# Are UltraFire Flashlights any good?



## ChadSchu (Mar 1, 2013)

Are UltraFire Flashlights any good? Just wondering. I have never owned one before and wanted to get advice before I buy one.

thanks
Chad


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## kj2 (Mar 1, 2013)

Had one. My answer: no


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## LiteTheWay (Mar 1, 2013)

Some yes and some no. TrustFire however, often confused with Ultrafire with good reason and probably made in the same factory(s), seem to be pretty good.


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## holylight (Mar 1, 2013)

hmmm. save a little more to get wats in my signature and you can't be wrong


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## mrmacman2u (Mar 2, 2013)

"Are they any good?"

Yes... No... Sometimes...It depends?

I have a couple of them including a P60 knockoff and while a few have been spotty and they have ALL required some TLC, fluff and buffs, tightens and tweaks and other attention before service.

Now, the ones that worked, work GREAT and took/have taken staggering amounts of abuse, misuse and other generic tortures that ridiculously inexpensive "bang around" lights are destined to take.

This includes, but is not limited to 15+ foot drops, extreme winter cold, extreme summer heat, REPEATED drops onto concrete from the sitting height of a GMC Sierra, submersion of anywhere from 3 feet to 6 feet for extended periods, and an agitated user chucking it against a tree as hard as I could manage (I wasn't mad at the light, but I was NOT going to smash a $500 gps no matter how much of a p***k it was being) so on and so forth. Geocaching is rough 

The two I still have continue to work great despite HIDEOUS misuse and blatant abuse.

Just be prepared to have a totally crap light also. You will be facing about a 20% utter failure rate out of the box and about 40% of the ones that work will die randomly because you toss it onto your bed funny.

IMHO for you, it's a shot in the dark in the end. If you can accept that you may just be left there when you need it the most AND have the basic technical skills to go over the light once you receive it to make sure it's solid, go ahead and give it them a go if you REALLY can't afford anything better.

Personally, I love my more expensive quality lights, too much perhaps... Therefore, I will always have a soft spot for cheap junk that can get demolished and I won't shed a single tear.

Hope this helps some!


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## borrower (Mar 2, 2013)

As noted, trustfire/ultrafire branded lights tend to be a mixed bag. You could step up a little in price and a lot in quality and go with a SolarForce. Right now, there's a grey L2N host for $13 or a black L2M host for $11 plus $2 shipping. 2 bucks more and you get a reverse clicky kit. Choose a P60 drop-in of choice (plus batteries and charger if you don't already have them) and you're done. (SF drop-ins don't have the best reliability record, historically, so maybe pass on them.) For SF, google solarforce flashlight sales and you'll find their site.


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## cbdudley (Mar 2, 2013)

Another vote for Solarforce here. You can buy them from Lighthound if you don't want to wait for shipping from Hong Kong. Very high quality for the price.


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## rmteo (Mar 2, 2013)

Or http://www.sbflashlights.com/, they are in TX.


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## TEEJ (Mar 2, 2013)

LOL

Don't buy one, its not worth it.



You can't even judge by the specs, as they are typically wrong/exaggerated, etc.


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## mrmacman2u (Mar 2, 2013)

TEEJ said:


> You can't even judge by the specs, as they are typically wrong/exaggerated, etc.


 
Or both


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## DellSuperman (Mar 5, 2013)

My 1 experience with it resulted in it sitting at some corner of my home within 1 week. 

Did not work out of the box because the switch was having some problem.
Fixed it & it managed to light up but with a flicker. 
Found that the outer spring on the dropin was not able to sit in properly & the contact was quite bad. 
Did some work to make the outer spring sit in nicely & this time, the outer cap couldn't be tighten all the way because the o ring at the lens will pop out if i tighten it too much. 
Convinced myself to use it with a slightly loose top cap but sooner than i expected, the cap came off & the lens & dropin came off (luckily inside my pouch) 

I agree that some people might get good working copy of them so its really down to your luck. 
For my budget light, i go for SolarForce these days. 
They are the closest SF clones with the best possible quality for that price that you are paying. 

JonK

Sent from my Awesome phone from somewhere in the mountains


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## B42 (Mar 5, 2013)

TEEJ said:


> LOL
> 
> Don't buy one, its not worth it.
> 
> ...



You can judge by the specs: you take the lumens and divide by 2 for most of them, and for the "top lumen outputs" (7-12x T6) you divide by 3 

And thats not a joke ^^

I'm starting to have a good picture of Trustfire lights here (not Ultrafire), which are the same price range. They seem to be good in quality and cheap, and if you are willing to live with the advertised lumens divided by 2 or 3, they are actually a good value when you compare them to a similar output non-budget light, and use them with protected good batteries. Only time will tell, but I use at least one of the ones I have every night for the past few months now and they are still going strong, no problems. Initial problems I had were due to the cheap batteries: that's something that I think isn't worth buying for sure.


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## mellowhead (Mar 6, 2013)

+1 for solarforce as a lower price upgrade. I have an L2P and it has served me extremely well so far. I did also recently buy a trustfire. Seems to work well, although lumens not as advertised. Interface is not the greatest either. But it worked out of the box...


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## Yorgi (Mar 12, 2013)

Before I discovered CPF I bought about 15 or so UltraFire type lights from DX. Since finding CPF I have picked up at least 20 or so higher end lights (SF|4Sevens|Fenix|Olight|etc).

Like everyone said TrustFires can be hit-or-miss. A couple I purchased turned out to be unbelievable deals. Like the XM-L based WF-502B which goes for less than $14 with free shipping (SKU: 55238). It puts out very close to it's 510 lumens claimed output based on comparisons to my SureFire P2X Fury etc... Anything by Romisen is a step above UltraFire for similar prices. Other than some lube on the threads, my Romisens and WF-502B needed no cleanup work.

