new to lumapower

[jasonsmaglites]

i hear alot about lumapower on cpf.
i'm wondering what do they have to offer me.
i gotta have a cree or seoul and usually prefer aa's
i love my fenix l2d ce and am thinking about a p3d rebel100
what does lumapower have for an edc?

 

[AFAustin]

I love my LM 303. It's a small, simple (2-stage reverse clicky), very bright SSC pocket flood. At ~$35, I think it's a great bargain. If you strongly prefer an AA light, its brother, the LM 301, is also nice but lacks the output of the LM 303.

 

[Kilovolt]

+1 for Lumapower LM303. :thumbsup:

It's very small and fits perfectly in a pocket, has a nice and clean beam (SSC P4 + OP reflector) and its simple and straightforward switch makes life easy. LM301 has the same qualities, is less powerful and a bit longer.

 

[Dobbler]

I love my LM303. It's a small, simple (2-stage reverse clicky), very bright SSC pocket flood. At ~$35, I think it's a great bargain. If you strongly prefer an AA light, its brother, the LM 301, is also nice but lacks the output of the LM 303.

The LM301 is actually more flexible than the LM303 -- I have both. I just bought another LM301 in fact. And it looks like Lumapower has gone back to the LM31 and LM33 designations by the way.

The LM31 on 1.5v AA has a very low low which I find terribly useful for reading and navigating around the house. The LM31 on 1.5v AA has reasonably bright high on 1.5v AA -- about 90% the brightness of the LM33 on 3v CR123A by the specs. However, the LM31 has much longer run times on 1.5v low (up to 15 hours) than the LM33 on low (4 hours) which must use 3.0v or better CR123A size battery.

If you're a brightness freak, both the LM31 and LM33 can run on 3.7v rechargeables. The LM31 can produce the same levels of output on a 3.7v 14500 that the LM33 can on an 3.7v RCR123A.

The only advantage the 33 has over the 31 is that it is a little bit shorter.

LM31 pros:
1.5v and 3.7v options to choose between runtime and output
Very low low output on 1.5v with very long runtime, excellent for reading
Runs quite well on alkalines -- good emergency choice

LM31 cons:
longer form factor than LM33

LM33 pros:
shorter form factor and LM31

LM33 cons:
Low level still relatively bright and not as useful for reading
Longest runtime still significantly shorter than LM31

 

[Kilovolt]

Dobbler, your appraisal is very interesting and I agree with you. But the only way to achieve a personal standpoint on the subject is to do what both of us did: buy both lights and then decide which one you like better.:naughty:

 

[AFAustin]

Make that three---I also bought both, preferred the LM303/33, and sold the LM301/31. In fact, I remember Matt at batteryjunction mentioning at the time that a large majority of his customers for these lights bought both.

Dobbler,

Interesting about the name change---and I notice the LP website (oddly) refers to them in both ways: http://www.lumapower.com/products/303.html

You make a good case for the LM301/31 and it is indeed a nice light. I actually wanted a higher "low" than the 31 on an AA NiMH provided, and on a 14500, IIRC, it really didn't have a low function at all. So, for max output with 2-stages, and a smaller & lighter form factor, I favored the LM303/33. As always, depends on what you want.

Here's the original product announcement/discussion thread if the OP or anyone else is interested:http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/showthread.php?t=139548 (Go all the way down to page 8, post #223)

In any event, these are two very fine lights, at very attractive prices, from a top tier manufacturer. I'm surprised that, after the initial buzz, there is so little discussion of them in the threads. Oh well....

 

[RebelXTNC]

I also purchased both the LM301 and LM303. And I like them equally.
In addition, especially if you like twisties, don't forget the F1. It is more expensive I guess due to the more complicated body style, but it's a very useful and smoothly operating single-stage light. I have one with SSC and an older "Winter Edition" with green body and a luxeon emitter.

 

[jdong]

IMO for an EDC a low low is much overlooked. I have complaints about some of my flashlights being too bright as EDC's, and they don't have very flatteringly high-end LED's either. It's annoying that a quick press on the switch knocks out your night vision when you just want a little momentary illumination.

