I think the limit is $60, I’ll have to do some research…
The number isn’t the easiest to find, but probably best to call.
Did some research. The 20 dollar limit still applies for gst/hst. A lot of places will simply write gift or fib about the value, which probably isn’t a problem so long as:
- There isn’t a receipt inside
- The value isn’t obviously false
or - The customs agent doesn’t care.
edit
As for specific tariffs, flashlights are covered by section 16, 85.13.10.10 of the Customs Tariff. All of the applicable tariffs are listed as free, so there shouldn’t be anything other than HST.
It was quite the learning experience figuring out how to read this stuff. I think basically everything is treated under the MFN tariff, unless there’s some specific tariff that applies. There’s a section where it lists all the possible countries of origin and all the tariffs that apply to each country. China is treated under either the MFN (most favoured nations) Tariff or the GPT (General Preferential Tariff). I guess you’d have to read the Customs Tariff Act to figure out which one applies to your case. When you look up the item in the big Customs Tariff guide that lists each item and category, it’ll list the rate you’d pay for that item under the MFN, then it lists any preferential tariffs that apply, and gives the rate for that item under those tariffs.
Regardless, for flashlights, they’re all listed as “free”; i.e., no special tariff—just hst.
edit
Actually, it appears that the MFN column applies, unless the preferential applicable tariff applies to the country of origin for that item; e.g., There’s an MFN rate, but there’s also a GPT rate; China is treated under MFN and GPT, so you use the GPT rate for that item.
Check out CPF searchlights and HID forum. The magicfire one might not be performing that well.
HID less than 35W is much less efficient. I’d suggest look into 35W HID on ebay instead,
they have 35W in same body as the 24W, only cost a little bid more
Here are lux measurements of 24W HIDs:
Low Power HIDs: 25W or less
…24W Tactical HID- 40,000 cp (measured by jirik_cz)
…24W Oracle HID, OP reflector- 45,000 cp (measured by ma_sha1)
more HID lux refernces here:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?311939-Consolidated-Short-Arc-amp-HID-spotlight-Lux-readings
What do you mean it might not be performing that well? I saw a thread which included the Fire Fox 40W which I assume to be similar to the magic fire one. From the pictures the Fire Fox seems to be performing better than my eBay 85W, and there’s a comparison somewhere on CPF which shows it being on par with throw and spill with an eBay 75W 6000K. Mine’s supposedly 6000K, but it looks closer to 5000K in pictures
I will soon report on that, if it ever gets out of NYC customs…. Hopefully it’s disappointing to hardcore hid spotlight fans but not compared to led throwers.
I have quite a few of those Ebay/Ali HIDs but at 65W, i purchased them for a plantation use in Indonesia for my in-laws. Personally I have 2 of them here in Singapore.
Mine is closer to 5000K. What i am getting is about 220k cd and about 4000 lumens OTF when properly warmed up. It is supposed to be 65W input. (it’s extremely difficult to measure input power/current for these buggers).
It seems that the 85W HIDs (and even 75W) are hitting a limit. Until i get one 85W ballast, i suspect that they might not put out that much more lumens or lux than even the 65W. I don’t know, with the Chinese it could be anything. If the bulbs are even 7000K then there could be a huge range in the readings. Anything goes over there man….
I have over 30 HID bulbs for my various HIDs and yeah i got some duds (not so bright etc)
I think some of them measured the Magicfire to be slightly under 40W? That’s input…IIRC it was 32W or 34W.
The real Firefox 40W does put out 225k cd beam intensity, so yes i’d say that it matches my Ebay 65W.
Anyway, on Ebay you can get the 4300k bulb/ballast combo i think. But slightly more ex than on Aliexpress. (think it’s about 150 bucks on Ebay and cheapest on Ali is 135)
Don’t get me wrong, if you can get a good price for the Magic scorpion 40W, it’s good. And make sure you ask Ric for a good copy and extra bubble wrap, quite a few got nicked for unknown reasons when they reach. (mentioned at CPF) Edit - hey is CNQG still selling them? I Can’t find it.
Actually from the pics, you can see that the Magicfire quite is a bit dimmer than the FF3. But it IS the cheapest small form factor HID.
I have the Trustfire X100, doesn’t throw enough (but then i have my bigger HIDs which does 2km and coherent light which does 5km max…enough already as it attracts too much attention! LOL!) but definitely up there in lumens. 
