Been out of flashlights for a while - what to replace Arc LS?

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bigred

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Aug 21, 2003
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Hi guys. I haven't posted on here in quite some time. I've been away from flashlights but am now in need of a good EDC LED light. I am totally out of the loop at the moment. Can anyone tell me what current LED flashlight would compare to the old Arc LS? I'd prefer to stay away from modded lights or conversion kits. Just a good, dependable, stock LED flashlight with comparable output to the old Arc LS. Also, a 1xAA or 2xAA power pack is a necessity. 1x123 is desirable but not necessary.

Any ideas?

Thanks.
 
I'd say the new HDS twisty (not out yet) with 2aa powerpack (also not out yet) is the closest in spirit, if you don't mind waiting a while and spending $165+the power pack. Because of led advances it's much brighter than the old Arc.

If you just want a 1 level light comparable to the old LS, I'd suggest a Peak Pacific in a high or ultra power configuration (it goes XLR-high-ultra-super, so high is the 2nd lowest powered of the available setups). It is on sale til the end of this year so you should call Peak on Monday if you want to save a few bucks getting one ($50 regular, 20% off on sale). You will get good runtime on an alkaline aa with high power, not sure about with ultra. Ultra and super probably really want lithium.
 
I've been out of the loop for two years. Back in the day, the ARC-LS was "the" EDC LED flashlight. Nothing else even came close.

I'm not looking to turn night into day, I just want a good EDC LED light that can run on one or two AA batteries (I get them free).

I'll read up on the two models mentioned. Keep the ideas coming.

Thanks for the info.
 
I'd go with the NovaTac EDC-85 or 120 depending on you budget and desired output. I have a 120T and it is a sweet light with a lifetime warranty and is made in the USA. I got mine from http://www.lighthound.com along with some other items and am very happy with their service. Hope this helps.
 
I see a couple recommendations for the Novatac and the HDS twisty. As far as I know one of these lights isn't even for sale yet, and neither of them take AA batteries. Bigred said that AA compatibility was required.

I'd second the recommendation to check out the Fenix L1D and L2D series lights. The Lumapower M3 might also be worth a look.
 
eh ...the powerpack you want is a fenix L1d with a spare L2d body and spare p2d body and tailcap exactly this in link below + the spare L2d body ,check under spare bodies on side menu $18 https://www.fenix-store.com/product_info.php?cPath=22_65&products_id=226

L2d spare body https://www.fenix-store.com/index.php?cPath=27_39

or check out any fenix as they are all bright and multi level ,the ones with "cree" led

use " cpf8 " for 8% coupon all in all its a total of $84 w/coupon for a single light that can transform into 3 as all use same head

review from a site you may have seen in past

http://flashlightreviews.com/reviews/fenix_l1dce-l2dce.htm

http://flashlightreviews.com/reviews/fenix_p2dce.htm

best to use common everywhere to find aa energizer e2 lithiums as shown as " lithium aa L91 " in review
 
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There will supposedly be a 2aa powerpack for the HDS twisty. I don't know about the Novatac. IMO the Fenixes, especially the digital ones, aren't really comparable to the original Arc in spirit. Yes they put out as many photons, or actually a lot more photons, but there is more to flashlights than photons. The possible exception is the P1CE (NOT the P1DCE) which is a clone of tvodrd's famous 1x123 light. But it doesn't use AA's.
 
If you don't want to spend more than 35 bucks the Lumapower 301 is a 2 stage single AA light that works pretty good.
 
paulr said:
There will supposedly be a 2aa powerpack for the HDS twisty. I don't know about the Novatac. IMO the Fenixes, especially the digital ones, aren't really comparable to the original Arc in spirit. Yes they put out as many photons, or actually a lot more photons, but there is more to flashlights than photons. The possible exception is the P1CE (NOT the P1DCE) which is a clone of tvodrd's famous 1x123 light. But it doesn't use AA's.
Click to expand...



where you see that ,curious on the 2aa , i like the body of hds/novatac but at over $100 its hard to go that far into the wallet
 
The Fenix twist head works better than I thought it would although I find I must use two hands to be sure I get the level I want.

This is based on a well worn example DonShock graciously sent me.

A new one MIGHT one hand well.

Nowadays a single AA can do more than a 123 could two years ago. I think I'll go ahead and recommend a Fenix L1D CE or L2D CE or the package as outlined above!
 