Personally I like my DX cheapies. I keep them in places like the garage and basement and give them to my kids to play with. They are also good for learning how LED lights work, no big deal if you screw up a $10 light when pulling them apart. I typically do a bit of work on these lights to clean them up a bit, which I find is a good learning experience if you are into that sort of thing.


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## Poppy (Mar 13, 2013)

I have two WF-501b 18650 lights. 
The first worked for a few minutes on high and broke. The second was a replacement. I took the first apart, and found that one of the soldered wires fell off, and once I resoldered it, it has been working fine. The tail cap on one feels a bit gritty when screwing it on. Although advertised at 1000 lm, I estimate that it is really at 700 lm when comparing it to my TN11 and TK35.

Overall I like them in part because they are inexpensive, and it won't hurt if they break or get lost. I also like that they are lighter than my better lights. They don't have the thermal mass of the better lights to dissapate heat as well, but I don't need 700 lm for more than spurts of time and it has a nice mid output that gives a decent run-time and doesn't have any over-heating issue at the mid level, even with fresh batteries.

Solarforce as mentioned above is definiitely a step up @ $25 with shipping.

You'll need batteries, and a charger. I'd prefer a charger that can plug into a car's cigar lighter to recharge during power outages.


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## slipe (Mar 25, 2013)

If Ultrafire brand is associated with a particular factory or company they don't seem to protect the name. There are Ultrafire 18650 batteries on Ebay listed at 3600 MaH with odd looking labels selling for $12 for four. Someone bought a set and said they tested out to under a thousand. I have a hunch that it has become Chinese for "generic" - anyone can sell as Ultrafire.

I have some older reliable lights that are labeled Ultrafire. But it was probably just the luck of the draw, or maybe from before they stopped protecting the label. I don't avoid budget lights - I've had good luck with them. But I now avoid Ultrafire.


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## Mike_TX (Mar 25, 2013)

I'm always amazed when I read these reports. I have around a dozen Ultrafire lights - mostly 501B's and 502B's, and every one of them works fine after a couple of years. I LOVE them. I have XRE's, XPG's and XML's, and every one of them is excellent.

Now, no, I don't drop them 15 feet onto concrete and I don't throw them against trees as hard as I can, but that's asking a little much of $15 lights. But if you buy Ultrafire lights from DX I don't see why you won't be happy. I definitely am. 

Oh, and the one and only "problem" I've had with one was a slightly loose switch module ... took me two minutes to tighten it and it's worked for the last 18 months without a hitch. Loose switches WILL cause problems, but condemn a whole range of lights for that? Come on.


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## fpb (Mar 25, 2013)

Generally agree with folks who've responded. I have three UltraFire 502b powered by variously by UltraFire 3000mAh or Orbtronic 3100mAh cells. The UltraFire cells vary greatly in performance (and even physical dimensions) while the Orbtronics power my 502b's more consistently. For the price, they are fine my 1/2-hour nightly dog-walking or looking into dark spaces while geocaching. I generally have to replace cells at least every 10 days.

Hoping to try some of the upgrades recommended here soon.

-Frank


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## DocMortal (Mar 25, 2013)

Ive had Ultrafire and Trustfire unfortunately bought on ebay. Ive had about 5 because of the cheap price making me think they were knockoffs of some sort,anyways after a couple of drops all these flashlights failed.

They work great as long as you dont drop them. So far my Nitecore E25 has survived many drops so in flashlight like in most things you get what you pay for.


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## mccririck (Mar 25, 2013)

I think their lights are decent but their batteries are best avoided.


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## Poppy (Mar 26, 2013)

Poppy said:


> I have two WF-501b 18650 lights.
> The first worked for a few minutes on high and broke. The second was a replacement. I took the first apart, and found that one of the soldered wires fell off, and once I resoldered it, it has been working fine. The tail cap on one feels a bit gritty when screwing it on. Although advertised at 1000 lm, I estimate that it is really at 700 lm when comparing it to my TN11 and TK35.
> 
> Overall I like them in part because they are inexpensive, and it won't hurt if they break or get lost. I also like that they are lighter than my better lights. They don't have the thermal mass of the better lights to dissapate heat as well, but I don't need 700 lm for more than spurts of time and it has a nice mid output that gives a decent run-time and doesn't have any over-heating issue at the mid level, even with fresh batteries.
> ...


Well... I'd like to retract one of my above statements.
Here's the deal, I have two of the XML T6 emitters. One in a Solarforce that I added some additional heat-sinking, and the other in a UltraFire Clone without additional heatsinking.
I ran the two of them at the MID setting to see what kind of run time I would get.
The Clone without the heat sinking died.... the emitter burned up.

This might have been "happen-chance" But when I put in a new emitter, I'll be sure to heat sink it.

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...-Improving-heat-sinking-on-P60-style-drop-ins


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## dparr (Mar 26, 2013)

I have a UF-H2B. It's been on a lot of caving trips mounted on my helmet. 

I water proofed it by putting epoxy on the switch and lens. It's been through several low air spaces and wet pits with no problems at all.

Great little light. I would buy another one. The only problem I have with it is the switch is too stiff.


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## 501 sea (Mar 26, 2013)

There's something important you should know about Ultrafire:

if you want to buy a genuine Ultrafire flashlight you should probably buy from the Official Ultrafire shop, as there are a lot of imitation Ultrafire products in circulation, which you can go and Google.

See warnings about the existence of fake Ultrafire products on the Ultrafire website, such as 18650 batteries with capacities higher than 3000 mAh, which Ultrafire states they do not manufacture.

Ultrafire site recommends to purchase from the Ultrafire Shop, in order to ensure the products you buy are genuine Ultrafire products, not fake made by someone else.