TK70 vs my 65W
Found this ……
It should be the PH50 first (can see the warm up burst) followed by the Magic Scorpion 65W….the Chinese HIDs have that whine initially. The whine “quality” seems to me like its putting a lot of strain on the cells, coz it loads them too much and voltage sags, and i know from my auto HID ballasts that when it sags a lot (putting the ballast to work in the lower end range of its operating input voltage) you’d get those coarser whine. But it seems ok in terms of output! There is quite a bit of difference for my auto ballasts when doing 12V and 24V (9-32V rated input ones only, don’t pump in 24V for your 12V ballasts!! 8)
380+ (nearly 400) for the PH50 and 360+ for the Magic Scorpion 65W. I think it should be around there for my Ebay 65W. Not sure about the 85W.
Anybody knows where do i get the Magic Scorpion 65W? :party:
56W input draw for the 65W scorpion. Seems like the Chinese bulbs are pretty efficient and not as bad it was made out to be…at least for our hobby budget use (of course with Osram/Philips they are slightly better in efficiency, but nothing out of this world bah…)
You can get scorpian 65W from Rick, cnqualitygoods
I’ve seen a 40W version Magic Fire/Magic Scorpian, it looked about 125K lux by eye balling it vs the Xecon HID shorty I had on hand, I think the quality varies that’s why some one got a under performer & everyone is copying that post, gave Magic fire a bad name, It’s not bad, I expect most of them performance is in line with a 35W HID
You are right, actually Ric did ask me if i would want to get one with DHL shipping thrown in (coz i was getting some other lights from him), but i decided to wait for others as I have too many lights and it’s not cheap….it was like 2 weeks before the CPF thread on this got created.
I was following the CPF thread then and when someone mentioned that the input power was a bit low + stories of nicks kept coming in (not an isolated incident, if i rem correctly it was reported here as well), i stopped following the thread and lost interest because the 5 XM-Ls are in the market already. It’s not a cheap light as well @ 200 shipped (BLF standards) but of course the form factor is great and there’s nothing like that.
At least for me, i am not surprised that it gets a slightly lower input power. I actually have a 75W slim ballast that gets me around the same OTF lumens as another 55W ballast.
Now the 65W Scorpion (228 shipped i googled) would be a totally different story. I think it’s on sale by other shops but CNQG has stopped carrying them (says sales overdue)
It seems that of late even the 85W Ebays dwindled in performance probably someone put in pretty high K bulbs (they could have ordered 6000K but seriously sometimes it’s beyond even their control and you know how things work there). The few 65W i have on hand perform pretty decently…mine are very much perceptively warmer than 1A tint and just a wee bit cooler than 3C.
I checked on Aliexpress, I purchased from Yongkang Greentime and he can get 4300K bulb/ballasts as well.
PS. Of course i’d expect those issues to have been fixed by now. Actually for lasers, i’d make sure i’ll email them and ask them to put into a brown box + extra bubble wrap. They don’t take shocks well.
As much as I love those super bright beam shots ( 8) )of the 85W HID, I personally find it a beast to hold. I was always the small form factor guy with torches but with greatest amount of power possible.
I’m considering a 35W HID as it’s the same size as the 24W. For ~20$ more it’s worth it. There are plenty of reputable sellers out there. Gonna jump the gun in a day or two, just looking out for the best deal.
Indeed it is not that easy to hold for long periods. I read that Yongkang Greentime (aliexpress) could offer a battery pack with Panasonic 3100s, if one is anal about the cells. (+$30 or so)
Oh one thing about the Magic Scorpion 40/65W is that you need to use good cells, esp the 65W. Probably at least some protected Panasonic 2900s. The current draw is pretty high, and protected cells are a must if you intend to use for extended periods. You could expect 3.5-4 amps draw under load on the batteries for the 65W (it probably goes up as it discharges, so lower performing cells gonna get pretty hot and sweat it out).
Sheesh this is pretty impressive. It’s around there in lux with my Ebay 65W (supposed to be performing very optimally)
—Fire-Foxes III. 40W HID, 3” reflector: 225,000 cp (Measured by ma_sha1)
224,000 cp (Measured by Colonel Sanders)
280 bucks.
Man… I just thought… I probably can’t cram my Xtars in the MF. I have 4 flames but they were bought 6 months apart and my 4 Tenergy are flat tops….
I just read a review on the firefox on CPF. it apparently has a high pitched whine which is quite loud. but i guess outdoors it won’t be too bad
Nope, won’t be too bad. When i was playing with the Polarion CWSL 50W it also had a whine.
The whine actually gives HIDs “character”. :party: