Re: LED fell off
I tried editing title but I don't think I can.
Click on "Edit Post" on post #1, click "Advanced." That's where you change thread title, if that's what you'd like.
I don't remember ever using my dad's light so I don't have a baseline to compare it to. The tint makes it look like a bright incan flashlight. I don't think my mom cares about the tint (the Dorcy LED is whiter but output isn't great in the Rayovac) as long at the light works. I don't know the exact model of that flashlight as it's no longer sold at Home Depot but the brand is "Defiant". It would be interesting to see if anyone else has the same model to see if my dad's light was a lemon or if that company has quality control issues.
Defiant is nominally a budget brand. They used a cheap emitter. What Fritz dropped in there made it better than before. Also, it's no longer a budget light anymore.
Also, just curious how you guys ship big flashlights. I initially tried sending it in a 3M padded envelope from Walmart and the post office lady said it should be in a box. I ended up using a 3" diameter mailing tube from Office Depot. It was 36" long but I cut it in half and mailed the light in the resulting 18" long tube. The light was wrapped in bubble wrap. One way postage was $11.75.
The shipping spiel:
1. Is the packed weight under 13 oz? First class mail. USPS has no "dimensional weight" on FCM. That is to say, as long as it's under 13 oz, doesn't matter how big the box is. Understanding FCM will save you massive cash if you ship a lot of stuff. I am set up as a shipper and get a killer rate on FCM. 3oz or less, it's $2.04 any size. Insurance to $100 is .80 cents extra.
2. Is the packed weight over 13oz but under 4lbs? I go calculated priority mail. Flat rate boxes are a ripoff unless your shipping a solid block of metal or a box full of bolts or something like that. A 10"x7"x3" standard USPS box at one pound is $5.54 with a baseline $50 insurance included in that deal. Calculated priority mail DOES have dimensional weight. It's a double edged sword trying to pack in too small of a box. If the parts are less than 2" away from the side of the box, they can use that as an excuse not to pay insurance if they feel like it. Note that a 10x7x3 box CANNOT have the parts more than 2" from the side of the box.
3. Parcel Select. It's worth checking to see if you get a better rate or not by Parcel Select (slow boat) vs Calculated Priority Mail. In my experience, Parcel Select is not always cheaper. Often times with small packages, Priority can actually be cheaper (!?!?!?) than Parcel Select. As the weight goes up, Parcel Select usually becomes cheaper. Parcel Select has dimensional weight like Priority.
4. UPS. When the weight of the package exceeds 4lbs and is a large box, it's worth checking what the UPS rate is. When you go to the UPS store, you get the maximum screwing. They will not optimize anything. They'll throw it in whatever. They do not care. An actual UPS shipper can hand-pick just the right box, giving you insurance protection, parts not less than 2" from the side of the box, minimal additional dimensional weight fees and so forth. A UPS shipper pays less than what the UPS store will charge you to ship. A UPS shipper also receives money back at the end of the month (incentives) provided they didn't screw up and get hit with "adjustment" fees. This is how a UPS store works.
Questions? BTW, I'm going to cross post this to the post office thread.