The Ultrafire shop itself lists dealers where it says fake Ultrafire products have been sold.


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## Lightseeker2 (Mar 30, 2013)

I have several of these 501b Ultrafires. So far, they have worked great, but, only after doing some QA that should have been done at the factory. 
They come with high, medium, low, strobe, and, SOS modes. 
My problem is, I don't need five freaking modes on my flashlights.
I just want the switch to work on "high", and, "off".

Is there a way to convert these 5 mode switches to just on-off?


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## Lightseeker2 (Apr 2, 2013)

Is there anybody out there who can answer my question?

Helloooo?


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## mccririck (Apr 2, 2013)

I dont know the answer but wouldnt it be nice if light came with changable mode options? Some people like just a simple on/off, some like to have a high/low or a high/medium/low, and others like disco modes. Yet it's the disco folk who get what they want more often than not. Perhaps a small switch inside the battery compartment could allow the user to select what suits.


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## TEEJ (Apr 2, 2013)

Lightseeker2 said:


> I have several of these 501b Ultrafires. So far, they have worked great, but, only after doing some QA that should have been done at the factory.
> They come with high, medium, low, strobe, and, SOS modes.
> My problem is, I don't need five freaking modes on my flashlights.
> I just want the switch to work on "high", and, "off".
> ...



Yes, cut the wires and/or break the solder line to the other modes.

You can make it direct drive from hot, and just go on/off.


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## Lightseeker2 (Apr 4, 2013)

Thanks, TEEJ!


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## scottkelly94 (Apr 4, 2013)

I have 1 head torch, two bigger torches one which has 3x XM-L LEDs and one smaller tourch that has 1x XM-L LED and they all work fine and have had plenty of abuse camping/hunting/4x4ing/drinking etc however a few of my family member and work mates have purchase them after using mine and none of their torches work anymore. i must have been lucky enough to score a good batch when i ordered mine. the torchers are bright and seem to be fine for the price. i think my batteries wont last much longer but the torches seem as though the will last a long time. i will probably find some decent batteries to replace my current ones but in the future i will be spending the money on a decent brand torches as i use my cheap torches all the time and think investing in few expensive ones would be worth it in the long run. i have had my torches for nearly 1.5 years.


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## rpm00 (Apr 7, 2013)

I can echo the experience of others here. I've purchased a few UltraFire lights from DX as I was just getting into this hobby. I ordered two of the little C3 lights. One of them never turned on. The other one works fine, but you can tell it's cheaply made. DX did send me another one for free though which has worked fine. These are the cheapies that I let my kids play with since they're single mode clicky and I won't really care if they break. 

I've had a few other "budget" lights and haven't had much luck. The no-name ones like the Sipik clone and another UltraFire have been spotty. Bad PWM and just generally cheap feel to them. But playing with these has allowed me to learn what I like and what I don't. 

I've started to move up the line. I have a Xeno E03 which is GREAT and have gotten into SolarForce as well. I think both are considered "budget" but have been far above the UltraFires that I have.


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## citruspers (Apr 11, 2013)

If you're going for a cheap Ultrafire I'd take the WF-502B over the WF-501. I have both and the 502 looks and feels like a more quality light. It's not fancy in terms of features, but it's a solid and very mod-able light (you'll thank me once you start collecting P60 dropins).
The C3 is a mixed bag, mine would start flickering after 20 minutes runtime which I had to fix by bending a piece of paperclip and wedging it in between the driver and the body. Then again it has worked flawlessly for the past year and it's been dropped, dunked in water, lost on the beach etc.


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## KurtS (Apr 17, 2013)

TEEJ said:


> >_Is there a way to convert these 5 mode switches to just on-off?
> _
> Yes, cut the wires and/or break the solder line to the other modes.
> 
> You can make it direct drive from hot, and just go on/off.



Related question, but probably more difficult to answer - Is there any way to eliminate the strobe modes and just keep the Lo-Med-Hi or Lo-Hi?

Thanks!


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## Hypochondriac (Apr 18, 2013)

Poppy said:


> Well... I'd like to retract one of my above statements.
> Here's the deal, I have two of the XML T6 emitters. One in a Solarforce that I added some additional heat-sinking, and the other in a UltraFire Clone without additional heatsinking.
> I ran the two of them at the MID setting to see what kind of run time I would get.
> The Clone without the heat sinking died.... the emitter burned up.
> ...



I read the thread very informative. I was wondering would wrapping the emitter/plugin in foil and forcing it into the body also work? I also have some attic silver in the house somewhere I can coat the body/aluminum with it as well.



501 sea said:


> There's something important you should know about Ultrafire:
> 
> if you want to buy a genuine Ultrafire flashlight you should probably buy from the Official Ultrafire shop, as there are a lot of imitation Ultrafire products in circulation, which you can go and Google.
> 
> ...



Other then buying from the official site. Do you know if there is a way to determine if you have a original or imitation product? I bought mine from amazon for a little more then half of what the official site charges


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## DenBarrettSAR (Apr 19, 2013)

I have tons of Ultrafire lights, a fiew are good, but many had issues that needed fixing. 
Trustfire seems to be a notch or two higher that the Ultrafire brand, and seem to have better quality overall in most of their lights.
( i buy only from the Trustfire website, and always get great customer service and great lights. The TF X6 looks to have a quality level comparable to the best names ot there, expecially when it comes to the fit & finish, but then its not really a "budget" light at $ 145.00 dollars and upwards.


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## JNieporte (Apr 23, 2013)

I got some 501Bs about a week ago, all the same model:
XM-L emitter, smooth reflector, five modes (in order: H-M-L-strobe-SOS), black body, lime green switch cover. One worked just fine. The other three had different problems:
-The first one had a switch that wouldn't move. It was stuck in the "on" position and not even disassembly could fix it.
-The second one was identical.
-The third one had a switch that clicked fine, and cycled through the modes fine, but a click wouldn't turn the light off; it would cycle to the next mode. The only way to turn the light off was to remove the tailcap.

