Manker you know copy very well, you copy the name of M43 intto MK34, the red color of Noctigon MCPCBs with ENIG bottom, copy the driver anti-reverse physical protection o nthe M43, and so on.
I do not quite understand this?
Does that mean that Banggood ran out of their APPROVED Manker OEM lights[Astrolux S41] and started manufacturing their own fakes?
I got mine August 2, 2016. I have no complaints with mine,that is all that really matters.
It is just interesting with all the different reasons as to what is what with what! :sunglasses:
Possibly? I know that before Neal got canned he said they had found a different manufacturer, confirming they don’t work with Manker any more.
I don’t want to turn this thread into a conspiracy theory thread or something though.
and that turned out to be quite the improvement, NOT
I have only read so far that the stainless steel version of the Astrolux S41 is not manufactured by Manker. So I can imagine the new manufacturer also produces the current aluminium models as well, as Manker has broken ties with Banggood. Sorry Manker for the misinformation I have posted.
My opinion (of course to each his own) is that the MK34 is definitely inspired by the M43 obviously, but has sufficiently differentiated to have its own existence right. No one will mistake the Manker for a Noctigon.
It simply is not the same as making a 1 to 1 copy, at least in appearance with sub par performance (like the Skyray King clones)…
guys guyss… i just want to point out my issues…
Same as pilotdog68, i dont want to turn this thread into something else…
Sorry for pulling Manker into this…
Cheers 
We have to make this anouncement as lots of customers asked us about the defective S41 S41S S41 color.
1.I replied on cell phone last night.
2.We are sure the defective flashlight in this thread is not from Manker as we just supplied Banggood only one batch of OEM S41 several months ago.
And then we stopped the cooperation with them. Manker mainly supplied structure and electronics design before July 2016. CNC and assembly were
supplied by factory "T". We realized the quality from "T" can not meet our request and also we were not satisfied with BG as someone from BG only cared
a low cost and commission but Manker would like to spend more money on R&D and product quality. Then we made the decision that stop cooperation with BG and "T". We have started to control the CNC and assembly by ourselves from August 2016.
3.BG found "T"-----their new factory/manufacturer and then new S41 S41S S41S color came to you guys.As we know, “T”still keep some defective Manker products and we are not sure if they will change to another brand name and sell to customers.
4. It seem that something went wrong during their copy progress and Manker wish that they can solve all the issues for you guys but these defective products are not from Manker.
5. As you guys can see that Manker quality has improved a lot since August 2016. We will put more energy in developing Manker brand product.
We are doing better and better and several new models will be released in this year.
Thank you very much for your reply; I appreciate it a lot. I wish you good luck in this situation to improve overall product quality.
Thanks Manker for your explanation.
This is the original S41 (Manker made) light. Was one of the early first batch. The tube tolerances are better, but the emitters and the MCPCB are wired backwards. It’s worked fine from the start so I haven’t tried changing it. (yet)
Do you know whether the 18650 tube is actually made by Manker as well? Was the 18650 tube ever an authentic Manker product?
That I don’t know. But it does fit near perfect, and the knurling is an exact match under a magnifying glass, so I always assumed Manker made it.
I have the Manker E-14 and there are no gaps. The manufacturing detail is first rate and it is an awesome light.
If the gaps really bother you you can sand down the end of the battery tubes until they are flush.
Welcome to the flashlight addiction.
Bob
Thanks Manker for the explanation! that pretty clears up the misinformation here…
i know i can always sand down the tube end but what bothers me is the fingerprint on the copper fin area…
Price has gone up to $ 39.11
That is really sloppy production and QA/QC. Since there is some kind of varnish on top of the copper, it won’t be easy to fix either.
Yeah essentially the fingerprint is sealed into the coating on the copper. You would have to strip the coating off chemically, but then your copper will oxidize faster. Some people like that.
If it’s really a fingerprint you have solid evidence of the guilty person/party.
Thanks!