Hi everyone, Arthur from Vancouver, WA here. I’m looking to save some money of a few quality LED flashlights, and would like to avoid the scams and pitfalls out there.
I’d be interested in getting in on a group buy, or hearing your recommendations for some very reputable sellers.
I prefer a few 18650 lights, ranging from 200 up to 3000 lumens (actual output as opposed to doubtful factory claims).
I’d prefer a light which has been thoroughly reviewed on this website. I have to say I’m impressed at the time and thought some of you put in to these evaluations!
Top 2 lights off top of my head: BLF A6 SE and BLF D80 SE. Both were group buy lights and designed and implemented by BLF. Both use 18650 batteries. Check em out
New version of BLF A6 SE is now S1-Astrolux which also includes 18350 short tube.
Yeh, you’re right. But for long as I’ve been around I’ve had over a dozen buys from GearBest and all have come through. Never longer than 30 days but average time of delivery is @18-22 days for me.
The consensus on this forum is to go ahead and pay the buck and change extra for tracking when ordering from GearBest. To my knowledge there have been more complaints about Gearbest deliveries in Europe than US. Anyways, my experience here has been 100% on deliveries. And I have only purchased tracking twice out of the dozen or so transactions I’ve had with GB.
I’m waiting on a delivery from them now. Not worried about it at all.
BTW: The 2 lights mentioned above both cover up to @1000+ lumens out of the box. The D80 being the better thrower and the A6/S1 being the flooders.
Personally very fond of AliExpress, I don’t care if a seller is trustworthy there, they only get my money till I let the system know the product is in (or forget to start a dispute when it is not and would have missed the warning emails this is about to happen which never happened ;)).
If something is not right I contact the seller and work things out directly or via a dispute.
The AliExpress system hold the money and just as easy transfers it back to me as paying vendors.
This is what I like about it, the other China shops lose money if they need to refund and will do a lot to avoid that.
Mountain Electronics is excellent both in speed as in communication.
3tronic (UK based) also is fast and directly approachable.
Just to test I have placed some orders with
AliExpress
Mountain Electronics
DX
Fast tech
Banggood
Gearbest
GeekBuying
EBay
Amazon FR
All around the same time
Amazon FR was fastest
AliExpres and Mountain Electronics came second
Banggood partial third with stuff still in transit but in France now.
For cheaper stuff Fasttech is fairly reliable.
Convoy’s store is a good place to buy Convoy lights, and maybe some other stuff: http://www.aliexpress.com/store/330416
Banggood, Tmart and Gearbest usually have good value for the money, if you know what you are buying or are lucky, but don’t expect service like you would get from more expensive stores. CN Quality Goods also.
I’m not Mountain Joe, but I live right next to a mountain and have shopped with Mountain Electronics many times. The guy who runs it is a flashoholic or at least caters to the group, is a member here and has great customer service. It’s a fairly small operation based out of Utah and he (Richard) is incredibly busy with all the work he attracts, but you really can’t beat it. All of his prices are reasonable. In fact, I tell my non-flashaholic acquaintances that his store is the only one they need for whatever they’re looking for. A custom light with custom firmware options, good cells and chargers, a US one stop shop.
Mtn Electronics- great with no worries and only quality products well worth having.
Convoy lights- from Simon (Shenzen Electronics) on AliExpress- he makes them so you get the real thing there.
Illumination Supply- great with no worries there either.
Of the Chinese ‘mega-stores’ I prefer FastTech over the others but all are something of a gamble, and if you need warranty or customer service you may regret doing business with those stores. I’m OK with these but I also don’t expect a lot from the cheapest sellers either. You don’t get what you don’t pay for!
Ebay and Amazon- variable but you have some ‘buyer protection’ happening. Sellers recommended on BLF should be OK, pricing will be all over the place.
Generally watch for fake “Cree” emitters; very prevalent these days. LiIon cells and chargers should ONLY be the good stuff; less than that can be disappointing or even dangerous. “Clone” lights may not compare to the original ones but some are good. On ‘Chinese’ deals opt for the tracking and quick shipping options as this seems to give the best results. And before buying, check out “M4DM4X” thread on discount codes.
Ask for specifics here and you’ll get responses. Just remember that people have varying experiences with the Chinese stores (other than Simon) so take all comments about them (good and bad) with a grain of salt.
I’ve decided to go with Mountain Electronics for a Convoy L4 XM L-2. I assume Mountain Electronics is a US dealer?
I was attracted to the level of detail in the product description, which is a good sign.
Two questions remain however, regarding the 18650 batteries….Flat top or button top? Protected or unprotected?
Protected cells are less susceptible to moments of , um, “stupidity” but they also deliver less current when pushed hard. More safe but do you need that? They also cosh a bit more.
I don’t know the L4, but almost all lights will accept button-tops so that’s what I buy so I can use my cells in any of the several lights I have. Richard at Mtn. can advise you on the cells if you email him. Great to do business there!
