I've twice burned myself with DD's fly by night M3X pricing, and have regretted it for months. It's funny how something that inconsequential in life can still keep you up at night. ;-)
I just need to pull the trigger.
Where can I find the best price for it, new in box, from a more legitimate dealer? I guess I could go ebay, if they have a good reputation. Amazon has it for $125, but I'd like it for less, as it is my first big buy.
When I start thinking about spending that much for a light, it makes me more than a little queasy. Then I start thinking, "As long as I'm spending that much, shouldn't I look at the ThruNite Catapult as well?"
It's a slippery slope, but at least it's well lit.
I just got the M3X, well packed and sooner than I expected. However, the beam does not look like it should. It looks like a flower at 5 to 10 feet, and at 20 feet the hotspot has a bright ring, and dimmer center. I've just written back to Stanley to ask for an easy fix or a replacement.
Is there anything easy that can be done? I'm leery of disassembling a light that I'm sending back, just in case I get prints on it or a disaster happens. I suspect it has to do with the geometry of the LED with respect to the reflector. I've seen others with this problem, too.
It looks like I'll be sending it from the center of the US to Hong Kong. I've never sent anything half way around the world from my location. Should I use the US postal service? UPS? FedEx? Or should I just hand deliver it? ;-)
I know it's not exactly a budget light, but I don't want to break the bank sending it back. I guess it's on my dime.
I guess the cheapest available option would be priority international flat rate padded envelope @ $17. But to get any tracking I believe u have to register it for an additional $12.
That would make it $30 inc packaging. I suggest that before you send it back, discuss terms with Stanley. In other words, try to get him to agree to pay postage if he agrees that the light is faulty. He has a very good reputation here (see the 'HKE Ratings' thread). It may be that he'd be satisfied with a video. Worth a try. Has he got back to you yet?
Stanley did get back to me quickly after my first email. He did not mention shipping costs, but said that he would make sure that the beam on the replacement was good. I've written back asking about the shipping, and have not yet received a response.
I'm keeping my fingers crossed. He has been very good and responsive so far. Nothing like DD or DX.
Yes, definitely one of my happier CS experiences were with Stanley/HKE. My faulty Xtar WP2 charger was replaced FOC, but I recall having to clarify the return shipping liability with Stanley first, pretty sure they have the usual 'customer to pay return shipping' disclaimer in there somewhere.
I tactfully asked if that included 'the rare cases' where a faulty item had been revceived by the customer, gently pointing out that it wouldn't be economical for me to pay to pay return shipping as I'd already paid the purchase price for a faulty item.. Well, you get the idea.
Bottom line, if the torch is genuinely faulty, a replacement item shouldn't cost you one cent more than you've already paid for it. On the other hand, it could be that these beam peculiarities are regarded by the seller as being within manufacturer's tolerance levels, in which case maybe some haggling will be involved..
Well, Stanley at HKEquipment.net has done it again. He sent a replacement head back, and I received it only 7 days after he got the faulty one back. It has a very bright, circular hot spot, and I’m sure it will throw fine. He even sent a small item that I requested to offset my additional shipping costs!
