Maglight Solitaire - Why not an LED?

[rdrfronty]

This a little off topic again, sorry op. I just thought I had to defend Maglite a little with the VERY usual statements made above. I have had multiple mags over the years. Started with my first ones back in 87 when I joined the military. Started edc'ing AA minimags to replace the joke of a light the army issued for field use back then. Loved those little lights. Extremely dependable. I've since over the years purchased a little newer AA modes, 2d models, and recently XL200' 2D, AA LED's. All lights have always worked flawlessly. The kicker on top is still have every single one I ever purchased including a couple 25yr old AA minimags from my old army days and they all work perfect. I've never done anything to any of these lights other than occasional bulb replacements and of course battery replacements. They are pretty weak compared to my newer "high end" lights. But they über dependable.
Over this past year I have got serious into Flashlights. I now have lights varying from little Nanolights up to SR90's, with tons in between. 4sevens, Olights, Eagletacs, etc. And I actually edc a rotation of a MiniX, D25C, and an i3. All of these mostly because their awesome output to size ratio. But guess what I have sitting with in reach by my bedside--a 2D mag and an old trusty AA Maglite as backup. I know these two lights will work anytime and every time I ever need them. Plus the 2D mag makes a pretty backup weapon . And I now always have my Maglite XL200 in my truck. Very nice modern mag with a very cool UI. As for a AA minimag crushing with a sneeze??? All I will say to that is we actually do have Hercules as a member of this board. Because with the rest of us mere mortals here, that just couldn't happen.
Back on topic, I have always stayed away from the little mag solitaire in the past. I've always like its small form factor in the past, but even back years ago I couldn't get past the really weak output. But I'm always checking the Maglite website just hoping they will finally put a LED in that little light. They've got too some time. As a mass produced light in chain stores everywhere, most of its competitors are already led's. I just can't see them not upgrading eventually.

 

[yellow]

as many here, I also had (and still have - in some shelf) quite a number of maglites.
* The Ds usually were too big and heavy to really bring them around and use them.
* the AA Minimags - used quite frequently (imho more frequent as most typers here have) - came VERY COSTLY, as - when You USE them - the bulbs cost a kingdom.
On a typical used Minimag, one bulb equals for 1.5 sets of batteries (~ 5 hours of light). And that is what I am used to from years of use, not that occasional flashing around some ppl are doing ...
Also the change to the led version really pissed me off. 1st it came 3 years later than firstly advised (to me personally by the representative here) and then they "invented" unnecessary "lenghts" in bezel and end part/tailcap to fight the users to run aftermarket parts (who IMPORVED the lights by far).

but the solitaire - reason of this thread - is my worst nightmare.
Out of all the models I had, none worked reliable ... contact problems; light getting less bright exactly when the reflector is in focus, ...

Luckily, when the whit led cam poerful enough, homebuilt 2*AA lights, and later the wave of Fenix lights, immediately stopped one to be forced to use these lights, not a single thought for them anymore ...



PS: over the years the build quality of the minimags really went down; + the "new" "quick" threads on the body worsened reliability.
Even the original ones liked to unscrew when pocketed and thus turning themselves on - leaving one with empty batteries - which was a reason for the aftermarket end cap switches
(that were fought by the longer tubes/caps of the led models)

 

[tam17]

Nothing yet...the 2D LED Pro and 2AAA LED will be available first.

Thanks, Robin!

Cheers

 

[whetrock]

I purchased a Solitare some time ago with the sole intent of seeing just how bad this light really is. I'm in the knife business and my wholesaler offers a limited selection of lights that includes maglite. All in all the Solitare proved to be one of the most laughable lights I've purchased the output is among the lowest I've seen in quite some time. My cheapie Photon light has way more in the way of brightness and also is much more compact and at home on the keychain. I don't really see the point of the Solitare in this day and age of flashlights. But still it serves as a great benchmark to compare some of my more modern lights to to show the progress of lights.

 

[ficklampa]

I purchased a Solitare some time ago with the sole intent of seeing just how bad this light really is. I'm in the knife business and my wholesaler offers a limited selection of lights that includes maglite. All in all the Solitare proved to be one of the most laughable lights I've purchased the output is among the lowest I've seen in quite some time. My cheapie Photon light has way more in the way of brightness and also is much more compact and at home on the keychain. I don't really see the point of the Solitare in this day and age of flashlights. But still it serves as a great benchmark to compare some of my more modern lights to to show the progress of lights.

