Would You still Buy an Arc AAA Today?

[Bullzeyebill]

I've got a brand new in package 2003 CPF Collectors Edition if you're interested.

Shameful. :shakehead Use PM's if you are going to do that.

Bill

 

[Chrisdm]

Admin edit: post removed Presentation is everything. It's not what, but how things are said and done.

Sales/offers are not appropriate for this forum. Use PM as already suggested or the marketplace.

 

[nbp]

No purple tinted beam can be better than another purple tinted beam. These things are just awful, both of them. Going back to my battery junction freebie disposable keychain lights, for the superior color rendition!

Actually, if you ever see these two different LEDs side by side, you will see that the GS is significantly more purple than the DS. The DS has a bit of blue in the hotspot, but is much more white than the GS. But beyond that, the beam itself is much more functional. I took this beamshot comparing an Arc DS and an E01 GS, left and right respectively. My iPhone does not show the color properly, but the beam shape is obvious. The GS has that funny oval shaped hotspot, and a much narrower beam, while the DS has a much larger, round hotspot and a floodier overall beam, which I find to be preferable in a small keychain light. Getting this thread rolling again makes me appreciate my Arc AAA all over again. As I believe I posted earlier in this thread, it was the first light I bought after joining this forum, and will be sticking with me for a long time to come. I find it is often very useful as mouth-hold light for closeup tasks like working on small items. It definitely still has a place in my collection.

 

[Blue72]

Actually thats not comparing apples to apples and is another reason the ARC has a benefit over the e01. The ARC GS has the same wide and whiter spill as the DS(just different hotspots). The spill on the Fenix E01 is dimmer and narrower because the LED is recessed more and is underdriven compared to the ARC.

I would post pics of my DS and GS ARC but I just recently polished the led on the DS to eliminate the blue hot spot. So it would no longer be a good comparison shot

And from my last recent communications with ARC, Peter Gransee is still involved with ARC

 

[nbp]

Well I suppose even if it is not a good emitter comparison, it's a good light comparison and may help people who are unsure which of these lights is better for them. :shrug:

I am almost tempted at pick up one of those CS models from Arc as a backup unit, the price isn't bad. Anyone have beamshots comparing CS and DS?

 

[fyrstormer]

I have tried Peak several times, but it just does not offer the same thing. Not to bash the flashlight because it is a good flashlight. But I can tell you it is not waterproof and others can attest to it. It will still function, but its annoying having the water logged behind the lens.

Haven't seen that problem with either my old or new Eiger heads. One of the first things I do with every flashlight I buy is scrub it clean with soap and a toothbrush, and there was no evidence of any water inside any of them. Perhaps yours wasn't assembled properly -- certainly a mistake, but not uncorrectable.

Runtimes on alkaline are poor unless you run exotic batteries or go with a lower output circuit. Even then the regulation is not that great.

The Arc AAA doesn't have much in the way of regulation either. All of mine dim progressively as the battery drains; the only noticeable improvement comes from using Energizer Lithium AAAs, which have the typical lithium discharge pattern of Full Voltage, Full Voltage, Full Voltage, Slight Drop, Dead.

Even when you go with a level 4 that is comparable to brightness of the ARC AAA-P GS. The Arc still out throws it.

It's a 10 lumen light; throw is not a primary attribute of any light that dim.

While the slight purple hotspot of the new GS is not the greatest, the beam spill offers better color rendition over the Peak (not the limited CRI version)

Seriously? The Nichia GS provides better color rendition than the Cree XP-G? :shrug: I guess there's no accounting for personal preference.

ARC has been around a pretty long time and had a great reputation. But some still want to bring up the drama when they left CPF, even though that has been rectified for a long time now.

I never bought into the drama myself, but Arc's product quality dropped significantly circa 2009 and never recovered. The Arc AAAs I bought in early 2011 were junk; I ended up throwing them away after a couple weeks. The only product of theirs I would buy nowadays is the Ti AAA, because at least I can change the emitter in that whenever I want and it's properly sealed at all junction points.

Meanwhile Peak is notorious for horrible communication and a crappy website for most of its time and people still turn a blind eye. It amazes me! Everyone also talks how durable it is, but where is the history and stories that ARC has?

