Which compact light gives extremely long runtimes on a low lumen setting

JKincaid

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Hi Guys, I'm new here and need some expert opinions. Which AAA, AA or CR123 single cell light will provide the longest runtime? I usually only use my HDS twisty on the lowest setting (.3 lumens) and was wondering if there was another light out there that could give me substantially longer runtimes. My reasoning is that I thought I might be better off to save the twisty's battery for the odd time I need a bright light and then keep another low output light on me that is super efficient with it's battery. Thanks!
 

DM51

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Welcome to CPF, JKincaid :)

Your HDS is a good choice, and there won't be many to beat it for long run-time. I'm sure other members will have their own suggestions.

I'll move this to the LED Flashlights section.
 

papageorgio

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I have a quark aa2 and the runtime on that in moonlight (.2) is extremely long. Someone did a runtime test on here but i cant recall how long it was. If you want a little more compact with not quite as much, maybe look at the quark AA
 

RepProdigious

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Another vote for the Quark line, i have a regular 123 (shorter than the AA) and the battery just doesn't want to die on moonlight......
 

JKincaid

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Thanks for the advice guys. I will check out the Quark AA. I just read a post in an HDS thread that a fellow got 470 hours at .2 lumens out of his Quark AA- sounds like an amazing runtime.
 

jhc37013

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Is Li-Ion not a choice for you? If you would consider it you could get a Zebralight SC600 loaded with a 18650 set to .1lmn it is said to last ~80 days.
 

scout24

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Welcome! Go into the 4Sevens forum over in the Marketplace to see the runtime results for a bunch of different configurations of Quark lights. As far as AAA, Peak Matterhorn, (No longer available) Peak Eiger and Fenix EO1 are the runtime champs. :)
 

SaturnNyne

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Which AAA, AA or CR123 single cell light will provide the longest runtime? I usually only use my HDS twisty on the lowest setting (.3 lumens) and was wondering if there was another light out there that could give me substantially longer runtimes.
Hi, welcome to CPF!

As has already been said, the HDSes do very well as far as runtimes go, so I doubt many similar lights would beat it by a substantial margin. My recommendation, if you really want long runtimes at very low levels, would be to simply increase the runtime on what you've already got. 0.33 lumens is not the lowest setting the Twisty is capable of, it's level 5 of 21 or 22. If .33 is what you use almost exclusively, I'd recommend you just reprogram the Twisty to one of the four lower levels (it'll go down to about .08) on low, .33 on medium, and leave high at full power for when you need it. At the lowest level, I've seen estimates of 1000 hours for the Clicky, and Twisty should be just about identical in runtime. Would that be good enough?
 

angelofwar

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An L1-Red will go at least 90-Hours (I'm doing a runtime test now, since, being a red emitter, it SHOULD have substantially longer runtime than the white version). The 4th or 5th gen L1's have at least 90-hours on low (1.1 or 2.2 lumens). The E2L goes for 100 hours at 3 lumens, and the U2 goes for 146 at it's lowest (2.2).
 

JKincaid

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Thanks again to everyone for the informative replies- Gives me a lot to think about. I've been checking out the 4Sevens forum and Wow! some of the runtimes on those Quark's are just amazing. I was originally thinking a single cell light, but the Quark AA2 S2 edition with a runtime of 1277 hours at .6 lumens sounds like it should more than fit my needs. I'm also intrigued by the use of the Saft LS 14500 AA battery in a single cell Quark AA. I started reading a post where it was indicated it might not be the safest battery to use? I need to finish reading up on the discussions of that battery and whether or not it's ok to run it in a Quark- sure seems like it delivers some extraordinary runtimes.
 

think2x

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Someone did a runtime test on here but i cant recall how long it was. If you want a little more compact with not quite as much, maybe look at the quark AA

My son (8 year old) did a runtime test of his own and got 31 days on the Quark AA2. I'm not sure if anyone has done one on a Quark AA single or 123 yet.
 

StarHalo

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Li-ion/14500 cells are for high or medium drain applications only; low drain use can circumvent the protective circuitry and cause the battery to discharge well below its minimum voltage rating - this is the easiest way to destroy a li-ion cell. Stick to Energizer Lithiums for max runtime.

Also, minute differences in flashlight circuitry create large differences in runtime. Two copies of the exact same flashlight may vary in minimum output runtime by as much as 20%. In a 1000+ hour light, this means runtimes will vary by a few days from copy to copy. This is why no one does minimum output runtime tests.
 

cratz2

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Yeah, I definitely wouldn't use an Li-Ion to do runtime tests on a super low setting.

I have a Q3 that I converted to direct drive with an XR-E R2 star... after playing with it on a R123 for a while, I put in a fresh CR123 and have been letting it run... It's been on since last Tuesday at 4:30pm and it's still putting out more light than my SSC P4-modded HDS on the Minimum setting but definitely not as bright as on the Secondary setting... I think my HDS is now about 18 lumens on Secondary and about 1.X lumens on Minimum. My best guess is the Q3 is still putting out about 5-8 lumens after running for an entire week. I check it each night and I don't think its brightness has changed in the last 3 days.

I do wonder how much energy the driver uses at such a low draw... seems like it would be around 200% or worse when driving an LED to well under 1 lumen.
 

shao.fu.tzer

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I fear I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but the Thrunite Neutron series has an awesomely low Firefly mode which I employ every night now to find my way around the house in the pitch black. .9 lumens or something is what they state? All I know is that it's all I need to see in darkness and it's pretty darn inexpensive for such a quality piece.

Shao
 

mollett89

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i know its not the same runtime as the lights other people are suggesting but i really like my fenix e01. the run time is something like 21 or 24 hours at iirc like 12 lumens or something like that. i have had mine since like november and still have the original durracel it came with in it. i use the light every day at least for a few minutes. i will never go without an e01 it is probably my most favorite light i own

Luke
 

John_Galt

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The older HDS Lights (the original, pre-Novatac series) had exceptional runtimes on minimum output. The current draw numbers for them are in the HDS Systems thread.

Current Draws were insanely low, fractions of a mA of current. Henry, unfortunately had to make some changes to the circuit design to improve efficiency at higher outputs, which compromised runtime at the lower outputs, but they still have very good low output run times.

Buy an older HDS light, upgrade the LED to a neutral white XP-G, and enjoy 900+hours of light at the minimum setting.
 

CarpentryHero

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My thrunite Neutron 1a and 1c low low is .09lumens
Quark cr123x2 nuetral is .2 lumens
Zebralight Sc60 is .3 lumens (runs on an 18650 but is incredibly short)
Quark turboX is .3 lumens
Novatac Storm .3 lumens

Staring at the emitters of the above lights the XML appear dimmer and I think that's due to the larger surface area.
Neither of the Quarks are single cell or small so they probably don't fit your criteria.
Price to use I'd get either a Thrunite or Zebralight (preferably newer with lower low)
bdbcdd6c.jpg


Thrunite Nuetron 1A and Zebralight Sc60 side by side
 

Glock27

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An SC60w will do .2 for 41 days.
It is very easy for me to put batteries on a charger....I see no real need to not charge often. I hate leaving home with <90% charged Li-Ion. :cool:
G27
 

Mr Bigglow

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Personally I favour the Quark AA for that purpose and for very very long runtimes, the Quark AA2. Both are fairly easy to find and they are reliable.
 
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