Thanks for all the suggestions, I tried ordering the Archer from the thrunite-store site but I needed to add another item to order (you have to spend a minimum I believe). I am going back and forth between the L3 and the Fenix right now really just because of price. I am leaning toward the Fenix but having a true firefly mode would be nice. I wake up in the hammock under the tarp alot and just need a small amount of lumination to find my glasses or phone. Thanks for all the great suggestions
I have a Fenix E12 as well, and think it could suit your purposes well. It would be nice if it had a firefly mode, but the beam is broad enough that the 5 lumen low isn’t very bright. I like the light in many ways, and use it as one of three lights in my EDC rotation. I use mine in a similar way, when needing to find my glasses during the night. The optic spreads out the 5 lumens enough that it doesn’t bother my eyes. The beam from a reflectored light at 5 lumens gives too intense of a hotspot for me when I first wake up.
I have four Fenix lights with the XP-E2. None of them get overly hot when run on high for an extended period on high. Mine frequently get used in tailstanding mode. They get warm, but not hot, when run on high while tailstanding.
I use a Sunwayman V11R on my nightstand. It’s tiny but powerful, and the control ring goes from moonlight mode to full turbo with a flick of the wrist.
The Archer looks like the best deal right now to me.
I’ve also been on the search for the perfect AA light, here’s a few more that are in that range:
Sunwayman S10A
Xtar WK41 “(e2fieldgear)”:http://www.e2fieldgear.com/xtar-wk41-sirius-aa-high-performance-edc-flashlight/
Nitecore MT1A “(ebay)”:Sporting Goods for sale | eBay
I got the S10A from fasttech when they were $30, now they’re $44 because of MAP :P. I liked it because it always comes on in low (~2lumen), but the threads were not cut well on my sample.
The Archer is OK but it’s an re-branded older design. It used to be the Neutron 1C/1A/2A series. I have the Neutron 1C and it’s a decent light. It was really innovative a few years ago. IIRC, it was the first CR123A style light with the XM-L in it.
I just got the T10S in my hands and I like it more than I thought I would. It came a little dirty, but the fit and finish is pretty much flawless. It’s a bit heavy like I thought it would be, but the nice clip should mitigate that. Big fan of the moonlight modes, which Thrunite has consistently gotten right. I haven’t decided if I like the switch yet but it seems well built. Big fan of diffusers, and this one comes with a free wand style diffuser—nice!
I may have to try out the T10S. It certainly is a beautiful light! I’ve been hooked on Fenix lights, but just recently have discovered what some other brands have to offer. I’ll be curious to find out what you decide about the switch.
EagleTac D25A
Hard to go wrong with the D25A but keep in mind it comes in both clicky and mini (i.e. twisty) versions. I had the mini and loved it, but I owed someone a favor and that person wanted it. The mini was approximately the same size as the L10 which is very compact. The older D25A versions were constant current, but the newer versions have PWM, presumably for what it does to the tint. But the last time I looked, EagleTac was still claiming constant current on their D25As.
Still carrying around my new T10S. I also like the new E12, and the build quality is also superb, but these days I tend to favor the lights with deep carry clips. It just seems like Thrunite read my mind and is giving me the exact flashlights that I want. Moonlight mode, deep carry clip and mode memory … you had me at moonlight. The T10S has PWM only on high, so I’m expecting to see some seriously good runtimes from moonlight and low. It’s clipped to my cargo pants as I type this.
For backpacking, I would consider the most important feature to be the weight (of the flashlight and of any spare batteries you need to carry because of short run time). That probably rules out stainless steel. Most any AA or CR123 would be good for night hiking. A 2 x 2016 plastic button light would be more than adequate around camp. I would probably take both now, and a red button light to preserve night vision. Last time I went backpacking, flashlights had incandescent bulbs. I took a Tekna Monolith CR123 and a candle.
Missed the backpacking part. If weight is a factor, then I would go with a twisty like the L10 or D25A mini.
The EagleTac D series have, IMHO, the best pocket clip of any of the small lights.
