RovyVon GL5 Pro Weapon Flashlight Review
The RovyVon GL5 Pro weapon flashlight features one white emitter, a laser, and an IR output. It has windage adjustments and a removable cell, too! Read on!
Official Specs and Features
Here’s a link to the RovyVon GL5 Pro weapon flashlight product page.
Versions
The RovyVon GL5 Pro weapon flashlight is available in black and desert tan (seen here). The emitter array is the same for either body color. You can also selct a “QD” mount (quick release type, seen in this review) or a screw (more permanent.)
Price
The RovyVon GL5 Pro weapon flashlight in black comes in at a MSRP of 399.95. Desert tan is a bit more, at $429.95.
What’s Included
- RovyVon GL5 Pro weapon flashlight
- Manual and paperwork
- 1913 adapter
- GL adapter
- Zeroing coin
- L wrench
- Spare battery cover attachment
Package and Manual
Build Quality and Disassembly
The RovyVon GL5 Pro weapon flashlight’s build quality is excellent. This feels like a solid, robust light! It’s really not that much different from the non-Pro version, aside from those specific things that are different. The removable cell on the Pro is one of the major differences.
I’ll talk more about this below but for now you can see the windage adjustment. I know nothing at all about those, but apparently it’s for aligning the laser so you can stay on target. This adjustment is for windage. There’s one on the other side for elevation! Neat! The slot is suitable for coins, but a washer is included if you have eschewed a cash-based currency system and no longer have coins.
Size and Comps
70mm x 45mm x 39mm and 138.4g. It’s just a bit bigger than the GL5.
If the flashlight will headstand, I’ll show it here. If the flashlight will tailstand, I’ll also show that here too!
Retention and Carry
The RovyVon GL5 Pro weapon flashlight is a weapon light. You’d never use this light as an EDC light, of course.
There’s a quick release lever – it’s on the bottom side in the photo above. This is a very functional lever. In the open position it sticks straight out. You’d notice this and not leave it open. It also stops when fully open so there’s no ambiguity.
Or, as mentioned above, you can go with a screw mount (not QR) for much more permanent installation.
The RovyVon GL5 Pro weapon flashlight is of course more suited for hand held weapons but here I’m using what I have. It also fits just fine on Picatinny rails (with the default adapter).
In fact, depending on how you carry, the RovyVon GL5 Pro weapon flashlight could be fine also for your long guns!
Both windage adjusters are accessible while the light is mounted. The cell cover is (technically) too, but frankly, this cap is just a bit hard to unscrew.
I have had a number of weapon lights – fine ones, too. This (along with the non-Pro) seems like the “weaponiest-weapon light” that I’ve had though. It feels extremely official.
Power and Runtime
The RovyVon GL5 Pro weapon flashlight ships with the SpiderFire CR123A cell seen below. As the manual states, and is imprinted on the light, the RovyVon GL5 Pro weapon flashlight will also run a 16340.
The cell cover has a good bit of knurling around the cap, but just due to placement and dexterity, maybe, I found it a bit difficult to unscrew. I didn’t ever require a secondary tool (pliers or AR or whatever), but I wouldn’t want to have to do this under duress. That said, I still prefer this over a built-in cell, I think.
I tested with both 16340 and the included CR123A cell. The duration is different, as you’d expect, but the profile is also a bit different, too. On the one hand, I much prefer the profile from the 16340 cell. On the other hand, I don’t like killing a 16340 (no low voltage protection) every time I run it to the end. Maybe in practice, though, running til empty is unlikely.
Pulse Width Modulation
Neither of the modes that use white light uses PWM.
Here you can see a “baseline” – a chart with almost no light hitting the sensor.
Then there’s the Ultrafire WF-602C flashlight, which has some of the worst PWM I’ve seen. It’s so bad that I used a post about it to explain PWM! Here are multiple timescales (10ms, 5ms, 2ms, 1ms, 0.5ms, 0.2ms) to make comparing this “worst” PWM light to the test light easier. That post also explains why I didn’t test the WF-602C at the usual 50us scale.
User Interface and Operation
First, there’s a selector switch. In the photo below, the selector is pointing at “0” (it could be a bit confusing – the pointer is… unusual.) I do think the pointer is probably more geared toward operating, though. So operators probably understand this type of rotary/arrowy setup.
