The best 1 cell cr 123 light

I have a surefire backup (the 110 lumen)but I'm looking for something brighter that can also run off of 1 cr123 like the surefire. I would prefer a mix of flood and throw and actually prefer a cool tint. Any suggestions?

Try a Peak Logan. And Welcome to CPF. You'll love it here.

HDS clicky or rotary.

My favorites are the Quark 123 (regular UI) --205 lumens, and the Zebralight SC31 (cool white) 220 lumens with the best UI around. Both lights have a good balance between flood & throw.

There are a lot of single CR123 lights available the 1X123 Quark is a favorite of mine.The SF E1E with a VME head and a Malkoff M31 would offer a great beam,200+ lumens and reliability in a single mode light!

HDS Rotary or ThruNite Neutron 1C - in that order. There are many other great ones to consider. Quark 123, Sunwayman V10R or V10R Ti, Nitecore EX11.2 and Nitecore IFE1 to name a few. Enjoy the search.

Welcome to CPF!

That really depends on what you would define as best. To some best could only mean the brightest. For me, the user interface and advance electronics of the HDS rotary and clicky makes them the best single CR123 I have ever tried. Believe me, I have a lot of lights running CR123 and none come close to a HDS.

Forget the Quark suggestions. There's nothing particually wrong with them, they are bright and feature rich, however you will most likey be dissapointed with the quality when going from a surefire backup over to the quark. Check out the HDS line of lights, they are of excellent quality.

pjandyho said:

Believe me, I have a lot of lights running CR123 and none come close to a HDS.

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oo: At $200, it aught to be fantastic.

I don't believe there is one single "best". There are so many that accel at so many levels you have to figure out which is best for you. That said, I hear only the highest of praise about the HDS units, but I haven't opted for that expensive of a light yet. I'm content with the Chinese brands, Fenix, Nitecore, Zebra, LumaPower, Xeon, and Jetbeam in no particular order. I love them all and they all serve me well. Welcome here johny have fun!

ebow86 said:

Forget the Quark suggestions. There's nothing particually wrong with them, they are bright and feature rich, however you will most likey be dissapointed with the quality when going from a surefire backup over to the quark. Check out the HDS line of lights, they are of excellent quality.

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Strong agree. I just did not know how to say it without sounding hostile or undiplomatic.

acrosteve said:

oo: At $200, it aught to be fantastic.

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Indeed it is. The clicky was my EDC for about a year. Now it is the rotary. Been carrying the rotary around daily since I received it in either late March or early April. Gave my infinite variable Jetbeam RRT-0 away, kept my Sunwayman V10R Ti in the drawer even though it is a nice light, stopped using my Quark and Surefire on a regular basis ever since I got to lay my hands on HDS.

jbdan said:

I don't believe there is one single "best". There are so many that accel at so many levels you have to figure out which is best for you. That said, I hear only the highest of praise about the HDS units, but I haven't opted for that expensive of a light yet. I'm content with the Chinese brands, Fenix, Nitecore, Zebra, LumaPower, Xeon, and Jetbeam in no particular order. I love them all and they all serve me well. Welcome here johny have fun!

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Residing near GoingGear is not doing you any good my friend.

ThruNite Neutron 1C for the money involved.

Black Frog said:

ThruNite Neutron 1C for the money involved.

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Very true! The 1C packs in a lot of features for the price. It also compact and easy to carry.

I vote for a Peak Logan 17500. The pocket 17500 will take AAA,AA,CR123, and 17500 and besides nimh and li-ions. .78 x 3.25 is pretty small. Would need to get the inserts separately.

Well what I see here is alot of suggestions for lights that um...are not bad, but technically they are inferior to the light he's already using, the surefire e1b backup. I am sure that if the OP is looking to replace his E1B with another single cell light, he isn't going to look to downgrade to a lower quality light, therefore the only option for him, should he want equal or better quality to his surefire, is HDS EDC lights.

You're not gonna find many single cell lights brighter than 250 lumens ish unless you're willing to use IMR 16340 cells with something like a XM-L.

Well, the most durable is probably the HDS lights. What I'm currently using is the JetBeam RRT-0. I think the Jetbeam is a great mix between tough durability, great craftsmanship, and brightness at ~255 lumens. Unless you need an incredibly tough light of an HDS's caliber, I would recommend getting the RRT-0 and using the extra money to buy batteries.

Also, check out the Sunwayman V10R, which is also getting rave reviews.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I was seriously considering the rotary(and still am), i just wanted to try something a little less expensive and also something pretty small but still plenty bright. I wanted to be able to wear it around my neck sometimes. I was looking at the thrunite 1c and also the quark minix 123. i was just wondering if there was anything else out there considering i am new to this whole wide world of flashlights lol.

ggreenjohny said:

Thanks for all the suggestions. I was seriously considering the rotary(and still am), i just wanted to try something a little less expensive and also something pretty small but still plenty bright. I wanted to be able to wear it around my neck sometimes. I was looking at the thrunite 1c and also the quark minix 123. i was just wondering if there was anything else out there considering i am new to this whole wide world of flashlights lol.

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The fenix PD20 is worth taking a look at.

ebow86 said:

The fenix PD20 is worth taking a look at.

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... although the PD10 might be a bit smaller, with same max output.