Astrolux A01

I have purchased 4 of these lights. Two were purple and 2 black. The black colored lights when changing the battery would not work unless I removed the tail spring and pushed it down with the new battery. Otherwise they would not work. The purple colored lights gave no trouble. I used alcohol and cleaned the barrel, head, and spring to no avail. I even took some sandpaper and used it on the barrel.

The lights are on sale for $7.88 and I may buy a couple of purple to give to friends, but not if they are unreliable. I have not read of an unreliability problem on the forums.

Any bad experience with the A01?
Thanks, Jerry

I got 4 at once about 4 weeks ago - black, purple, red and green. All work fine.

Thanks, that helps. The pricr is right. :smiley:
Jerry

That’s a good price - where did you order them from?

Are they Nichia 219b (or c?) and are they ‘always start on low’?

I regret not buying more from the first batch, I’d sure like to get my hands on a few more.

During last year-end’s sale on BG, I got a few pcs Astrolux A01 and CPF Italia A01. All of them used Nichia 219B, the difference is that the the CPF Italia uses the Manker driver (no PWM) while the Astrolux A01 uses a different driver with PWM on the lower modes. I can’t be too sure if the Astrolux version has NMM (next-mode memory) as some reported…

I wonder if the new batch of Astrolux A01 still use 219B or have they changed to 219C (since 219B seem to be discontinued by Nichia…), maybe someone who has a recent purchase can mention it.

I do remember the CPF Italia A01 (I don’t see it listed in BG anymore now) had a slightly warmer tint (probably 4500K) whereas the Astrolux A01 have a more neutral (around 5000K) tint.

That’s from last year-end’s batch (Dec 2017 or Jan 2018).

I decided to order a couple of purple from BG. They state they have Nichia 219B. I know some have had problems with BG, but I haven’t and would probably write it off and never again if PayPal would not get me a refund. I do not buy much from BG.
That light and color are really cute. :smiley:
Jerry

These the ones that got NMM?

I got a coupla waaaaaaay back, no NMM, but later(?) versions seemed to have it.

Yeah, you want one of the first batch (Manker driver)
But then still it kind of sucks a little…
Threads are too sloppy / loose, starts in unusable firefly mode… (i mean, come on, it’s like 1 lumen or something…)
The later models have visible PWM on low modes i.i.r.c.
I would even prefer a 1 mode Olight i3E, although the Nichia in the A01 is okay, but again, not as nice as the first batch…
Or spend more and get the real Manker.

Sounds as if there is anodizing inside the tube, which should have been drilled / milled out.
Maybe you could grind the bottom out a little, if you have a Dremel of some sorts and a long grinding bit.

But maybe interesting to go to Gearbest and look for the BLF 348 with Nichia LED.
https://www.gearbest.com/led-flashlights/pp_554387.html
Only one mode (ON), but it’s stainless steel and a timeless design.

I had one of the BLF 348, and also a Slingfire. Personally I preferred the Slingfire to the BLF model. The tint did not do anything for me.

AliExpress has a sale coming up on some Lunintop Worms in a couple of days. I will pick a couple of those.
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/LUMINTOP-Mini-Worm-AAA-110-Lumens-Keychain-Flashlight-with-clip-1X-AAA-Battery-Cree-LED-Tool/32736465729.html?spm=a2g0s.13010208.99999999.260.41433c00hivyb3

Thanks for the reply.
Jerry

I just got a couple for $6.96 shipped. The code says black, but it worked for an orange and a red one. I had to buy one at a time.

I also got the first batch when it came out. It was not reliable. It either skipped modes or stuck in Med mode refuse to go to High mode. I tried with primary, lithium, and rechargeable (eneloops and amazon basic). I gave up and just toss it in the drawer.

I carry a green one daily; it’s been dropped and banged around; still works fine.

I had trouble with the first black ones I bought. I would have to reemove the spring and re-insert it with the battery. Did not have ths problem with purple.

Thanks! just ordered one. i already have one and i think it is almost the perfect edc. o-ring broke off and i cant find the spare so now i get a light and can use the spare oring. hopefully it doesn’t come with NMM that my first one did.

What is NMM?

Next-Mode-Memory

I just got a couple — it’s the no-name driver, but has the 3 levels and hidden strobe.

One of them works fine; the other is intermittent, skips brightness levels, flickers up and down.

No wonder they were on sale.

Mine has sometimes disease too. Sometimes it works right sometimes it don’t. You never know what you are getting with it. It’s like playing the brightness lottery. You know it will light up, you’re just really not sure of the outcome. It has been relegated to a bathroom emergency light. I’d give it away if I wouldn’t feel so guilty about it.

Lol!
Youre a good man :slight_smile:

did you try the pencil mod

got 3 last week. opened them up to do the pencil trick today. took 10 minutes for all 3 lights. Happy with the outcome. All lose memory after 3 seconds and return to firefly. before that with next mode memory as they came, they were basically unusable and a PITA. Now an instant favorite.

not sure if a 8$ light is acceptable if it has to be modded to work as it should… but now mine is good.
it is probably frustrating for a lot of non knowing people to get the brightness-lottery whenever they turn these on. I would never ever bought these lights if I had not read that I can hack them with a pencil to make them work like the original design.