The website is definitely a problem, no dispute there. In the Peak forum I've made my own disappointment known. However, unlike Arc, the quality of Peak's products has steadily increased over the past couple years.

I hope I am not coming across that the ARC is the be all end all flashlight.......it's not. I just think its still worth owning one.

An old one, yes. If you can get one with a Nichia DS emitter, they are still fantastic little AAA lights. I'm still kinda pissed I lost my Arc-P DS HA3-Natural a few years ago, and if I didn't already have a McGizmo Sapphire 25 with the same LED in it, I'd gladly buy a shelf-queen Arc-P DS on-the-spot. But the new ones aren't worth the money anymore, not with the new offerings from other companies.

 

[Blue72]

Haven't seen that problem with either my old or new Eiger heads. One of the first things I do with every flashlight I buy is scrub it clean with soap and a toothbrush, and there was no evidence of any water inside any of them. Perhaps yours wasn't assembled properly -- certainly a mistake, but not uncorrectable.

The Arc AAA doesn't have much in the way of regulation either. All of mine dim progressively as the battery drains; the only noticeable improvement comes from using Energizer Lithium AAAs, which have the typical lithium discharge pattern of Full Voltage, Full Voltage, Full Voltage, Slight Drop, Dead.

It's a 10 lumen light; throw is not a primary attribute of any light that dim.

Seriously? The Nichia GS provides better color rendition than the Cree XP-G? :shrug: I guess there's no accounting for personal preference.

I never bought into the drama myself, but Arc's product quality dropped significantly circa 2009 and never recovered. The Arc AAAs I bought in early 2011 were junk; I ended up throwing them away after a couple weeks. The only product of theirs I would buy nowadays is the Ti AAA, because at least I can change the emitter in that whenever I want and it's properly sealed at all junction points.

The website is definitely a problem, no dispute there. In the Peak forum I've made my own disappointment known. However, unlike Arc, the quality of Peak's products has steadily increased over the past couple years.

An old one, yes. If you can get one with a Nichia DS emitter, they are still fantastic little AAA lights. I'm still kinda pissed I lost my Arc-P DS HA3-Natural a few years ago, and if I didn't already have a McGizmo Sapphire 25 with the same LED in it, I'd gladly buy a shelf-queen Arc-P DS on-the-spot. But the new ones aren't worth the money anymore, not with the new offerings from other companies.

I'm sure scrubbing it clean doesn't create enough water pressure and maybe it was just mine that was defective. either way, I know other users had the same experience with the eiger.

- Arc uses partial regulation. Peter Gransee discussed many times why he chose to use this type of regulation rather than a flatter regulation and it makes sense. The regulation isnt as flat as a FENIX but it doesnt drop as much as a peak either. Its a compromise, which is what the ARC is.... a giant "compromise"

-The ARC is not a thrower. I was merely stating it has a longer range of brightness. Which is surprisingly good when you are in the woods in complete darkness. Its enough to impress my nonflasholic friends to buy one

-the spill is quite warm...if you are that anal about the beam you can polish/sand the led to eliminate the blue/purple hotspot....or you can get the snow led version......or do what I did and make a lens cap that holds theatricals gel to increase the CRI or different colored lens.....or just buy a different flashlight....its not for everyone. But there are some decent benefits to nichia leds

-Im curious in what aspect the ARC product itself has gone down in quality. I have bought a few and so have a few friends in the past few months. From what I have seen nothing has changed. I don't doubt you....I am just interested to know what exactly your experience was

-Peak service is hit or miss. Just look at the posts on their forums. I just think cpf is more forgiving of peak misgivings because they never had to live up to the rep ARC once had. Of course this is just my opinion

- as an owner of old and new. I think the brighter new ones are the way to go especially if you want to get away from the blue hotspot.......The Mcgizmo ti are a work of art and always thought of buying one. However, whats holding me back is that I enjoy activites involving being around or in water. Meaning o-rings need to be maintained over time and Im not sure how easy it would be to get access to the two o-rings holding the lens. The lack of epoxy potting also concerns me to the shock proof and water resistance (maybe I am wrong). I recently changed the battery in a heavy down pour in my ARC. Water got into the battery tube,but it had no effect on the light..... It lit right up!.....I later found you can change the battery completely submerged underwater and it has no effect

In all honesty, the ARC isnt for everyone. There are plenty of flashlights to choose from. But I think this light full compromises makes it well rounded and still worth owning

To each his own!

