Surefire Flashlights: 2 cell vs. 3 cell

Hi everyone! This is my first post on this forum after finding out about you guys from bladeforum.com. I had know idea anyone else had my sickness for flashlights like I do.

Anyway, my questions are: I'm looking for a couple of new flashlights and have a few quick questions:

1: ARC LS vs. X5: Which would you guys recommend/prefer?

2: A friend of mine has a Streamlight Scorpion and although impressed, I was leaning towards a 2 or 3 cell Surefire instead. My questions are: A) How does the Surefire 2 cell match up to a Scorpion and B) is a 3 cell Surefire worth the extra bucks for the added brightness? or at this point (a 3 cell) do I just lean towards one of Surefire's rechargeable units.

Thanks for the help.

Buy all of them. That's the only right thing to do. If you can't do that, I'd recommend the ARC LS and the SureFire E2E, G2Z and M6.

Moving to General Flashlights Section...

Al

The Arc LS and the X5 are 2 different animals. The X5 uses 5 white nichia LEDs and you are stuck with 123s for batteries. The X5 is not as bright as the LS, but you do get longer runtime. The Arc LS give you a choice of 123 or AA, and with mods you can use the Arc as a headlamp and even get a custom 2C pack for it (or 1C or D). The Arc LS with 2AA Lithiums is brighter than the Lightwave 4000, with better focus.

I just used my Arc LS in 1AA config to take out the trash (and test the light outdoors). It really lights things up, alot. So I know that 2AA or 123 would be a bunch brighter. I recommend the Arc LS for brightness, reasonable runtime, choice of battery types, and vast extensibility.

I can't really comment on Streamlights and Surefires. They are mostly incandescents and confined to expensive 123 batteries, especially if you buy them at Radio Shack. They are tactical lights.

Besides, I am an LED guy and won't even consider an incandescent light.

Duplicate thread locked. Post to this one.