Wow, i almost feel sorry for these guys. This is part ebay seller report and part report of another Sipik clone light. This was a surreal experience.
I bought what was supposed to be a 3 mode zoom light (High, mid, strobe) for $8.99. I received some kind of cover for perhaps a 7" tablet. Emailed them and they took care of it within a day or two. Several days later a light that looked just like the one in their listing arrived. Below is the revised listing that now accurately represents the light.
The light was a single mode light, so I emailed them and said that I was disappointed. It is a nice light but only 1 mode not 3 as advertised. They emailed back and said that I should do 1/2 click to change modes. I emailed back and said I know how to change modes it is not a 3 mode light. They responded with an offer to refund half my money. I emailed back and told them I would be happy to pay 1/2 price for the light they advertised and they could keep my money for the light I got. I really wanted a 3 mode version of that light and once I knew they had it, I knew that many more could be sold.
At one point I was fed up with the wrong description and I gave them a negative feedback on ebay. Next thing I know they did an info request and got my phone# from ebay. Someone actually called me and said they would refund my money and that when they did they wanted me to revise my feedback. I said OK and indeed they did. So, now I have a free light and they changed the description to be accurate. I'm going to respond to them one more time with a link to this thread. I really hope that someone would learn their is quite a following for these kinds of lights and if a 3 mode were available it would sell very well.
More about the light. I got this one about the same time as the TomTop one from the other thread. Have also purchased a few of the Citipower ones and another unbranded one that came with an Ozram LED. The TomTop unbranded, the Citipowers from Goldmax and pitilam were all identical. Even the other unbranded was the same except for the Ozram LED which was dimmer. All of mine could take either 14500 or AA without frying the driver. Very nice lights for the money.
The silver one from bestelectronic store is different in more than just color. First, the threads on the bezel are deeper, about 2 more threads. The lens is not glued to the bezel but fits neatly in the slider tube. I think a tiny o-ring there or a bead of silicone and it would be water proof. The pill has an o-ring that seals against the slider tube unlike the metal rings of the others. Once I lubed this, it has a very nice sliding action. It would definitely be more water-tight than the others. One place that it does fall short though is that it doesn't have an o-ring where the pill screws into the body. I think I can fix that but haven't yet.
The body itself is just a touch beefier than the others. The switch in the tail cap is press in. It is kind of like the clicky on a ball point pen. It has a little metal ring that contacts a larger one to make the connection. The reason I know this is because mine came with the spring installed backwards. The switch was terrible when I got it so I had to take it apart to see how it worked. Once I turned the spring around and put it back together it has performed flawlessly and has a better feel then the others. Haven't taken the others apart yet so I don't know how typical this type of switch is for this kind of light. All I know is that it feels good and appears to do the job just fine.
The LED is definitely a CREE or a darn good copy;-) Looks like an XP-E to me. It is a touch different than the others though. The die is surrounded by a copper surface while the others are black.
On a fresh 14500 the unbranded TomTop one draws 1.44 amps. The silver bestelectronic-store one draws 1.57 amps. You can see that in the silver one being a little brighter. Flood is pretty similar but the silver one zooms tighter. They both will light up a house that is over 200 meters away but the silver one is more focused.
At $8.69 it is quite a bit more expensive than the TomTop ones. However, I do think it is a touch better light. Worth the extra $? Maybe, maybe not. I sure would be happy to pay $8.99, maybe even $10 for a 3 mode version. Heck if they made it a 4 mode with a real good low and put one more 0-ring in it I would pay even more. It is a nice light.
I didn't need to get it for free. I'm glad they at least fixed the description. However, I really would like it if someone would sell a multi-mode one of these.
Wade
- thanks for correcting me, I edited my reply, also I just noticed the one listed for $8.99 also has a make offer option. The seller is: campingsurvivals, here's the link to that one: