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Another thread, Strobe light thread , someone mentioned the Lucorb strobe. It looked interesting, was simpler than using multiple individual strobes, so I took a chance and bought one. I have multiple Firehouse strobes, including a 3 color 4 strobe kit, an Arc II and some smaller cree Firehouse colored strobes. The Lucorb strobe boast 3 colors and a dome that helps improve sighting over distance. The Lucorb cost $27.00 with three colored LED strobes while the Arc V costs about $35 with 5 single colored strobes. And as you can see, the footprint of both are almost identical and the main body heights similar, but the Lucorb having dome, making the overall thickness significanly thicker. Leg extensions if mounted on the bottom would certain be required on most drones. The Arc V weight 13 grams the Arc II weighs 7.6 grams with four LEDs (but no housing of any kind), while the Lucorb weights 17 grams.
Performance: The Lucorb has several modes, but each color has only one LED per color. It took a bit to learn how to turn it on and select the modes and has a softer switch than the Firehouse strobes, which may be a good thing, those the mode selection is a bit tricky.
My benchmark distance for keeping the Arc V within plain view on a relatively sunny day is about 1600'. Today we had a cloudy situation where I tested the Lucorb strobe... I lost it in the sky completely between 400 and 500 feet, so not much farther than I would see my Mini 2 without it (mounted on the bottom). I'm sure I would be able to see it much farther at night time, but due to the need for it to be "anti-collision" it would have to be mounted on the top for aircraft to spot it. I will have to try mounting it on top at night to see if I can maintain visuals on it. With the ARC strobes, at night I routinely place on clear on top, one clear on bottom and either red/greed on the arms or front/rear for orientation. I "sort of" was able to see the orientation because of the red and green strobes, but not really enough to guide the my Mini 2 without looking at my phone's screen. The Arc V 3 color combination is much better as I can place each strobe where it's best for me to see the orientation.
If I were to grade this strobe I'd probably grade it a B+ for design and a C- for visibility. As for the ARC V's, they have their own issues. For one, the switch is a little fragile, being soldered directly to the board which a little too much pressure could break. The velcro that Firehouse provides is good for only a couple cycles then it becomes weak in holding power. I've lost one of the strobes because of that, but since switched all my velcro for the Firehouse strobes to standard heavy duty velcro. The Lucorb does provide 3M "dual lock" fasteners, similar but different to velcro, and probably a lot stronger interface.
In closing, I thought the Lucorb could be a one-strobe replacement for multiple Firehouse strobes. IMO it is not. It is probably adequate to suffice for an anti-collision strobe at night, but in my brief trial wouldn't seem that it does much good in the daylight unlike the Firehouse strobes, particularly the Arc V. Will I keep the Lucorb or return it? At this moment leaning toward the return, but I want to give it another change and see if the other settings help with the visual identification.
As always, this is just my opinion... YMMV
Performance: The Lucorb has several modes, but each color has only one LED per color. It took a bit to learn how to turn it on and select the modes and has a softer switch than the Firehouse strobes, which may be a good thing, those the mode selection is a bit tricky.
My benchmark distance for keeping the Arc V within plain view on a relatively sunny day is about 1600'. Today we had a cloudy situation where I tested the Lucorb strobe... I lost it in the sky completely between 400 and 500 feet, so not much farther than I would see my Mini 2 without it (mounted on the bottom). I'm sure I would be able to see it much farther at night time, but due to the need for it to be "anti-collision" it would have to be mounted on the top for aircraft to spot it. I will have to try mounting it on top at night to see if I can maintain visuals on it. With the ARC strobes, at night I routinely place on clear on top, one clear on bottom and either red/greed on the arms or front/rear for orientation. I "sort of" was able to see the orientation because of the red and green strobes, but not really enough to guide the my Mini 2 without looking at my phone's screen. The Arc V 3 color combination is much better as I can place each strobe where it's best for me to see the orientation.
If I were to grade this strobe I'd probably grade it a B+ for design and a C- for visibility. As for the ARC V's, they have their own issues. For one, the switch is a little fragile, being soldered directly to the board which a little too much pressure could break. The velcro that Firehouse provides is good for only a couple cycles then it becomes weak in holding power. I've lost one of the strobes because of that, but since switched all my velcro for the Firehouse strobes to standard heavy duty velcro. The Lucorb does provide 3M "dual lock" fasteners, similar but different to velcro, and probably a lot stronger interface.
In closing, I thought the Lucorb could be a one-strobe replacement for multiple Firehouse strobes. IMO it is not. It is probably adequate to suffice for an anti-collision strobe at night, but in my brief trial wouldn't seem that it does much good in the daylight unlike the Firehouse strobes, particularly the Arc V. Will I keep the Lucorb or return it? At this moment leaning toward the return, but I want to give it another change and see if the other settings help with the visual identification.
As always, this is just my opinion... YMMV