 

[Gatsby]

Not only is a low low important, but the ability to turn the light on directly in that low mode also matters (like the HDS/Novatac which remember the last level; or the Orb which always starts in low). I also like the ability to turn it on and off in the lowest mode without having to cycle through the high mode (I think the original two stage Fenixes did this with the switch and head setup). I'm considering a LM301 due to the low low, but sure wish it could be turned back off from that mode like my HDS.

I thought about the Fenix L1T but the low is apparently still pretty darn bright...

 

[john46268]

I'm considering a LM301 due to the low low, but sure wish it could be turned back off from that mode like my HDS.

At the risk of repeating myself, you could always press the lens into your leg or stomach to block it out while clicking thru high...

Happy Lighting!

 

[jdong]

I agree, with lo-hi-off you can just hold it up against something when you click it twice... it beats the hi-lo-off where you can forget much more subconsious.

 

[Grubbster]

Not only is a low low important, but the ability to turn the light on directly in that low mode also matters (like the HDS/Novatac which remember the last level; or the Orb which always starts in low). I also like the ability to turn it on and off in the lowest mode without having to cycle through the high mode (I think the original two stage Fenixes did this with the switch and head setup). I'm considering a LM301 due to the low low, but sure wish it could be turned back off from that mode like my HDS.

I don't know if you know it, but the LM301 can be turned off and on in the low mode. You just click it to low and then use it by twisting the head instead of the clickie.

 

[jdong]

It seems like there's a lot of head tricks (haha, head tricks... ok enough immaturity 😀) involved with the LM301... are they all documented somewhere?

 

[MattK]

Make that three---I also bought both, preferred the LM303/33, and sold the LM301/31. In fact, I remember Matt at batteryjunction mentioning at the time that a large majority of his customers for these lights bought both.

Dobbler,

Interesting about the name change---and I notice the LP website (oddly) refers to them in both ways:

Most of you early adopter types bought both - I cannot remember the statistic but somthing like 90% of the first 50 orders for the LM303 included an LM301.

Regarding the name change here's the true Hollywood story:
The LM301 and LM303 were the names of the old versions. I bugged Ricky into getting rid of the 0 which I saw as extraneous and thought doing so would make it as clear as possible which was the old Luxeon version and which was the new SSC version. This is largely because I find it frustrating as hell when companies like SF, Inova etc make a major change to their products and leave the name unchanged - it leads to consumer confusion, inventory/stock issues, etc..and it's just dumb. Inova/SF don't listen to me so much but LP does so I got my way on this. 🙂

So Ricky put in the change for the packaging. Ricky instructed someone else to make the change for the name screening on the lights. They forgot which resulted in the first run of bodies showing LM301/LM303 and the packaging reading LM31/LM33.

We're now in the second production run of both lights and the bodies were screened LM31/LM33 this time. 🙂

 

[Dobbler]

Most of you early adopter types bought both - I cannot remember the statistic but somthing like 90% of the first 50 orders for the LM303 included an LM301.

Regarding the name change here's the true Hollywood story:
The LM301 and LM303 were the names of the old versions. I bugged Ricky into getting rid of the 0 which I saw as extraneous and thought doing so would make it as clear as possible which was the old Luxeon version and which was the new SSC version. This is largely because I find it frustrating as hell when companies like SF, Inova etc make a major change to their products and leave the name unchanged - it leads to consumer confusion, inventory/stock issues, etc..and it's just dumb. Inova/SF don't listen to me so much but LP does so I got my way on this. 🙂

So Ricky put in the change for the packaging. Ricky instructed someone else to make the change for the name screening on the lights. They forgot which resulted in the first run of bodies showing LM301/LM303 and the packaging reading LM31/LM33.

We're now in the second production run of both lights and the bodies were screened LM31/LM33 this time. 🙂

So my 301 and 303 are collectors pieces and now worth $$$!

 

[MattK]

Totally. You should now buy an LM31 and LM33 and have the LM301 and LM303 sealed in lucite or han solo'd or something. 😛

Actually you should by an Olight T10 - they just came in today and they're pretty damned amusing.

 

[Dobbler]

Totally. You should now buy an LM31 and LM33 and have the LM301 and LM303 sealed in lucite or han solo'd or something. 😛

Actually you should by an Olight T10 - they just came in today and they're pretty damned amusing.

Well, I just received the LM31 you sent last week -- haven't I ordered enough lights from you this month? 🙂 At this rate I will soon be broke... Hey, just send me a voided check so I can setup direct deposit into your account