These problems were after I had cleaned and tightened everything, and lubed the threads. I found that the lights themselves were fine; the tailcaps were duds. The one working tailcap (from the "fine" one) worked as normal in the other lights. So, I have one working tailcap for four lights. The LED / reflector is a P60 size, so I guess I got some XM-L drop-ins to use.


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## TrakTuned (Apr 23, 2013)

As a whole they are junk!

Some are okay, some are worth less than their aluminum.....


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## 501 sea (Apr 24, 2013)

Hypochondriac said:


> Other then buying from the official site. Do you know if there is a way to determine if you have a original or imitation product? I bought mine from amazon for a little more then half of what the official site charges



No, I don't know how you could determine whether an Ultrafire product is fake or original. I presume that Ultrafire have some secret markings or codes on their products, known only to Ultrafire, or else that they can just recognise the fake Ultrafire models being given back to them as being ones which they have never produced. 

I would have no idea if the model you got from Amazon is a fake Ultrafire or a genuine Ultrafire. Maybe you could compare it with what's on the manufacturer's site (this is the Ultrafire site that ends with .net not the site that ends with .com.cn) or with the models you see on the official Ultrafire shop.


Sorry for the delay in replying


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## Changchung (Apr 30, 2013)

I have like 6 ultrafire and they are good for me. I mod one with a triple xpg p60 and I use it a lot... No problema...


Sent from my phone with camera with flash and internet on it...


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## conman (May 3, 2013)

I hope they are. I ordered a 250 lumen pocket light by Ultrafire from a website for less then 10$. For about 6 dollars more, I bought a glass lens and a reflector and according to some people on CPF this will turn it into an impressive pocket thrower.


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## jpbaily1 (May 9, 2013)

UltraFire WF-501B 1200 lumens just arrived today. Seems to be a nice unit.


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## J-Dub74 (Aug 21, 2013)

501 sea said:


> There's something important you should know about Ultrafire:
> 
> if you want to buy a genuine Ultrafire flashlight you should probably buy from the Official Ultrafire shop, as there are a lot of imitation Ultrafire products in circulation, which you can go and Google.
> 
> ...



Thank you for posting this. In my research and limited experience it would seem that almost all the "Ultrafire" products sold on Amazon and Ebay are fakes. I have several myself and the quality is mixed. Some of the fakes are decent especially for the price. Half the lights out there with the Ultrafire label on them are models that the real company never produced. It's a gamble whether or not you get a nice budget light or junk. I've gotten both. I'd like to add that DX is on the known list of fake Ultrafire sellers. I actually have one on order from Fasttech (who was not on the list by the way). Several reviews and even pictures of the lights themselves with the Ultrafire name printed in gold lettering on the drop-in module indicate that Fasttech may be one of the few places selling the real thing but I can't guarantee that. I'll post a review once it comes in and I've had a chance to check it out. The one I ordered is a WF-501B single mode forward clicky with an XM-L2 emitter. For $13 I figure it's worth a shot.


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## mccririck (Aug 21, 2013)

I have a Sipik sk98 clone from ebay which has Ultrafire branding, and I'm certain Ultrafire do not make them. It's got a nice warm tint though, it's my outdoor light.


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## J-Dub74 (Aug 21, 2013)

I have a couple sipik clones myself but the 68. One of them is labeled Ultrafire too but it's certainly not. I havent heard any good reports about the 98 until now. I was considering buying one to see how it did with an 18650.


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## jamie.91 (Aug 21, 2013)

I could be way off her but for me in the UK, an average eBay price for a 18650 "whateverfire" brand would be £20 to my door.

For £56 I can get a sunwayman C20C, I'm using this as an example because I have one, and it's now my work light, it's taken a lot of abuse, I never put the light down, I usually just drop the damn thing to the floor where ever I stand and it still works fine.

The cheap branded lights I have owned don't last, and don't like being dropped.


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## mccririck (Aug 22, 2013)

J-Dub74 said:


> I have a couple sipik clones myself but the 68. One of them is labeled Ultrafire too but it's certainly not. I havent heard any good reports about the 98 until now. I was considering buying one to see how it did with an 18650.



The 98 seemed to get bad press when it was released and this has coloured peoples opinions on the light, but I cant find much wrong with it. It's a nice size, bright, good zoom, and I've left it on high for 12 minutes and it's stayed below 40oC


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## mccririck (Aug 22, 2013)

jamie.91 said:


> I could be way off her but for me in the UK, an average eBay price for a 18650 "whateverfire" brand would be £20 to my door.
> 
> For £56 I can get a sunwayman C20C, I'm using this as an example because I have one, and it's now my work light, it's taken a lot of abuse, I never put the light down, I usually just drop the damn thing to the floor where ever I stand and it still works fine.
> 
> The cheap branded lights I have owned don't last, and don't like being dropped.



I got an Ultrafire branded sk98 18650 delivered to my door for just over £5. I also got a different Ultrafire branded 18650 light delivered to my door for £2.20


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## J-Dub74 (Aug 22, 2013)

jamie.91 said:


> I could be way off her but for me in the UK, an average eBay price for a 18650 "whateverfire" brand would be £20 to my door.
> 
> For £56 I can get a sunwayman C20C, I'm using this as an example because I have one, and it's now my work light, it's taken a lot of abuse, I never put the light down, I usually just drop the damn thing to the floor where ever I stand and it still works fine.
> 
> The cheap branded lights I have owned don't last, and don't like being dropped.



Yeah you are definitely in a different situation. Here in the states you can get an 18650 "whateverfire" for anywhere between $5-$15 US (I'd say an average $10) shipped to your door off ebay or amazon. The Sunwayman C20C is around $60. Yes it's certainly more of a gamble the quality department but I have lights I've paid $10-$15 for that can (and have) take a drop with no issue at all and so far have been very dependable. With any ...fire type light you need to do your homework on the seller. On eBay that's pretty much impossible so it's going to be a gamble. That said, PayPal has got your back and ebay sellers don't want negative feedback. My last $10 ebay ultrafake was a bit rough in the quality department. It was supposed to be a 3 mode and it is a 5 with annoying next-mode memory plus the ring around the emitter isn't perfectly centered. I contacted the seller and they apologized, gave me a full refund and I got to keep the light. Considering that it's still a functional light that has taken a few drops without issue I call that a win. The genuine Ultrafire lights if you can find one, while far short of Surefire are a good value and surprisingly good quality for the price. The problem is that there are now WAY more fakes out there than the real thing. Most of the fakes are of such poor quality that they have tarnished the Ultrafire name beyond redemption. Fasttech appears to be one of the few places online that you can buy a genuine Ultrafire light. Those and the Convoy (even better) branded lights offer a lot of value for little money. The 501b/502b and C8 varieties in any configuration you like can be bought there for $10-$15 and by many reports have much better fit and finish (threads, knurling, soldering, etc.) than the fakes. I have a Convoy C8 and Ultrafire 501b on order from them now. I will report back with my own findings once they arrive.


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## J-Dub74 (Aug 22, 2013)

mccririck said:


> The 98 seemed to get bad press when it was released and this has coloured peoples opinions on the light, but I cant find much wrong with it. It's a nice size, bright, good zoom, and I've left it on high for 12 minutes and it's stayed below 40oC



Good to know. I may have to pick on up someday soon. Maybe they addressed some of the original issues. How does it stack up compared to the 68 as far as lumen output? I have a couple of those and for a ridiculously cheap light they are impressive. I can't believe how addictive this is by the way. The Sipik 68 clone was my intro to flashaholism. It and it's clones are probably the ultimate "gateway drug" to becoming a flashaholic.


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## mccririck (Aug 22, 2013)

The sk98 has a much cleaner beam than the sk68. That is the sk68's biggest failing imo. It is brighter too, but the zoom throw isnt as small, and the flood is wider.


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## Mass. Wine Guy (Aug 25, 2013)

I have only one UltraFire light. It is extremely bright and seems to work well. It was doing some flickering on the low mode, but I took it apart, did some cleaning and tightening, and now it seems ok. For $18, not bad. I'd go Solarforce next time, though.


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## 901-Memphis (Aug 25, 2013)

I have a wf-501b and the tail cap got cross threaded amazingly easy on it. Now its jammed on there and i have to remove the battery from the front of the light. If it wasn't for the removable front piece it would be scrap. 

I got an Olight S20 baton off ebay for $33 , now thats a budget light price.


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## TronPlayer (Aug 25, 2013)

I have several and am not really happy with any of them. I don't buy them anymore. Quality control stinks and you never really know what you're going to get. I've had some not work out of the box and I can't really ship them back to china. If you take into consideration the cost of the ones that don't work, missing o-rings, plastic lenses etc. you can easily purchase a quality light like a fenix.


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## J-Dub74 (Aug 26, 2013)

TronPlayer said:


> I have several and am not really happy with any of them. I don't buy them anymore. Quality control stinks and you never really know what you're going to get. I've had some not work out of the box and I can't really ship them back to china. If you take into consideration the cost of the ones that don't work, missing o-rings, plastic lenses etc. you can easily purchase a quality light like a fenix.



Where were you purchasing from? Lots of online stores are selling Ultrafakes. I understand not wanting to ship back to China but at least in my "bad quality" experiences, resolving the issue was easy and fairly painless. With eBay they replace the item free or refund your money and Amazon handles and pays for the return shipping for you. They send you a prepaid box you just drop off at a FedEx location. The quality control of the places flooding the market with fake Ultrafire products is horrible but IMO the genuine Ultrafire stuff seems pretty good and has MUCH better Quality Control. For those who don't want to take any chances I get it but I'm a bargain hound and I enjoy the hunt. If I was going into combat next week I'd be ordering a Surefire...but I'm not. As it is I'm eagerly awaiting an order from Fasttech that includes another Ultrafire light. More on that when I have it in my hands.


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## J-Dub74 (Aug 26, 2013)

901-Memphis said:


> I have a wf-501b and the tail cap got cross threaded amazingly easy on it. Now its jammed on there and i have to remove the battery from the front of the light. If it wasn't for the removable front piece it would be scrap.
> 
> I got an Olight S20 baton off ebay for $33 , now thats a budget light price.



Poorly cut threads are one of the most common problems with the Ultrafire clones. The real ones have better threading and overall fit and finish. I must say that Olight S20 looks like an awesome light though.


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## Alexr1946 (Aug 26, 2013)

I've purchased two Ultrafires: one WF-501b and the other was a WF-502b, from DX, and had problems with both. The first with the tailcap switch, and the second began to flicker heavily two months after purchased. I think that they aren't reliable...
Now I have a Solarforce L2M and didn't have problems at all.


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## Streamer (Aug 26, 2013)

Guys, J-Dub74 has said it best: And I quote.

"With any ...fire type light you need to do your homework on the seller.


This is the key. You have to follow the forums *esp over at BLF* and learn who the tip top sellers are. That's what I've done and every Chinese light I have ever purchased is top notch. Ultrafire UF980L, Ultrafire 2100, Ultrafire C8. All excellent torches. And you'll pay more than the run of the mill vendors on Ebay or Amazon, or watever site you search out on the net, but you'll get a quallity torch that won't "break" or be DOA. It takes a llittle time to search em out...but they are out there for sure.


