Is anyone NOT happy with their Surefire UB3T?

[Smood]

You can jog with a UB3T in your pocket? Really? Ok.

Actually you can jog with a HID in your pocket. Just get a Fire Fox III. Its still cheaper than the UB3T by the way... and has more lumens then any other single or triple XML light out there.

From the ones I've handled, SR91 and TK70, TK60 and TK41 to name a few I have been very impressed. Their power is tremendous and I thought it had great build quality. I have not used a surefire before so I cannot compare.

Get it through your head that my point is from a price: performance perspective there are many better options out there. There is absolutely no reason to pay $400 for a light like the UB3T other than to support American companies. If thats what you want to do thats fine, but please don't claim its because the quality of it justifies the price. You can have all the build quality in the world but when you get demolished in throw and flood by lights costing half as much... the build quality is kind of meaningless.

As for the SPY007... ya I have not read much about it yet but it seems like it has some kind of aerospace titanium and new technology of some sort?

 

[ABTOMAT]

I said jog _or_ put in my pocket. I can do one or the other just fine.

You're really not doing a good job of reading this thread. No one's saying the UB3T has a great price/performance ratio. It just has an interesting combination of attributes and that's worth the money to some people. And are you really saying that build quality is meaningless?

I think you're too hung up on statistics.

 

[Smood]

I said jog _or_ put in my pocket. I can do one or the other just fine.

You're really not doing a good job of reading this thread. No one's saying the UB3T has a great price/performance ratio. It just has an interesting combination of attributes and that's worth the money to some people. And are you really saying that build quality is meaningless?

I think you're too hung up on statistics.

Sorry, I misread. But if you mean jog while holding it, you can do that with some many LED lights with similar performance and vastly lower price. Admittedly not with big boys like the SR9X series or TK70 etc... unless you like strength training while you run.

Ok I think we are essentially agreeing that the UB3T is a terrible light in terms of price to performance ratio but that people who buy it want to 1) Support a 100% US company, 2) As you say, like it for its build quality and its o-ring selector and presumable lifetime warranty? Never checked if it does have one. So its almost like a collector's item I guess?

I wouldn't say I'm hung up on statistics but more priceerformance ratio, which is one of the most if not the most important aspect to any flashlight to me.

 

[ABTOMAT]

Ok I think we are essentially agreeing that the UB3T is a terrible light in terms of price to performance ratio but that people who buy it want to 1) Support a 100% US company, 2) As you say, like it for its build quality and its o-ring selector and presumable lifetime warranty? Never checked if it does have one. So its almost like a collector's item I guess?

No, I'm saying it's a combination of a lot of characteristics, which viewed objectively don't necessarily add up to $385. Its price/performance ratio is mediocre but I wouldn't say terrible. There are a lot of boutique lights out there that are pretty pedestrian but command far more money because they're either very cool or very rare.

I actually like the fact it's a mass production light and _not_ a collections item. If I needed $300+ right now I'd just sell the thing with no regret.

I bought it because:
1. Very bright on high
2. Almost infinitely variable brightness
3. Direct-action control ring without having to cycle through modes and click buttons
4. 2-stage, 2-mode switch (I'd prefer a clickie like that, but until the UBR comes out I don't think one exists)
5. Build quality and unconditional (and fast) lifetime warranty
6. Misc features that're interesting but unimportant (TIR, battery gauge, combat grip, etc.)
7. Resale value
8. Not buying from a company that shills/spams message boards or located in a country that might be an enemy in the near future
9. Runs on primary cells
10. It's cool

And for completeness, the things I don't like about it:
1. SF's new machining style
2. Awkward shape to store or hold
3. Switch isn't a clickie
4. Price
5. Unknown water resistance (at one point they said 10 meters but no longer)
6. Strobe and SOS features are useless to me, but I understand their placement better than some people
7. Battery gauge is more for show than utility

 

[Smood]

Thank you for your exhaustive post. I think we will have to agree to disagree, respectfully.

Gotta admit I LOL'd slightly at #8.

 

[tonkem]

Any other comments, without getting into price vs performance ? Price is not the issue that I would like discussed, but how each person likes them, as I am considering.

Seems the consensus is:
1. short run time on high
2. size
3. sos and strobe locations on the ring..

any other issues? Who can tell me how much they love them and give a comparison vs any other lights they own and why they may like the Ub3t better that said "other" light in your inventory

 

[bill_n_opus]

My Sunwayman T40CS U2 version throws better than my Surefire UB3T, but it is not a fair comparison because the T40CS runs on 2 x 18650 cells. Therefore giving it an advantage on excellent regulation / long runtime.

Why is that not "fair"?

IMO, it's just "better" ... thus giving the advantage, naturally.

Right?

 

[jamesmtl514]

I'm still looking for one. They don't come up often.

 

[BLUE LED]

Why is that not "fair"?

IMO, it's just "better" ... thus giving the advantage, naturally.

Right?

I do not consider it to be a fair comparison because they are two different lights. The UB3T uses 3 x CR123A and the T40CS U2 uses 2 x 18650 cells. They both power a single XM-L and the added capacity of the 2 x 18650 cells will give it an advantage on excellent regulation and runtimes.

A fair comparison would be between 2 lights that both use 3 x CR123A
Surefire M3LT CombatLight
Surefire UB3T

Or 2 x 18650 cells
Sunwayman T40CS U2
Crelant 7G5CS XM-L U3

I think it is important to remember that there is no light that will please everyone. I like others think the UB3T worth the purchase and have a good understanding of what to expect of the light. Therefore everyone here seems to be happy with their Surefire UB3T. Surly that is the point

 

[WarriorOfLight]

The UB3T is a very nice light, I have one since a year or a little bit longer. I use it with 3xCR123 and also 2xAW17500 cells. A very nice light with a lot throw.

 

[FPSRelic]

The only complaint I have with mine is it does this strange strobe thing when pushing down on the tail cap for momentary high when the batteries start to get flat. This is before the battery meter flashes red. I've only put one set of batteries through mine though, so maybe it's a one off.

 

[Dr. Strangelove]

I'm not happy about the fact that I don't have one... yet

 

[tonkem]

The UB3T is a very nice light, I have one since a year or a little bit longer. I use it with 3xCR123 and also 2xAW17500 cells. A very nice light with a lot throw.

Do the aw17500 batteries rattle in the light or are they the same width of a 123?

 

[Vox Clamatis in Deserto]

Do the aw17500 batteries rattle in the light or are they the same width of a 123?

They fit fine in my early UB3T and the double spring arrangement eliminates the rattle very well. SF sometimes makes slight changes to the battery chamber during a production run and stock CR123A diameter is often listed as 16 mm so double check. The SF U2 famously took batteries as big as 18650's in some early incarnations (with a plastic sleeve removed) but later models would only take smaller 17670's fed through the head end for oversize diameter cells.

Some of the snug battery fits for LED flashlights work fine for a while and then become intermittent when the oversize rechargeable battery heats up and starts to expand. I've seen this mostly with single spring lights (e.g. David's Quarks, SF 6PX's and G2X's) where the battery seizes in the tube mechanically and the spring can no longer push it to the contact.