 

[DM51]

Chrisdm... despite having been a member here for 8 months, it appears you have neglected to acquaint yourself properly with the Rules. 2 of your posts here have been deleted, as they were in violation of Rule 8. Take a few days off from here and make sure you read and understand it, and the others, before you return.

 

[nbp]

-Peak service is hit or miss. Just look at the posts on their forums. I just think cpf is more forgiving of peak misgivings because they never had to live up to the rep ARC once had. Of course this is just my opinion

I think they had a good thing going years ago. Peak (an amazing machine shop/builder, but poor marketer and communicator) did all the machining for Arc (Peter was a great engineer and the ever present, CS savvy, beloved face of Arc, who needed a great machine shop). Together, they created flashlight magic and built a light and a business that was inextricably linked with CPF. I caught the tail-end of the magic. When I first joined CPF, I bought my Arc, in Dec. 2007. Peter was advising Arc and still posting here and things were good.

I don't really know the drama that took place before I got here, but I was more or less aware of what was happening afterwards. I don't know now what is happening over there, or how the quality of the lights is today. It sounds like the company is pretty healthy at this point but I can't be sure. Either way, I don't think that newer members will really be able to feel the same fondness for Arc that older members do, as they never knew Peter, and didn't have the opportunity to interact with Arc the way we did years ago.

While Arc is still around, I don't know if they are producing/can produce the same level of workmanship that Peak offered, and they don't have Peter as the face, so I think that their days of being listed among the flashlight elite are probably over, except with those who were here, and saw it firsthand.

Peak too is still around, and making fantastic flashlights that were initially based off the Arc design, but without the face, they have a rough go of things. It seems they have made some improvements through outside vendors, but I don't know if they really have the business savvy and marketing know-how and attention to customer needs that Arc once did that could make them really successful.

It was a symbiotic relationship, and it has fizzled. They needed each other to really be great. I don't know...that was a lot of random musings, but I guess the point of it all is that if you don't already have a soft spot for the Arc AAA, you probably never will, and if you do, you probably always will. :shrug:

 

[flashy bazook]

Wow -- talk about a blast from the past! I have an Arc 1xAAA in UV, and it is a very useful light to have. I take it with me especially when traveling.

Today, the McGizmo Ti version continues the tradition for those who want just this type of light as severa posters have mentioned.

The thing is, the 1xAAA light has evolved and it is now a kind of bigger light back-up, that can almost match a lot of the capabilities of the larger lights, such as multi-levels and multi battery types (NiMH, Li-ion,...). Of course, not throw! But big light output (with short run-times) is quite possible.

I've used several Fenix versions, the E01 is not too impressive (though extremely useful), but the LD01 SS is quite something.

Historically you can see why the Arc 1xAAA was so pathbreaking. People were using the Maglite 2xAA as a kind of little brother to the bigger Maglites they were used to (2xD, or 3xD and even larger). So the 1xAAA came in able to give the same level of lumen output with an LED that outlasted the incan light bulb by thousands of times, as the 2xAA Maglite in a tiny form factor, and suddenly the old Maglite became obsolete.

Today I use the latest Peak 1xAAA Eiger with the Nichia 119 (available first from McGizmo very expensively) and the QTC variable light controller which is not electronic and is therefore more efficient. The quality of the light itself is quite amazing, and the light output probably quite stronger than the 1xAAA Arc and the Fenix E01.

I agree with the issues people bring up on the Peak website, but still, once you do get the light, it is well built and continues the amazing, pathbreaking evolution that the 1xAAA Arc itself started. That we can have this kind of power and flexibility in light production in such a tiny formfactor is quite amazing to me, and I find that I have this one light with me more often than other form factors.