The Novatac and HDS lights designed by Henry - who was in the Arc manufacturing before they folded (and then rebirthed) are great CR123 lights - best of quality IMO. But AA or 2 x AA for them are not commonly available at this time and may cost you and arm and leg for the tube.
One of the newest and best AA deals I've found is the Edgetac Nitecore Defender Infinity. You'll find lots of info here and on CPF Marketplace on it but briefly it will use a AA alkaline, NiMH rechargeable or 3.6 volt Li-Ion 14500 and do quite well on any of those batteries. It has a forward clicky which is a rarity most people seem to prefer and a very nice one at that and it's simple to operate but has additional features if you like - such as fully adjustable output and strobe. It claims 180 Lumens but realistically I think closer to 120 to 150 Lumens (think 4 to 5 times as bright as your Arc LS) but it can be cranked down to levels much lower than your Arc LS with greatly increased run times - LED's using Cree, Luxeon Rebel and Seoul P4's are now so much more efficient that you'll be amazed at how long a light will run at the same brightness as the Arc did. The latest LED's can put out 275 Lumens if pushed to around 1 amp. Glad to have you back and I'm sure you'll find some great lights that will work for you.
 
The direct heir to the ARC LS was the HDS EDC. This is no longer available.

The heir to that is the current NovaTac, which is available at Lighthound and elsewhere (Lighthound is running a sale today as I recall). This is "the" EDC today, though there is no AA pack that I know of.

It's still the case that whatever light Henry S. most recently designed is the best EDC of the moment. He's about to release his own lights again as paulr mentioned, which will compete with NovaTac. The new HDC will be a one generation newer than NovaTac but I'm not sure what the improvements are.

Fenix makes some lights in the ARC LS form-factor. Fenix is a Chinese manufacturer and the design is not up to Henry's ARC LS / HDS / NovaTac standards (battery compatibility, immersibility, etc) but they are good bang-for-the-buck and they have heads that can use a AAA and AA batteries as well as CR123 heads. I use Fenix lights as workbench lights, but stick to NovaTac for EDC.
 
qip said:
where you see that ,curious on the 2aa , i like the body of hds/novatac but at over $100 its hard to go that far into the wallet
Click to expand...

Henry mentioned the 2aa HDS pack in the HDS thread on CPFMP. I agree that $100+ lights aren't for everyone, but the Arc LS cost that much, so it wasn't for everyone either. The Fenix L1D series is very popular around here and costs a lot less than the Arc/HDS/etc. but I feel that its construction quality is lower, and overall it pursues a different and (to me) less sensible vision of flashlight design. I bought an L1DCE, tried it, didn't like it, and sold it immediately. So I can't really describe it as an Arc LS replacement if a former LS owner now wants a light that is in the spirit of the original. I'd say the Peak Pacific is a more logical low-cost replacement. If you want a Fenix-style light, I liked the original L1p (except leds are much better now) better than the L1D series.
 
bigred said:
Can anyone tell me what current LED flashlight would compare to the old Arc LS? I'd prefer to stay away from modded lights or conversion kits. Just a good, dependable, stock LED flashlight with comparable output to the old Arc LS. Also, a 1xAA or 2xAA power pack is a necessity. 1x123 is desirable but not necessary.
Click to expand...
Heya, Bigred. As far as output similar to the old LS, most anything these days will be brighter, unless you buy a Lux-based Dorcy light, a River Rock, or something like that.

I just got a couple of SF L1 Cree's, and I'm hooked again. They don't work off AA's, but the 2 levels and the single 123 cell more than makes up for that "shortcoming". Really nice light.

If you really favor the 1 & 2AA battery packs, 4sevens was selling this "special package" at fenix-store.com - you get the option of using 1x123 or 1xAA.

I tend to stay away from lights that haven't been "field tested", so to speak - the HDS twisty would fall into that category.
 
I never had or handled an original, second, third or whatever gen of the ARC LS. So I don't know about levels or such.

I do have some experience with Fenix, and still very much appreciate my P1. It is a simple LUX III single level 123 light.

But my limited Fenix D experience still says for a reasonably priced modern light the LOD, L1D, L2D, P1D etc. will do nicely.

I can basically go through my day at work, use a 1W 1AA and be perfectly happy. I don't need the brightest 1AAA, 1AA or 123 lights.

You can still grab a black P1 at FenixStore!!!!
 
Wow! Now I remember why I used to love frequenting this site. Great, great information. Thank you one and all for the great input.

Here is what I plan to do - I plan to order a Fenix L2D Premium Q5 Cree XR-E. The problem I have is that the L1D body I want is specified to be compatible ONLY with the L1D CE, L2D CE, and P2D. The light I want is NOT an L2D CE, but rather, an L2D Premium Q5 Cree. Here is the link.

http://cgi.ebay.ca/Fenix-L1D-body-T...Z017QQcategoryZ106987QQtcZphotoQQcmdZViewItem

Can anyone tell me what the deal is here? Is there an L1D body available for the Cree?

Thanks again guys. Now I gots to go look at some of the other choices mentioned...
 
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