Buying lights from China is much cheaper, but you don’t get fancy version of consumer protection instead.
I had a couple of issues with Hank lights in the past, but his responses to my concerns were mostly unsatisfactory. However, I don’t think there are other alternatives in the price range that offers the varieties I want. So, I had ordered even more lights from him despite some issues.
You cannot completely know about a light by reading reviews or watching videos. It is sometimes better to spend the money and try it yourself than to spend your precious time researching on a budget priced light. Your time and effort doing the research will easily outweigh the cost of the light.
sorry to hear that… it would be a deal breaker for me too…
suggest you contact Hank and let him know the light is not acceptable… maybe you can reach a compromise… such as this:
or maybe even ask for a whole new Head with No Boost Driver…
I dont “get” how people would want a Boost driver that has Preflash… thats just Wrong!
even though it is not cost effective to return the light to China, if you cannot reach a negotiated solution w Hank, you Can file a Paypal Dispute, for full refund, without having to return the light, unless Hank wants to pay the shipping.
good luck, sorry to hear your disappointment
I do think youre entitled to a light that does Not PreFlash.
“Expected”? You say moonlight was going to be most of “usage”. You paid extra for a boost driver, how did you think or expect that was going to help moonlight? There are some simple solutions, press the bezel against your body when you turn it on or close your eyes or point it away from where you are looking. When you are looking for a light to do a very specific task then the research needs to involve that specific task.
You’d hardly expect a boost driver to ruin activation of the moonlight mode, which is what this is doing. If the product description said this would happen, it would be different. But its hardly the sort of thing you’d be likely to know at the point of purchase.
Would you be happy if your car went to full wide open throttle, everytime you put it in gear… just because you went for the automatic??? That is essentially what you are saying is fine.
The selling point of the boost driver is that it’s more efficient. It’s not well advertised that it also mucks up the moonlight mode. I don’t think it’s necessarily a defect and warrants a return, but I do wish Hank would make it clearer that there’s a flash. Personally, I doubt I would want to use the light and I would sell it here at a small loss.
Apparently it raises the lowest moonlight output but that doesn’t make it more efficient in moonlight. Again the stated reason for this light was moonlight. So my question stands, how or why did he think a boost driver was going to help a light specifically bought to use in moonlight? And if it is a tiny little bit more efficient in moonlight, with the slightly altered higher levels, assuming he wanted those higher levels, now rather than having to charge at one year he’ll have to charge at 11.5 months?
I think it’s really odd to say that one should expect moonlight to be messed up when most lights in this category and lights even at 1/3rd the price have good moonlight without this glaring flaw. And it’s not unreasonable to think that I’d want to use the same flashlight for camping trips that would benefit from better efficiency. Or in case of emergencies, when most normal people rely on flashlights the most. Your comment really took off with the assumption that I picked boost driver for moonlight efficiency when that’s not really the case. I’m saying moonlight is important to me, not that this light will only be used in moonlight.
Also, the whole simple solution by pressing the bezel against your body and closing your eyes when turning on moonlight…I’m not even sure how to communicate that it’s a silly solution for a $80 light.
I think you misunderstand Hank’s boost driver in these lights. Despite the name, the boost driver has no implied effect on output. In fact, it has less maximum output than the standard fet-based driver.
Here’s the language on the d4v2 page today:
“Please be noted that the boost driver version will have less output on turbo than the regular version, it is a more efficient driver(90-95%) with longer running time and less heat.”
There’s nothing about the flash on the lowest levels. This is why someone would be surprised to see it and unhappy.
I learn by searching and following threads on this forum and would appreciate if anyone can provide additional insight concerning Anduril "Jump Start" since the explanation in ToyKeeper's manual made me curious, especially about which types of lights benefit from "Jump Start".
Is there any association between "boost drivers" and "Jump Start" or between the "Flash before Moonlight if the light was OFF" and "Jump Start"?
From ToyKeeper's Manual at http://toykeeper.net/torches/fsm/anduril2/anduril-manual.txt
1. contact the company for a negotiated resolution.
2. return (in one case, company said keep it and credited me….too much money to ship).
3. unexpected might be operator error. i will research to show where the fault lies. (in our stars?)
To answer your original question, selling it is probably the easiest solution. If it’s still in like new condition, you could likely sell it for what your paid and take a small hit on shipping. A D4K 519A with boost is desirable and someone would likely take it off your hands to avoid waiting for shipping.
I wouldn’t be upset with Hank and certainly wouldn’t try a paypal chargeback. Maybe just put it up for sale here or on reddit and it’ll be gone pretty quick.
Did you factory reset the light yet and see how moon behaves? It’ll be brighter than other lights because four emitters, but on mine I cannot see that flash when I enter moon. Is what you’re seeing as bright as the flashes like when you enter lockout? Maybe a quick video would help if your camera can pick it up.
Nothing is reasonable. You are buying from China, a country that has no labor laws. If this same light was designed and manufactured in USA it would cost 20x if not more. Count your blessings that we can buy such nice products from China at a real low price and we can talk about it and laugh on BLF.
I know what you mean. I have been disappointed by many new lights the last 3 or 4 years. Putting in the work/research on your end and then being let down sucks. Don’t let this one get to you. I am hoping you and Hank can come to some kind of solution. Don’t keep the light around or try and make it, work for you. It won’t. Let it go. I’m sure someone here would gladly take it off your hands. Armed with the information you have now should land you exactly what you want. Well shit, what is it again? A D4K with a boost driver and 519a? What are all the options. I might be interested.
It looks that a light with a boost driver reacts differently from a FET or direct driver. This causes the behaviour you are not happy with. From where Hank stands, this light performs as it should (for this type of light). Which excludes raising a PP issue.
A deal involves an agreement. Hank gets the money, you get the light. That the light does not live up to your own assumptions can’t be pinned on this light. Except when you have made it very understandable to him that you wanted this light to have specific properties when you sealed the deal (eg. bought it).
The best you can do is selling it, or keeping it. Knowing it is a great light, just not exactly what you (implicitely) hoped it would be.
As a happy ending. I,would “compensate” by buying a light that does satisfy all my needs.