George :) 100% correct on all points except where you mention the supply and demand. I think that everybody that wants these drivers need to learn to build the driver themselves if they are that concerned about the literally few dollars that Richard makes. Pre-programmed MCU's can be ordered from Richard at a very cheap price.
Everybody assumes that everything is cheaper in China than any place else. That is simply not true. We tried getting the driver made with their equivalent components and they are far from equivalent. In the end that was not possible and "our" components are more expensive. Short story....This driver cannot be made cheaply and to achieve a decent but still expensive price you are looking at a minimum order quantity of 1000. Who is going to front that? ....And please do not say that while they are making them "give me an extra 100" because there is not enough money there for anybody.
If anybody wants this driver the choices are....
Learn to make them...not that hard
Find someone here that makes them....again not that hard
Order from Richard and stop being insultingly cheap because he adds $5 for his trouble
It has been covered extensively and as far as I am concerned the case is closed
I simply asked because I just got my first 2 FET drivers from a member here, who makes them… they are awesome in C8’s. I am 50 and have worked in electronics in some form or another for my whole life. I was diagnosed with glaucoma at 32 and have not been correctable to 20/20 from the time I first started wearing glasses at age 4. Working under magnification and lots of light, some days I have a hard time getting wires on drivers the first time or doing a simple bridge on 3/4 of the MCU. I am not sure that I could build one at this point.
There are a fair number of different FET drivers made by members here, I will likely stick to the ones that I currently have since I like the UI and would waste more parts than I would get stuck to the solder pads in a good position. I was not looking for the 4 dollar 105c replacement. I have several of the group buys that I am signed up for and that is for two reasons, I love lights and it is a good way for me to evaluate the internal parts without building things like drivers. I have no problem assembling the lights, braiding both ends and testing the results. Just cannot do the fine work of mounting SMD devices.
I have been reading up on the various flavors of drivers and do hope to start flashing a few of my own this winter, once I assemble the parts to do so.
Matt - I did not see where you asked but I understand what you are saying and agree that getting from other members is not a bad idea. The fact remains that people really do think that this driver can be had for the price of the 105c and it cannot.
Good parts are good parts, not cheap imitations. And, if we do not value the pioneering work done here then it will not happen.
BTW, do any of these group buys benefit the community forums here? I have not seen anyone refer to a percentage going back to support the site… I am a member on the other big site and this one really suits me well. Frankly I do not plan to carry a one of a kind that I spent hundreds on, unless it is a firearm. But, I really do demand a decent EDC light and this A6 may fall into the rotation.
Yea, that had been a good idea, specially if they really have not reserved the 5A for me. Maybe I have to cancel, then order one and one. How fast do you get your refund on BG when you hit the “Apply refund” button?
I'm thinking of doing the same.(apply for refund/splitting orders) And may I ask again is paying for shipping from cn to u.s. worth it?Or is the free shipping just as fast/slow due to customs? :)
I ordered mine on August 15, in the early AM (EST) and mine still says Processing. I’m not going to cancel at this point, because I ordered 1A and 3D and both are supposedly in stock now. I just wish they would ship. The first round of lights supposedly included 500 3D’s and all four of my positions on the list were before 300, yet others bought before me, and got theirs shipped, and I have to wait. This is what happens when you just throw codes out without respect to positions. Why did I even sign up on the list? I could have still bought without holding a position. Maybe that’s the way I will go in the future. I guess it’s my fault for having an expectation that position meant something that in the end it just didn’t.
No faster. It may leave their building faster but the shippers and customs could care less because they try and move as fast as possible no matter what. IMHO
To all......The interest lists are not a promise of order. They are an indicator of whether something is a feasible endeavor. Without that list NO group buys can or will happen. It is those lists that help give us the juice to get the attention of the manufacturers and vendors otherwise everything is a guess and many will only gamble so far.
In the end..if we want good custom lights to our specs then we must indicate that on the lists. If we want just plain Jane and Jus' gimme what ya got lights...then forget the lists
Don’t think anybody has got shipped 3D, they informed very good in the thread that the first wave would be 1A (300+) and 5A (under 200), then at the 18.August (today) they would release 500 3D’s.
My main order was 1x 1A - 2x 3D and 1x 5A it has not been shipped today, as I did expect. But I did order 1 x 1A in one order, and a 5A on another order, and both is shipped days ago. Will wait to tomorrow to see what happens. I have asked Neal to remove the 5A from my main order, if they have not reserved it when I did my order. So I just get the 1 x 1A and 2 x 3D. Then I just wait for the last 5A. I have one on its way, so it’s not so bad.
I understand what the lists are for on your/their end, but I had hoped it would also be something on my end, which it didn’t end up being. Therefore, I was slightly (just slightly ) disappointed that my lights didn’t ship sooner. In my own little world, it takes two commitments from two sides to make one agreement. So, I figured that if I signed up on the list, that was a commitment from me that the manufacturer and the retailer could bank on. In exchange for that, I expected some commitment to the same list from the other side. Apparently I was wrong. As for there being plenty of lights, and more to come - that obviously didn’t help me get mine shipped sooner, so it’s irrelevant. Yes, I’m being impatient. No, I’m not nearly as perturbed as it may read on a computer screen. And yes, I accept full responsibility for having relied upon my own expectation a little too much. Clear as mud now?
This is the biggest reason I went ahead and ordered even though I'm new and was way down on the list. We had less than 900 on the list at that point and I took this as coverage for the list. Maybe this didn't mean in stock at the at the warehouse as I was assuming. I can't speak for anyone else but I do apologize if I jumped the gun. Regardless I placed my two in the same shipment and they are still in processing so I'm under the assumption that either a whole bunch of people jumped the line or ordered more than they were listed for OR changed tints at the last minute.... Whatever will be will be. I'm still super pumped and I got my 26f's yesterday!
I don’t know - which one means more slightly and which one means less slightly? I’m “slightly” as in, it’s just something to talk about while I wait on lights to ship.
I’m just being cantankerous anyway, so you can’t hurt my feelings. :cowboy_hat_face:
