grip-enhancing aids.
6- By virtue of its simplicity, the Mr Bulk V-I-P is highly pocketable and was quite easily inserted into a number of pouches and sheaths of suitably sized openings. Unfortunately, the agressive knurling on the production models is a rough abrasive and tended to wear the fabric edges of the snug fitting nylon sheaths. Smooth surfaced versions should not exhibit this behavior.The levels control knob created a slightly greater width requirement but it didn't impeded sure and comfortable deployment and stowage. Under duress- snagging of this knob might be an issue however.
Caveat- the Mr Bulk V-I-P seems not to be designed primarily as a tactical flashlight but rather as a stylish high performance personal light or even a 'table' object, that can easily be pressed into service for a variety of real-world needs, which could include tactical , security and law enforcement.
7- A 1/16" diameter hole drilled into the tip of one of the trident fins allows for a ring, lanyard or clip to be attached. This feature seems to be a cursory afterthought since no accessory ring, lanyard or clip are provided or discussed in the accompanying literature.

1- No stowage sheath or pouch are provided though a key-ring hole is pre-drilled into one fin on the trident tail.
2- Basic activation. In normal use, light emits from the front of the flashlight when activation occurs either through a partial pressing of the rubber protected tail switch button (momentary) or by completely pressing the switch button for toggling clickOn/Off activation.
3- Variable intensity control. A separate 'pinched' control knob protruding from the body section just behind the head allows for click-stop detent Low, Medium and High level light settings. Lacking a visible marker or index on either the knob or the body of the light - the user discovers that a full clockwise turn till 'stop' sets the intensity to the Low position (5- O'clock) and that a 40º anti-clockwise turn of the dial knob from Low-sets it to the Medium intensity(4- O'clock). Fully turning the knob anti-clockwise places it on High (2- O'clock). The range of turning angle from Low to High is approximately 90º.
4-The front head section is finely threaded to the mid body section and the tail piece- allowing for access to the LED module and switch mechanism . These components seem not to require any specialized tools in order for replacements or maintenance to be performed . The head section is comprised of a finely machined bezel, Fraen collimating optic,coated glass lens and sealing 'O' ring.
5- The body section is split into the battery tube and the LED module and intensity switch mechanism respectively . 'O' ring gaskets or seals at all joins- provide precision fit, shock absorption and an environmental seal especially to water -though waterproofness was not tested .
6- The removable trident fin tailpiece contains the replaceable Kroll switch mechanism and accomodates battery replacement .Batteries are loaded into the battery compartment from the rear and the tailpiece is re-threaded to seal the compartment.
7- The trident tailpiece allows for the light to be stood vertically on a flat surface and pointed upwards at a ceiling for 'bounce' mode illumination or for the head to be removed and the LED exposed- creating a wide-field hemispheric illumination.

