New Flashlight "Junkie-to-be"

Osprey Guy

Osprey Guy

Joined
Apr 9, 2002
Messages
213
I've only been into the whole flashlight thing for a couple of weeks. I happened to be in the flashlight aisle at Target and had purchased on impulse what appeared to be a decent, fairly small-sized flashlight,... One of the new Dorcy 1 watt Luxeon Led's (As it turns out, without knowing any better, I did indeed buy a pretty nice flashlight...not the best, but for $25 bucks, it's a hell of a bang for the buck).

I got home that night and curious about these new Luxeon bulbs, I of course got on the Internet,...and in no time at all I was hooked. Candlepowerforums, LedMuseum, FlashlightReviews, the whole bit...

Sigh...As if I didn't already spend enough time in the knife forums, now another hobby/addiction?!?! :D

There are several products which look interesting, and I expect I'll soon be starting a small collection. I think I'll prefer buying smaller lights, which I can alternate as EDC's. The latest from Inova look good (the T1, T2, and T3). The Surefire's obviously kick butt, and have the price point to match. There are of course, many others I'd like to check out, too many to list.

I've read a lot of good things about the lineup of offerings from Peak. Sounds like they turn out a high quality product at a righteous price, and I wouldn't mind owning one. Having said that, I've decided that I'd do well to wait just a little longer before pulling that trigger....

I am certain that in the coming months all of the flashlight manufacturers are going to be jumping on the Luxeon Star bandwagon, Peak included. Their website says they'll be coming out with their own versions of 1, 3, and 5 watt Luxeons sometime in the very near future (They say Fall of '04...so I would think we'll see their new generation of LED lights any day now).

In the meantime, I've been just itching to try one of the 3 watt lights. I wanted something small enough to carry in my shoulder bag (yes, I've been wearing a "man-bag" on my shoulder for years...what can I say?...I have a lot of gadgets, and misc. "goodies") ;) , but I didn't feel like investing a fortune, especially when prices for the Luxeons are sure to start dropping when all the competition jumps on board.

I did some heavy Googling using the keyword "Luxeon", and after about 25 pages worth I came up with a website, which I didn't recall having seen mentioned in any of the reviews or forums. Turns out that in addition to the full lineup of "Coast" brand lights (including the "Lenser" line), these guys carry a sizeable product line of their own, and I ordered the following flashlight: http://www.quality-items-flashlight...d=100&XTCsid=011004752633fb575c991f4ae3804c2e

A 3 watt Luxeon Star for only $39.95...I figured "how can I go wrong?" (check under "brightest lights" for more of their Luxeon products). It's scheduled to arrive tomorrow...I'll let you know what I think. I'd be curious to know if anyone has experience or knows anything about this outfit.

Your newest "light" nut,


Dennis Greenbaum

Yeah Baby! :cool:
 
I like the Arc 4 for EDC it's got a great pocket clip and it can do just about any thing... Do quick look around at candel power for the Arc4 it's awesome, expensive, but awesome. I bought one of the seconds models and if it's lacking in some way I never noticed.

The only bad thing is that it's kind of spoiled my flashlight fun since I really don't need another flash light unless I'm looking for a huge throw. I have a Streamlight Stinger XT for that and of coarse a 1 million candle power rechargeable for the boat if I really need a long bright throw.

Have fun with the lights...I enjoy buying them as gifts a lot too!
 
welll.... IMO an ARC 4 is not all that special.

A Surefire L4 is they way to go IMO.
 
You're on your way Dennis. Stop now while there's still time.... :D

Flashlights are like drugs, you try the nice ones just once and before you know it you're pouring money into some deep dark rathole. Luckily I have just the light for that though.... ;)
 
Yep, flashlights along with firearms and knives are another area where you can buy quality. In the last two years since I got hooked, flashlight tech has gone through several major jumps. My current favorites that I own are a Peak 3 LED brass for the keychain, a dual output mod Surefire KL4 for my BOB, a tiny Peak N-Cell 3 LED in my survival kit, a Longbow Micra for my EDC and a Surefire C3 with a High Output lamp on my bedstand next to my Springfield XD40. These forums are hard on the bank account but I can't begin to measure the enjoyment and satisfaction I have had collecting all this stuff. Embrace it.

-- Dizos

Edited to add. Finally upgraded to Gold Membership because of the warm fuzzies I got thinking about the last two years here.
 
GarageBoy said:
Surefires will be more addiciting than knives
Click to expand...
So are Streamlight flashlights...I already have a couple of the Twin Task models, and am looking at getting a rechargeable Streamlight one of these days.
 
DaveH said:
welll.... IMO an ARC 4 is not all that special.

A Surefire L4 is they way to go IMO.
Click to expand...