My favorite is the Xeno E03. Perfect size light IMO. Runs off alkaline, NiMH, or LiIon.
…shameless plug: I have one for sale right now, I modded with a neutral xml2. 
Those look good at around 20 grams. When the Monolith was made, the only high energy density batteries were 3 volt primary lithium, such as CR123. Now there are 1.5 volt primary lithium cells, available in AA size, with similar energy density and other good qualities (except for price) like working well at a wide range of temperatures. Lithium itself is very light, so I think lithium cells tend to be lighter than others.
I thought about buying a Xeno and a ZL yesterday but I went with the 18650 lights instead and bought an EagleTac D25LC2 Mini and a Nitecore HC50 headlamp. But I’ve really been hankering for an E03. There’s some seller (EDCPlus?) who even sells them with the Nichia 219.
Most of the lights mentioned in this thread could take a 14500 in them. Shhh, don’t tell the manufacturers. I just now tried a 14500 in my new T10S and it works perfectly. Because the low and medium are constant current, they look normal with the li-ion, unlike my original T10 twisty that kind of flips out on medium with the li-ion in it.
List of battery sizes - Wikipedia lists AA capacity, milliampere hour:
2700 (alkaline)
1100 (carbon–zinc)
3000 (Li–FeS2)
1700–2900 (NiMH)
600–1000 (NiCd)
and 14500 as
700-800.
Even at half the voltage, the AAs win in energy per weight. Even the alkalines are good within their current and other limitations.
It lists CR123A primaries at 1500, which at 3 volts is about equal to a good AA cell at 1.5 V.
It seems that 14500 cells are lagging behind 18650s in charge density.
You’ve got PM.
I usually just keep Eneloops in my AA lights. The last time I went camping, my L10 Nichia with an Eneloop was brighter than any other flashlight I saw at the whole camp site. People there were amazed at my little L10 … until I busted out some more powerful lights.
Great choice.
I have a T10 in my day bag. It is a great light. I have no reservations recommending it for a camping light. The firefly mode is awesome in low light situations like you get camping.
The only thing I need to mention is you do need to twist it quite a bit past “turning off” before you put it in your pack or pocket or it will turn itself on in your pocket. It does not take much to learn how much you must turn it past “turning off” by twisting and pressing on the head until you find where it stays off even under pressure. I had several embarrassing moments when I grabbed mine out of my bag to find it dead before I learned that property of the light.
And yes… enloops are what I load but if it were a car light, I would go with lithium primaries. They have better low temperature performance and longer life than alkaleaks.
if you don’t mind PWM on low mode, i like the Solarstorm SC01 for the great price of 15 bucks. ( it runs on a AA or 14500, has hidden strobe, reversible Hat/pocket clip, and ramping modes. I modded in a Nichia 219 and its my favorite right now along side the Olight S15 & L3Illumination L10-219.
If you look at the Sanyo 14500UR, the nominal energy capacity is 3.108 watt-hours (assuming a nominal 3.7V, which is low considering that this battery maintains an abnormally high voltage during discharge). A Duracell Ion Core (‘Duraloop XX’) has an energy content of 2.88 watt-hours. Again, this is probably low, but because of the higher than listed capacity of this cell. So, for the most part, it’s a draw between these two cells. These are basically the ‘best of the best’ as far as energy storage for NiMH AA and ICR14500. So it’s safe to say that NiMH has no advantage over 14500 when it comes to energy storage.
On the other hand, the 14500 has the advantage of not needing a wasteful boost converter. So the energy it has is more usable than NiMH - at least in single cell lights. This can be quite significant, especially at higher outputs. So this kind of sways things somewhat in favor of 14500, especially at higher outputs. Another advantage of Li-Ion is that it works better with solar charging than NiMH (finding the dV is kind of hard with spotty charging charge termination at constant voltage is less of a problem). On the other hand, NiMH is safer, has a flatter discharge curve (unless we’re talking about the Sanyo 14500UR, which is fairly similar in this respect), has a longer lifetime, and ages better (ie less capacity loss over time).