This is a review of the UniqueFire 6T6 from lightmalls, list price $65. My impressions after taking in on a dozen walks. I only used fairly new, freshly charged Sanyo 2800mAh batteries in the three cell configuration.
Their Discription:
Best Quality UniqueFire 6T6 6*CREE XM-L T6 7000-Lumen 5-Modes LED Flashlight(3*18650/3*26650)
Model: UniqueFire 6T6
LED: Cree XM-L T6
Color BIN: White
Total Emitters: 6
Brightness: Max Output 7000 Lumes (manufacturer rated)
Current: 9A (Max)
Battery Configurations: 2*26650/3*26650/2*18650/3*18650rechargeable batteries (not included)
Switch Type: Clicky/Clickie
Switch Location: Tail-cap
Modes: 5
Mode Arrangement: Hi > Mid > Lo > Strobe > SOS
Mode Memory: Yes
Lens: Vacuum Plated Coated Glass Lens
Reflector: Aluminum Smooth/SMO Reflector
Not 7,000 Lumens or 9A and the lens does not appear to be coated but it was clean and blemish free. It arrived quickly and in good shape with no damage. The pictures on the site are accurate.
I can only estimate on the lumens and amps. I would say the Lumens might hit as high as 2,250 and the amps somewhere around 7. These are just guesses but they are based on comparisons with a FandyFire UV-S5 (SRK) and a Trustfire 3T6. The flood is slightly larger than the SRK with less throw and around the same brightness. So it is a very bright light. It’s much brighter and floddier than the 3T6.
The Good: Very bright, nice finish, sturdy feeling light, takes 18650 or 26650. I used three 18700’s with no problem. Good heat sinking with large head and nice reflector, evenly spaced and moderately deep. Quick shipping and good communication. It stays bright and doesn’t get too hot in the hand and it’s comfortable to carry.
The Bad: The emitters were not centered correctly and three of the six led’s have small white dots on them from sloppy handling of the thermal paste. The O ring was not really a good fit and was a royal pain in my backside to get back in, I had to stretch it out a bunch. The driver is not what I hoped for.
The Average: The threading is not square but not too fine, Springs are what I expected just ok. The usual 5 modes are spaced like usual. Price and customer service: They were asking $65 and gave me a deal at $55 and after I told them about the driver and sent them pictures comparing it with the SRK and the dots on the not centered led’s they gave me $10 in store credit. They did offer to replace it and make sure they sent out a better one. So that was good, but it would have been better if it was correct in the first place. Keep in mind that’s it’s huge. I don’t know if that is good or bad. I suppose it depends on if you want to club somebody with it.
My overall impression: I wouldn’t pay $65 for it. It’s just an average light. I would say at $45 it was a good deal. Sunny the customer Rep. was nice and she took care of the problems in what I think was a fair way. I used the credit to partially pay for a C12 MX-L2 and agreed to review both of them.
On a scale of 1 to 10 with 1 being a “police” light and 10 being a BTU. (my worst and best lights) I would rate this a solid 5.
It’s not a ripoff but it’s not a steal, it works, but it isn’t special. The quality is good, but for the price it should have been a bit better. It is much brighter than the 3T6 with a larger flood, but it’s not any brighter than the SRK and doesn’t throw as far, but again a little larger flood and a little more light overall but not really enough to pay that much extra for.
I have already bought a replacement driver and will let everyone know how it goes after it shows up. I might post some beam shots but I’m not all that impressed with the pictures I have been taking.