Hi Randy,
CR123's are a great choice for back-packing for many reasons. Weight, size, performance in low temperatures, etc. Personally I don't use them, as I favor rechargeable li-ion solutions as they have lower operating costs for frequently used lights and offer safer access to higher power illumination; however, if I were picking out a headlamp and flashlight for someone who wasn't concerned with operating costs and just wanted simple, good performing plug-n-play results from a reliable illumination system for backpacking specifically I would almost certainly steer them towards 1 X CR123 powered options. The single cell light is arguably the best place for CR123s in terms of safety, as there is no risk of reverse charge caused by accidental mix-match of used and new cells.
I would advise checking out the following headlamps:
Spark SG3-NW
Armytek Tiara C1 v2 Warm
Armytek Tiara Pro C1 v2 Warm
Zebralight H302w
Zebralight H32Fw
There are likely others to consider, that I am simply not aware of.
Note, the above are all neutral tinted LEDs, which IMO is favorable for out-door use as it seems to provide better depth and color perception in earthy-color-environments. They are also all floody, which is best for in-camp chores like cooking, cutting firewood, setting up tents, filtering water, reading maps/planning etc. These also make great after-dark book-reading headlamps on some of their very low modes.
Of course, the bunch of lights above, are sort of task-specific, as they are not really any good for distance spotting. You should always plan on bringing a back-up source of illumination anyway, so your backup light may as well be a 1 X CR123 powered light with a more traditional focused flashlight beam profile, that way you have your "hands free" floodlight on your head, for doing chores, and a hand-held "spotting" light for finding the trail, spotting animals, investigating creepy noises, annoying your tent-neighbors, etc..
Trying to use a bare emitter light like the SG3 or H302 to reach out and light up objects/animals/creepy-noise-makers at any sort of range is problematic, as it requires the use of their highest inefficient battery burning modes, and the results are still poor. The added weight in batteries you'd have to bring to attempt to use these floody lights for distance spotting will effectively "pay" for the weight of a light dedicated to the task, which can accomplish it so much better anyway.
Here are some nice little light-weight 1 X CR123 options to complement a floody headlamp:
Olight S10-L2 Baton Nuetral
Eagletac D25c clicky XM-L2 Nuetral
Fenix PD22UE (nuetral?)
Spark SF3-NW
Armytek Prime C1 (warm)
Armytek Prime C1 Pro (warm)
Armytek Partner C1 V2 (warm)
Armytek Partner C1 Pro V2 (warm)
Zebralight SC32w
There are likely others to consider, that I am simply not aware of.
Again, all neutral tints for better out-door "performance", but these all have more traditional flashlight "beams," that attempt to concentrate some light into a spot. The tiny reflectors do limit the throw, but these still throw better than the floody headlamps above. (the handhelds above produce ~3-4X higher peak lux than the best of some of the more focused headlamps above).
If you don't care about LED tint options, the logical selection of headlamps and handhelds in the 1 X CR123 size class for back-packing use would expand at least 2-3 fold, as you could entertain a number of options from Fenix, Jetbeam/Niteye, NiteCore, etc. Without tint restrictions it would also be advisable to look at options that use the XP-G2 and XB-H emitters, as they will provide better focus on small reflectors. For the headlamp, I would advise sticking with XM-L2 and XP-L options as they will deliver the best efficiency across the widest range of illumination for a floody light.
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I'm personally in the process of figuring out what headlamps and hand-helds are going to replace my older equipment for my Wife and I, as we have plans to do a lot more backpacking and fishing. I'm not as disciplined on weight restrictions as I should be, thus, am probably going to be setting us up with 1 X 18650 powered headlamps and handhelds instead. A high capacity rechargeable 18650 li-ion cell offers about the same or better energy density (per weight and volume) as a CR123, but they are larger and heavier (about 2.5X). The lights will have to be a bit larger and heavier to accommodate the larger cells. I'll share with you some of my thought processes on picking flashlights for this application with some weight comparisons... While there are lots of brands that make headlamps and flashlights that could be used for backpacking, it is my opinion after searching the market over high and low, that Armytek and Zebralight are currently offering some of the best products for this application, (though I'm still searching).
Here's a rough comparison of a CR123 based lighting system, vs an 18650 powered lighting system, both employing their relative "equivalents" from each battery size from the same brand...
If I were picking 1 X CR123 zebralights it would be this:
H32Fw + SC32w combo, with 6 X CR123 (4 spare) = ~6.9oz
If I were picking 1 X 18650 zebralights it would be this combo:
H600Fw Mk II + SC62w combo, with 4 X NCR18650B based cells (2 spare) = ~10.3-11.3oz estimated (depending on cells chosen)
In fact, the 18650 combo above was and is still certainly on my short-list of serious contenders as I try to finalize our selections...
The ~50+% increase in weight here translates to a doubling of stored energy and could be loosely described as the option to run about twice as bright with the same runtime, or equally bright for twice as long. If one were to pack along the 12 X CR123 necessary to match the 4 X 18650's in terms of stored energy, both of these illumination systems would actually weigh the about the same, and have the same "stored energy," but the system with the 18650's would have a lower operating cost in the long run (cells can be recharged hundreds of times) and more versatile operation (wider range of illumination options, mainly, brighter options). The advantage of the CR123 based system is that the disciplined user who sticks with lower modes of operation most of the time, can probably get by on 1 X CR123 for every 3-6 nights of active camp duty, resulting in potentially a much lighter weight illumination system. A disciplined user could very likely do most trips with only 1 spare CR123 packed. I am not a disciplined user, I like to play with my flashlights, and to be honest, playing with flashlights is part of the fun for me in the woods, so I'm willing to carry extra weight for that.
Just for reference, 4 X high capacity 18650's weigh <7oz. The equivalent stored energy from rechargeable NIMH AA cells would weigh >16oz (16 decent capacity cells).
We've been mulling over this decision for awhile now, and I think we have it narrowed down to the decision to go with Armytek instead of Zebra for a number of reasons. We're looking pretty seriously at combining the Wizard Pro V2 (warm) with the Partner C2 Pro V2, and 4 X unprotected Panasonic NCR18650B's for each of us, for a total illumination system weight of ~12oz for each of us. (The armytek lights are a bit heavier than the zebras).
My reasoning for leaning towards the armytek solutions are as follows.
1. Implied durability is greater.
2. Customer service/support and warranty seems better based on initial reports.
3. Styling and other "fun" stuff like the button beacon. (shallow.. I know).
4. TIR optics instead of reflector based optics should in my estimation have the potential to be superior in several ways if implemented well (crossing fingers).
That said, I think I'd happily own either setup, and am even contemplating "both" (since I need to buy "2" lighting systems anyway), just for the opportunity to compare and contrast them.
