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Just got my new Dive Rite 10 w HID slimline, can I turn it on on the surface just for 5 mins to test it out before I put it to some use this weekend?

yep

That depends entirely on if you follow the example of one of our fellow posters and leave the cover on when you do this. :..this is not a good idea and if memory serves...it melted the cover and damaged the lense as well as required a bulb.....Keep in mind..this was totally ....i think diverite says ..." Oh heavens no!!!!..if you do turn it on out of water..the earth/time continueum will be severly affected and a solar and lunar eclipse will simtaneously happen thus ending existance as we now know it"

BUT............

when i did it, the only concern that i had were the FLames that shot out of my A$$....but that could be from the burrito that i ate...

That was a Sartek, not a Dive rite ;D

Josh, if you are concerned about it, fill your sink with cool water and place the lighthead in the water when you are trying it out.

I know it wasn't a Dive Rite because thay never work ;D. The Sartek lens was all that needed to be replaced ($10.00). I can also tell you that you don't want an 18 watt HID turning on with a cover over it either (I never do learn my lesson the 1st time). Delrin reflectors also melt and cost a whole lot more than a Sartek lens...... :'(.

I would recommend, as a safety measure, to put it in your sink w/ cold water. 

I have a couple Dive Rite HID's and several of my friends dive them.  They get pretty hot out of the water.  A friend of mine toasted his bulb after a dive when he left the light on sitting on a picnic table.

This was w/ the old welch allen bulb, not the newer style they are using.  But the little suckers get hot and I would hate to see you trash your light.

Thanks guys, I ended up not testing it out above water.  I spent 4 days in Isle Royale, I figure that was as good of a place as any to try it out.  Wow did I enjoy it.

At this point, my HID is still my favorite piece of equipment. A friendly word of advice. DO NOT dive with someone that has a bigger light. You WILL have to have one  . Light envy is a dangerous thing.

Oh ya no kidden, I don't know what I would have done without it.  I'm used to LED's and once I was 2 or 3 levels down in the America I realized how amazing those things really are.

Word of advice for anyone that wants one: I had my light mounted on my backplate with the switch on the inside and the cord on the outside; BAD mistake.  The rolls on my drysuit kept turning the light off INSIDE the wrecks.  Well once I figured out the problem I had the switch on the outside and everything was better. 

Oh, for clarification; by "those things," I mean HID's.  ;D ;D ;D ;D ;D