1.Since light activation and intensity setting are clearly separated controls, these actions affect separate and unrelated events activated by ergonomically different and physically separated components.This cognitive and interactionary model makes the use of the Mr Bulk V-I-P easy to learn and minimizes potential user error through otherwise combined, overlapping or confusing controls.
This also gives the end user complete freedom and control of the 'state' or mode of the flashlight- irrespective of whether it's On or Off. Functionally, this model allows for the light to be set at one of three light intensities and then separately turned On and Off without intensity being affected. In addition, the light may be turned On or Off and the intensity dial then adjusted to a desired level without affecting the On / Off state.
Not only does this logical functionality allow for the user to match intensity as well as On/Off state to task at hand- but it also satisfies a cardinal heuristic of Usability- namely that the behavior of the device be predictable by the operator at any given moment and in the case of the intensity dial, the current setting be easily and quickly validated- even if only by touch.
2-As mentioned in the section on ergonomics, the gipability of the Mr Bulk V-I-P is tremendous. This could be more important for some users and tasks than for others. Nonetheless, this level of 'over-build' or redundancy, leaves little room for complaint that the flashlight could be dropped due to slippage from the operator's hands.
3-The same cooling fins that facilitate a sure grip, also keep the user's hands from becoming overly hot as a result of contact with the metal surface of the light. Because these cooling fins dissipate heat conducted from the emitter into the air-pockets created by the spaces between them; they effectively divert heat from the surface of the flashlight and thus-the operator's hand and into these gaps instead. As such, the fins serve two technical functions and one aesthetic one- all three, features that combine to give the Mr Bulk V-I-P a high usability quotient.
4- The one page instruction sheet that was included with the light- describes the functionality of the variable intensity switch in great detail and yet perhaps not simply enough to be understood by the technophobic. The writing style used for the instruction sheet is more in the spirit of a troubleshooting 'heads-up' guide than a quick-start or step-by-step instruction. Based on the assumption that this is a carriage trade product for use by knowledgeable flashlight enthusiasts- especially a tight knit cadre of enthusiasts belonging to a famous online flashlight community; the instruction sheet certainly 'speaks' the end user's language and should not be too harshly judged for possibly alienating those that are are new to specialized flashlight terminology.
6- The Mr Bulk V-I-P's lightness and sleek form make it ideal for almost all uses where compactness combined with modularity and high performance are key. It would be a great and handy asset to have in the home, office , laboratory, studio, workshop, or even 'well dressed' law enforcement and security end uses.
7 -We can't stress enough how well this flashlight balances form with function while factoring in usability to deliver a holistic package that satisfies many user requirements without burdening the customers with undue complexity or obfuscation.
8- Another useful technology feature is the sophisticated electronic mechanism that signals when battery power is too low to fully deliver a High level setting. Under such a condition, the flashlight suddenly dims and slowly flashes in a strobing manner signaling that either the battery needs to be replaced, or the light setting must be lowered to Medium or Low- to match intensity to available battery voltage.This proactive modality is the equivalent of a low power indicator but one that does not require the user to manually check a meter, since the stepping down behavior is automatic and self-evident another positive usability heuristic . The 'system' , which in this case is the circuitry- offloads some burden of vigilance from the user/operator and carries it onto itself instead.
9-The reinforcing feedback of the Mr Bulk V-I-P's On/Off switch is characteristically audible and haptically perceptible- signaling that a toggling event has occurred. Though not the most discrete of devices, the 'Kroll' switch leaves no doubt as to whether activation has occured or not, a factor that is often overlooked in an effort to minimize the clicking sound that these switches normally make. From a logical point of view, once a bright light has been turned on, it hardly matters that the switch makes a clicking sound.
10-The importance to a user of matching the intensity and angle of a light's beam to a task at hand is great. Too much light and night vision as well as perceptual 'context' are impaired. Not enough light and subjects hidden in dark crevices and at great distances are not easily visible. The Mr Bulk V-I-P's three intensities provide the ideal levels of supplementary illumination for scenes of between a few inches and 145 feet away from the light at the simple turn of a dial. Furthermore, once a desired level has been set, the flashlight will continue to deliver the set intensity of light until the battery is not able to supply enough power. Then only lower intensity settings may be used. This extends the usefulness of the light even beyond the point of its brightest setting.In addition to task and goal directed functionality, the Mr Bulk V-I-P promotes a conversationalist use of disposable batteries by allowing for very long run-times as the lowest intensity setting.
11- Modularity. The availability of several of optional reflectors extends the capabilities of the flashlight for specialized applications. Specifically, the branded 'Bulk Head' and it's bigger sibling the 'Big Bulk Head' -focus the Mr Bulk V-I-P's beam farther and with a brighter hotspot than the smaller optic and reflector are capable of. An accessory body section that can use rechargeable AA batteries instead of a disposable CR123A, makes it environmentally friendly since rechargeables may be re-used many times over. A low profile twist On/Off tailswitch is available that allows 'ceiling bounce' mode but eliminates the longer trident tail piece. This accessory switch is tapped in the center by a 1/4"X20 hole that permits numerous mounting options including tripod, lanyard as well as attachment to anything that uses a male 1/4"X20 threaded stud.

