The BLF A6 has ruined me!

So I have had the BLF A6 for a couple of weeks now and I have to say it has served me well. It has become my favorite EDC light to carry. It has a perfect moonlight mode for me, and it has a blazing high beam when I need it, and all the modes in between. 7 total modes. And it only cost me around 20 bucks to get it from BG. My problem with this is now, when I see other lights I like from known manufacturers, such as the new Olight M2T I want to try, I can’t justify spending the $70 msrp or the $50 with a coupon, when I know this little A6 in my pocket can do all that it can and more. So now, I have a serious dilemma because everything I look at is outrageously expensive compared to the BLF A6 I have come to love. How do I get over this? Do I just buy more of the BLF A6 to satisfy my flashlight buying needs, or just spend the money on the more expensive lights and maybe one of them might be able to overtake the thrown of my current EDC light.

Get yourself a Sofirn SP32 2.0 in Champagne color:
https://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/Sofirn-New-SP32A-V2-0-High-Power-LED-Flashlight-Cree-XPL2-1300lm-Torch-Light-18650-Flashlight/2933049_32889460619.html?spm=2114.12010615.8148356.36.314413940f7um2

You will love it.

You don’t get over it, you look for variety, an L6, Q8, C8, D4, H03, A01, plenty of impressive budget friendly must-haves out there just waiting for you to stumble on a bargain price, just pick a letter and number combination, two letters for the most impressive, DX80, MF01, GT etc.

Pringles they are, once you pop….

Do get the 18650 extension tube so you never have to worry about battery life.
Though that makes the light longer than I like for EDC.
GREAT LIGHT though, I totally agree.

wle

There were a few problems with the A6. I found the build quality poor. BG gave me one that wasn't well made and they sent me a dummy head to fix it (I learned to fix it on my own).

The FET and the 7135 channel caused the LED to glow an ugly purple on my light, but it was a useful amount of light. FET are not very efficient unless you run them at full, which I doubt you will. The UI is absolutely great though.

The S2+ is very nice, the host is much better and the metal button feels better. The sofirn 32A looks much nicer, although I can't say much about the quality since I don't have it.

I would suggest satisfying other kinds of lights aside from straight 18650. Right angle lights are another good option to look at. Maybe you want the A6 to be shorter with the 18350 tube. Maybe you want a AAA keychain light (Ti3 is nice, although I got a K3 clone and a GLAREE E03 instead), the Astrolux A01 is a very good option for one that has a nice moonlight mode and a nichia LED.

IMO you should check out tints next, to see which kind of LED you like. I found that I like form factor first (AAA is all I need), next is tints, I prefer very warm tints, followed by UI.

You’re right it’s a great light and the fact it hit 18$ witha samsung 30Q included just makes it almost unfathomable …Some short comings… it doesn’ tailstand very well …(minor) and the tints on all versions are pretty lame ,kind of dirty,low cri bad attempts at neutral tints …upside is it gives you an easy mod (emitter swap) that will make a great light even better .
You’re right it’s a great light and for the past couple years I’ve been recommending this light as well as any of the older BLF lights to new members . Buying a blf x6,a blf Q8 ,a blf 348 AAA SS or other BLF lights makes much more sense than trying to just buy a name . truthfully almost all my name brand lights were bought only at severe discount , this is IMHO why BLF exists .

You remind me of myself at a younger age (lights up pipe, sits by the fireplace)…
About eight years ago, I realized that I have a three digits number of lithium batteries for my ecigs, 18650, 16340, 18350, 14500 etc. One day, before I place another order, I was looking at my shopping cart at dealextreme and wondering what else can I use the batteries for.
“Hmmm, ok, there are some flashlights that also use these batteries.”
I found CPF, I found BLF… “Hey, look at those weirdos, they have so much interest for flashlights! I’ll just get this 18650 2-modes 700 lumens Aurora and this little 14500 Trustfire (next mode memory) and I’m set for the rest of my life!”
Aurora ruined me, for a few weeks… Now, after 200 flashlights, I know… I am one of those weirdos :smiley:
And you will be too :beer:

This set the scene so nicely that I read the rest of the post at a slow pace, with an imagined creaky voice and long pauses

:smiley: :beer:

Great post! :+1: :smiley:

It took me a long time to move past basic AA/AAA lights, but I’m totally one of the weirdos now. Cheers and thanks for the laugh this morning!! :beer:

I love the A6. My most used light by far, I use it every day at work.
I have the 5A tint and I love that too, I would get this tint on all lights if I could.