I belive your compairing apples with oranges there Dave... here's the specs

Arc4 Specs


1 watt, High Dome Luxeon Star LED from Lumileds producing 33 lumens (Premium version, Level 1)
Proprietary microprocessor based power supply. DC-DC buck/boost topology, Power regulation, Calibrated brightness, multi-battery support, reverse polarity protection
LED optics protected by new .092" LEXAN lens
water proof (depth pending)
1x '123' 3V lithium pack with tail switch included (battery included), other packs available, see below
Type III hard anodized Aluminum
Cobalt Gold positive/negative battery contacts
Simple, reliable housing construction w/knurled grips
Other power packs available in the future
Dimensions with TSP-123 included are 3.2 inches long by 1.0 inches in diameter
Total weight with 123 cell and clip installed is 2.9 ounces
Input voltage range: 2.0V to 6.75V
Limited Lifetime warranty/30 day satisfaction guarantee
Made in the USA

And here's the Surefire L2...

Batteries - Two lithium 123A 3.0 volt with 10-year shelf life (included)
Output/Runtime - High: 100 lumens max./60 minutes; Low: 15 lumens
max/18 hours total runtime
Construction - CNC machined aerospace-grade aluminum, Type III MilSpec
hard-anodized finish for extreme corrosion and wear-resistance; O-ring sealed; Pyrex® lens
Steel pocket clip
Length and weight (with batteries) - 6.1 inches / 4.2 ounces
Flawless beam, no dark spots or rings
Patented lock-out tailcap prevents unintentional activation during
storage or transportation
Weatherproof and lightweight
No Hassle Lifetime Guarantee: If it breaks, we fix it!



I'd alos like the mention the Surefire didn't have any of these led lights out when I bought my Arc4...Thanks for pointing them out though now I'm probably going to end up with one :rolleyes:
 
yeah I was just trying to pick the one I like best out of the L series line up. I like the L2 because it's dimmable.
 
That 3 watt flashlight I ordered last week arrived today (this is the one I mentioned at the top of this thread 3x's N, 3 watt Luxeon ). Man was I ever bummed! I guess I should have known better when I hadn't seen anyone else talk about this light or the company, either good or bad.

I was looking for something slim enough or small enough to comfortably carry in my bag, and I wanted to try out one with the new 3 watt Luxeon star bulb. This one had sounded like it would fit the bill, and at a good price ($39.95)...and with 3 X's N batteries, I thought it would be an acceptable size (turns out that at just over 6 1/4" it's about 1/2 longer than they told me over the phone). It came with the batteries already loaded (Duracell "Procell's"?). I turned it on and immediately knew that it was less than what I had been expecting...this being a 3 watt. My Dorcy 1 watt is not only brighter, but much, much whiter! (I've read where some guys have gotten that weak yellow/green color from their Dorcy's, and some got the nice, bright white. I guess I was one of the lucky ones).

The new flashlight (I don't know who made it other than it came from "Quality Products Online") has a decent enough fit and finish, the soft touch, off-on "clicker" works well, but the light is mediocre at best considering that it's a 3 watt luxeon (it's Lambertian, as opposed to "Bat Wing"?). It also has that sort of weak yellow color. It's supposed to be a 10 degree beam (you're offered a choice, 10 degrees or 30 degrees...I ordered the 10). I'm just a novice at this, but it seems awfully soft-edged for such a narrow beam. Although it does have a solid center (albeit rather soft and slightly yellowish), as soon as you get beyond the (small) center it quickly becomes somewhat square-shaped, followed by a surprising amount of side spill...And it has this very noticeable, odd line running across the beam, from one side to the other (it's not quite straight across, it comes out at about 160 degrees from the center). I can't tell what's causing that...perhaps someone with more knowledge can offer an explanation.

All in all, it's a real dissapointment. I know it does have smaller batteries, but at the very least I had hoped for something equal to the Dorcy, if not much better. Instead I got worse. (BTW- After checking out the flashlight for no more than 2 minutes tops, I inspected the batteries using my battery meter...and they were already down to just over 3/4 strength...I assume they must have come that way. Perhaps new batteries will improve the light...We'll see).

Oh well...

I'm still looking for something small...I do like the sound of the new 3 watt, 1x CR123 Nuwai Quantum III from advancedmart. I was just about to order it last night when I noticed they got in a couple of even newer Nuwai's...both of them are a little larger, 2 x's CR123...one at 3 watt and one at 5 watt! Great price points on both...and given that the smaller Nuwai has already received favorable reviews, the 5 watt sure sounds tempting. ;)


Dennis Greenbaum

Yeah Baby! :cool:
 
You should post pictues of your new flashlight on candlepowerforums. Someone may be able to mod it with a decent bin LED.

-- Dizos
 
I'm definitely going to take this over to the CP forums to get their take on this. I just got home from shopping for batteries, and I'm really pissed at myself for being so stupid!

From what I can tell, all of the smaller flashlights made by this company use either AAA or N cells. On every individual page of the flashlights they sell, they have posted the following:
Watch out for Chinese flashlights that use CR123 Lithium batteries as they only last 2 hours & cost $10! You can use regular*N batteries & even rechargeable's! CR123's are also hard to find in the U.S., let alone internationally.
Click to expand...