1- The standard Mr Bulk V-I-P optic is a Fraen that creates a bright squarish hotspot with little corona. An optional reflector gives owners the flexibility of switching to a combination beam instead. The Mr Bulk V-I-P's optic takes the fullest advantage of this light's output potential while the reflector is a best-in-class accessory that deivers an efficient and smooth combination beam- one that provides both a tactical throw as well as excellent overall illumination.
2- The square-shaped beam from the Fraen optic is excellent for general searching outdoors since it creates a medium sized spot that spans several feet even at a distance of only 30' or 40' away from the target. At a greater distance, large areas are easily illuminated with little light wasted in a low level corona. This optic seems not to suffer from the 'tunnel vision' that can all too often create out of context illumination- especially at near distances. Indoors, it makes the Mr Bulk V-I-P a tactical powerhouse capable of delivering a very focused beam that can illuminate subjects that even ordinary room lighting often can't.The Fraen focused beam is bright and concentrated enough to create pleasant and bright ambient room lighting through ceiling bounce mode (18'X12' white ceiling + white walls) or in bare-bulb (candle) mode for smooth and even180º illumination.
With it's standard optic, the Mr Bulk V-I-P creates a subject illumination in a category that we've codified as a Context Exclusive Illumination Window (CEIW) as compared with a Context Inclusive Illumination Window (CIIW) (*5)
3-Using the optional reflector instead of the optic, the resulting beam becomes a broad and even disc of light, pierced by a small and slightly dimmer hotspot at the center. Such a beam is excellent for a wide range of tasks that are not covered by either dedicated spot or totally diffused optics or reflectors. In essence, the reflector sacrifices a small amount of brightness at the hotspot in exchange for a wide disc plus a piercing focus or hotspot in the center.We would characterize such a beam as having a highly Context Inclusive Illumination Window (CIIW).
4-To test the throw of the Mr Bulk V-I-P on its High setting, we conducted a Maximum Distance for Object Identification or MDOI (*2) trial and managed to confidently differentiate our test subject (a Black 33 Gallon (124Litre) Trash Bag) from its immediate surroundings, from as far away as 158 feet with the subject area in near total darkness and the evaluators and flashlight in a moderate level of street sodium vapor ambient lighting (RH=68% at 68ºf). This test simulated a person searching for an object of known size -a person for example- but located in an unknown or difficult to spot container -a black trash bag, for example. From 158 feet away, the Mr Bulk V-I-P positively lit up the vegetation surrounding our subject enough to clearly distinguish it from the Black 33 Gallon Trash Bag, that lay on the ground.The estimated contrast ratio was 2:1
5- To evaluate it's Medium setting we used the Mr Bulk V-I-P to perform a range of tasks with both the optic as well as the reflector. These tasks included : Maximum Distance for Object Identification or MDOI which yielded a 145' result as well as general searching both inside a warehouse as well as in a home and on a hiking trail.In all these scenarios the Mr Bulk V-I-P provided a level of illumination that exceeded minimum requirements for comfortable navigation and clear object identification. As referenced previously, matching the optic or reflector to the task is important to user comfort as well as task efficiency.
6- To evaluate it's Low setting, we used the Mr Bulk V-I-P for tasks including: path illumination from automobile to front door,front door keyhole search, general indoor navigation and low-level room illumination through ceiling-bounce.This light delivered an astonishingly useful amount of illumination even at its Low setting. This usefulness was based on two factors: The level of illumination and color of light. The combined effect of neutral beam color and greater than normal 'Low' level output resulted in this perception of a 'bright' Low light level versus a marginally useful Low.
Beam-shots Page >>

The Mr Bulk V-I-P set on High scored a Maximum Distance for Object Identification or MDOI at 158 feet -more than adequate for general searching, as well as tactical applications. Using the built-in variable intensity feature allows for accurate matching of illumination to the prevalent ambient lighting as well as context of use.
Beam-shots Page >>

1- Born of the marriage between flashlight community input (Action Design), avant guard circuit design and top quality materials and components- the Mr Bulk V-I-P stands in a class by itself. Judged in absolute terms, it's the materialization of everything that its designers specified, tempered with astute Usability considerations as well as a cautious eye on cost containment.
2-Because it's a limited edition carriage trade product focused on performance and styling, rather than on mass appeal, the Mr Bulk V-I-P can't be compared to similar products that cater to a mass market. For the same reason, it's exempt from necessary marketing accouterments such as elegant packaging , slick instructions or a warranty.
3- Taking into consideration its core capabilities together with its modularity- it provides an an example of how all top class modern products are and should be designed. By successfully balancing user requirements and aesthetics together with technological and budgetary constraints, the best in class of the 21st Century should bring us more new and exciting products like the Mr Bulk V-I-P.
4-Value. The Mr Bulk V-I-P-is in a class by itself with few peers. It's not possible to assign it a relative value when comparing it to non-comparables. At this point in time, the Mr Bulk V-I-P rates 4.75 stars out of a possible 5 stars.
Our gripes were... A) Ill-conceived lanyard/ring attachment hole B) Overly casual instruction sheet style C)Incompletely designed levels dial . D) No aftermarket support or documented sales channel E) Lack of serialization in a Limited Edition carriage trade product.

4.75 Stars- Best In Class

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)

(*3) Usability testing results - in progress.

(*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 feet (xxx Meters) 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