 

[Flying Turtle]

I have that soft spot for Arc, and have had the AAA in my pocket or on the keychain since joining CPF. But, those early BS (?) Nichias really had a pretty nasty beam. In actual use the blotchy blue worked fine, and there wasn't much competition back then. Then came Fenix with the E0. The beam was still blue, but it was uniform and runtime much better. This competition coupled with the machining troubles just wore Arc down. I wish they were still in the fight, but with Peter gone Arc will never be the same.

Geoff

 

[flatline]

So how do the current Arc AAAs compare to the Arc AAAs of a couple years ago? Are the electronics still potted and the machining still excellent?

I know that a 5mm AAA light isn't in the same league as the power LED lights available, but they still have a simple charm.

--flatline

 

[fyrstormer]

I'm sure scrubbing it clean doesn't create enough water pressure and maybe it was just mine that was defective. either way, I know other users had the same experience with the eiger.

Not much pressure, no, but the scrubbing action does have a way of driving water between seals, especially when thin toothbrush bristles are involved. I had an unpleasant experience with my Muyshondt Nautilus regarding that, actually. Fortunately the reflector was unaffected and cinching down the bezel solved the problem. In the case of an Eiger, carefully tapping around the bezel ring with a small hammer and a flat punch can ensure it's seated tightly. It shouldn't be necessary, I agree, but...well, nothing is perfect.

- Arc uses partial regulation. Peter Gransee discussed many times why he chose to use this type of regulation rather than a flatter regulation and it makes sense. The regulation isnt as flat as a FENIX but it doesnt drop as much as a peak either. Its a compromise, which is what the ARC is.... a giant "compromise"

It is a compromise, yes, and in its time it was a great light. Now that it's possible to get full flat regulation in an AAA-size light, it's harder for me to accept that particular part of Arc's design. That being said, Peak's drivers seem to work particularly well with their new QTC pills, since the QTC material is really nothing fancier than a variable resistor.

-the spill is quite warm...if you are that anal about the beam you can polish/sand the led to eliminate the blue/purple hotspot....or you can get the snow led version......or do what I did and make a lens cap that holds theatricals gel to increase the CRI or different colored lens.....or just buy a different flashlight....its not for everyone. But there are some decent benefits to nichia leds.

I just wish they still offered the DS LED. That one is my favorite, though I have some of PhotonFanatic's 5-die LEDs and I kinda wish I had the parts to make an Arc AAA using one of them. I still haven't seen a brighter 5mm LED.

-Im curious in what aspect the ARC product itself has gone down in quality. I have bought a few and so have a few friends in the past few months. From what I have seen nothing has changed. I don't doubt you....I am just interested to know what exactly your experience was.

I got some of the Snow LED version. The anodizing wasn't as good as it was on my Arc-P DS, the threads appeared to be rolled instead of cut, the anode boards were all tilted (which affected the clamping around the edges), there was lots of flux left over on the anode boards, and the LEDs themselves just weren't very good. I compared them to my Sapphire DS and concluded I should've just bought another Sapphire instead of three Arcs.

-Peak service is hit or miss. Just look at the posts on their forums. I just think cpf is more forgiving of peak misgivings because they never had to live up to the rep ARC once had. Of course this is just my opinion

That is entirely possible. I can't really say. Their lights sell plenty fast enough, though, even secondhand.

- as an owner of old and new. I think the brighter new ones are the way to go especially if you want to get away from the blue hotspot.......The Mcgizmo ti are a work of art and always thought of buying one. However, whats holding me back is that I enjoy activites involving being around or in water. Meaning o-rings need to be maintained over time and Im not sure how easy it would be to get access to the two o-rings holding the lens.

Don takes all of his lights snorkeling in the ocean. That's one of his tests. The O-rings are quite easy to change with a sewing needle to pull them out of their grooves.

The lack of epoxy potting also concerns me to the shock proof and water resistance (maybe I am wrong). I recently changed the battery in a heavy down pour in my ARC.

I've tossed bigger and heavier Gizmos into the air and they landed on concrete, and the non-potted electronics were unaffected. If they had been, though, I could've just repaired it or sent it back for repairs without having to throw anything away.

Water got into the battery tube,but it had no effect on the light..... It lit right up!.....I later found you can change the battery completely submerged underwater and it has no effect

That's pretty good. Never tried that one. You can always pot the Sapphire or Arc AAA Ti yourself if you want to, though, but I prefer to sacrifice a little bit of durability for the ability to repair instead of replace the light.

