Nitecore... AGAIN

[TA_ls1]

I've had a MH27 for about 2 years, and this will be the 4th or 5th time I've had to replace it. Ridiculous right?? I hope they still honor their warranty. Obviously I've done the normal troubleshooting, but again there's something wrong with the electronics and the soldering. This is why I love my Zebralights. They never fail and I have a lot of confidence in how they're built. My next light will be a weapon light, probably a Malkoff or Elzetta. I guess what I'm saying is buy a good quality light in the first place even if it costs a little more.

 

[Cobraman502]

Check out PflexPro, Randy can customize a light for you. The p60 solarforce host is a perfect weapon light. I just got my ConvoyS2 + from him. The advanced driver is awesome.

 

[Sos24]

It is a shame to hear you have had such bad luck with that light. The only Nitecore I have is an SRT3 which does not see regular use.

 

[ChattanoogaPhil]

I've had a MH27 for about 2 years, and this will be the 4th or 5th time I've had to replace it. Ridiculous right?? I hope they still honor their warranty. Obviously I've done the normal troubleshooting, but again there's something wrong with the electronics and the soldering. This is why I love my Zebralights. They never fail and I have a lot of confidence in how they're built. My next light will be a weapon light, probably a Malkoff or Elzetta. I guess what I'm saying is buy a good quality light in the first place even if it costs a little more.

Right. I'd have tossed it in the garbage can well before the 5th failure. I admire the patience some guys have with things that don't work.

 

[ven]

Malkoff, surefire,elzetta are solid options. Can pick up a nice 6p for $50 or a z2 for a
little more. Then pick your p60 to suit, pflexpro, v54, tana etc etc . Programmable driver, can have single
mode and set level of for your application. Then if need to walk dog or take camping, set another level or more modes. Just gives more flexibility and within a few seconds to a minute you can use for a totally different use.

If compact and not needing much over 300lm, consider HDS also. Figures are just that, more than bright enough for most uses , bullet proof and again programmable to suit.

Lots of good options out there, the search /hunt for one is part of the fun.

 

[peter yetman]

If you want someting similar to your Nitecore have a look at the Malkoff 18650 Hound Dog. Simplicity itself. Hi / lo contrilled by twisting the head and an on / off switch on the tail. Fully potted and very little to go wrong. If it does, Malkoff's after sales service sets the Gold Standard.
P

 

[Modernflame]

+1 on the Malkoff Hound Dog 18650. It will be the end of your warranty woes.

 

[stephenk]

Maybe you are unlucky? I have 6 Nitecore flashlights and headlamps and have never had an issue with any of them. For mid-market flashlights, they are pretty good quality (similar to Klarus). There are sturdier options such as those mentioned in this thread, but you'll obviously pay more for that!

 

[mhpreston]

Not my experience with Nitecore either. Four or five successive failures? What are the odds of that happening? Be interested to hear if this happens more than I realise

 

[Timothybil]

Just because I am nosy, what are you using your light for. I understand how statistics can stack up, but five in a row seems excessive, especially since no one else seems to be complaining about there's. I'm not pointing a finger at your usage, I would just like to know what it is.

 

[tatasal]

I ate $32 worth of shipping back to China to have my EA8 repaired years ago.. Problem: Low mode only.

They sent back the light at their expense. I have four other NC lights... so it's one out of five so far.

 

[Cobraman502]

I think you might want to go with a company that has a repair service in us.

 

[TA_ls1]

I think it must be how the MH27 is designed. My MH20gt has had zero issues. I take good care of my lights and don't abuse them, and the MH27 was mainly used for multiple around the house types of things and definitely shouldn't have failed. It's not like I had it on a shotgun or anything like that.

 

[WalkIntoTheLight]

I think you might want to go with a company that has a repair service in us.

Usually, that means overpriced lights. Warranty service from China sucks, so it's easier to just write off the light if it ever fails. Overall, though, you'll save a lot of money unless you're really really unlucky with most of your purchases.

