FloridaSam
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I stopped by my local B&M to try out some mechanical box mods yesterday as I was looking for a dual 18650 box. I knew they had the Tesla Invader I, Tesla Invader II and the IVOGO Dimitri clone so I thought I'd do a little shootout in my spare time.
In my head I wanted the Dimitri. I love the looks as well as the box shape and overall design. The Dimitri was nice but had some faults that I knew would get on my nerves. First, I had to use a screwdriver to get my flat top batteries in and out. That kind of defeats the purpose of a magnetic door if I need a screwdriver anyway. Second, not all of my attys sat flush on the 510. Third, I wasn't loving the top mounted fire button and lastly it just didn't hit hard.
I had tried the Tesla Invader I and wasn't thrilled with a number of things I felt were wrong with that mod. First, the black wood looked cheap. I wasn't impressed with the QC on the unit I tried. It had crooked stickers, chips in the wood, poorly executed magnets and a mediocre at best finish. I also wasn't thrilled with the execution of the fuse in the circuit. I am pleased to say the Invader II has a dressed nearly all these issues with noticeable improvements.
I ended up purchasing the Invader II. For $40.00 (cheaper online) I'm extremely happy and feel it's well worth the money.
Packaging 8/10. No instructions or documentation came with the mod. The box is nice but the star of the show is the excellent leatherette carry pouch. It's one of the nicest I've seen and is easily a $10+ item on its own. A very nice accessory included with the mod.
Fit and Finish 7/10. Compared to Invader I the II just looks and feels like more care was taken. The red wood has much nicer grain and feel than the black. The magnets are stronger rare earth magnets than in the Invader I and hold the door much more snug. The door fits better than the previous model. The stickers on the inside are installed straight. The engraving, both logo and serial number are sharper and neater than the original version. The batteries fit perfectly snug, easy to install and remove with no rattle or fear of them moving at all if you don't want them to. That said, it's far from perfect. There were a few small chips I lightly sanded to smooth out. The battery door isn't perfectly flush with the mod. Overall it's very good for a $40 mod. Not so much if this was $160+
Performance 10/10. Everything else is pretty meaningless if the mod doesn't perform and oh does this mod perform! The button is excellent. Very easy to push and fires every time. The mod is nice and light, very comfortable in the hand.
I have not opened the mod up but Tesla has pics on their site of the internals. The are 3 Mosfets on a small PCB inside. It has reverse battery protection as well as short protection and will fire down to .1 ohm.
I'm currently running a Little Boy with a single parallel coil at .15 ohm and a Dark Horse with a .18 dual coil build. Compared to the Dimitri the Invader II hits noticeably harder. It also hits harder than my Paragon and copper Nemisis. I truly wasn't expecting this level of performance for 40 bux.
I hope this review was helpful as I've only seen one video review of the version 2 and very little written about it. It would be very easy to dismiss the version 2 as a purely cosmetic upgrade as nearly all the improves are inside. If you're looking for a cheap unregulated box you'd be doing yourself a disservice by not adding this to your list.
In my head I wanted the Dimitri. I love the looks as well as the box shape and overall design. The Dimitri was nice but had some faults that I knew would get on my nerves. First, I had to use a screwdriver to get my flat top batteries in and out. That kind of defeats the purpose of a magnetic door if I need a screwdriver anyway. Second, not all of my attys sat flush on the 510. Third, I wasn't loving the top mounted fire button and lastly it just didn't hit hard.
I had tried the Tesla Invader I and wasn't thrilled with a number of things I felt were wrong with that mod. First, the black wood looked cheap. I wasn't impressed with the QC on the unit I tried. It had crooked stickers, chips in the wood, poorly executed magnets and a mediocre at best finish. I also wasn't thrilled with the execution of the fuse in the circuit. I am pleased to say the Invader II has a dressed nearly all these issues with noticeable improvements.
I ended up purchasing the Invader II. For $40.00 (cheaper online) I'm extremely happy and feel it's well worth the money.
Packaging 8/10. No instructions or documentation came with the mod. The box is nice but the star of the show is the excellent leatherette carry pouch. It's one of the nicest I've seen and is easily a $10+ item on its own. A very nice accessory included with the mod.
Fit and Finish 7/10. Compared to Invader I the II just looks and feels like more care was taken. The red wood has much nicer grain and feel than the black. The magnets are stronger rare earth magnets than in the Invader I and hold the door much more snug. The door fits better than the previous model. The stickers on the inside are installed straight. The engraving, both logo and serial number are sharper and neater than the original version. The batteries fit perfectly snug, easy to install and remove with no rattle or fear of them moving at all if you don't want them to. That said, it's far from perfect. There were a few small chips I lightly sanded to smooth out. The battery door isn't perfectly flush with the mod. Overall it's very good for a $40 mod. Not so much if this was $160+
Performance 10/10. Everything else is pretty meaningless if the mod doesn't perform and oh does this mod perform! The button is excellent. Very easy to push and fires every time. The mod is nice and light, very comfortable in the hand.
I have not opened the mod up but Tesla has pics on their site of the internals. The are 3 Mosfets on a small PCB inside. It has reverse battery protection as well as short protection and will fire down to .1 ohm.
I'm currently running a Little Boy with a single parallel coil at .15 ohm and a Dark Horse with a .18 dual coil build. Compared to the Dimitri the Invader II hits noticeably harder. It also hits harder than my Paragon and copper Nemisis. I truly wasn't expecting this level of performance for 40 bux.
I hope this review was helpful as I've only seen one video review of the version 2 and very little written about it. It would be very easy to dismiss the version 2 as a purely cosmetic upgrade as nearly all the improves are inside. If you're looking for a cheap unregulated box you'd be doing yourself a disservice by not adding this to your list.