It’s incredible what you can get for what you pay. Convoy C8 clear is also amazing for $20 in the thrower category

I have around 50 different lights, from AAA to multiple 18650 and the BLF A6 is what I keep grabbing to daily carry everyday. I have the cheap chinese no names, and some main stream known names that cost too much in my opinion. BUt for some reason I just keep coming back to it. I am a cool white kind of tint guy, I can’t stand the yellowish tints on any lights. I literally changed every bulb in my home to daylight led’s, even in the fridge, yes EVERY single bulb. Even the ones on my vehicle are a cool white LED. Just my preference. I think I might get a custom Convoy S2+ from Hanson customs next since it is about the same size and form factor and he can make it however I want. Just loving the moonlight and all the modes in between. I have been using it daily for about the last week or two and I just did a battery check lastnight and I am still between 75–100 battery on the suggested samsung IMR 3000mah 30Q.

Same with me too. Had a mech mod, and bought extra batteries. Wondered where they were besides laptop cells and those external batteries. Found out the first mods were converted flashlights so I decided to try out the flashlights, I knew the SK68 was already a good light. Got the SK98, lost it with my 25R :(

Got the S2+ and it was ok besides the awful UI. I used the A6 as well at home because it was finicky when I first got it, and it honestly sucked. BG gave me a "replacement" that was actually a dummy head and I learned to mod flashlights because of their mistake.

Haha you guys did a good job convincing me, I just ordered my first A6 now the long wait for it to arrive.

I love my 5A BLF A6. It’s a great general purpose light! That hasn’t stopped me from trying other lights, with special metals or more dedicated purposes. There are a ton out there to try; for example:

-Small throwers like the Emisar D1S or Convoy C8

-Big throwers like the BLF GT

-Higher lumen flood like the BLF Q8, Astrolux MF01

-High CRI lights using Nichia 219B/219C emitters, or high CRI Cree emitters (although some have issues), or even mod a light with a Samsung LH351D or something)

-Different CCT, like a Convoy S2+ with a 7A XPL HI for a warm tint

-P60 dropins for some Lego fun

-Keychain lights. All of them. And then again when you inevitably lose them.

-Titanium, copper, brass, or other special materials (like the Prince with its carbon fiber or specialty lights made of expensive artistic metals like mokume gane)

-Headlamps, from the smaller Manker offerings to high CRI Zebralights or the Armytek Wizard Pro/Elf C2

-Firestarters like the Emisar D4

There are a ton of options out there to try!

BLF A6 is really good, considering its price. Build quality is so-so, but impressive performance and great UI makes up for it.

You should try Q8, great soda can light.

BLF A6 is still my favorite light. Why not have two, one 1A tint and one 3D tint, both with 18650 and 18350 tubes, and competent batteries. This is the single most useful light I own, starts in low moonlight and quickly moves to any desired brightness. Other than that, you may want a smaller single AA light for the pocket (or a AAA that you don’t even know is there in your pocket, but IS always there). Eventually you may give in to the temptation for a thrower, you will buy one, and you will rarely use it. But it will have “filled out your collection”. Welcome to the “hobby”……

I don’t care for the UI on my A6 that I received a couple weeks ago.

I like the concept of a longer press to reverse the direction of the mode sequence, but the press length to go in reverse is too long for me.

It’s especially a problem if I’m in low when I turn off the light for a short time and turn it back on. Often it comes back on in Turbo, rather than low. I don’t like this.

I would return the light, but it seems like it would be a real pain to return a light to China.

I can’t gift the light to anyone I know, since no one I know has a charger for 18650 batteries.

I do prefer the UI of the A6 over the Folimov 18650S, which can’t go in reverse at all and requires cycling through Turbo to get back to Low.

I much prefer the UI on the Sofirn SP32A V2.0 when in ramping mode. Much easier to reverse direction and never mistakenly enter Turbo when Low is desired.

I’m not sure what to do with this A6, since I will most likely never carry it.

I was a big fan of the A6 earl on, but some of the later production was flaky — screw holes misplaced in the head, for one.

I’m now a Sofirn SP32Av2 convert. Waiting eagerly for the rumored v3 No such animal, they told me in email.

As to giving li-ion lights away, I always have to think “is this person someone who would burn down the house or poison his family with fumes?” —- if I think they can be trusted, I give the light with one of the single-celll chargers and one of my older li-ion cells.

Out with the old, in with the improved!

I had a light I didnt use, I did a giveaway…. it was fun actually !