 

[Cobraman502]

Usually, that means overpriced lights. Warranty service from China sucks, so it's easier to just write off the light if it ever fails. Overall, though, you'll save a lot of money unless you're really really unlucky with most of your purchases.

True but buy a good light once or in the ops case deal with warranty many times. The PflexPro I have is warranty in the US built with top of the line parts. Your choice of emitter and an amazing driver. About $85 bucks delivered. Then because it's modular if I damage the host I can replace for $10 and the light looks brand new. Plus potted drivers.

 

[WalkIntoTheLight]

True but buy a good light once or in the ops case deal with warranty many times. The PflexPro I have is warranty in the US built with top of the line parts. Your choice of emitter and an amazing driver. About $85 bucks delivered. Then because it's modular if I damage the host I can replace for $10 and the light looks brand new. Plus potted drivers.

Yeah, I get it. But paying double the cost is a tough choice for a flashlight. Because, in a few years, you're likely to shelf that light for something much better. In the end, they're electronics, and that tends to get outdated simply because there's always something better coming along.

For example, I hardly ever use my XPG/XML/XML-2 lights anymore, because newer LEDs are brighter, more efficient, better tints, and higher CRI. Those old lights are still just as good as when they were new, but compared to today they seem underpowered or poorly tinted. If they break, I wouldn't bother with warranty service. (Not to mention that my 4sevens lights are probably no longer warrantied anyway, due to them going bankrupt.)

 

[Cobraman502]

Yeah, I get it. But paying double the cost is a tough choice for a flashlight. Because, in a few years, you're likely to shelf that light for something much better. In the end, they're electronics, and that tends to get outdated simply because there's always something better coming along.

For example, I hardly ever use my XPG/XML/XML-2 lights anymore, because newer LEDs are brighter, more efficient, better tints, and higher CRI. Those old lights are still just as good as when they were new, but compared to today they seem underpowered or poorly tinted. If they break, I wouldn't bother with warranty service. (Not to mention that my 4sevens lights are probably no longer warrantied anyway, due to them going bankrupt.)

Funny that you mention the led, I just got my ConvoyS2+ back from PflexPro for and led swap. Went from a Nichia 219c 5000k to an xpl-hi 3a 5200k which is actually a better tint than the Nichia, less green specifically with these 2 leds. Plus I get the additional benefits of higher efficiency, runs cooler and the high throws farther.

As to the future of leds, it seems with the xhp series from Cree they are moving to 12 volts which requires a boost driver. My first choice would be Zebralight however I wanted some things Zebralight does not offer.

You can get the h17f driver from mtn electronics but I wanted PflexPro to do the work.

Lighted tailcap with magnet from aliedxpress. Magnet holds light horizontally with the 18650 tube just fine.

Potted driver for added durability

Dual springs for lowered resistance

Prefect centered led

I run edc with 18350 cells but also have the 18650 tube when I need longer run times.

 

[18650]

I ate $32 worth of shipping back to China to have my EA8 repaired years ago.. Problem: Low mode only. They sent back the light at their expense. I have four other NC lights... so it's one out of five so far.

I had the same EA8 which failed in the same way. There are many other posts on this forum from other users who had the same problem. Nitecore did send a replacement which worked the last time I checked but I don't trust it anymore. Their designs don't seem to be all that robust if this happens with other models.

 

[tatasal]

In hindsight, ALL my lights, regardless of brand, that have mechanical switch at the back has never failed so far, but only those with electronic switch like my EA8, my Fenix TK70/41, Zebralight SC600 (and can't recall the others) have failed in one form or another.

 

[Timothybil]

I think you might want to go with a company that has a repair service in us.

Nitecore now has a presence in the US what can handle warranty issues, if the light is bought through them. I bought an EA41 through one of the Chinese stores, and found out the hard way that they to not serve the Nitecore warranties, only their own six month one.