racer-x Posted November 11, 2018 Share Posted November 11, 2018 I've been chewing through batteries on my RTS2's for the last year and a half now and decided to try the DPP. Now that I have one, I was curious how the DPP battery consumption compares to the RTS2, so I set up a test to compare. Here's the overview of what & how I tested and the results. Objective: Quantify and compare battery consumption characteristics of C-More RTS2(v4) and Leopold Deltapoint Pro. Overview: Starting with new batteries, leave both optics on for 1 hour increments at full brightness, alternating with equal periods of power-off rest before starting next session. Used two new Duracell 2032 batteries from same manufacture & expiration lot. Challenges: DPP goes into power saving mode after 5 minutes of no motion. This requires that optic be moved every 4 minutes to keep dot active. I wore the gun on belt throughout each DPP test. RTS2 does auto power-off at 8 hour point which does not present a challenge in this test. total hours description RTS2 DPP full bright ---------------------------------------------------------------- test1-v1 3.297 3.293 0 --- 1 hour full brightness --- test1-v2 2.783 3.028 1 test1-v3 2.923 3.067 1 --- 1 hour full brightness --- test2-v2 2.706 2.962 2 test2-v3 2.903 3.034 2 --- 1 hours full brightness --- test3-v2 2.689 2.933 3 test3-v3 2.884 2.993 3 --- 1 hours full brightness --- test3-v2 2.669 2.901 4 test3-v3 2.863 2.950 4 --- 1 hours full brightness --- test3-v2 2.631 2.896 5 test3-v3 2.854 2.929 5 --- 1 hours full brightness --- test3-v2 2.593 2.890 6 test3-v3 2.849 2.919 6 ------------------------------------------------------ v1=battery start voltage v2=battery voltage after 1 hour full bright operation v3=resting battery voltage 1 hour after v2 measurement Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MemphisMechanic Posted November 11, 2018 Share Posted November 11, 2018 (edited) I’ve had the same battery in my DPP for all of this season, and I leave it on in my holster, moving around on match day, for roughly 12 hours a month. Edited November 11, 2018 by MemphisMechanic Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teros135 Posted November 11, 2018 Share Posted November 11, 2018 (edited) Nice work. That ought to save us a lot of 50-cent 2032 batteries! Sorry ... 40-cent batteries. Edited November 11, 2018 by teros135 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkrispies Posted November 11, 2018 Share Posted November 11, 2018 (edited) Dang, nice work! FWIW, I feel like different folks get better life out of their batteries than others. Obviously amount of use matters, as well as level setting, but I've been told environmental considerations such as temperature variations have large impacts on battery life. It seems like I can get my RTS2 to last forever on batteries compared to the complaints of others. I practice with mine about 2.5 hours per week, and I leave it run throughout the full match, and it's been several months since I've changed it. Others complain that they have to change thier RTS2 battery all the time. I do tend to run mine on its lowest or near lowest settings for dryfire, as I do it indoors. Edited November 11, 2018 by jkrispies Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B_Seehawer Posted November 11, 2018 Share Posted November 11, 2018 Nice work. That ought to save us a lot of 50-cent 2032 batteries! Sorry ... 40-cent batteries. Where are you buying quality 2032s for that cheap? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
teros135 Posted November 11, 2018 Share Posted November 11, 2018 17 minutes ago, B_Seehawer said: Where are you buying quality 2032s for that cheap? Amazon. Energizer, blister packed, 25 for $10.12. They appear authentic, test at 3.3 volts, keep well in the fridge. Haven't had any trouble with them. As they're used the voltage slowly decreases (as tested on a multimeter), and at around 2.7v the dot "strobes", as designed by CMore to say "change the battery". I have several RTS2s, and they each seem to have their own battery life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B_Seehawer Posted November 11, 2018 Share Posted November 11, 2018 Thanks!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
highhope Posted November 11, 2018 Share Posted November 11, 2018 Thanks a lot! Need to buy battery too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
racer-x Posted November 11, 2018 Author Share Posted November 11, 2018 5 hours ago, teros135 said: Amazon. Energizer, blister packed, 25 for $10.12. They appear authentic, test at 3.3 volts, keep well in the fridge. Haven't had any trouble with them. As they're used the voltage slowly decreases (as tested on a multimeter), and at around 2.7v the dot "strobes", as designed by CMore to say "change the battery". I have several RTS2s, and they each seem to have their own battery life. I'm still pushing these batteries to see where the failure points are. Have my RTS2 down to 2.427v at the 10 hour mark, but have not seen the dot strobe yet? I tried power off & on a few times as well and still no strobe. I've seen this strobe on previous occasions shooting, but not yet on this particular RTS2. BTW, this one is a fresh replacement from C-More about 2 months ago. Max dot intensity at this reduced voltage is still very usable for an overcast day like today. Wouldn't be ideal in full sun though. I've been checking my RTS2 batteries before matches and replacing them if they were below 3.0v, thinking this would help match reliability. I've observed that the RTS2 max brightness at 2.9 resting v is nearly indistinguishable from a new battery. In fact, I haven't seen any dot weirdness at all yet (blinking, turning off, etc.). At this point, I don't think the low voltages I've reached (2.89 - 2.91 range) had anything to do with the failures I've had. