CMG Sonic or Ultra G? which would do me better

Ok, I guess it's time for me to get a single 5mm led light. I'm guessing these have enough light to walk by at night through the house/etc.

I was going to get an Ultra-G as I don't like the look of the sonics, but I do like the silver sonic, and it's smaller. I can't afford an Arc right now, and I shouldn't be buying anything right now, but you know how it goes... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif I need this to be waterproof so a Dorcy isn't what I need, but I do want one for a UV mod eventually. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif One of these would be perfect for reading directions in my car at night, when a dome light is too bright, as is my Illuma-Lux! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif

Ultra-G I like the look and that it uses an AA. I like the wide sidespill a lot. Not sure if it would be too big to EDC.

Sonic I like that I could put it on my keychain. But I have very few keys and don't like it to be cluttered. So I'm not sure if that would increase my chances of using it more over the UltraG or not, as I might get tired of something being on my keychain. I want sidespill, which this does not have... It is very small over the Ultra, and the silver would look good and not wear off anodizing on my keychain..

Any comments/experiences that could guide me into the right direction? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon3.gif

I have the Infi Ultra-G and Sonic-G and I think that the Ultra-G is what fills your requirements best.

It's only drawback is its size compared to the Sonic. In all other ways it is superior.

I think it would be easier to mod the head of an Ultra to UV than the body of a Sonic. I know the Ultra will survive an extended submersion but I'm not certain the Sonic will.

BC

Yeah the only thing I'd mod to UV would be the dorcy 1aaa. Not any CMG's. Thanks for the input. I do like the construction of the ultra better. Seems to be more water proof to me. How bright is the Ultra for a 5mm led? I've never delt with one in person. Can you walk with it on a dark night in a pinch ok?

Ooops, I see, you were referring to the Dorcy for a UV mod.

Check out Quickbeam's Output and Throw chart in the Reviews forum for comparisons of all these lights.

The Ultra works fine for illuminating the immediate path, about 4' wide x 6' long spill. The darker the night, the better it shows up. It doesn't take much ambient light to equal and exceed these lights' output and make their spots disappear.

In my opinion, the Sonic has such a small spot, it is inadequate for lighting up your footsteps. But, better than nothing.

I think my Ultra-G cost $18.00...an Arc AAA only costs $25.00. That's only $7.00 more and you won't be sorry. It's handsome, tiny, very tough (HA Type III), waterproof, bright, and has fine spill.

BC

CountyComm had Ultra-G's for 14.50. They may still.

Thanks, Phaserburn. I just checked and they do. That's an excellent price.
BC

Yup, Arc AAA is the way to go if you can afford one. Else, comparing the Ultra to the Sonic, I personally think that the Ultra is a more solid and rugged light, compared to the Sonic. Nothing against the Sonic, just that once you get a feel of both lights, you'll see what I'm talking about. Ultra has about 10 hours steady runtime, so no worries there esp since its using an AA!

I have my Ultra G on a neck lanyard when I go for late hikes, and it is more than sufficient to see where you're walking esp when its totally dark. But during the times where there's still a little sunlight left, you may find the 5mm led to be lacking. Only complain that i have is that its slightly on the heavy side, but for its ruggedness and reliability, that's a small sacrifice...

Yeah CountryComm is what I'm eyeballing. Seems as though it's just the right amount of light I was thinking it'd be.

I'd grab an arc aaa if I could get one cheaper.. I still want an ultraG though. I guess I like the look and the cool "us gov" writing /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif If I had both I don't think I'd get rid of either, even if I never used one.

Thanks for the info guys, I have a good idea of what will suit me.

Hmmmm, arc aaa on keychain for whenever I need it, and an Ultra-G for when my keys are in the ignition and I need low-level light to read directions on paper! Now if only I had more $$$.... (a true flashaholic justifies his wants, er needs)

By the way, the Ultra G might be a little bigger than you expect. That was the initial impression that I got when I received mine. You may find it a bit big for your keychain, and the anodizing on the Ultra may be Type III but the colour does get scratched off fairly easily, so just thought I'd let you know that as well. I'd go with what some other CPFers have suggested, leave the Ultra in the car with a AA Lithium, that way you have it there all the time when you need it! But having said that, I can't stop fiddling with it, so mine is seldom in the car anyways!!

