Why aren't there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlights?

Hookd_On_Photons

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Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlights?

There are a great many small AA/AAA flashlights that use one or more 5mm LEDs. The Mag Solitaire, Dorcy AA/AAA, and Peak flashlights are good examples.

As Luxeon flashlights become more common, I wonder why none of the major manufacturers offer any Luxeon AA/AAA flashlights.

The Key-Lux by TnC Custom Products and the Arc AAA Luxeon mods by LED_ASAP and d'mo have gotten rave reviews on CPF.

If the small form factor and good light output of a Luxeon AA/AAA light can please so many picky flashaholics, why hasn't anybody made something like this for the mass market?

I don't mind coughing up about $80 to commission a handmade mod, but with the demise of Arc I find myself worrying about losing my Arc AAA Luxeon... almost to the point where I consider *not* making it an EDC.

If (more like *when*) I purchase a TnC Key-Lux AA, I wonder how much I'll actually carry it around. It's more like a work of art than a tool. I'd probably worry about losing it too much to make it an EDC.

I realize flashlights in this class are not blindingly bright, nor do they boast the incredible runtimes of their 5mm LED cousins. But they're in the sweet spot of the lumens:volume ratio, as far as I'm concerned. The .22 you're carrying when you need it is more useful than the .50 Desert Eagle you left at home.

So where are the consumer Luxeon AA/AAAs? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon23.gif (For the record, I'm currently using a Dorcy Luxeon 3xAAA I bought at Target. Reasonably good light, reasonably small, and I won't fret too much if I accidentally drop it down a sewer grate.)
 

357

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlights?

Agreed....I wish more quality production AA/AAA luxeon lights came out too.
 

Kryosphinx

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

Yeah. I would buy them up in a snap! They are also generally cheaper than the CR123 lights.
Money is GOOD!!!
 

Raven

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

I ask this question all the time.

I will continue to hope that Surefire eventually offers a AA model, though I realize it will probably never happen.

3 Watt Luxeon
AA
Waterproof
Regulated
HA III finish (with no blemish)
Clicky tailswitch
Civilain Look (optional)
Glass Lens
High Quality Production

This is my dream light.
 

Double_A

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

Would a 20 minute or less run time be acceptable?
 

270winchester

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

well, with a 20 minute run time we are talking about a lot of current draw here, and the more readily available alkalines can;t supply that much current usually, and nimh and lithiums aren't always easy to charge/purchase, so the much intensity would be devastating to the overall performance of the light.

Nick
 

Echo63

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

there is plenty of 2/3 aa,aaa lights - i got a cheap generic 3aa from my local electronics supplier,
there is the sl junior lux and uke4aa
u can put a sammie in a mini mag
elektrolumens make a 2aa lux3 lite
there is also the cmg reactors and longbow eco
Ledlenser and dorcy both make 3xaaa luxeons
however i would love a lux 1 version of my infinity ultra
or a lux1/lux3 version of the PT blast
or an e1e/kl1 type light with a lux1/3
 

TORCH_BOY

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

Mainly cost, I have noticed more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlights
in the past 3 months. I have seen quite a few different
types on ebay.
 

LEDmodMan

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

Costco Luxeon 2xAA flashlight.

Is Costco mass market enough for you? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/poke2.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Only $14 each, and regulated. Drawback is that they're reported to have a crappy beam so far. 27mm reflector seems to clear up that problem.

The CMG/Gerber Reactor and Reactor III are available at many sporting goods stores. They both use AA's.
 

AFAustin

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

I would appreciate any additional comments on the Gerber models---esp. the LX 3.0.

Also, I had read somewhere here that Peak LED was going to have a small luxeon before Christmas---any further word?
 

Hookd_On_Photons

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

[ QUOTE ]
LEDmodMan said:
Is Costco mass market enough for you? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/poke2.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif


[/ QUOTE ]

Sure... except there are no Costcos where I live. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon23.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mad.gif

I have one of the early model CMG Reactors (CMG is now Gerber, right?). I thought it was great until I bought an Arc LS and compared the beams. It's amazing that I never realized the Reactor was "cat urine green" before.

My wife loves the Arc AAA I bought her. She'll love it even more, after I get it back from LED_ASAP with a shiny new Lux 3 transplanted into the head.

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/ubbthreads/showflat.php?Cat=&Number=752669&page=2&view=collapsed&sb=5&o=&fpart=1

A single AA or AAA Luxeon light would be a perfect light for women to carry in their purses, don't you think?
 

Mr_Dead

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

There's a 50 caliber Desert Eagle?

(contending for the Marie Antoinette Memorial "Pissing the Point" award...)
 

Mr_Dead

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

Unfortunately, no. I tend not to keep up with these things- once you're up to speed on the state of the art, almost
all the articles are repetitive.

I was aware that they introduced it in the US as a .357, and vaguely aware of the .44... but at .50 maybe the weight is starting to be justified.

Anyone catch that episode of "Lost" where it was claimed that a DE had been fetched from an ankle holster? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ooo.gif
 

OddOne

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

Yes, there is a Desert Eagle chambereed for .50 ACP. BIG brute of a gun. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

The reason there aren't that many Luxeon-level flashlights that run on small-sized alkalines (AA or smaller) is capacity - Luxeons draw a LOT of current and the smaller alkalines are simply not designed to deliver that kind of load for any appreciable amount of time. Most AAs are meant to deliver about half an amp max, where a 1-watter on a regulator will draw about that much and a regulated 3-watter needs as much as 1.1-1.2A.

oO
 

HesNot

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

The Desert Eagle skyrocketed in popularity after the movie Snatch - where one character memorably states -

"The fact that you've got 'REPLICA' written on the side of your gun, and the fact that I've got 'Desert Eagle .50' written on the side of mine, should precipitate your b@!!$ into shrinking, along with your presence."

He then proceeds to touch off a few rounds one handed. Quite frankly I've fired some hot .44 magnum loads that were quite unpleasant two handed - so I'm pretty sure that isn't something you'd do without cracking your head open from the recoil - but it is fiction isn't it?

Anyway - I digress and believe the issue at hand is why there aren't more single AA form factor luxeons available, a question which I heartily endorse and have asked many times myself.
 

Raven

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

While there are enough AA Luxeons out there to keep any collector busy, I've only found one light that matched all of my requirements (well not the Lux III), and that was an ARC LSP. I would have bought one, if not for the issues with finish/return policy, but that's another topic for another day.

Maybe HDS will offer a LSP type model, if interest is high enough.
 

Phaserburn

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

The Streamlight Jr Lux is a great lux 2AA stock light for $29. Very lightweight, regulated to boot. Runs great on NiMH's.
 

PocketBeam

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Re: Why aren\'t there more Luxeon AA/AAA flashlight

I may be posting to much on this, but I love my max bright LED_ASAP mod of the ARC AAA. If you haven't heard of it and you are looking for a small EDC light, then check it out.
 
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