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theWacoKid Posted November 11, 2018 Share Posted November 11, 2018 (edited) 2 hours ago, racer-x said: I'm still pushing these batteries to see where the failure points are. Have my RTS2 down to 2.427v at the 10 hour mark, but have not seen the dot strobe yet? I tried power off & on a few times as well and still no strobe. I've seen this strobe on previous occasions shooting, but not yet on this particular RTS2. BTW, this one is a fresh replacement from C-More about 2 months ago. Max dot intensity at this reduced voltage is still very usable for an overcast day like today. Wouldn't be ideal in full sun though. I've been checking my RTS2 batteries before matches and replacing them if they were below 3.0v, thinking this would help match reliability. I've observed that the RTS2 max brightness at 2.9 resting v is nearly indistinguishable from a new battery. In fact, I haven't seen any dot weirdness at all yet (blinking, turning off, etc.). At this point, I don't think the low voltages I've reached (2.89 - 2.91 range) had anything to do with the failures I've had. The led circuit is driven at about 2.27V (2.3V per data sheet) at max brightness on all the ones I've checked. Thus if the in-system battery voltage is above 2.3V you shouldn't notice a lack of brightness. The voltage of the battery alone isn't going to match the in-system voltage, but 2.7V at the battery is a good rule-of-thumb. Edited November 11, 2018 by theWacoKid Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zzt Posted November 12, 2018 Share Posted November 12, 2018 Neither of my two remaining RTS2v4s will last an entire steel challenge match without dimming. One of them requires turning down after each stage. The other can stay on. They are both 6 MOA and I run them at max brightness for steel. Starting with new 3.27v batteries, the voltage at the end of the match (after I get home) is between 2.8 and 2.9. So I just replace the battery before each shoot. I buy them 25 at a time. I moved these sights to other guns that I don't shoot for steel. I have three DPPs in 2.5 MOA. I use them for my steel guns and an Open gun. I run them at max brightness. I have no idea how long the batteries last. I haven't had to change one. On a lark I swapped out a battery halfway through the season, just to see if it made a difference. It did not. The dot was no brighter. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
racer-x Posted November 13, 2018 Author Share Posted November 13, 2018 On 11/11/2018 at 5:17 PM, theWacoKid said: The led circuit is driven at about 2.27V (2.3V per data sheet) at max brightness on all the ones I've checked. Thus if the in-system battery voltage is above 2.3V you shouldn't notice a lack of brightness. The voltage of the battery alone isn't going to match the in-system voltage, but 2.7V at the battery is a good rule-of-thumb. Good info - thanks. 20 hours of full brightness testing completed and still no failures, strobing or significant loss of brightness. This is much better performance than I expected out of the RTS2v4 RTS2v4 dot brightness diminished a little in the first 6 hours of operation, but has not reduced any since then. A 'little' being around -10% or like reducing intensity with 1 adjustment on down arrow. DPP dot intensity at end of test was same as with a new battery. * regular rest periods were reduced to 10minutes and overnight full rest periods are 10 hours - noted on graph The RTS2v4 graph line demonstrates a much wider range in measured voltage between when battery is first removed from optic and after 10 minute rest. This indicates a higher loading on RTS2v4 battery during operation compared to DPP. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkrispies Posted November 17, 2018 Share Posted November 17, 2018 Maybe I missed it above, bit I’m wondering which MOA’s of the dots are we talking about, and if it matters? For ibstance if it’s an 8moa RTS2 vs a 2.5moa DPP or vice versa. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
racer-x Posted November 17, 2018 Author Share Posted November 17, 2018 RTS2 is 8MOA and DPP is 2.5 MOA. With both optics set to full intensity in this test, the MOA's should not matter. In practical terms though, small MOA optics usually consume batteries faster because the user sets the brightness higher than if they were using a larger MOA dot. There's just more to see with a larger dot, so it doesn't need to be as bright. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IDAHOAASHOOTER Posted November 19, 2018 Share Posted November 19, 2018 There's so many variables to battery life, especially when you factor storage, temperature, and Dot size. If you just leave a box of batteries in your range bag and they sit in the garage all summer they will not last as long, if you run full bright all the time compared to someone who might shoot inside or in less direct sunlight conditions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
B_RAD Posted November 19, 2018 Share Posted November 19, 2018 Is sitting them in the freezer the best way to keep them? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IDAHOAASHOOTER Posted November 19, 2018 Share Posted November 19, 2018 If you keep any battery in the freezer it will take a few minutes to get full draw out of them. Just refrigerated they will be capable of full draw quicker. Why we keep aircraft emergency batteries in a freezer! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxbat Posted November 19, 2018 Share Posted November 19, 2018 As someone already indicated - every sight sample is different. I don't know the internal circuit, hence no idea how, and if they control the current, or just let it be whatever it is for a particular LED. I also know for fact that two different samples of the sight may have vastly different brightness - whether it is the result of the LED efficiency or voltage fluctuations, or current - no idea. Bottom line - trust your eyes and always carry a couple of spare batteries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dvc4you Posted November 20, 2018 Share Posted November 20, 2018 This ^For what they cost just carry spares and change when necessary.Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
38super Posted November 22, 2018 Share Posted November 22, 2018 Dot MOA is determined by a mask, same LED. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
racer-x Posted November 23, 2018 Author Share Posted November 23, 2018 Finally ran the battery down on RTS2 to where it began to strobe (replace battery indicator). This was after a total of 58 hours set to full bright with the ending voltage at 2.067. Resting voltage was back up to 2.844 the next day. Strobing dot intensity appeared around 50-60% as bright as with a new battery. And of course, this is with a specific RTS2 and battery, results will vary with different components. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
highhope Posted November 30, 2018 Share Posted November 30, 2018 (edited) deleted Edited November 30, 2018 by highhope Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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