Arc LSH seconds - first time purchase

I received 3 of the LSseconds, and wanted to post some feedback for those of you who may have thought about buying the LS before it becomes history. One of the seconds will be a back up light, and the other two will probably be given away as gifts.

Beam quality
Compared with each other, the seconds have pretty consistent tint and brightness. Pretty darned white and bright. The wires or other mechanical portions of the LED may be seen somewhat in the beam, as a couple of faint dark lines emanating from the center of the beam. Hot spot shapes differ a little from each other. One was very circular, and two had mostly circular shapes.In actual use, I suspect these attributes will scarecly be noticed.

Compared with a LSH-S first quality. (Note - This has to be an outstanding first quality, given what I have seen) The seconds are less bright. By my eye, if the LSH-S first was a 10/10, the seconds would be 8-9/10. Beam tint was very similar, pretty darned white. Spill and beam pattern are also very similar, except that the hot spot on the first quality is very round.

Cosmetics
The anodizing on the tailcap was pretty close to the head on one of the lights, and more different on two of the lights. The difference being the color, and finish. Color was lighter, and finish was matte, vs. shiny. Also, there was a darker stripe that ran the length of the tailcap. Knurling on the tailcap that was closest in color to the head was much more raised than the typical Arc LS, but kind of cool too.

All things considered, the seconds are an excellent value, based on the 3 that I received. That is if the lights are intended for use, rather than as collector's items. Although the warranty is fairly non-existent, these lights are nevertheless Arcs.

Concur with Geode. I bought two and am very pleased. My first Arc's -- bought because of comments on this board.

I can find no flaw with either. Color, knurling and texture are consistent on both. I don't have access to a first, so I can't compare brightness and color, but I have no complaint with the ones I have.

$50 very well spent.

BIGIRON

I bought my first Arc, an LSH-S factory first, last month. The addiction must be setting into my brain, because I too bought a factory second this month.

The second is awfully good, in my opinion. In many areas, I think it exceeds the quality of my first. The bond wire pattern is sharper (better) on the second than my first. It appears to be slightly brighter than the first. The finish on the second does not suffer from the striping that is visible on my first.

Tint on the two is different, but comparable. I'd say the second is ever so slightly bluer, but it is equally possible the tint on the first is ever so slightly greener. It's difficult to say which is better.

The second draws more amps from brand new CR123, which leads me to believe it is less efficient, and runtime will suffer. The difference in current draw is about 12%. Maybe I'll use the 2AA pack with rechargeables, and then I won't care at all.

All in all, I'm having a hard time figuring out why this one was rated a second. If I had to choose one to keep, and one to give away, I'd have a difficult time picking.

Good luck with your second!

I was lucky enough to get a LSHP second #474 with a bit of farkle, its perfect other than it too draws more current...I get 1 hour 45 minutes run time on 2 2100mah nimh's...I havent tryed a premium 123 yet as I dont want to waste it...I dont have any other LS's to compare this 1 with but it sure is bright, bright enough to use it on my bicycle with nimh's