 

[Blue72]

Now that it's possible to get full flat regulation in an AAA-size light, it's harder for me to accept that particular part of Arc's design. That being said, Peak's drivers seem to work particularly well with their new QTC pills, since the QTC material is really nothing fancier than a variable resistor.

I just wish they still offered the DS LED. That one is my favorite, though I have some of PhotonFanatic's 5-die LEDs and I kinda wish I had the parts to make an Arc AAA using one of them. I still haven't seen a brighter 5mm led.

I got some of the Snow LED version. The anodizing wasn't as good as it was on my Arc-P DS, the threads appeared to be rolled instead of cut, the anode boards were all tilted (which affected the clamping around the edges), there was lots of flux left over on the anode boards, and the LEDs themselves just weren't very good. I compared them to my Sapphire DS and concluded I should've just bought another Sapphire instead of three Arcs.

That is entirely possible. I can't really say. Their lights sell plenty fast enough, though, even secondhand.

Don takes all of his lights snorkeling in the ocean. That's one of his tests. The O-rings are quite easy to change with a sewing needle to pull them out of their grooves.

I've tossed bigger and heavier Gizmos into the air and they landed on concrete, and the non-potted electronics were unaffected. If they had been, though, I could've just repaired it or sent it back for repairs without having to throw anything away.

That's pretty good. Never tried that one. You can always pot the Sapphire or Arc AAA Ti yourself if you want to, though, but I prefer to sacrifice a little bit of durability for the ability to repair instead of replace the light.

Yes but flat regulation comes at a price. For example look at the fenix e01, it uses the same nichia GS led yet it is even dimmer than the ARC DS and on par with the ARC CS. Peter decision to use "partial regulation" was a bitter pill for me to swallow especially when the Fenix E01 came out. But after several years of use it made sense why he did. The ARC was designed to work on Alkaline batteries that are easy to find or scavenged. Due to Alkaline ability to recover even when almost completely depeleted. The ARC takes advantage of this and allows a brighter light. Even a completely dead cell can offer some decent brightness for some time when recovered. The fact that the ARC is optimized to use a regular alkaline battery is another reason it appeals to me. I travel alot and I am always on the go. The ARC accommodates my lifestyle. I do not have to accommodate the flashlight needs while I am on the go, by finding or making sure I have steady supply on hand.

Sorry to hear about your snow version of the ARC. I have looked at my recent purchase and a buddies recent purchase this morning and have not noticed any of the things you have described. The only change I see is a slightly bigger head to compensate for the GS LED. I know ARC was using black HAIII for awhile which isnt as durable as their Natural gray ones. But even the greatest manufacturers on these boards have there defects.

I am aware that Don enjoys the water as much as I do, But the other thing holding me back is that it looks a little to "Bling Bling" for me.

 

[purelite]

I have decided to not invest the $50 smacks for one. I was gonna get the Snow white version but i dont want a messy sloppy $50 light.
If I already had one I would keep and use it and if i came across one at a decent price on CPF I would grab it but not for $50 . Just my decision. I will just continue with the E01 for now. Would love a Saphire though wish it was just a bit briter maybe 10 lumens?

 

[fyrstormer]

Yes but flat regulation comes at a price. For example look at the fenix e01, it uses the same nichia GS led yet it is even dimmer than the ARC DS and on par with the ARC CS.

Never had an Arc CS, I'll have to take your word for it. I don't mind the dimmer output of the Sapphire 25 as compared to a similar light without flat regulation; it didn't annoy me that my old Arc-P DS didn't have flat regulation, but I honestly didn't know such a thing existed back then. Nowadays non-flat regulation bugs me. I want to know how bright the light is going to be when I turn it on. It's not like the light will refuse to turn on when the battery gets too low to operate the regulator -- it will just direct-drive the emitter instead, so I'll still get a bit of light from it.

