As a relatively newly minted flashlight guy, I wanted a 2xAA unit for my edc.
In the end, I acquired the 3 lights in the titled thread, though not without experimentation and re-assessment along the journey.
Selfbuilt has done comprehensive reviews on some of these lights, so I will not repeat what was said. I am also in no position to replicate his testing methodology because I am not a flashlight techie. I am just an operator. What is important to me, beyond all the raw numbers, data, graphs and assorted myraid of lumen ratings, is how the light actually performed for me right there, right then, in the field.
My thoughts on these lights are particular to me. You may have a different opinion and your mileage may vary with your experience.
If you do not want to read all my ramblings and skip straight to the conclusion, my current 2xAA edc and by far my favourite amongst the 3 lights is the Quark QB2A Turbo from FourSevens.
I started this little adventure over a year ago with the Eagletac D25A2 Clicky. At the time, Eagletac was just releasing their D25 Clicky series and I eagerly jumped on the bandwagon to become an early adopter of their D25A2 Clicky w/ the Cree XPG-S2.
This was the only Eagletac light I have owned and operated and my comments pertain to the one light only.
Naturally, I was quite excited to receive the light. It was slim and compact, rides well in my jeans pocket, and if you read their specs it had all the modes and other bells & whistles that you expect. Selfbuilt mentioned this being one of the highest output lights in its class and certainly the beam did not disappoint. On max, it throws out a nice wide, usable beam to a reasonable distance which was more than adequate for my needs.
These early batches apparently had a manufacturing oversight with their tailcaps that prevented a stable tailstanding. I do not know if Eagletac have since rectified the issue but it was not a deal breaker for me and I was happy with the light.
One thing that found somewhat overdone was the inclusion of 13 output steps each in their Moonlight & Low output modes. For my pragmatic requirements, I really cannot see a need for over 13 steps that included several strobe modes of various intensity. I prefer the more logical and well-spaced steps with the Quarks which would be something along the lines of Moonlight, Low Medium, High, Max, SOS, Strobe, Beacon. That is all you really need in my humble opinion. Anything more is just excess baggage.
Lately, my D25A2 have developed a few issues. The belt clip has loosened within its housing. While the clip will not fall out because it is retained in place by the tailcap, it has so much freeplay now that it rattles against light casing and the retention ability against my jean pocket is somewhat compromised. I tried tightening it, but it doesn't seem to work. I might have to get some Loctite to secure it in place. Another problem is switching between Turbo Mode and Low Mode. You do this by tightening the head bezel (Turbo) or looseing it a around quarter turn (Low/Moonlight). Turbo works fine but I am having problems getting the Low/Moonlight mode to engage even after loosening the head. Either it kept bringing up Turbo Mode or it won't even turn on unless I give the light a little back and forth shake. Just bear in mind, the light was never dropped or abused in any manner. There are a few scuff marks on the tailcap anodizing where I inadvertently brushed it against the wall or other obstacles but nothing else.
I also bought a Dereelight Javelin to fool around with a 2xAA thrower using an XR-E-EZ900 in a Smooth reflector. Alan over at Dereelight provided prompt, excellent service and very communicative which is a necessity since their website is somewhat of a nightmare to navigate if you are a flashlight noobie looking to customize your Dereelight
The light is well built. Comes with a simple 3-output setting Low-Medium-High and throws out a narrow beam farther than the D25A2 can manage. Also got a bunch of accessories (4xAA tube, DBS head) so I can lego the with Javelin to make an even better thrower.
Throwers are a fun and exotic and this little light is certainly all that but the narrow hotspot was not particularly appealing to me. It was not a big deal inside the house where the adjoining walls tend to reflect the light that bounces off the main beam, but out in the open field, you lose a lot of coverage with that tight narrow hotspot. I'll probably just get an additional XPG drop-in from Dereelight to replace the XR-E-EZ900 and then give it to my wife because she does not like to mess around with multi modes and prefer the simple, uncomplicated 3-output setting of the Javelin.
So, not having found a 2xAA that satisfied my needs, I poked around and finally set my gaze on the units from FourSevens.
After a few inquiries on this forum and some correspondences with FourSevens staffers, I bought a Quark Turbo QB2A. FourSevens replied my questions and took care of my order quickly. The light got to me here in Asia all the way from Atlanta, Georgia in a couple of days.
