You know how it all starts……. A friend buys a new camera, tv orsome cool gadget and all of a sudden you wonder how you possibly could have lived such a long life without this thing :bigsmile:
In this case it is a flashlight. I just have to have one….
I have been reading quite a lot but the forum is sooo big and there are so many different lights out there so I need some guidance.
1. Since the flashlights are called budget what parts are the manufcturer cutting costs on? I mean they are cheaper for a reason……
2. Can some sort of ranking be done. Which are good budget brands and which are of more poor quality?
3. I understand there are actually copies of these budget lighlights. Is this common and how do you avvoid ending up with a copy.
4. Can all (more or less) comments and recomendqtions in the forum be trusted? I mean are there dealers or people recomendng things for their own winnings?
5. So to the part where I need some help to decide on my first flaflashlight
When I started looking I did not realise how big they were. So for my first light ananything over 20 to 25cm is too big. However I still want a really powerfull light. I have glanced at the sky ray king and the Apex 5T6. Comments?
I assume there is ton of lights that are good value so give me some tips.
6. If i do not care about size (I might just get a 2nd one right away :bigsmile: ) what are good choices? Since i live in the middle of nowhere power is prioritized.
Well, that is a start. So I am hoping for a lot of good comments and tips.
Adding one more question that I forgot.
7. Batteries. Any general do’s and don’ts when it comes to batteries and chargers?
For 18650’s batteries do you have any recommendations for batteris and chargers?
1. Most budget manufactures dont have high development costs. They dont have marketing expenses and of course, drivers and such are more simple and therefor cheaper. Building a flashlight isnt that expensive, but you will notice some differences, especially the play within the parts, the threads, knurling and anodization. But there are very good budget brands on which most people wont find the difference to a light costing 5 times the money..
2. Solarforce is one of the top-notch budget brands. Other than that, it really depends on the budget. There are some manufacturers like Ultrafire that usually also have good quality lights, but most chinese brands are just invented and being used by several companies.
3. You buy what Foy says and be happy. :P Or just ask here.
4. Mostly yes. There are some commercial selleres here to advertise their products, but you will recognise them. People are always critical, even with the representatives of brands that have been around long time.
5. I'm also a fan of short lights. :)
Skyray King and Apex both are very popular lights around here. They are about equal in brightness because the Apex is driven a little softer (meaning: less amps per LED).
It depends mainly on what you want. Those lights produce a huge wall of light (called flooder) but there are also so-called throwers. Those illuminate a long distance.
6. See 5.
7. What batteries are best for you depends mainly on the light(s) you finally will get. Good chargers are XTAR WP2, SP2 and WP6, as well as the ML102.
What kind of budget are looking at for now? About $40 would get you a C8, some decent cells, and a charger from Manafont. That’s an impressively-bright light in a small package. If you want a dedicated thrower, you have several other options. If you want a crazy-bright flooder, then get the multi-emitter lights. The King has a lot of followers here but I don’t so I can’t comment…
One thing to keep in mind with brands is that they’re easy to fake. For example, genuine ultrafire lights are quite good and some of the best of budget lights, but all of their older models are endlessly copied and it’s almost impossible to distinguish the real thing when purchasing. Even lessor brands like Trustfire and Skyray are starting to feel the heat.
IMO the best values in lights are the lower end of “premium” brands for smaller models (AA/AAA, often <$30) and higher end of the budget brands for larger throwers and such.