Peter decision to use "partial regulation" was a bitter pill for me to swallow especially when the Fenix E01 came out. But after several years of use it made sense why he did. The ARC was designed to work on Alkaline batteries that are easy to find or scavenged. Due to Alkaline ability to recover even when almost completely depeleted. The ARC takes advantage of this and allows a brighter light. Even a completely dead cell can offer some decent brightness for some time when recovered. The fact that the ARC is optimized to use a regular alkaline battery is another reason it appeals to me. I travel alot and I am always on the go. The ARC accommodates my lifestyle. I do not have to accommodate the flashlight needs while I am on the go, by finding or making sure I have steady supply on hand.

Not an issue for me at all. I used one alkaline AAA in my first Arc, made by the original Arc Flashlight LLC, and after having to drill a hole in the battery and thread a screw into it to get a handhold to pull the battery out, I swore I'd never use an alkaline again if I could possibly help it. It wasn't even a dead alkaline, it was halfway through its life, and it still leaked all over the inside of the light. Alkalines always leak if you keep them around long enough, so I don't keep any alkalines around. I use only lithium AAs and AAAs now, when I'm not using rechargeables, and they last so much longer I've never had more than one go completely dead while I was away from the house. I can stand to carry a spare AAA battery, but as you point out, if I have no other option, I can still use an alkaline AAA.

Sorry to hear about your snow version of the ARC. I have looked at my recent purchase and a buddies recent purchase this morning and have not noticed any of the things you have described. The only change I see is a slightly bigger head to compensate for the GS LED. I know ARC was using black HAIII for awhile which isnt as durable as their Natural gray ones. But even the greatest manufacturers on these boards have there defects.

Mine was the black version, yes. But that only explains the finish, not the other manufacturing defects. If I hadn't seen the same problems on all three of the lights I bought that day, I would've written it off as having received a dud. Unfortunately that wasn't the case.

I am aware that Don enjoys the water as much as I do, But the other thing holding me back is that it looks a little to "Bling Bling" for me.

The blinginess stops being an issue the first time you drop it and then step on it while trying to pick it up, and you discover not only is the finish intact, but the metal isn't even dented enough to speak of. Titanium does have that advantage. If you don't like the shiny finish, though, you could probably ask Don really nice and he'll bead-blast one for you.

 

[Blue72]

Never had an Arc CS, I'll have to take your word for it. I don't mind the dimmer output of the Sapphire 25 as compared to a similar light without flat regulation; it didn't annoy me that my old Arc-P DS didn't have flat regulation, but I honestly didn't know such a thing existed back then. Nowadays non-flat regulation bugs me. I want to know how bright the light is going to be when I turn it on. It's not like the light will refuse to turn on when the battery gets too low to operate the regulator -- it will just direct-drive the emitter instead, so I'll still get a bit of light from it.

Not an issue for me at all. I used one alkaline AAA in my first Arc, made by the original Arc Flashlight LLC, and after having to drill a hole in the battery and thread a screw into it to get a handhold to pull the battery out, I swore I'd never use an alkaline again if I could possibly help it. It wasn't even a dead alkaline, it was halfway through its life, and it still leaked all over the inside of the light. Alkalines always leak if you keep them around long enough, so I don't keep any alkalines around. I use only lithium AAs and AAAs now, when I'm not using rechargeables, and they last so much longer I've never had more than one go completely dead while I was away from the house. I can stand to carry a spare AAA battery, but as you point out, if I have no other option, I can still use an alkaline AAA.

Mine was the black version, yes. But that only explains the finish, not the other manufacturing defects. If I hadn't seen the same problems on all three of the lights I bought that day, I would've written it off as having received a dud. Unfortunately that wasn't the case.

The blinginess stops being an issue the first time you drop it and then step on it while trying to pick it up, and you discover not only is the finish intact, but the metal isn't even dented enough to speak of. Titanium does have that advantage. If you don't like the shiny finish, though, you could probably ask Don really nice and he'll bead-blast one for you.

Like I said in my earlier post, its not a cpf type light (although it once was). But real world I think you would have a hard time noticing those few lumens you lost with the partial regulation used by ARC. Especially over a 4-5 hour period.It would be even harder as your eyes adapt to the darker surroundings. In shorter uses, Im not sure if you would notice at all due to the recovery nature of Alkaline. Matter of fact the ARC can can recover to almost 100 percent brightness from a dead alkaline cell after 24 hours of rest. But it all doesn't matter since you like to use Lithium batteries, so the ARC will give you flat runtime anyway. Either way its much better than the regulation that Peak offers

Im assuming you meant "after regulation" or "moon mode".....I dont think an AAA single cell could direct drive a led

Im aware of the dangers of Alkaline. But this light gets used a lot and I change the batteries often. Since water has little effect on Alkaline, it is another reason why it is my battery of choice. Once again my opinion, but I think the dangers of alkaline are overrated.

