LS ?

Does the head on an LS come apart at the top I just got my first one and tried to unscrew it but it didn't budge.

Ok duh! moment. I was going to say that maybe yours was defective and ask if you meant does the head come apart into 2 pieces or does the head separate from the body then I reaized that you must be talking about the head because any idiot other that I knows that the head would have to come off the body to put in the battery


Anyway I honestly don't know as I don't have one but I found that amusing
(Saaby smacks himself in the forhead)

Funny you should raise this topic - I just got my 2nd SLS today (like 1/2 hour ago) and to my surprise - the head itself splits into 2!

It looks like my particular unit (#798) slipped thru QC without the head being threadlocked/glued on to the main battery-mating threadsection. So, if you take unscrew the upper ring (the bit with the serial no), it separates as one whole potted piece including the LS emitter, optics and PCB+retainer. Interesting. I'd be tempted to pry out the PCB, but nooooo way for this baby. Apart from this "feature", this is the *BEST* SLS I have yet handled - perfect beam color, centering, only 2AA tube has mismatched anodize. And this puppy is bright! On a fresh 123, this one tops my violet-tinted SLS, which til now, was the brightest single luxeon flashlight I own apart from the very excellent Lambda Illuminator.

Anyway, back to topic:

Point is, even if you could take off the upper ring, forget about putting color filters, or swapping optics Minimag-style - its all fused as one piece.

Actually, the foreman called me Monday to tell me that the loctite stopped working. I said, "what do you mean?" He said the heads they glued didn't stay put. They didn't catch it right away so a few units did go out. It doesn't affect the operation of the light but I would like the unit to be sealed.

Not sure what has happened. I called our supplier and they say that loctite has a 24 month shelf life before it has to be used. We have only had it for about 6 months. We tried mixing up the bottle, etc. It just won't stick anymore. So rather than mess with it, I ordered another bottle (came in today).

What a week...

Peter Gransee

Well, for what its worth, this problem doesn't dilute my delight in owning this particular unit. Like I said, I think its pretty neat that I can take off the battery thread portion. And since the head is epoxied anyway, PCB included, it doesn't seem to really affect watertightness all that much either. It would also be real easy for me to Loctite it myself.

No complaints here - it is, after all, a factory second. Darn good one too, at that. And you even remembered to send me the extra retainers and split rings too this time - thanks!

Great job there, Peter - especially now that the 2nds are so close to the firsts and the v1.2 that I have show me much more clearly *why* you held out earlier and were so reluctant to release the earlier batches, even if they were seconds. I'm also getting a very good picture of just how good the Arc LS firsts will actually be - and I'm very very impressed.

hotfoot, what color is your 2nd LS? I just posted a wanted ad on buy/sell/trade for a amber LS factory second! If nothing comes up, I may have to order the first at $180.
Somebody stop me, I need my meals!

Sorry Xenon, mine's incandescent white. Luuuuurvely incandescent white

Just got my second SLS--orange-red HD--and it's *bright*. It's #863. My old early SLS is white (pea green and lumpy) is #090.

I have to say, Peter, things have improved imensely in the time between them. I was (and still am) very happy with my #090, but I'm also very happy with #863.

Differences:
The front ring of the head unit now matches the body of the head unit.
All battery packs now match the head (all of it) in tint.
The head no longer has a raised section which is groves, but has the crosshatching inlaid--like the tubes always have.
The pitch of the crosshatching on the tubes is finer than before.
The 1AA pack has been slimmed down so that it looks more like the 2AA pack. (I can't decide if I like this. Makes it lighter, but I liked the 'bull barrel' look of the old 1AA pack)
Better chemcote
Thin foam battery retainer
Properly spiraled threads (at the end, so no more sharp corners)
New NX-05 optics
The 1AA and 2AA pack seem to be about .5 mm shorter per cell. It didn't come from the thread area as that's identical.

One question, so, is this darker color the 'proper' look for 'natural HA3'? Because my early ARC-AAA-LE matches the lighter parts and it's supposed to be natural HA3, right?
I, personally, like the look of the darker 'dung' colored HA3 vs the lighter 'tan' HA3. The darker color just looks more like a tool.

Now, to go put a 123 in it and blind the neighbors...

Oh, Peter, have you considered putting a sticker over the lens that says 'caution, avoid looking into lens when on' or something? Might be good for when this light goes mainstream and less 'clued' (crazy) people get their hands on them. Don't want grandma to blow a hole through her cataract when she stares down the barrel of one--with a fresh 123 in it--on christmas morning.

I had just noticed that my Arc-LS (first)
unscrews alittle bit. Nice to know what
it looks like in there.
I sure do wish you could put color filters,
Contect Paper or just a cheap plastic lens
so I wouldn't have to worry about hurting the main len.


Thanks for the info.