Just curious if its just me or if a high percentage of lights have some sort of defect
For this thread major defect means driver, LED or switch issues, construction problems, missing parts etc (use your best judgement)
Minor defect means thread lubing, scratches, ano defects, dents, mis-matched parts (cosmetic) and so forth
I’m not sure where incorrect tint or design flaws lie, use your judgement but mention it in the thread so we are comparing apples to apples
For me its about 50% have a major defect, and 30% minor defect.
Before I started buying direct from Chinese dealers (DX, Dinodirect, Thrunite, Fasttech) fewer than one in ten lights had issues that warranted return. After I started buying direct from China, its more like 50%.
Too many variables.
Did it work as advertised (other than lumen numbers)? No problem.
Did you eventually get it to work? Minor problem.
Can’t get it to work at all? Defective.
Luckily I’ve had non defective from well over 200 lights ranging from $1 to $300.
About 5 needed some help. And some would die within a few weeks. Like the cmg sonics would get really dirty near the springs. Thought they were dead until I cleaned them a few months ago…lol.
Fake lumen claims are endemic and not an issue to be handled in this thread since BLFers are going in knowing what to expect
Even ‘honest’ dealers often put out emitter lumens and not OTF lumens which annoys the hell out of me
So far, I have only 2 incidents of major defect, and they are all related to tail clicky switch.
the rest are always with minor defect, particularly chip/scratch in finishing and hazed/heavy blurry glass lens.
I know I'm too picky. Minor & major defects, 90%. I consider nicks, dings, rough threads, dry threads, machining defects, out of round, loose and wobbly mating parts, no thermal paste, wires under led stars, plating that falls off, lens chips, reflector defects from plating dirty reflectors, damaged "O" rings, etc. as defects. I do not remember receiving an overseas light that was defect free.
3 years ago, I would judge any light against a Maglite, as back then, they were about as perfect as you could get. Now Maglite has dropped the QC standards and they are no better than the cheap junk and the cheap junk is getting higher in price, but not higher in quality.
I feel the same about my own builds. There's only two or three I would claim as mine, the rest are just not up to my standards.
0% so far using that criteria. All of mine have worked and without major flaws. However, A few have been disappointing enough that they deserved to be sent back. I would say that group is about 25%. For instance a 6T6 that had a lousy driver, un-centered emitters and thermal paste on a couple emitters. Still not so bad that it would be called major. It worked and was bright, just not as bright as a SRK and it should have been brighter. If I had bought this light locally I would have went back for a replacement or simply returned it.
I don't consider a lack of lube to be a defect. Missing or badly sized o-rings, anno defects, less than perfect threads, parts needing to be tightened etc. would be minor. Almost all the budget lights I get have one or more minor problems. Very, very few, surprisingly, have major problems.
One recenlty was major - it did not have the two mode groups that were advertised. I am negotiating now to return the light.
Another one has a battery tube that is so small that it will not accept a cell. And not just a little small, it's not even close. And the tube is not aligned properly with the head when it is screwed on - but that's what happens when I buy a $2.74 light I guess.
Buying cheap can be a false economy. Are they lights you can repair to make good with little additional cost? Or one can buy an expensive light that develops a rare fault (like the Sunwayman D40A that had a short).
I bought 23. Got 2 out of 23, both bad LEDs stars. So I’d go with 10%.
Chinese mfg knows no quality. That’s what we’d get for,cheap mfgring.
Just over the sea, Japan can teach lessons on that topics. Japan knows US markets. Chinese is ladened with fraud, and quality problems, but they still suck you in because you want it cheap.
You shall know the basics, and the basics shall set you free:
Drivers are designed to run LEDs at optimum efficiency, not maximum brightness. So your LEDs are driven under 1amp rather max brightness at 3amp. That way, batt charge lasts longer. Their sales group, however, advertise the biggest number found on Cree data sheet, the 3amp brightness output. They will always advertised that way until you stop buying cheap.
The real disadvantage to US buyers is that you can’t return products. Walmart spoiled us all. LOL.
The proper way to account the cost of these products is to add 10% plus unit shipping costs, if you buy and resale. If quality is good, you’d be buying these products at Walmart by now.
When I’m buying a ‘budget’ item, I expect the odd defect and even an occasional outright failure. I don’t think it’s reasonable to expect Rolex quality for a Timex price. A $100 flashlight damn well better be perfect. A $20 Convoy, I have to cut some slack. A $10 Crapfire, I should be happy if it makes light at all.
I recently had a $10 light from FastTech that arrived with a blown driver - I could smell the burnt electronics when I opened the package. I tossed the driver, kept the host & emitter, and left it at that. I’m not going to gripe and complain over a lousy $10 light, or go to the trouble of returning it. I my opinion, the host and emitter were worth more than the original price. The very low prices, outstanding service and exceptional value of other purchases from them have more than offset that minor loss.
On average, the failure / functional defect rate from overseas suppliers has been quite low. FastTech and I/O have been very good, DX not so much, and one or two others no longer get any business from me because of their habit of misrepresenting their goods and sometimes being outright deceptive.
I also buy lights from FourSevens, Olight and Fenix - but I cannot honestly say enjoy them one bit more (and in some cases a lot less) than my Convoy lights. Is one Quark really worth the price of four Convoys that give the same amount of light and at least equal reliability? Two of the Convoys could crap out and I’d still be ahead of the game, plus I’d have two more hosts to tinker with - not that I’ve ever had a Convoy light fail or even give one bit of trouble.
But back to the OPs question:
DOA rate? </>1-2%
Early failure rate? (switches/o-rings) </> 5-10%
Minor imperfections upon arrival? (dry threads/cosmetics) </> 90+%
…and I’m o.k. with that. If the ‘budget’ lights are not imperfect upon arrival they very soon will be, because I use them for the tools that they are.
And the Rolex/Timex thing? I HAVE a Rolex. I WEAR a Timex. In the 30+ years I’ve owned that damn Rolex, it’s never run six consecutive months without an expensive trip to the shop. The Timex keeps far better time and it’s bullet proof - stick in a $2 battery every couple of years and forget about it. Feels to me like an exact parallel to the Convoy / SuperSnooty flashlight situation.
I think they came from the same mfgring facility ! The distributors then run to them and get the lights.
What I don’t know is whether the mfgr bins them out to different quality level then sell them at different prices. Dead lights, for example, may be sold say $2 because they’re not worth taking it apart.