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## J-Dub74 (Aug 27, 2013)

Alexr1946 said:


> I've purchased two Ultrafires: one WF-501b and the other was a WF-502b, from DX, and had problems with both. The first with the tailcap switch, and the second began to flicker heavily two months after purchased. I think that they aren't reliable...
> Now I have a Solarforce L2M and didn't have problems at all.



I'm not trying to sounds like a broken record here, but the Ultrafire website lists DX as one of the sites that they know sells fake Ultrafire flashlights. In other words DO NOT BUY AN ULTRAFIRE FROM DX! Don't get me wrong. I'm not knocking anyone who did. A few months ago I would have thought DX was a place you'd be more likely to get a real Ultrafire but apparently that's not the case. As Streamer mentioned (thanks for the tip of the hat BTW) you also need to avoid Ebay and Amazon if you want to buy an Ultrafire light. I just received my new Ultrafire WF-501b yesterday from Fasttech. The fit and finish is WAY better than anything I've gotten off Ebay or Amazon and it was only a few dollars more. Obviously I can't say anything about longevity yet but this is a _really_ good looking light with a smooth reflector and the beam is beautiful. Nice hot spot that transitions smoothly into a good amount of spill. There is not a single artifact or halo in sight. I did not expect that from a smooth reflector light that cost this little. There are properly fitting O-rings everywhere from lens to tail. They only claim it to be water resistant but it sure looks like it could go underwater though I'm not going to test that. For the $13 I paid I am very impressed.


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## lintonindy (Aug 27, 2013)

Streamer said:


> Guys, J-Dub74 has said it best: And I quote.
> 
> "With any ...fire type light you need to do your homework on the seller.
> 
> ...



This is exactly right and has been my experiences as well. I have now moved up the chain of lights as well as costs but when I did research the heck out of a light and followed the forum's recommendations I was never really disappointed.


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## arKmm (Feb 28, 2014)

I've got a WF-501B, bought off eBay in 2012. Since then it's come to work with me every day and is still going strong. I've never had any trouble with it at all.

I work in security, so have it on my belt and it's perfect for most things, however I'd like to have a large (maglite d-cell replacement) style torch that I can use for long range illumination (perimeter patrols etc.)


Has anybody got any thoughts on the Trustfire stuff such as:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/16000-Lum...ing_LightsLanternsTorches&hash=item2a3858bcd2

I know the batteries and chargers will need replacing as they'll be garbage, but as for the actual torch?

The alternative for me was getting a Maglite 4D and fitting an XML drop-in, but I could get one of these for cheaper and (at least on paper) have 15x the performance?


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## FTGFOP (Mar 4, 2014)

I've been using the A100 and PX518 xxxxxFire zoomers. If you can find a good one they're worth GB £10-15. Mine have withstood cycling in freezing temperatures, heavy rain and crashing over potholes at 30mph. They get a bit loose, but keep ticking.

Unfortunately the QC tends to suck and I have received a couple of shockers. Best to find a friendly retailer who will stand behind the product.

If you can find a reliable supplier, they're good for what they are - ie cheap, tough and bright enough!


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## GregY (Mar 5, 2014)

In general they are no-frills lights made as cheaply as possible from commodity parts.

They're going to have indifferent build quality, no QA, and no customer support- those all cost money. Some will be DOA. Most of the DOA's are minor things that you can fix yourself if you know what you're doing.

That said, when they work they work *much* better than the price would seem to indicate. That's because the commodity parts have gotten very, very good. You just won't have any of the frills or refinement, or nice-to-have's that you might expect in a more expensive light, because all that stuff costs money. Oh, and counterfeiting- you have a chance of getting a total piece of crap that doesn't even rise to the standard of respectable commodity parts. Risk you take when you play the 'generic Chinese gear' game.

I have one Ultrafire light, a Wf502b I bought off Amazon on a lark, to pad my order enough to get free shipping. It was described as a 5-mode '1000 lumen' XM-L model. It's actually an XM-L2 emitter (which is nice) is really 5 modes and surprisingly bright, but a little testing shows it draws just under 2A on high, so the actual output (otf) on high is only 500-some lumens. Now an XM-L2 is certainly capable of putting out 1000 lumens or more, but that's emitter lumens not otf (out the front) and only at a higher drive current than what this light can manage.

The light itself feels nice in the hand, looks pretty decent and has survived one fall onto a hard surface intact. But it's still a cheap light. The pocket clip is held on by two screws- on my light, it came with one of those screws cross-threaded *and* stripped. Grrrr. Also, the retention mechanism for the glass front is cheap and nasty and the glass itself isn't even *round*, it looks like it was crudely filed down to a close enough approximation of round to fit in the head. On the other hand, the machining and anodyzing are surprisingly nice.

I like the light well enough, it works, and when I bought it it was the second brightest light I owned. For like $10 bucks. But the next light I bought was based on a Solarforce L2P host.


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## Zmanz (Mar 10, 2014)

I just ordered a cheapy surefire for the work truck. Hopefully its not a dud. I end up loosing a few every year leaving them on the trailer or someplace. Ill let you know how it is after i recieve it.


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## Bullzeyebill (Mar 10, 2014)

Zmanz said:


> I just ordered a cheapy surefire for the work truck.



Did you really mean "cheapy surrfire", or were you thinking about a different flashlight?

Bill


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## MBentz (Mar 10, 2014)

I'm too poor to buy cheap.


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## Airazz (Mar 11, 2014)

I've got an UltraFire SH98, it's quite decent. Definitely a good buy for the price. The light from XM-L T6 diode is nice and even. The only downside is that it sucks out the battery (a single 18650 cell) within an hour or so, if running on high mode.


