Archon Lights

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Chilly_Dipper

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Location
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# of dives
3D thanks for the heads up... looks like that design is a fairly solid one.
 
Hey has anyone had any experience with Archon dive lights? I saw this trolling the web this morning:

Free shipping+guaranteed 100%+Archon DH30 3 Modes CREE XM L U2 3pcs LED 3000 Lumens Canister Diving Flashlight (Black)Headlight-in LED Flashlights from Lights & Lighting on Aliexpress.com

I have to say at that price I'm awfully tempted to order one just to try it out. Although @ 3000 lumen I think I would be able to leave the spear on shore and just cook the fish where it sat in the water :wink:

i am probably way late but i got mine for 100 less

Shop for Best ARCHON DH30 3000LM Canister Diving U2 LED Headlamp with Water Resistant Deepness 100 m Underwater at US$227.36 Now
 
Hi, I'm a US dealer for Archon (full disclosure). I'm not familiar with the DH30; it looks like a variation or earlier version of the DH36 - see the current product list at ARCHON. I have some DH36 units that will be selling via Amazon shortly; or if anyone contacts me here, I can ship directly to them. If anyone wants to review a unit, contact me, and I'd be happy to offer a discounted price in exchange for them posting their honest thoughts on the product.

I first saw some fellow cave divers using a DH36 in Mexico and I was impressed with the build quality and design for the money. Instead of using bundles of 18650's in parallel/series, they use 3 26650 cells in series, which are larger diameter and capacity (4000 mAh). Unlike most can lights, instead of charging the pack directly, you remove the 3 cells individually to charge. A disadvantage of this is that you need to charge 3 batteries separately, an advantage is that you can buy replacement 26650 cells for less than $10 apiece - so a replacement or spare set for your can light would be $30. The light is rated at 240 minutes on high, so despite a comparitively small battery pack, the burn time is very nice.

The light head and canister is aluminum with what seems to be a durable finish, looks like powder coating. The lens is 8mm thick polycarbonate, (about 1/3" thick), and the whole unit is rated for 330 ft (100m). The light head is on the large side compared with most single emitter light heads, but smaller than an HID reflector. There is a magnetic switch on the top of the light head - in the pictures it looks like it could be thin stamped steel, but in person it looks like a solid piece of machined stainless.

They use very nice strain reliefs, and the cable has a tech-flex type braided coating. While this could be more durable, it also does make it stiffer than I'd like. The stock cable is a bit longer than a typical can light as well.

There are 3 LEDs which each have a dedicated reflector; the reflectors are small compared with a more typical single element LED can light. However, they still manage to achieve a nice hot spot (rated at 8 degrees - seems about right to me) with an ample amount of spill. It's probably not as efficient as a larger reflector, but since it is a very bright light, it would be quite effective for both signaling and illuminating.

Overall for the money it is a very impressive light. It's not a perfect design, I've been discussing some changes with Archon, as well as some other ideas. If anyone has any questions or feedback, please contact me.

The W40VR video light is another light I'll be carrying - that one I am very excited about - it is a very potent and reasonably priced little unit. They also have some very nice GoPro trays/mounts that hold one or more video lights and a go pro in very compact form factors.

Rob
 
Robzr, do you guys offer any kind of warranty at all for the Archon lights? DOA at least? I've been looking at the 10k lumen archon and have been a little skeptical about buying something from china with no apparent warranty for the kind of money it costs.
 
I will warranty any lights purchased from me for at least one year from time of purchase. IE - replace or fix within one year, after that, best effort or some trade in value towards a newer light. I want to treat customers well and build a sense of loyalty, as my favorite dive manufacturers and retailers have treated me this way. A handful of manufacturers and retailers have NOT treated me like that, and I made sure to remember that over the years.

Archon can also service or repair lights, but the shipping overseas would be slow and expensive, so ideally it would be best to avoid that.

As far as the 10000 lumen light goes, I may get a few units, but to me the form factor looks a bit awkward for video. I am also a dealer for Edge Dive Tech, and have some Mini WASP and WASP lights coming in this week I think. The emitters look pretty similar to the one Archon is using in the D100W, but they have OLED displays, 0-100% "infinite" adjustability, with a unique and well thought out form factor (IMO). They are designed and made in Seattle and have a 5 year warranty and are VERY well made. Inon quality, at least. Contact me if you are interested, I would also be happy to offer a discount for a review.

I have a WASP on hand and it's absolutely insane. At 32,000 lumens, it makes my 50w HID look like a pen-light :) Very uniform light, has a 90 degree and 160 degree mode. It is an MSRP $2500 light; the Mini Wasp is "only" 3000 Lumens but has many of the same features (OLED display, two-attachment point form factor), and has an MSRP of $500.

If you are looking for a video light, you may want to consider those options as well.

regards

Rob
 
I bought an Archon D32VR from lightmalls.com a few months ago. The light works OK as a video light, but the built quality is questionable. The black coating on the body is missing a portion of the threading part, which over time made it more difficult to turn the light on/off because of the friction building up between the cap and the body. I've contacted both the seller and the manufacturer, and the seller basically said sorry I won't help you, and the manufacturer never replied. Not very impressed with the service, and certainly won't buy this brand again.

IMG_20140423_002623.jpg
 
That is disturbing. Doesn't look like anodizing, looks like it might have been powder coating or something similar? Was it like that when you bought it? I'll reach out to Archon and see what they say.

Rob

---------- Post added April 25th, 2014 at 12:18 PM ----------

It looks like light mall is a direct-from-china reseller - so I wouldn't expect any support from them. It is disturbing that you did not get any response from the manufacturer though. I have a good line of communication open with them, so I sent a message to see if I can get you a replacement, and to find out why that may have happened. It looks like that light is discontinued, I'm wondering if this was also anodized as they describe their new lights. If so, I could see how that could have happened during manufacturing if there was contamination on the part and the anodization did not take, but if it happened after use, unless it was rubbed off by friction (dirty threads?), it doesn't look like something that an anodized coating would do. I have anodized parts on a small scale before, but I am not an expert, I could be wrong.

If you could contact me directly I'd like to get some details if you don't mind - I would not want to be selling things if this is a risk. But I don't want to jump to conclusions either...

They do have a 2 year manufacturer warranty (excluding batteries); for people who purchase from me I would handle that, and for people who did not purchase from me I'll see if they are willing to help me work with end users. Please contact me offline.

Rob
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/swift/

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