Now this light interest me for a number of reasons. You choose two outputs which the light memorizes from a choice of several well-spaced steps Moonlight, Low Medium, High, Max, SOS, Strobe, Beacon. This interface is functionally very different from the two previous lights and it seems there are some folks who like it and some who don't. For me, I do not have a problem with it.
Selfbuilt's review mentioned it was one of the better throwing 2xAA currently on the market and while I like a light that throws a little further, I worried about a narrow hotspot that makes it less usable.
I decided to hedge my bets by also acquiring a Quark Tactical QT2A head to lego it the Quark Turbo QB2A body should I prefer a wider beam with more spill.
It was at this point during my correspondences with FourSevens, that I realize that you will only get the newer XP-G2 if you buy the light as a one complete package. If you buy the head as separate accessory, it will come with the prior version of XP-G that FourSevens used and not the newer version 2.
Logically, there is only one way to go for me. I bought the Turbo QB2A as the base package so I have the XP-G2 within to maximize any throw and a Tactical QT2A head with the earlier XP-G (don't know which XP model) when illumination distance is closer and throw is not as important.
That, at least, was the initial plan on how I plan to employ this light and accessories. As it turns out, I was to get a very pleasant surprise with the beam performance from the QB2A.
The QB2A has a smooth reflector and a head housing not dissimilar to the Dereelight Javelin. Not knowing better and being totally illiterate with flashlight technicalities, I was naturally expecting a similar tight narrow beam from the both of them. Imagine my surprise when the QB2A threw out a significantly wider and brighter beam than the Javelin out to similar distances.
I was even more pleasantly surprised when I had the Eagletac side by side and the Quark threw a beam distinctly farther and brighter that is only nominally narrower than the Eagletac's. By "nominally narrower", the difference to me is so insignificant that I see no reason why I would prefer the beam from the Eagletac D25A2 over that from the QB2A. Clearly, for my purposes from a beam usability point of view, the Quark QB2A handily outperforms the other two lights....and here I was initially worrying that the QB2A thrower may not have an adequately wide beam profile. I was wrong. The QB2A has an excellent beam profile that also double as a respectable 2xAA thrower......is that even possible ??
In the end, I acquired the 3 lights in the titled thread, though not without experimentation and re-assessment along the journey.
Selfbuilt has done comprehensive reviews on some of these lights, so I will not repeat what was said. I am also in no position to replicate his testing methodology because I am not a flashlight techie. I am just an operator. What is important to me, beyond all the raw numbers, data, graphs and assorted myraid of lumen ratings, is how the light actually performed for me right there, right then, in the field.
My thoughts on these lights are particular to me. You may have a different opinion and your mileage may vary with your experience.
If you do not want to read all my ramblings and skip straight to the conclusion, my current 2xAA edc and by far my favourite amongst the 3 lights is the Quark QB2A Turbo from FourSevens.
I started this little adventure over a year ago with the Eagletac D25A2 Clicky. At the time, Eagletac was just releasing their D25 Clicky series and I eagerly jumped on the bandwagon to become an early adopter of their D25A2 Clicky w/ the Cree XPG-S2.
This was the only Eagletac light I have owned and operated and my comments pertain to the one light only.
Naturally, I was quite excited to receive the light. It was slim and compact, rides well in my jeans pocket, and if you read their specs it had all the modes and other bells & whistles that you expect. Selfbuilt mentioned this being one of the highest output lights in its class and certainly the beam did not disappoint. On max, it throws out a nice wide, usable beam to a reasonable distance which was more than adequate for my needs.
These early batches apparently had a manufacturing oversight with their tailcaps that prevented a stable tailstanding. I do not know if Eagletac have since rectified the issue but it was not a deal breaker for me and I was happy with the light.
One thing that found somewhat overdone was the inclusion of 13 output steps each in their Moonlight & Low output modes. For my pragmatic requirements, I really cannot see a need for over 13 steps that included several strobe modes of various intensity. I prefer the more logical and well-spaced steps with the Quarks which would be something along the lines of Moonlight, Low Medium, High, Max, SOS, Strobe, Beacon. That is all you really need in my humble opinion. Anything more is just excess baggage.