I ordered this flashlight over a week ago, before I had a chance to really start learning about such things. I'm pissed at myself for actually having believed there B.S. about the CR123's!!! Not only did very single store I went to today have the CR123's, but most of them had them in Lithium as well! Only one store had any of the N cells, and that was only because they were a drug store, which only keeps a few in stock and lists them as "medical" batteries!!! :mad:

Well, I guess you live and learn...

I had a long and very enlightening talk with Kurt from peakledsolutions.com
He explained at length why this was a bad buy. The short version,... those puny N cells are simply no match for the 3 watt Luxeon! He suggested that the batteries probably did indeed drain that much with just those first couple of minutes use! How's that for a kick-in-the-head!!!

Hopefully as you suggest, I can find a way to mod this a bit, and make something worthwhile out of it.


Dennis Greenbaum

Yeah Baby! :cool:
 
I have a Streamlight TL-3 xenon. I just can't get over how much light-- and how far-- this thing throws. My buddy came over tonight and I brought this little flashlight out to show him. He was flabbergasted.

This thing is like a pocket lighthouse. The batteries only last an hour, but wow.
 
Dennis.

Go with a good brand flash light straight away and save yourself the heartache.

If your budget is around $50. Try looking at the Inova line. The T1,2 and 3. I'm not sure how strong but i know Inova has some quality product. Got my dad the X5 and it's a really nice light.

For LED's the L4 is a yummy light. It's slightly large for pocket carrying (but i still do), but it's perfect for a shoulder bag. Even if you do spend more on the L4, once you press the clicker you'll know that it was worth it.

Don't buy discount Luxeon's. There's a reason why they're so cheap.
 
Ah, wait until you get into Surefire lights. All in a class by themselves. Pricey, but well made indeed. Still, there are lots of awesome LED flashlights out there by Streamlight, Inova, Peak, Nightcutter, Longbow, etc... Oh, then there was Arc. Arc won the hearts of flashaholics by the hundreds. It's shame they went went under. :(
 
Welcome to the club. I started reading CPF a few months ago. At first I didn't know what the heck anyone was talking about, but after a while you get used to the lingo. I started with an Arc AAA, which is awesome, then shortly after I picked up a red LED Peak AAA prototype and a white LED Peak proto. Then I bought two of their production bodies because I like the screw-off tailpiece. Then right after Arc closed up I snatched up an LSL-P and a AAA with a red LED, which I traded off for an LSH second! Somewhere along the way I got an Inova X5, too! The crazy thing is that I actually use them all quite a bit! Actually, the AAA is in a drawer now, but the white Peak is on my keychain for emergencies, I use the red Peak every night reading in bed, the X5 is next to the bed in case something goes crash in the night and I need a really bright light and my LSL-P is in my jacket pocket and gets used every night when I take the dogs out for pooping (so I don't step in any). I use 'em more than knives, by a long shot.
 
As I mentioned earlier, I had a terrific talk with a guy at Peak, by the name of Kurt. He was extremely knowledgeable and very, very helpful...spent a lot of time with me on the phone.

I had called to inquire about their upcoming Luxeons. Their site says that the new lights will be available in the Fall of '04 (Last I checked, this is the Fall of '04). ;) Kurt said that unfortunately the release will be delayed a bit.

Apparently they've been swamped with orders from people looking for an alternative to the now demised Arc. He agreed that their current offerings of very small "pocket-size" lights (such as the one Led "Shasta"-which is definitely the size I have in mind), will not put out the sort of light I'd get from a similar size flashlight using a Luxeon Star (The 7 led versions from Peak would give me close to the performance I want, but not the size). I definitely want to get a Peak, but I'm going to wait until their Luxeons are available (sounds like it could be a little while yet).

In the meantime, I'm probably going to place an order today for one of the Nuwai Quantum III's...Single cell (CR123a), 3 watt LS, only 3.6" long and just a hair under 1' wide...and it's gotten excellent reviews. Nuwai also just came out with a 2 cell version CR123a in a 3 watt and a 5 watt with an adjustable beam (the 3 watt also has a high-low switch). Like the other Nuwai's they're at a great price point (about $70 for the 5 watt), and are awfully tempting,...But they're a bit larger than what I had in mind...The approx. 5" length is not too bad, but the head of both versions is rather oversized at about 1 1/2". I'm sure that helps with the throw, but I'm trying to keep the width down to around an inch. (LedMuseum just announced yesterday that he'll be reviewing both of these new flashlights in the near future...along with a brand new 1 watt version of the Quantum III, which is priced under $30!).

BTW- Some news on that 3 watt I purchased from quality-products-online...After swapping out for some brand new "N" cell batteries (3X), it definitely showed some improvement, but still not much difference in overall light than the Dorcy 1watt (which uses 3 X AAA alkalines)...and the light is also nowhere near as white as that of the Dorcy! I tried NiMh in the Dorcy... significant increase in performance! With those dramatic results, I'm going to check out Battery Station and try and get NiMh versions for all my batteries sizes, including the "N" cells, and the CR123a's for the Nuwai 3 watt.

Are we having fun?.....:D


Dennis Greenbaum

Yeah Baby! :cool:
 
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