And possibly the best bargain I’ve ever been in on. Exterior finish is impeccable. Of 3 one had a slightly loose front retainer ring; push in with thumb and tighten, no problem. Liked the bubble-pack sleeve over it in the box, wish that were made a standard practice.
Clip is attached so firmly I don’t want to try to move it till I scratch it up elsewhere first. Fits over blue jean pocket seam (unlike many lights including the BLF A6) and has great retention. The problem is that it rubs the body tube when opening to insert/remove a cell so it will scratch in time unless you address that, and the scratch will be right over the engraving.
All 3 switches felt gritty and took firm pressure to use. I’d rather have that than one that turns itself on inadvertently. Fat fingers may have a problem using these but I like the switch (and I generally dislike hate tail-clickys in pouch or pocket carry).
Tailcap threads feel a bit gritty too but for the price they are fine, clean and lube later. Alignment is finicky with the clip pressure but not bad. Seems solid enough and that’s what counts most to me in a light at this price.
A cross-room beamshot showed one was floody, no discernible hotspot and pretty even light distribution. Unexpected but welcome because it’s a good pattern, this is the one I’m keeping for that reason alone. The other two had decent hotspots semi-gradually going to some even spill. It’s a good pattern and balance IMHO, especially at this price.
I tried a 600mA Trustfire 10440, dropped right in and got fairly hot in a few minutes. It should be OK for general use as-is since we all understand to monitor the temp; not for general gifting set up that way though. Didn’t try an Efest yet.
I also did a 1 hour test with a nearly new cheap AAA alkie. It got warm but not hot at all and I didn’t see any difference in output or color after having tried the 10440 or after the hour’s burn-in. The AAA performance also makes this an excellent ‘gifter’ for noobs.
I’m not picky about beam color but this one is nice, perhaps a little on the warm side with AAA but not glaringly cold with 10440; another plus for gifting.
My only beef (and I knew this beforehand) is that there’s no keychain attachment possible, and that is an obvious use for such a small light as this. I like my Tank007 E09 better for that purpose so I’m not out anything, but others might want that possibility.
One reason I wanted this light was that I have an old Gerber multi-tool and a crescent wrench in a belt pouch where I once stashed first a MagLite Solitaire (a great fit but a wimpy light) then a Tank007 TK703 (a very tight fit but not a good light). This one slips right in as a perfect fit. I can pull out any of the 3 pieces and not snag the others, unlike the knurled Tank. The clip keeps the light where I want it with me being able to instantly bring it to hand. Very few if any other AAA format lights worth buying are this slender and this smooth. That could be a drawback with slick hands but there’s tons of more grippable lights to choose from so I don’t see that as an issue, but as a bonus. I swapped the Lithium primary from the Tank into this and I’m completely good-to-go once again.
Am I happy with these lights? No, I’m nearly ecstatic. You can’t touch the performance for twice the price, and you can’t get a better finished surface at any price so it’s an absolute joy to own. I like the exclusivity factor of special BLF lights like this one but TBH I hope it becomes a regular production light as long as the quality doesn’t drop away because this little light is simply too awesome to not be available to everyone. It’s an instant classic in every way, the epitome of a BLF-style AAA/10440 light.
And “the”, I owe you one for doing this GB. “Thank You” can’t begin to express how happy I am with the whole deal. It don’t get any better than this!
Phil