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## ven (Mar 11, 2014)

I have some ultrafire lights,still working a few years on,issue free,its just a light you would not rely on professionally......

You tend to get what you pay for in simple terms,but there are some good alternatives like roche and convoy that do have a far better build/quality to them,cost is slightly more from $20 ish............cant go wrong as have choice of tints too.

I will not be buying another .......fire light again.........well unless i am "sure" first


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## Richwouldnt (May 12, 2014)

Lightseeker2 said:


> I have several of these 501b Ultrafires. So far, they have worked great, but, only after doing some QA that should have been done at the factory.
> They come with high, medium, low, strobe, and, SOS modes.
> My problem is, I don't need five freaking modes on my flashlights.
> I just want the switch to work on "high", and, "off".
> ...



Typically the modes are in the P60 module, not the switch. You can get replacement single mode modules and install them in place of the originals if desired but frequently they cost as much as the whole original flashlight did.


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## Brain2014 (May 23, 2014)

Never expect high quality form a really cheap UltraFire Flashlight. UltraFire is just a name, no factories stand behind it. Since every factory can name their products UltraFire, it's very difficult that all UltraFire stands for one quality level. But there are good ones, but more expensive than the really cheaply-made.


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## drawpast (Jun 21, 2014)

My UltraFire works ok. The plastic lens is loose/rattles and I get less than 1 hour runtime on high mode.


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## lunas (Jun 30, 2014)

The driver board is what controls that you can get a one mode off or on xml2-u2 for them for about 7.50-8.50 i bought one with an op reflector and no extra modes. Now if only i could source a different end cap with a reverse click switch rather than forward and if possible tail stand capable. My current wf-502b has a proud button is forward click with on or off modes. It gets really really hot though too much to hold in my hands was hoping the xml2 rated for one cell rather than 1-4 cells would have ran cooler.



drawpast said:


> My UltraFire works ok. The plastic lens is loose/rattles and I get less than 1 hour runtime on high mode.


my afunta wf-502b came with a glass lens and it has a screw down holding it in place with orings at every joint the most likely spot to leak is the tail switch but even that is tight. i dont know if i would use it as a dive light but it seems well made now if only the module would not get so hot. I think my run time is dictated by the heat more than the battery definitely can run for more than an hour but after 30 min it would literally burn my hand to hold it...


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## NobleX13 (Jul 10, 2014)

If you care about maximum output and still want to purchase an Ultrafire prepare to do a bit of modding. I ordered an Ultrafire F13 with a Cree XML T6 emitter, and found that the lumen output was significantly less than advertised. After replacing the driver and doing a few high-current mods I now pull 4.2A at the tailcap, instead of the ~2.4A stock current draw. I have a custom direct-drive driver in mine.


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## candini (Jul 13, 2014)

I am one for two. One received today from Hong Kong is bad. Must be loose connection, it works when it wants. Other one I used for a night run the other night and I got 2.5 hours out of it with Panasonic 18650A battery. A lot of shaking going on also. I don't think I will buy anymore cheap ones since I have two Zebralights under warranty to keep up with.


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## Full Power (Jul 26, 2014)

ChadSchu said:


> Are UltraFire Flashlights any good? Just wondering. I have never owned one before and wanted to get advice before I buy one.
> 
> thanks
> Chad



Hi, I just bought a XML--T6, UltraFire; so far I don't have any troublesome issues with it. The flashlight works great.. ..it's the charger I don't have any instruction on, but with a little digging, I will get some answers/information on this unit. So far, I like it.

Cheers, 
Full Power


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## Full Power (Jul 27, 2014)

NobleX13 said:


> If you care about maximum output and still want to purchase an Ultrafire prepare to do a bit of modding. I ordered an Ultrafire F13 with a Cree XML T6 emitter, and found that the lumen output was significantly less than advertised. After replacing the driver and doing a few high-current mods I now pull 4.2A at the tailcap, instead of the ~2.4A stock current draw. I have a custom direct-drive driver in mine.



Now I'm lost with a custom direct-drive driver (tailcap).!? How, 'n where to begin on tweaking which end of the flashlight?


Sent from my iPhone using Candlepowerforums


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## Full Power (Jul 27, 2014)

candini said:


> I am one for two. One received today from Hong Kong is bad. Must be loose connection, it works when it wants. Other one I used for a night run the other night and I got 2.5 hours out of it with Panasonic 18650A battery. A lot of shaking going on also. I don't think I will buy anymore cheap ones since I have two Zebralights under warranty to keep up with.



Hi, ..I guess I have a ways to go, now that I realize a Flashlight is not just a Flashlight! I'm not even sure the name of what I have.. ..other than what's on the sides of the one I have ~ XML-T6, and HWA/WTS UltraFire*

Cheers,
Full Power


Sent from my iPhone using Candlepowerforums


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## donmichaelo (Aug 11, 2014)

To the OP:
The "Fire" group are all from the same manufacturer....Are they any good? YES and NOT.
My Trustfire C8 1000 lumens XML-T6 has been terrific...Yesterday I bought a Trustfire 15000 lumens (stupid me! I know) which uses EIGHT 18650 believing that perhaps I might have at least 5000 Lumens...but NO....It was not bad but hardly got no more than 2500 as much as I compared with my other beasts....
So...we have to be lucky. I recommend to go for Nitecore, Jetbeam, Fenix, Eagletac ,Etc well known ones....

Don Mich


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## Plato112 (Aug 23, 2014)

I have an Ultrafire WF-501B on the way. Hope it will be any good since there seems to be such a big difference in quality.


