Is it worth the wait? ARC AAA LE

Being a newcomer to the high-end led flashlight community my latest accuisition was a CMG Infinity Ultra. I obtained this to make the wait for my Arc AAA LE which was ordred several months ago a little more bearable. I was told that sometime in February these little rascals will make another appearence. I figure my wait will be at least three months. Will I be dissapointed?

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3 Months???

I bought my Arc AAA LE near the beginning of December from Brightguy.com and got it in 5 days (ordered it on a Sat evening). Where did you order yours?

Originally posted by INRETECH:
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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Isn't Dreck asking about an Arc AAA?

Dreck,

The Arc is a nice light, you won't be disappointed. I might add that unless size is an issue, you won't see any benefits from the Arc.

At least you will get it..I'm still waiting to hear from that dive shop whether they will honor a gift certificate for 50 bucks that has no expiration date. I called to check on my 2 attitudes I order 10 days ago (which at 22.95 each is high to begin with)and they told me they can't ship until they authenticate the gift certificate (like I forged it or something)...they told me they have to find the paperwork from whoever sold it to me and if they can't they may not ship...so I may be out the lights for their book keeping error...if they don't ship them, they will not only make the jeers colum, but a lot of dive forums as well..

Dreck,
If you plan to EDC the ARC, the wait will be worth it. However, I wouldn't wait on the LE. Go ahead & get the standard AAA. Especially if you can get the natural finish. There just isn't enough difference in the two. TX

Originally posted by Dreck:
Being a newcomer to the high-end led flashlight community my latest accuisition was a CMG Infinity Ultra. I obtained this to make the wait for my Arc AAA LE which was ordred several months ago a little more bearable. I was told that sometime in February these little rascals will make another appearence. I figure my wait will be at least three months. Will I be dissapointed?

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Yup. I just recently bought a regular Arc AAA and compared it to my year old Arc LE. Negligible difference at least in my case. My recommendation is to go here and buy this light for $20 and forget about the LE. Soon the prices are going way up for basically the same lights so actually I would encourage all to buy these $20 bargains while still available.

http://www1.ecxmall.com/stores/texastacticalsupply/Detail.bok?searchpath=d8346805f2de66543475&category=Led+Lights&start=1&total=16&no=95

I've seen several regulars that was as good as or surpassed my LE in both brightness and color tint. This might change now that the regulars are using R rank LEDs again.

I wouldn't bother buying an LE again.

For output and usage, the ARC AAA Standard will do. It's just as nice. I like the natural color of the LE better. So for me it's only cosmetic.

oh and to answer your question, YES

geepondy wrote:

Soon the prices are going way up for basically the same lights so actually I would encourage all to buy these $20 bargains while still available.

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<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">This is the second time I've heard of a price increase if Feb? Is there something new coming for the Arc AAA or the Arc AAA LE? I got a regular Arc AAA a couple weeks ago and love it. If I need to, I'l buy more of these amazing lights at $20.

Bob

I eventually got rid of my LEs because I could determine no consistent difference in brightness and color between them and the 3.1 white Arc AAA. I then got rid of my white 3.1 'cause to my eyes the Turquoise Arc is much much brighter. I currently EDC a Turq Arc in my pocket and wear an Ultra on a lanyard around my neck when bumming around the house late at night.

If you remember that the LE will give you roughly the same output as the Ultra but in a smaller package with a nicer looking finish, you will not be dissapointed. I would not wait 3 months to get an LE instead of a standard Arc.

I think you will be dissapointed because the infinity ultra you have is brighter and will burn much longer than the le while being just slightly bigger plus you have a better selection of batteries AA over AAA.

I think that it's just variation in LEDs. Most of my ARCs are brighter than the CMG. I really like the CMG Ultra, but it just feels HUGE in my pocket after carrying the ARC. I don't do anything that requires me to have the light on for over 4 hours so runtime is not an issue for me. And with AAs and AAAs being so cheap off ebay I usually replace the battery before I notice any dimming anyway.

They are both good lights, the CMG is larger but with more runtime.

I just want to say thanx to all who replied to my "worth the wait" question. The place I ordered it from was Viacomptel. I got the site off of ARC'S distributor list. I placed the order about the first week of December and at that time, the ARC AAA LE'S were due to ship at the end of that month(yeah right). So I pre-ordered via money order(duh?).One week after I put the M.O. in the mail I checked the website they said "backorders to ship in Feb 2003" So I figured what the hell, I'll just wait it out. I've called ARC since then and they told me that all backorders will be filled. Until then I'll just walk around with a CMG bulge in my pocket.(I hate to buy ANYTHING by mail order.p.s. how does one achieve the "Flasholic" title?

>> "Flashaholic" title?

I think it's "automatic" after something like 10 posts...I may be wrong!

By the way what were they asking for the ARC AAAs?

In reply to Sigman's question, I think their list was 25.50 plus shipping, insurance and a .50 fee for any order under 75.00 or something like that. All I know is I sent them a money order for 30.10. I am assuming that since Viacomptel is an authorized ARC dealer they are a reputable company.(????) As far as the "flashaholic" question.......I wish I would have spelled correctly in the last post.

The arc is worth the wait. don't worry!

I have an Infinity Ultra and is waiting for a ARC AAA (non-LE). But I would have to say it has to do with your application. For short-term bursts, nothing of the size beats the torquoise Photon II, which I carry two in shotgun configuration (velcroed back-to-back) on my keychain.

While you wait, you get to see wild AAA lights
The 3 LED McTi AAAA operated gizmo (pun intended) or the underdriven AAA Luxeon Star beast for entertainment. I planned on getting a Arc AAA but if the AAA regulated Luxeon mod in a Craftsmen/Dorcy tailswitch thing kicks off...I will pass. Sometimes patience is a virtue.

When the LE's first came out they were a clear improvement on the standard AAA's. As many posts have noted, that changed and standard versions have been excellent.I wasn't aware of the change that Cave Dave mentioned.

Brightnorm