Well, the Sonic does look a bit like a dog urinator (especially the red one), but it's a good little light. There's no reason it should be gotten rid of based on its looks alone. The Infinity Ultra-G does have more side spill, if you need that in a small, 1-LED flashlight. The Sonic has less side spill because its LED is recessed deeper inside the flashlight than the Ultra-G's LED.

[ QUOTE ]
IsaacHayes said:
One of these would be perfect for reading directions in my car at night, when a dome light is too bright, as is my Illuma-Lux! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/eek.gif

Ultra-G I like the look and that it uses an AA. I like the wide sidespill a lot. Not sure if it would be too big to EDC.

[/ QUOTE ]

I find that the Ultra-G is just a bit too bright for map reading in the car - it does disturb any dark adaption I have acquired - certainly as much as switching on the car interior dome light. I think it's the close proximity of the light to the paper - ie: if the light can be held comfortably at a greater distance - then it would be less intrusive.

Because of that, the regular dimmer CMG Infinity white might be more suitable for an in car map reading light - as would a Photon 3 white with its 3-level adjustable intensity.

I agree that the side-spill of the Ultra-G is very good and useful - the very popular ArcAAA's overall circle of light/side-spill was about 2/3 that of the Ultra-G - and because of that it was less useful for me.

The Ultra-G is a bit too big for true keyring carry as is the ArcAAA (or similar sized Sonic) - for me - I find that the Photon or Inova Microlights much, much better - like they are "almost not there".

left ArcAAA, right Ultra-G


The Ultra-G however is a comfortable pants pocket carry - especially if one attaches a wrist-loop, which acts as a locator/extractor - when I know I am about to use the light - I locate the wrist-loop and let the end hang just out of the pocket for easy location and extraction. The Ultra-G's size is very comfortable in hand/use - so it is one of my EDC lights in the "other" pocket -

My other EDC light is a Photon yellow on my keyring -
for me, yellow is a good compromise of being able to see well by that color and disturbs my dark adaption minimally. Although yellow does not give full color rendition it is still a pretty good light to read maps or directions by.

This post might be useful:
ArcAAA vs. Ultra-G

Right, with the UltraG I wasn't going to put it on my keychain. That was one of the pluses the sonic had. It's bigger in diameter then you first think. It'll be the perfect pocket light and fit my hand well I think. I like the form factor for that. I think it'll be my car light. I'll take it with me when I think I need it and put it in my pocket. I think it'll be fine for "map" reading. I used to use a minigag held up far away anyways, so I think it will work just as good. But I don't have the minigag in my car anymore, I have an illuma-lux, and well, despite having a smooth beam, it blinds me!

The sonic/arc seems almost too small. But I still want to get an arc aaa down the line to put on my keychain. For now I think the UltraG will serve me well though /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbsup.gif

I think you'll be happy with your Ultra-G...and the "US Government" and NSN number markings are /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/cool.gif

BC

Even though some people say the CMG UltraG/Infinity Ultra is too big for a keychain light, I found that it works well as one. It's not as small as to not be noticable, but the longer run-time and ability to use lithium AAs make up for the larger size in my opinion.

Hi,

Kevin at Battery Station has these for a deal, might try him, especially if you like Blue.

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Board=UBB10&Number=379235&page=0&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=&fpart=1

I wouldn't totally discount the Dorcy 3LED 1AA. I realize you said it needed to be waterproof, but the light does have 3 O-rings -- at both ends of the main body and in the black plastic tailcap. In wet, rainy conditions, if you avoid the tail cap and just use the twist-on, it should be fine. When the tail-cap is depressed, water can enter when the O-ring moves away from the metal tail cap. I guess you'd call it water-resistant. I wouldn't take it diving or swimming.

Having 3 LEDs, it's quite bright (much more so than the Arc), lights up a path very well and uses inexpensive AA cells. The life of the battery is extended since you can meter out quick doses of light with the tail-cap instead of leaving it on for long periods of time. I have both an Arc AAA and a Dorcy 3LED 1AA and I use the Dorcy 90% of the time. I EDC both lights, with the Arc on my keyring and the Dorcy in my jacket pocket.

I was refering to the dorcy 1aaa. I didn't know that they had an oring in the tail switch part. I might try adding that to my Illuma-Lux for the hell of it. I still prefer the rugged solid construction of the CMG over the dorcy aaa though. Swimming is one thing I plan on using the Ultra for though. Great for night time pool parties. Argh! now I've got the winter blues /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/frown.gif I'll be getting a dorcy aaa eventually to put a UV led in and I'll probably EDC it as well. Can't wait until my "collection" is compelete...