Which to buy (probably not the best place to ask)?

Newbie question:
I know that this type of question has been asked here a hundred times before without any satisfactory answers (I've read them all). I suppose this is a reflection of both a forum full of obsessives (understandable, under the circumstances -flashlights kick ***) and the fact that everybody has their own favourites.
Hopefully, narrowing the parameters in which a possible choice can be made will aid in the formulation of a decision for me. I am notoriously bad at decision making, particularly when I am buying a new toy or gadget or tool, when I will spend weeks researching and comparing before dipping my toe in the cool waters of purchase. Please help.

I have a budget of $150. The less I spend the better (I am a student and probably shouldn't even be spending this much).
I will be carrying this light a bit and using it for camping and other stuff. I suppose you could say EDC (whatever that REALLY means).
I would like a light that is waterproof or can be altered to be dive rated up to 40 metres (130 feet) or more as I scuba dive (recreationally, and fairly shallowly most of the time <25m).
I have narrowed my choices down to the following:

Surefire L1 Digital Lumamax
Pros for me: Affordable, durable, LED powered, two brightness levels.
Cons for me: not waterproof (can it be done though?), not as bright as others.

Surefire L4 Digital Lumamax
Pros for me: Very bright, durable
Cons for me: 5w Luxeon only rated for 500hrs (is this a big deal? I don't want to have to replace it -ever), not waterproof (see above same question), more expensive than L1

Arc4 second
Pros for me: Small, durable, multi-level brightness, good battery life, high gadget factor /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif, waterproof to 50 feet?, Cheaper than others above
Cons for me: Unproven as of yet in my eyes (probably not until I buy one- I'm demanding), no tail-switch guard, it is a second.

Arc LSH "foot in the door"
Pros for me: Cheaper than some others above, comes with some cool accessories, waterproof to 50 feet (or more?), durable, compact
Cons for me: Not as bright as some of the others above.

As things stand, this is my order of preference (guided by the parameters above):
1. L1
2. Arc LSH AND L4 (tie)
3. Arc4s

Please somebody change my mind about the life of the 5w...
Arguments?

Thanks in advance.

p.s. I should also say that I am not likely to modify a light that I buy, but am not beyond doing so. Some of the mods I have seen here are downright outrageous and I love them.

Welcome Guriseto! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink2.gif

My personal favorites from your list are the L1 or the LSH, leaning towards the L1 with the two brightness levels.

Regardless of your choice, I would like to recommend that you not dive with any of your choices above (set aside some $$$ for the Underwater Kinetics 4AA LED for ~$30).

Re: Which to buy (probably not the best place to a

First, a dive light and an EDC light are two different beasts. Your depth rating might leave a lot of lights out that would be fine for EDC.

You might be better off getting a good EDC and then spend $20 on a Princeton Tec cheap dive light. Long runtime is a nice feature to have, but I doubt that you will spend six hours a day in the water. How long can you go on one tank? And changing four AA batteries is not too expensive. One trip on a dive boat is at least $30 or $40, plus air. So spending an extra $3 on a set of batteries is not a big deal. And if you break/loose/flood a $20 light, then you will cry a whole lot less than if it were a Surefire L4.

As far as your top three above, all are fine lights. I like the Arc series simply for size. They are smaller than the Surefire lights. And the best light in the world is useless if you get tired of carrying it and leave it at home.

Although the Arc4 is the current "king of cool," the LSH is easier on the wallet and just as usable in an emergency. I want an Arc4 too, but I carry a LSL on my belt whenever I leave the house, and it is not at cool, but it is good enough.

I also find that my LSL is bright enough for me. I would have little need for 5W for EDC. My EDC is just in case I need light wherever I am. This means a case like looking into a dark corner or general use if the lights go out. 5W is overkill for that.

Re: Which to buy (probably not the best place to a

I second the recommendation on getting a cheap dive light and a separate EDC - they fill totally different requirements.

I used to EDC an Arc LS (rev 1), and I highly recommend it. You can get LSL/LSHs for way under $100 now. I also had an Arc4 second briefly - that was also about $100. It was a nice light, just too big for me to carry around.

I am currently carrying a Firefly with a T rank LuxIII. I also have a Baby Pin, KL1, and KL4, and various other cheap luxeons. The KL4 is only marginally brighter than the Firefly and Baby Pin, both of which are much brighter than the KL1, so I would not spend the extra money on an L4/L1.

If you go camping and are not obsessive about minimizing size, I'd go with an Arc4 second. It's bright and has multiple brightness levels. I don't think you really need a really bright light in the woods, you want one that won't destroy your night vision and gives you long battery life.