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## scviper576 (Sep 3, 2014)

Yes I own the 1600 LM xml-t6


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## Norm (Sep 11, 2014)

effimote said:


> i don't have one before but i knew this brand ,so seems famous .
> i think you can see more reviews then decide


I think the word your searching for is infamous :lolsign:
Norm


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## Novice OX (Sep 11, 2014)

A ThorFire WF-502b that can be bought for <$10 is what hooked me into higher-powered lights. The only complaint I have is that right now it's lost!
That said, I keep hearing great things about Convoy and plan to get a Convoy C8 soon which should have much better build quality for not much more cost.


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## Teobaldo (Sep 14, 2014)

I had a UltraFire worked well the first three or four times and then lit it failed. Since then I avoid buying this brand, despite how well others have found it. Sometimes it's just luck, but I avoid it as a precaution.

However, keep in mind that UltraFire is perhaps the most plagiarized brand in the world. On UltraFire’s site there is a warning indicating some places sell fake UltraFire products.


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## BanditoPete (Sep 17, 2014)

Had an Ultrafire C8 that was rated somewhere around 1800 -2000lm. Paid a scant $13 for it and didn't expect much. Only used it maybe half a dozen times as walking light and one night it just failed. Just the luck of the draw with these lights. Build quality was good though.


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## bkb (Sep 21, 2014)

I ordered a Uranusfire light from a chinese seller on ebay a few months ago for my collection, just for the fun factor of the name. When I got the light it was exactly as pictured but said Ultrafire on it. Emailed the seller and he said no problem he'll send me one that says Uranusfire. A few weeks later I got the second light & it too said Ultrafire. So now I have two Ultrafire C8s. They both look well made and seem to work good. The tint on them isnt bad compared to my expensive lights.The worst thing about them is the five modes with no memory. These are now my two loaner lights.


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## Rosoku Chikara (Sep 22, 2014)

Funny. I had the same thing happen to me. I ordered an Uranusfire for the novelty, and got an Ultrafire instead. When I complained (explaining that I "needed" the Uranusfire for my "collection") they sent me another entire flashlight. So, I also got two good flashlights (good enough for the price, anyway) for the price of one.


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## alphazeta (Sep 22, 2014)

interesting -> define good


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## Rosoku Chikara (Sep 22, 2014)

alphazeta said:


> interesting -> define good



Perhaps it is time for yet another discussion on definitions. "Good" is rather difficult to define, so I will leave it for later.

Here are some basic definitions that I have proposed on this forum in the past:

1) CHEAP FLASHLIGHT - Totally unreliable, so it is useless as a functional tool. Might as well call it "junk." (Here, I am attempting to draw a distinction between "low cost" or good value, and "cheap" meaning poor quality).

2) BUDGET FLASHLIGHT - Reasonably reliable, such that it can be appropriate for use as an average "day-to-day" lighting instrument. (Here, I am attempting to draw a distinction between "day-to-day" or non-critical applications where, worst case, if your flashlight fails, you can always go to your car, or house, and get another one... or absolute worst case, you can always go to a nearby 24 hour Walmart and purchase another one; and critical applications such as military, law enforcement or emergency services, where the lack of immediate access to a flashlight can be a matter of life or death. Since no flashlight is 100% reliable, and even the most reliable flashlight can be accidentally dropped into a crevice; when in critical applications, one -or more- "backup" flashlights are recommended as a matter of course.)

3) VALUE FLASHLIGHT - A low, or lower cost, example of a lighting instrument that either approximately equals, or exactly equals, both the performance and the quality (fit, finish, and durability) of another similar lighting instrument. (Here, it should be noted that a hypothetical $5,000 solid gold flashlight could be accurately described as a "value flashlight," so long as it were priced lower than other solid gold flashlights.)

So, based on the above, let me take a stab at defining "good." Clearly, there is an element of art (or preference) here. A "good" flashlight may (in part) be one that has a design that you "like," or one that satisfies your aesthetic needs. So, I think that a "good budget flashlight" must have characteristics of design, fit and finish that both appeal to you and satisfy your requirements. But, since it is really a term of art, the definition of a "good" flashlight will always vary from individual to individual. Some might be perfectly satisfied with the finish quality of a particular flashlight, whereas others might look at that same flashlight and deem the finish quality to be totally unacceptable to them. (In other words, a "budget flashlight" need only be reasonably reliable; no matter how "ugly" it is. But, a "good budget flashlight" must also look nice, or nice enough, to you. And, this, of course, is a completely subjective evaluation, that can only be made by each individual.)


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## JackDD (Sep 26, 2014)

I have purchased four Ultrafires. Three are SA9's and the other doesn't seem to have a model marked on it but is extendable to hold two 18650's or 6 AAA's. One SA9 has been in use for ~ 2 years...until I smoked the Q5 LED by applying 1.5A. The other two SA9's have Xm-l T6. One of these is mounted on my .357 Mag rifle and the other is my go-to light. All have plastic lenses. All are well machined and threads are clean. All are in regular use, except the one on the rifle, and have never been any trouble. I paid less than $12 each for all of them. For the money they are a real bargain. The one I smoked is saved for parts...should they be needed. 

The advertised lumens are way exaggerated. The XM-l T6 is rated at 3A max and ~1000 lumens. The Cree chart Shows 388 lumens at 1A and my measurments at the tail cap, on bright, (SA9) with 3AAA Lithium Ultimate's is 900ma or ~ 350 lumens. I believe it was advertised as 1200 lumens.

I just ordered some Panasonic 18650, 3400mah as the 3AAA's only last a little more than ~1 hour on bright. That's about $15/hour. 

For the money, I think they are a great value. If one goes bad....just use it for parts and get another. For the money, I consider them disposable, but except for my own screw-up, I've never needed to dispose of any. They have all worked flawlessly.

Edit: Forgot one Ultrafire. I also have a WF502B ultraviolet powered by two CR123's.


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