There are other threads for the UT01 or Manker
Thanks for this!
FWIW… L - R
~.35Lumens (Quark AA-T, XPG3) - ?? Lumens, lowest program mode, Eneloop (Manker E11)
~.35Lumens (Quark AA-T, XPG3) - ?? Lumens, lowest program mode, 14500 IMR (Manker E11)
~.35Lumens (Quark AA-T, XPG3) - 15 Lumens, Fenix L1T, Eneloop - ?? Lumens, lowest program mode, Eneloop (Manker E11)
I dont have a true 10 Lumen light compare. Closest I have is an ancient Fenix L1T, its low mode is about ~15 Lumens otf
I am willing to bet that 10 Lumen-14500 spec is not the lowest program mode.
Well, light #3 has arrived this morning and this one is misbehaving. Fortunately I have the two good ones to compare to, and I may have learned something.
The drivers on these lights have two solder points showing on the battery+ side. On the two good lights, the solder points are precisely horizontally perpendicular compared to the external ‘flat’ on the head housing that the switch is installed in. On the third (misbehaving) light, the solder points are slightly off the perpendicular, being rotated a few degrees clockwise.
Now this third light does work, sort of. I did manage to get it through the programming cycle, and that seems to have remained in the drivers memory - but it’s sometimes reluctant to come on, and reluctant to shut off. Sometimes it gets to ‘low’, one level above moonlight, and then stay there. It’s definitely not working perfectly.
I’m wondering if others might check the alignment of the solder points on their drivers. It could be that the drivers need to be exactly perpendicular to the switch aperture to function properly. Unfortunately I cant seem to rotate the driver - there are no pinholes to twist by, and I can’t tell if it’s glued in or not.
thats interesting…
on both of my lights the solder points are all squared up and parallel with the flat of the switch.
My driver boards are also loose fitting and not firmly attached. I can rotate them a little and when I touch them there is some rattle. So the battery tube needs to be tight and secure… FWIW. I think its always been this way, I never paid much attention though.
Thanks. The E11 definitely looks brighter running 14500 vs running Eneloop.
Does your E11 have a neutral tint emitter?
Yeah its lowest program mode is brighter with a 14500, although in person its not as pronounced as my pics above make it appear. I really don’t believe its 10 Lumens.
I have a Ssurefire E2L Outdoorsman, its low mode is rated 3 Lumens otf.
On a ceiling bounce comparison the E11/UT01 14500 program-low is visually about half as bright as the SF.
the E11 you see in the pics above is a neutral white, but its by far the warmest “Neutral” tint I have ever seen. Not a bad thing mind you.
Cool thanks Joe
Yeah, that is really warm. I probably should have ordered CW instead. Oh well, too late now…
I did some testing on this driver today. The switch is definitely part of the problem but I believe the heart of it is the way the firmware/driver reacts to different switch characteristics. Specifically, high resistance switches without a good clean click will cause the light to malfunction. So this is why some lights will not function with the switch off center but do when the switch is rotated to center. The user is able to click the switch more cleanly and the driver is happier this way. I was able to eliminate the problem entirely using certain switches with a definitive “click”. Swapping switches back and forth, I was able to repeat the results. So this seems to be the case in my light atleast.
It looks warmer than my BLF A6 with a 5A tint
Thanks for sharing your observations and conclusions, LightRider.
I suspect that the problem with my light is somehow related to the MCU. I’d wondered about an issue with debouncing, but didn’t really know how to diagnose more fully. Or something to do with the power supply and management for the MCU.
In my case, the switch is well centered. Still waiting to see what Gearbest is going to do about a replacement before I try anything intrusive.
I think most people are using unprotected 14500 cells in UT01 because the protected ones don’t fit (easily).
An unprotected cell such as Sanyo UR14500P (second from left in the below photo) is about the same length or maybe very slightly shorter than an Eneloop AA.
I just received a new one today at the $9.99 price and it looks good. Works on alkaline and 14500 no issue. No odd behavior. I had to add a magnet to a Sanyo UR14500P though - but that’s not something new regarding battery length sensitivity.
Nice patmurris ! I use the IMR 14500 ButtonTop / WindyFire. Great fitment !
I had repaired 2 UT01 switches with one from Mouser, they worked with new switch again,
The original switch is not reliable, sometimes it works when pushed in different angle, but normal operation is not really possible when the switch develops a problem
For 14500 I advise adding a solder blob or brass button on top of the battery
If you are able to reflow things with hot air its a 15minutes repair
link to buy the switch ?
i need replace 4 of my lights too >.<
I don’t believe the problem is the switch though changing the switch can solve it. I believe the problem is how the MCU reads the signal from the switch. I just did some thorough testing on my unit and replacing the switch does not always solve the problem. In fact the problem can remain even while manually shorting the switch input by tapping two wires together. It also will not work with those really flat switches that are held together by some sort of thin plastic/tape. Don’t know how to describe them. There were some other switches that did not work as well. However, some switches work every time without a hitch. I also tested the “misfiring” ut01 switch on another driver and it works fine. It confused me for half a day at least. 
In general, low resistance switches with a sharp “click”, worked the best. Of course this is just one driver I have tested and others will have to check for themselves but I do think this can explain some of the problems others are having as well.
For my light, I can’t power cycle it ON-OFF-ON-OFF, without doing this…. ON-OFF-Loosen/tighten tailcap-ON-OFF-Loosen/tighten tailcap-ON-OFF-Loosen/tighten tailcap. This ONLY occurs with a 14500 cell. Eneloop works 100% perfectly.
Do you think this light is die-ing a slow death? Have you guys seen cases where a light behaves as I have described and then suddenly without warning stops working entirely?