I cant argue with the defects you received, since I feel the same way about peak (maybe not as bad)

I still admire the sapphire....I just haven't pulled the trigger yet, but its getting closer now that a warmer GS is available....and if I get one, it probably would not replace the role my Arc. It has a proven history with me............and others

 

[fyrstormer]

Like I said in my earlier post, its not a cpf type light (although it once was).

Kinda sad, I think. Arc should've done a better job keeping up with the times. The AAA stagnated and became obsolete, and the Arc6 overreached and fell short. (though I do like my two Arc6s.)

But real world I think you would have a hard time noticing those few lumens you lost with the partial regulation used by ARC. Especially over a 4-5 hour period.It would be even harder as your eyes adapt to the darker surroundings.

I used to use my Arc AAA DS for car repairs. I wouldn't notice the drop in lumens in realtime, but I did notice over the course of longer repairs that some nooks and crannies I was trying to look at were harder to see into than I remembered from an hour earlier. I would swap in a new battery and all would be well again. Now that I know what totally flat regulation is like, I doubt I could go back.

In shorter uses, Im not sure if you would notice at all due to the recovery nature of Alkaline. Matter of fact the ARC can can recover to almost 100 percent brightness from a dead alkaline cell after 24 hours of rest. But it all doesn't matter since you like to use Lithium batteries, so the ARC will give you flat runtime anyway. Either way its much better than the regulation that Peak offers.

Not sure I agree with the last sentence, but it's been a while since I've looked at runtime/luminosity graphs of each light. My Peaks serve as backup lights anyway, so any lack of regulation is a secondary or tertiary concern; they can run on AA and AAA batteries, which are ubiquitous enough that I should be able to find them on a regular basis even a couple months after Armageddon.

Im assuming you meant "after regulation" or "moon mode".....I dont think an AAA single cell could direct drive a led

It can, it's just very, very dim. But yes, I meant "moon mode", where the battery has enough power to run the voltage booster somewhat, but not enough power to achieve full regulated output voltage.

Im aware of the dangers of Alkaline. But this light gets used a lot and I change the batteries often. Since water has little effect on Alkaline, it is another reason why it is my battery of choice. Once again my opinion, but I think the dangers of alkaline are overrated.

If you change them often, then yeah, it doesn't matter much. I just hate having to change batteries on a regular basis; seems wasteful to me. Of course, with old-school rechargeables the change interval was even worse, not to mention the power output was usually poorer, though at least the batteries didn't have to be thrown away. I had a love/hate relationship with alkaline primaries and Ni-Cad secondaries for a long time before lithium primaries became available.

I still admire the sapphire....I just haven't pulled the trigger yet, but its getting closer now that a warmer GS is available....and if I get one, it probably would not replace the role my Arc. It has a proven history with me............and others

I can't argue with that. I probably would not be a flashaholic today if I hadn't lost my Arc-P DS and had to find something to replace it. It and its predecessor served my needs admirably for many years.

 

[Blue72]

I guess it would be led dependent. When I used to modify maglite solitaires I never had any luck with direct drive even with a lower voltage RED LED it would barely glow.

As far as keeping up with the times what would you suggest to make it more modern without sacrificing its compromise of decent runtime, durabilty, simplicity, and brightness.

I have played around with various led projects and there is not many led's that have the durability and efficiency of the GS LED. Sure you could go with a brighter LED with a big sacrifice to runtime but why, there are plenty of those on the market today. If you think about it there are not many single AAA flashlight that offers decent brightness to get a task done or and have long runtimes to enjoy a night outdoors on alkaline on the Market today.

 

[the flashaholic]

ARC !!!!!!!!!!! MUCH BETTER QUALITY THAN FENIX !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! fenix is :sick2: compared to arc