My Arc problems and their customer service.

This is my first post, I've been lurking here on and off for a few years.

A couple years back I read a very positive review of the ARC-AAA on DansData and saw the video where they switch the battery with the Solitarie (which I had at the time) and was impressed enough to switch myself. So I bought two regular version Arc-AAA, one for myself and one for my brother. He's never had a complaint about his, but mine has always been trouble.

It would power on, then off, but a second power on had a fifty-fifty chance of working. But it was so much brighter than my Solitaire that it was worth the occasional hassle. Still, this soured me on ARC. Every time it would fail to light would remind me that I should have tested both lights, then stuck my brother with the flakey one. :devil:

Anyway, Last month I went to light up a PC case with it and it had apparently died. I followed some tips I found here about cleaning threads, switching battery brands and other basic maintenance. Someone recommended testing the head by wiring it directly to the battery, and that made it light every time. I guess the tube went bad? I'd love to hear any theories on how that might happen.

So I emailed Arc and Maria Delgado responded telling me to send it in. I mailed it on September 7th, hoping they would replace the tube. It would be unreasonable to expect they'd replace the light and the thought never entered my mind. In the mail today I received a brand new ARC-P! I'm very happy about this and frankly kind of astounded.

THANK YOU ARC! :twothumbs


One weird thing though ... the plastic blister pack they sent it in refers to Double-A batteries repeatedly, not AAA. The blue card inside the plastic has small print on the front that says "BWP-NAT Premium White LED, Natural Finish" and has the exploding pineapple tree logo from their website.

Welcome to CPF bnderan

The new "P" model is awesome...it should last a lifetime (or at least until the next generation of Arc AAA's is spawned)

And as for the old Arc AAA - I just passed my vintage model on to my kid brother...I got several years of flawless use from this light and I expect him to get the same...excellent little unit...he is made up with it.

Great service from Arc BTW, nice to know that if I ever have a problem that it will be dealt with swiftly and profesionally...great lights, great company.


CFU

P.S. You sure you didn't blind yourself with your new toy? Just checked my blister card and it only mentions AAA's on the front and the instructions on the back.

Thanks for the welcome CFU.
You guessed correctly that one of the first things I did was point the business end at my face and give myself a dose of temporary blindness. :duck: I wouldn't last very long as a firearms enthusiast.

I just made some scans of the packaging, so you can see for yourself.

It really does reference "AA" at every turn doesn't it! - Wonder how many of those sneaked out of 'Arc Towers' before they were discovered eh?


...or maybe they are about to re-issue the much loved Arc-AA again and slipped up with your package?...ok, I know, it's not gonna happen...

...but a man must have his dreams.

CFU

The reference to an AA size battery isn't the only weird thing. The model number on that package says BWP-NAT, but the model number on my Arc-P package says AWP-NAT.

HHUMMM,maybe an AA is on the way.

ProofTech said:

The reference to an AA size battery isn't the only weird thing. The model number on that package says BWP-NAT, but the model number on my Arc-P package says AWP-NAT.

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And the light blue rectangular fields where the light and the battery are placed are larger than on the AAA insert.

snip

bnderan said:

The blue card inside the plastic has small print on the front that says "BWP-NAT Premium White LED, Natural Finish" and has the exploding pineapple tree logo from their website.

Click to expand...

Besides the AA, can Peter confirm if that logo really is an exploding pineapple tree?

methinks he let the cat outta tha bag!

Hold onto to the package, maybe it's worth lots of $, like one of those misprint stamps.

I can tell you as of last Friday there are no plans for a Arc AA. I wish there were but not in the cards as of now.

maybe those cards were intended for the model that included the shrinkray accessory to shrink the aa cell to fit?

snakebite said:

maybe those cards were intended for the model that included the shrinkray accessory to shrink the aa cell to fit?

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Oh yeah! THAT double-secret shrinkray accessory! I think I read about it in Popular Theatrics magazine.

I also heard that you can make a AAA battery "grow" into a AA batt. simply by soaking it overnight in a glass of Jack Daniels laced with Viagra!

you've got it all wrong...!

The exploding pineapple tree logo is really a shrinkray....

Hah

The real story is less interesting I am afraid...

2 years ago, we were going to make an AA version of the Arc-AAA. However, I changed my mind but not until after we had already ordered a bunch of retail packaging. I am tired of looking at all those big boxes of retail packaging going to waste. This includes the plastic clamshell and the cardboard card. The instructions and specifications are the same; the only differences are the type of cell mentioned, the part number and the UPC code. I hope this is a good use for the packaging instead of throwing it away. If you must have packaging that says, "AAA" (for a display case, etc), then just let us know.

The "AA" packaging should get used up fairly quickly so get 'em while you can.

Peter

Hi Peter,

So what is the Arc Logo?

Here's how you can make your own Arc logo: Look into your flashlight, turn the light on an off. The after image you now see probably looks something like the current Arc logo.

It is supposed to be of a light shining actively towards the viewer. This contrasts with the typical flashlight trademark with a flashlight beam that has the light shining away from the user.

Peter

2 years ago, we were going to make an AA version of the Arc-AAA. However, I changed my mind

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You should change you mind again Mr Gransee - It would make many people extremely happy.


CFU

Hey Peter, now think about this. Everyone is expecting an Arc CR123 light. However, when this light is unveiled, you also release the new Arc AA and AAA Luxeons (two stage). The other manufacturers would be biting their nails. You would then have the CR123, AA, and AAA range covered.
It would be like Michael Corleone in the Godfather, when he whacks a whole bunch of people (when they least expect it)!

Come on, will you do this for us, Don Gransee.

Casual Flashlight User said:

You should change you mind again Mr Gransee - It would make many people extremely happy.

CFU

Click to expand...

I wouldn't hold my breath.

It's Arc's way or the highway, and when it comes to wanting a AA light, that highway (and money) leads somewhere else.