Z-BOLT® Infrared Illuminators
BLAZER I Product Pages
BLAZER II Product Pages
LED or VCSEL?
Old vs. New Tech?
Your choice for IR illumination tech . . . LED (light emitting diodes) or VCSEL (Vertical-Cavity Surface-Emitting Laser). LED chips are an older, low-speckle light solution - but bright and effective - still a solid choice for infrared illumination. LED's are not lasers, so not regulated by the CDRH of the FDA. Chip power is unrestricted, legal for civilian use in all configurations. LED is bright, low-speckle, but "muddled". VCSEL lasers provide the highest level of optical beam clarity, and are speckle-free. Speckle-free light sources (VCSEL lasers) offer significant advantages over those with low speckle or high speckle contrast. Light speckle, or "incoherence" produces a grainy pattern in images when viewed though optical devices, degrading image quality and obscuring fine details. Speckle-free illumination allows for sharper, clearer images, particularly when viewing or acquiring targets via night vision devices. VCSEL laser illuminators are found in the Z-BOLT® ACAL [VCSEL] & BLAZER II; BE Meyers KIJI & MAWL; Wilcox Raid; L3 Harris NGAL. Z-BOLT® manufactures two illuminator product lines. The BLAZER II VCSEL, & BLAZER I LED.
BLAZER II, VCSEL
Made in the USA 🇺🇸
The BLAZER II includes all the light body, tailcap, and battery compatibility features as the BLAZER I. (all battery types; all "Scout" light bodies & tailcaps) Same 4° to 25° variable zoom, focus adjustable beam angle. Otherwise improved in every way! A brass threaded insert makes for buttery smooth installation on all "Scout" type light bodies. Z-BOLT® Auto Power Scaling™ (see more below) Housing ruggedized for accidental knocks & firearm recoil vibration, with IP68 environmental protection. Requires minimal 90° bezel travel when transitioning from 4° focus to 25° flood (DBAL-D2 = 360°) Beam ranges of up to 3500 meters. Engineered, designed, & manufactured by Americans - in America. Precision machined billet aluminum parts from California; mechanical assembly in Nevada; optical assembly & illuminator qualification in Vermont. Kitted, marketed, and shipped from Oregon.
Introducing Z-BOLT® Auto Power Scaling™ [Pat. Pending] technology! FDA laser regulations require manufacturers to “throttle” the power output of VCSEL laser chips, so as to meet the particular Class 3R (civilian legal, <1.95mW) or Class 3B (<500mW) FDA laser safety classifications. Z-BOLT® Auto Power Scaling™ technology offers the highest possible LEGAL output power for a given beam angle setting - the telescopic adjustment bezel providing the end user with beam angle dependent power control. Where previous 3R VCSEL illuminators fall short (increased angle beam settings where the IR light fails in wide area illumination), the BLAZER II & ACAL VCSEL units maintain the maximum permissible power based on the product's FDA classification. Available in both Class 3R (15mW~95mW) Class 3B (150mW~400mW) VCSEL configurations. The overall design is a product of our continuing ACAL development. We've installed the ACAL illuminator assembly components into a standalone head! The performance and specifications mirror what a customer can expect from our ACAL device later this year.
No VCSEL
Donut 🍩 Hole!
VCSEL laser chips are square. The output comes predominantly from the edges of the chip array - this creates a VCSEL "donut hole" or "chip image", when the illumination output is viewed fully focused. That's when it's possible to see the "chip image" from the infrared illuminator. (with cameras, or through optics, not always clear with the human eye) This is occasionally seen on devices like the MAWL. The "donut hole" is caused by a drop in VCSEL output in the central region of the chip array - a 40% dip. The image at right shows our BLAZER II VCSEL with a single lens assembly. And a data chart of the BLAZER II VSCSEL chip. The BLAZER II production models feature multiple lenses and diffusers - the light is collected & manipulated - then uniformly distributed. NO DONUT 🍩 HOLE!
BLAZER II Product Pages
BLAZER I, LED
Made in Taiwan 🇹🇼
Universal Compatibility
4° to 25° Focusable Optics
Z-BOLT® entered this market in 2022, introducing the BLAZER IR Illuminator. Most LED infrared products have their chips mounted in a reflector head. Fixed beam fan angle; fixed flood; beam or flood non-adjustable. Head size and thread pitch is fixed. The BLAZER I features variable zoom optics. The focusing lens travels on a carriage within the housing. Short 160° bezel travel - moving the beam spot/angle from 4° focused to 25° flood.
Designed & Assembled
Happy Valley, OR, USA 🇺🇸
The BLAZER I IR illuminator head operates on all common battery types. As well as all "Scout" flashlight and weapon light bodies. Install our 300/600 light body adapter to run 1 or 2 pc CR123A lithium-metal; 1 or 2 pc CR123A rechargeable lithium-ion OR 1 pc 16650 lithium-ion rechargeable. Standard head threads onto 18350/18650/M600DF/M640DF light bodies. Run 1 pc 18350; 1 pc 18650; 2 pc CR123A (Dual Fuel).
BLAZER I Product Pages