Re: Which to buy (probably not the best place to a

Hello Guriseto,

Welcome to CPF.

Your choices look good for every day use, but not for diving.

Dive lights are built more for function than style.

The one light that I have seen that may work for both activities is the Hyper Lux V. It is rated to 100 feet (without the click tail cap switch option of course).

It also uses a 5 watt LED which I am still not sure if it is bright enough and has the right beam style for diving. The plus side is that if the LED dies, it is only $35 (+ shipping) to have it replaced.

It uses 3 123 cells, but will run very well on rechargeables. It is also rumored that Chris is working on a rechargeable version of this light.

The down side of this light for EDC is that it is a little big.

Tom

Re: Which to buy (probably not the best place to a

Welcome to the group.

I concur with the others comments about getting two lights, an EDC and a dive light.

For dive use how about any of the 4AA cell lights made for diving? I like the UK4AA.

For EDC maybe you should consider the E2e (it cheaper than the L4) and would allow you to buy both and be under budget.

GregR

I really like my Madmax W/O Sandwhich Module Kit - Lux 3-T. It's real easy to put into a MiniMax and it sure is BRIGHT! Its available at the Sandwhich Shop at: http://www.theledguy.com and click on shop.

For my pocket Lambda Micro Illuminator is small and bright: http://home.mchsi.com/~lambda/microil.htm

Geo / The Irishman in Melbourne, Florida

Greetings Guriseto! Along with PT & UKE, look over Pelican's line of dive lights. They've been around for years, are good, and reasonably priced like PT & UKE. As suggested above, some of those models can double for camping and general use. You can test the beam's penetration by shining them through a pint o' extra stout. Happy St. Paddy's.

about buying LS or Arc4 second, is that a good idea? cause you pretty much don't know what you are getting??

Thank you for all the great replies so far. I think you are right in that I am expecting too much of a light if I expect it to go around in my pocket all day and then dive with me, too. The demands on design are entirely different.

As far as the Arc4 seconds thing is concerned, I am not too worried. So far, I have seen reports of 2 on this site that don't work correctly. Peter seems to be the most scrupulous business owner that I have ever come across. So if I'm not happy I'll just send it back and get another light from somewhere else.

The only other thing about the Arc4 is that it seems a bit fiddly to operate. Maybe it's the kind of thing that grows on you though. My Arc AAA LE certainly has grown on me from an initial disappointment. Now I don't go anywhere without it.

As far as the E2e is concerned, that is a nice light, and I know I can buy a KL4 head later on for it, giving me incan power and LED lifespan. I notice that Meridian has that very combo for sale for $125. I may just do that. It saves me money and I get a 2fer.

However, I really like the idea of multiple brightness levels. This is where the L1 and in particular, the Arc4 (with too many available brightness settings IMHO, how many does one need?) shine.

What I think I will do is order the Arc4 second. If I don't like it, I will send it back and get that combo pack from Meridian. Unless someone can change my mind?

BTW, what is a sandwich?

Again, thanks for all the help. A veritable font of knowledge you all are.

A Sandwich fits in a MiniMag and converts it into a Luxeon based light.

I should add that a Sandwich will fit a Firefly, Stoplight, CNC123, Brinkmann too.

Re: Which to buy (probably not the best place to a

Setting the record straight.
I'd appreciate it if some of the longtime CPF members and supporters would draft a glossary / Lexicon if one doesn't already exist.
EDC = Every Day Carry = Keychain light = anything the size of an Arc AAA or smaller or... a light you use DAILY in your occupation.A person might have 2, DIFFERENT EDCs per week. One for work and one for time off.
AEDC = Almost Every Day Carry= Anything between an Arc AAA and An E1E or Arc4 or...Any light that you carry less than 50% of your living days and nights.
HSNL = Highly Specialized Niche Light = Designed for a specific context, use or type of customer
CFID=Convergent Function Illumination Device=TigerLight etc.
I'm just fooling around here but maybe the pros out there could decide on a glossary by committee and publish them in the Help or FAQ section so we don't get too many more "I want an EDC that's also an HSID, for $150" or whatever.I see that type of question a lot, especially in knife discussions and in an outdoor gear group I belong to.It would help to have some common definitions to help evolve discussions.
Thems me 2 cents

Re: Which to buy (probably not the best place to a

Or you can click on the "acronym" link at the top of this very page... It does not have some of the ones that you mentioned, but it has most of the common light ones...