Your chance to Speak up on glued flashlights!

I always prefer no glue. Usually - that preference is quite strong. In some cases I refuse to buy a light because it’s glued. However in most cases it doesn’t block a purchase.
I wouldn’t be happy to pay extra to have glue-free light - because “If you pay us this small sum we won’t harm your light” seems like a shady deal. I would feel bad about paying the ransom as well as I would about getting a harmed light. If approached with such option, most likely I wouldn’t buy at all.

I feel a bit short changed by the words “just don’t care”. If I buy something, I’d rather whip out a screwdriver than read the manual. I have quite a collection of bits and pieces, even XZN. But I don’t buy things just to warm up my tools. If anything breaks down, I try to fix it. Even if it causes some collateral damage.
If I only buy things I can open and fix, my choice will be limited. And yours will be too.

Support the “Right to Repair” Bill and say No to Glue! Lol

Actually, this is a real thing. Lots of companies go out of their way to make sure their products are not repair friendly, Apple cough cough. They don’t publish schematics, label their circuit boards, offer replacement parts, solder the hard drives in (SSD) to prevent replacing them, even brick devices if an update detects a new component inside. All in the effort to get people to buy new devices instead of fix their existing ones. They try to make it super hard for 3rd party repair people (non Apple) to fix their devices.

Can you imagine if auto makers welded the hoods shut on cars? Then forced you to go to dealers to have them check fluids and make all repairs? Low water level? Tow to dealer. Plus them not offer any parts to fix things. Only dealers are allowed to work on your car. If repair costs are too expensive, just buy a new car and start over. Greedy bastagizes. Eh, it’s just crazy.

We need the Right to Repair law to force companies to allow repairs by 3rd parties. Stop things before they get out of hand.

End rant. :beer:

Also, can’t stand glued lights. Gimme my Convoys to turn into supped up hot rods that melt plastic… :smiling_imp:

Or go a totally different route and make some very unique like a 3500K BLF GT. I’ve had a handful of lights I did emitter swaps on, like my BLF Q8, that turned a once in a while play thing into a light I take with me when I travel.

What’s a vhs? :slight_smile:

That’s legit what the post office calls it. They also have a DVD size box.

Almost every light I have ever owned has been modded in some way or another. Some lights are almost perfect but lack a good tint led.
I would say emitter swapping is the number mod people do to there flashlights. For example my Zebralight and Olight are both almost impossible just to do a simple emitter swap. I like the lights but Not nearly as much as a light I can have the emitter tint of my choice. For this reason I do not want any glue or press fitted parts in my flashlights. Make them so they can be disassembled easily. Look around, you can find “DIY” flashlights in alot of places and are very popular. You can buy one and use what ever you like in it. Makes each individual have their flashlight just the way they like it. If you glue the light its stuck with what ever the manufacture thinks is good, which we all know they get it wrong more than right. Please, no glue, let us have our freedom to mod as we see fit without damaging the light to do it.

Not with a tracking number for $35 bucks. The only tracking to China with USPS is with Express mail, and that costs about $65. Without tracking, there is a good chance your package will fall into a black hole and never make it to it’s destination.

I think this is a worthwhile thread. I’m concerned though with the distributor actually making this happen.

I’ve seen a few threads where the tint of the light was wrong when received and BG wouldn’t remedy anything based off the fact the customer received a fully functioning light that was ALMOST what they ordered.

You’ll pay a small upcharge and then receive a glued light anyways. If BG doesn’t empathise when they send you a CW instead of NW they’re going to consider the glued light you received as a bonus that saved you from a light that could’ve fallen apart!

I was not referring to you specifically with that remark, but more as a general “there are other opinions out there, even on the opposite end of the spectrum from what we think but they are still perfectly valid” remark.

No offense meant. :slight_smile:

The upcharge is not set, well really none of it is.

The upcharge was more an idea of helping to incentivize them to offer unglued versions.

Put simply the manufacture has proven that gluing lights reduces the number of warranty claims they have to deal with. This costs them money of course. So there is very little incentive from their point of view to leave lights unglued since that leads to more issues they have to fix. I fully believe this as well, it makes sense honestly.

The upcharge was simply an idea to help offset any extra issues they may have to deal with. I wanted to see what BLF thought of it before I pitch it to them as a way to mitigate losses from extra warranty claims.

Also these unglued versions would be sold outside of BG for sure, banggood requests glued lights for the reasons above, it reduces the number of issues they have to deal with. The idea of complaining to banggood is it would make it’s way back to the manufacture and give them motivation to offer unglued versions for those that want it.

All of this is completely unofficial at this point. So far I have only succeeded in beating my head against a wall, I am simply trying to get some facts to see if I can move things along.

Please no glue. I won’t buy the light if I know it is glued.

I really hope Sofirn will also listen to our request to stop using glue.

Makes sense. Maybe the discussion should circumvent the distributors like BG entirely. If the mfg has the opportunity to make the entire mark-up and an added upcharge for a non-glued light then I feel like they would be more interested.

I’m curious though how many mfg would offer this with the exception that it voids your warranty. I know modders know they lose their warranty but even then if there’s a problem with the driver or other warranty related claim they can’t repair?

maybe the loss of warranty for those who desire it would be enough for the mfg to jump on board. No possibility for warranty claims should be a very appealing proposition

No glue please.I don’t mod my flashlights but I do clean them. Many lights have some dust or moisture that creates a fog in the head and that is a deal breaker for me. Sometimes chips or wires break their welds and the flashlight (that is glued) becomes useless. If it were not glued it can be repaired or modded by the end line user. I cannot think of an upside to the ELU in favor of permanent glue.

The unglued versions having no warranty is another option I have pitched as well. I have been kind of shotgunning ideas in hopes something sticks but up to now they just don’t believe me that enthusiast really care that much about the glue since the general public (which is who buys the vast majority of flashlights) doesn’t care at all.

Step one is to prove to them there is a sizable interest in unglued lights.

Step 2 is convincing them there is a reason for them to offer unglued versions (for example people bombarding banggood with requests for unglued versions to the point they report it to the manufacture, apparently the boss at the manufacture puts far more weight on what comes from banggood then other places).

Then after they see the desire and need for it, figuring out the best method for offering them can actually be worked on. Up to this point it has just been me tossing out every idea I could think of to motivate them to sell unglued versions but I have pretty much been ignored. The boss just doesn’t think there is enough demand to make worrying about it worth the effort.

Chances are that unglued versions would be made on a limited run “group buy” style of some form but that is unknown at this point.

Also, if one manufacture does this, then it would be much easier to get other manufactures to do it in the future.

I don’t want glued flashlights, I want to mod all my lights without risking damaging the anodizing. The first thing I do is changing the led to my favorite one (tint,bin). I also never claim warranty because I fix all my lights myself.

Several lamps, which were delivered defective, I repaired myself and did not request a solution from the seller.
These lamps were not sealed.
If a lantern was delivered that was defective and also sealed, I requested a warranty solution.

There is a better option for both retailers and manufacturers if I solve the problem myself.

Yes, with tracking and includes $200 insurance. It’s a flat rate. 7-10 business days.

Priority Mail International small flat rate box $34.65.

They are glueing flashlights for reasons, none of them good for the warranty voiding enthusiast.

Did you straight asked Mateminco about the reasons, Texas_Ace? The enthusiast community may account for a decent slice of the sales, but we're a minority of the customer base. Knowing precisely what are they trying to “protect” can be of help. The glue thing smells of warranty fears and design secrecy, overall sickening stuff imho. It is something which deserves a nice kick in the ass.