For their new line of headlamps, UCO ditched the usual overly complicated high-tech look at design and instead brought back some classics such as leather and Velcro. After long runs with a headlamp left him with pounding headaches, Industrial Revolution President, Graeme Esarey, decided that there had to be a way to make a headlamp that was not just simple to use, but incredibly comfortable to wear for hours on end as well.
The inaugural UCO Comfort-Fit headlamps–the A-45 and A-120–will hit retail stores across the country this autumn. Both the A-45 and the A-120 headlamps are designed to be the thinnest, most comfortable headlamps on the market, with a unique, no “hard point” hinge design that allows for long-term, headache-free wear–a flat, leather patch rests against your forehead instead of the usual hard plastic hinge. For a custom fit, UCO uses a soft, adjustable, neoprene strap with a Velcro adjustment system similar to your favorite baseball cap that allows you to set it and forget it–no more messing around with an elastic strap that never seems to lie flat against your head.
The intuitively operated light turns on with a simple twist of the dial (like your wall dimmer switch at home) which infinitely adjusts the light output–no more remembering which button combinations create which light setting. Twist one way for white light, then twist the other way to illuminate the red LED for night vision mode. Both headlamps utilize a highly water-resistant CREE XP-D LED bulb. We got to test the headlamps out while hiking through old silver mines up at Snowbird and Alta in Utah before Outdoor Retail earlier this month–they really are simple and extremely straight forward to use.
UCO powered their A-45 Comfort-Fit Headlamp with two button cell lithium batteries that provide up to 200 hours of light. Weight with batteries is 1.6 oz. (45 g) and the retail price is $29.99. The more robust A-120 Comfort-Fit Headlamp provides up to 120 lumens of light from three AAA batteries held in an external battery pack that keeps weight off of your forehead. Weight with batteries is 3.7 oz. (104 g) and the retail price is $39.99.