There’s a very complete chart describing what the various settings are:
On the back of the light is this sticker. It’s not really a perfectly-sized sticker, and the edges stick out just a little bit.
These switches do not move independently (which is one difference between Pro and not-Pro). This is more of a see-saw type switch. If one side is down, the other is up. But on or off can be achieved either way.
The paddle-style e-switches have a great action. It seems like an appropriate amount of travel, especially when mounted.
A remote switch is available. It’d attach here under this little black plate. In fact, I think it replaces this plate.
There’s no need for a table here. Any of the paddle switches in any direction will iterate the state of the light in the selected mode.
LED and Beam
RovyVon doesn’t state what the emitter is. I don’t have a guess about it, either. I can say it’s different than the emitter used in the GL5. This emitter should be much more throwy.
The output options are:
LED
300mW LED-based IR illuminator, 850nm wavelength
520nm visible green laser (<5mW, Class 3R)
850nm IR laser (<0.7mW, Class I)
The white LED emitter (and IR, I believe) both have a reflector.
LED Color Report (CRI and CCT)
The single output for white has a CCT of around 6400K, which is cool. The CRI is low, too, at around 66.
CCT (Correlated Color Temperature) refers to the measurement of the color appearance of light, expressed in Kelvins (K), which indicates whether the light is warm (yellowish) or cool (bluish). A lower CCT (below 3000K) is considered warm light, while a higher CCT (above 5000K) gives cooler, bluish light.
CRI (Color Rendering Index) is a measure of how accurately a light source renders colors in comparison to natural sunlight. Scored on a scale from 0 to 100, higher CRI values indicate that colors appear more true to life and vibrant, similar to how they would look under the sun.
Beamshots
These beamshots always have the following settings: f8, ISO100, 0.3s shutter, and manual 5000K exposure. These photos are taken at floor level, and the beam hits the ceiling around 9 feet away.
Tint vs BLF-348 (KillzoneFlashlights.com 219b version) (affiliate link)
I keep the test flashlight on the left and the BLF-348 reference flashlight on the right. These photos are taken around 18 inches from the door.
I compare everything to the KillzoneFlashlights.com 219b BLF-348 because it’s inexpensive and has the best tint!
Summary and Conclusion
The RovyVon GL5 Pro weapon flashlight seems like a comprehensive weapon light. It has very specific features such as windage adjustment that are suited for a specific type of operation (only). It’s a very dedicated weapon flashlight, so I understand why there’s just one (white LED) mode. I’d like to see closer to the claimed runtime, though, or a separate lower mode. I appreciate that the cell is accessible in this version. If there was a “super pro” version, I’d love to see this light using an 18350 and USB-C charging, too!
The Big Table
| RovyVon GL5 Pro weapon flashlight | |
|---|---|
| Emitter: | Unstated white LED |
| Price in USD at publication time: | $429.95 |
| Cell: | 1×16340 |
| Runtime Graphs | |
| LVP? | No |
| Switch Type: | Paddle |
| On-Board Charging? | No |
| Claimed Lumens (lm) | 400 |
| Measured Lumens (at 30s) | 300 (75% of claim)^ |
| Candela per Lumen | 14 |
| Claimed Throw (m) | 120 |
| Candela (Calculated) in cd (at 30s) | 124lux @ 5.858m = 4255cd |
| Throw (Calculated) (m) | 130.5 (108.8% of claim)^ |
| Claimed CCT | – |
| Measured CCT Range (K) | 6400 Kelvin |
| Item provided for review by: | RovyVon |
| All my RovyVon reviews! | |
^ Measurement disclaimer: Testing flashlights is my hobby. I use hobbyist-level equipment for testing, including some I made myself. Try not to get buried in the details of manufacturer specifications versus measurements recorded here; A certain amount of difference (say, 10 or 15%) is perfectly reasonable.
What I like
- Robust set of options
- Battery is accessible
- Can run a 16340 or CR123A (preferred)
- Hits throw specification
- Great build quality
What I don’t like
- Just one mode with white (not considering white and laser together)
- Runtime is very short
- Cool white
- Low CRI
- Very expensive
Notes
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