Lately, my D25A2 have developed a few issues. The belt clip has loosened within its housing. While the clip will not fall out because it is retained in place by the tailcap, it has so much freeplay now that it rattles against light casing and the retention ability against my jean pocket is somewhat compromised. I tried tightening it, but it doesn't seem to work. I might have to get some Loctite to secure it in place. Another problem is switching between Turbo Mode and Low Mode. You do this by tightening the head bezel (Turbo) or looseing it a around quarter turn (Low/Moonlight). Turbo works fine but I am having problems getting the Low/Moonlight mode to engage even after loosening the head. Either it kept bringing up Turbo Mode or it won't even turn on unless I give the light a little back and forth shake. Just bear in mind, the light was never dropped or abused in any manner. There are a few scuff marks on the tailcap anodizing where I inadvertently brushed it against the wall or other obstacles but nothing else.
I also bought a Dereelight Javelin to fool around with a 2xAA thrower using an XR-E-EZ900 in a Smooth reflector. Alan over at Dereelight provided prompt, excellent service and very communicative which is a necessity since their website is somewhat of a nightmare to navigate if you are a flashlight noobie looking to customize your Dereelight
The light is well built. Comes with a simple 3-output setting Low-Medium-High and throws out a narrow beam farther than the D25A2 can manage. Also got a bunch of accessories (4xAA tube, DBS head) so I can lego the with Javelin to make an even better thrower.
Throwers are a fun and exotic and this little light is certainly all that but the narrow hotspot was not particularly appealing to me. It was not a big deal inside the house where the adjoining walls tend to reflect the light that bounces off the main beam, but out in the open field, you lose a lot of coverage with that tight narrow hotspot. I'll probably just get an additional XPG drop-in from Dereelight to replace the XR-E-EZ900 and then give it to my wife because she does not like to mess around with multi modes and prefer the simple, uncomplicated 3-output setting of the Javelin.
So, not having found a 2xAA that satisfied my needs, I poked around and finally set my gaze on the units from FourSevens.
After a few inquiries on this forum and some correspondences with FourSevens staffers, I bought a Quark Turbo QB2A. FourSevens replied my questions and took care of my order quickly. The light got to me here in Asia all the way from Atlanta, Georgia in a couple of days.
Now this light interest me for a number of reasons. You choose two outputs which the light memorizes from a choice of several well-spaced steps Moonlight, Low Medium, High, Max, SOS, Strobe, Beacon. This interface is functionally very different from the two previous lights and it seems there are some folks who like it and some who don't. For me, I do not have a problem with it.
Selfbuilt's review mentioned it was one of the better throwing 2xAA currently on the market and while I like a light that throws a little further, I worried about a narrow hotspot that makes it less usable.
I decided to hedge my bets by also acquiring a Quark Tactical QT2A head to lego it the Quark Turbo QB2A body should I prefer a wider beam with more spill.
It was at this point during my correspondences with FourSevens, that I realize that you will only get the newer XP-G2 if you buy the light as a one complete package. If you buy the head as separate accessory, it will come with the prior version of XP-G that FourSevens used and not the newer version 2.
Logically, there is only one way to go for me. I bought the Turbo QB2A as the base package so I have the XP-G2 within to maximize any throw and a Tactical QT2A head with the earlier XP-G (don't know which XP model) when illumination distance is closer and throw is not as important.
That, at least, was the initial plan on how I plan to employ this light and accessories. As it turns out, I was to get a very pleasant surprise with the beam performance from the QB2A.
The QB2A has a smooth reflector and a head housing not dissimilar to the Dereelight Javelin. Not knowing better and being totally illiterate with flashlight technicalities, I was naturally expecting a similar tight narrow beam from the both of them. Imagine my surprise when the QB2A threw out a significantly wider and brighter beam than the Javelin out to similar distances.
I was even more pleasantly surprised when I had the Eagletac side by side and the Quark threw a beam distinctly farther and brighter that is only nominally narrower than the Eagletac's. By "nominally narrower", the difference to me is so insignificant that I see no reason why I would prefer the beam from the Eagletac D25A2 over that from the QB2A. Clearly, for my purposes from a beam usability point of view, the Quark QB2A handily outperforms the other two lights....and here I was initially worrying that the QB2A thrower may not have an adequately wide beam profile. I was wrong. The QB2A has an excellent beam profile that also double as a respectable 2xAA thrower......is that even possible ??
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