# Light & Motion ARC bad battery???



## teamplayr (Nov 22, 2005)

I have an older Light and Motion ARC bar mount light that has had a fair amount of use but would think there is still a bit of life left in it. In the past week I have been trying to charge the battery and I cant get it to charge. I will plug it into the turbo charger and the orange light stays on for about 30 seconds then both orange and green lights on the charger will blink once and then go back to the single orange light for another 30 seconds or less and then keep repeating the blink of both lights. The light will not charge. Yes, I have unplugged and tried a few different outlets. 

Has anyone else had this problem? If so do you know if the battery is toast or is it the charger that is messed up? 

Thanks in advance.


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## climb4fun (May 24, 2008)

Is the battery a NiMH or Li-ion? How many yeas old is the battery? My 6-cell NiMH woudn't hold a charge after a couple years so I had a friend modify it and swap in a Li-ion.


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## teamplayr (Nov 22, 2005)

Battery says NiMH so I assume that is what it is. The battery is pretty dated but dont know for sure. Probably at least 4 years old. It is the style that is round and fits in the water bottle cage. Bought a magic shine since they were cheap. I hate to just throw the rest of the components away but the prices for a replacement battery is steap. Do you think one of the newer style Light & Motion batteries would work with this light? What did your friend do to fix your old one?


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## climb4fun (May 24, 2008)

Without testing the battery I'd guess it is definitely dead after 4+ years. I'm not familiar with any L&M battery that fits in the water bottle cage. Does it happen to look like one of the ones in the pic I took?









9-cell battery on top, 6-cell on bottom

The ARC will work with all L&M batteries currently sold in their online store. The connection is the same for all their bike lights (that I have seen).

The 6-cell outer shell can be cut open carefully to reveal the 6 NiMH cells (each cell is about the size of a normal AA battery) which can be pulled out with some pliers. After that, you can buy a 6-cell 11.1v Li-ion battery online and solder it to the connection on the top of the battery shell. I can upload more pics if anyone wants to see (just need to find them first). Parts will run around $70 plus you'll need new charger which is an additional $25. $100 basically gets you a brand new battery which sells for $220 online. You can look around ebay for a 6-cell battery, but I have been unable to find anyone selling dead ones. I have not opened a 9-cell yet as I have been unable to find a way to remove the rubbery shell without ripping it.

Last resort would be to sell your light, charger and any parts (bar and helmet mount). You should be able to get over $60 for them on ebay.

Let me know how you think the magic shine compares to the ARC (if you can recall how the ARC looked). I'm interested to see which beam pattern is better. I may replace my ARCs one day, but not until the investment in batteries pays off


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## teamplayr (Nov 22, 2005)

No, the battery is even older than those. It is shaped like a water bottle, just not as tall as a bottle. Sort of like the old niteriders I can barely read it but I think it is 10.3v. No idea what cell. I may just sell on ebay to get a little cash for the light heads. Supposed to get the magicshine in a few days. Will let you know when I get it fired up. Thanks for all the info.


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## Todd_F (Feb 7, 2004)

I had one of those batteries for a halogen L&M light. You might be able to take it down to a Batteries+ and see how much they'll charge to rebuild it for you. Otherwise, look for a battery on eBay.


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## climb4fun (May 24, 2008)

I never heard of Batteries+. That looks like a worthwhile option to checkout first.
http://www.batteriesplus.com/t-storeloc.aspx

If you do decide to toss (recycle) the battery, PM me first. I'd be interested in taking it off your hands.


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## climb4fun (May 24, 2008)

teamplayr, I would definitely keep the ARC and invest in a new Li-ion battery if you can. My friend got his magicshine sooner than expected. We rode tonight and had a chance to compare to my ARC. I think the ARC is definitely better in many aspects, but you'll see for yourself once you get yours. I'd put the magicshine on your bars and keep the ARC on your head for a nice setup.

ARC is brighter and shines further down the trail.
ARC has a better beam pattern IMHO
ARC bar and helmet mount are superior.

Magicshine is a cleaner light, not as bluish as the ARC so you do see a little more detail on the trails like with a halogen light.
Magicshine is lighter
Magicshine cable is VERY short. I hope yours comes with the extension cord.
Connectors are pretty solid and should be water resistant.
Beam shots posted all over MTBR are way overexposed. I was actaully disapointed in the brightness, beam pattern, and hype, but at $80 it's not a bad light.


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## teamplayr (Nov 22, 2005)

Already selling charger on ebay, and will sell the light head soon. The magic shine seems bright enough for MTB night rides but for the price I could get 2. L&M batteries are just so expensive and I would have to upgrade the charger since it only charges NiMH batteries. The circular bottle I described before was standard if you opted for the bar mount (which I regreted later) ARC. PM me if you still want the battery.


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## climb4fun (May 24, 2008)

Nooooo, keep the charger. I just found the 6-cell NiMH selling for $34.99 + shipping.

http://www.backcountryoutlet.com/ou...l?CMP_ID=SH_SHP002&CMP_SKU=LTM0035&mv_pc=r110

I assume they're new, but you never know how long they've been sitting on the shelf.


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## gasiorv (Aug 15, 2007)

The battery in that link is only a 7.2v and I don't think will work well with the ARC which requires 11.1V. I just ordered a replacement 11.1 Li-ion from batteriesplus, I will post how it works out.


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## climb4fun (May 24, 2008)

I've got 2 ARCs. One with a 11.1V Li-ion and one with a 7.2V NiMH. Either battery works just fine. As long as you have the L&M multi-chem charger you should be good to go. Some of the ARCs were sold new with the 7.2V NiMH at one time.


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## climb4fun (May 24, 2008)

Actaully just noticed it's sold on Amazon too and seems like no shipping when you get to the last checkout page.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...t_shr?_encoding=UTF8&m=AU8KF031TC39C&v=glance

I have a feeling that the batteries are old and might be damaged due to prolonged discharge...will see when my order arrives.


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## climb4fun (May 24, 2008)

gasiorv, I think you may be correct. My NiMH is actaully 10.8v, not 7.2v. I'm checking with L&M to see if the 7.2v will even work. Will post again when I hear back from them.


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## gasiorv (Aug 15, 2007)

I am no expert on this subject but I think HID lights need between 10 and 12 volts at the start in order to fire the "arc", then the voltage required is much lower. LED lights only require 7.2V. I think the L&M Arc requires the 10.8V NiMH or the Li-Ion is a 11.1V. 

The ballast is what controls the output to the bulb and if the ballast will run and can convert the 7.2V to the initial 60KV required to fire the bulb, you may get the 7.2V to work but it would only last like 20 minutes.

I just purchased a 11.1V Li-Ion on Batteryspace.com (which is where the above info comes from if memory serves me) for $99. I will post how heavy it is and how well it works when I get it next week.


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## Todd_F (Feb 7, 2004)

I think the confusion about the 7.2V NiMH battery revolves around L&M's use of the exact same housing but with Li-Ion batteries which provide 11.1v. Even at $35, that's a decent deal on the Sanyo HR-4/3FAU batteries packed inside it. Two packs for $70 and you can rebuild an old ARC NiMH pack with a few spares. Most places are charging $7-8 per battery since they're pretty durable and very high capacity (4300mAh.)


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