I would say it surves a purpose to show how far the business has come, I wouldn't really compare it to anything since everything just blows it away... Even my 2D Maglite is a joke compared to modern lights. My Monarch 200 is brighter, and that has a 5mm led powered by a pair of button cell batteries.

 

[peterkin101]

Or perhaps you couldn't come up with an intelligent rebuttal to the points I brought up in that particular post. My points were not anti-M@glite. They were honest and truthful. Based on personal experience with numerous products from the company, over numerous years. To simply label them as "anti-M@glite" makes it clear that I'm dealing with a blindly devoted fan-boy who thinks the company and its products are perfect, always have been, and always will be. This is the last response to one of your posts you will get from me. Have a nice day.

A little bit silly and acting like a spoilt child there.

Yes I COULD have offered a 'rebuttal' of your remarks, but dd61999 had beat me to it.

I don't see Maglite as perfect in everything, had you been bothered to check through my previous posts I have praised and criticised Mag Intruments on several occasions.

An update of the MagCharger for example is desperatly needed IMHO-an artifact ridden beam and a 12-14ish hour charge are no longer acceptable for a top of the range torch in this day and age.

And again IMHO the ML125 is not quite the premium product they need as a replacement for the MagCharger.

I'm disappointed you had issues with them reliabilty wise, in over 20 years of experience with Maglites I've never had a problem.

My only point with those issues is that you should have raised it with them before moaning about it on CPF.

I do value your points and contribution to CPF, I don't always agree with you but apart from this occasion your input has been reasonable.

And next time, please consider a point before kicking off like a juvenile.

 

[peterkin101]

And of course Maglite have announced an LED version of the Solitaire.

Not a second too soo,

 

[tam17]

Yawn...

Hoped to hear some updates on this topic

Cheers

 

[Monocrom]

Yawn...

Hoped to hear some updates on this topic

Cheers

I heard the project was on hold for now at M@glite. But cannot confirm that with absolutely certainty.

 

[Chicken Drumstick]

Credit for moving forward? The guy in charge sat on his laurels for close to 40 years. And then often tried to sue all of his competitors out of business. A few of the lawsuits were legit. Many were beyond frivolous. Clearly the competition realized that they have to spend a great deal on attorney fees if they hoped to make a profit in this industry. It's only because of all the competitors who couldn't be sued out of existence that M@glite even bothered with upgrades just a couple of years ago.

I can't think of another company that has managed to sell the very same products, made exactly the same way, for almost 40 years while turning a profit. And, having owned more M@glites than any other brand of flashlight (except SureFire) I can honestly say that I found the M@glites I've owned over the years to be no where remotely as good as my first full-sized disposable flashlight. My orange 2D, GE model with a black plastic bezel lasted me far longer than any of my M@glites. 12 years of trouble-free service. And, the beam quality from its dimpled, plastic reflector, was considerably better than the various full-sized M@glites I've owned.

I even remember the night I bought that flashlight. I needed to inspect my car for damage from a small fender bender that was my fault earlier in the day. I stopped at the outskirts of my neighborhood, parked, and went to a late-night convenience store I remembered being nearby. Asked the clerk for the best flashlight they sold. He held up an orange GE model that he told me had served him well on a nightly basis. He then pointed to a barrel that was full of them. $1.99 without batteries. I bought one, bought a couple of D-cells, and headed back to my car to check the damage that night.

12 years later, I finally disposed of that disposable flashlight. 12 years . . . Not one of my M@glites came close to being as good, yes even quality-wise, as that $1.99 GE flashlight. Best two bucks I've ever spent in my life. 12 years of reliable service. Once again, none of my M@glites (past or present) were even remotely as good as that GE disposable I bought all those years ago.

But okay, I'll give M@glite credit for actually opening up their R&D department since sealing the doors and apparently bricking over them for almost 40 years.

Yes, but you do seem to be somewhat of a singular anomaly.

 

[Monocrom]

I'll take that as a compliment.

 

[Chicken Drumstick]

I'll take that as a compliment.

lol

Only meaning that I suspect 90-95% of CPF members either own or have owned a MagLite, yet you are almost the only person who complains at their durability. I'm certainly not saying you didn't have issues, but based on the overwhelming fact most people don't, I'm not sure there is a valid claim they aren't reliable units.

I'm also not sure it's fair to claim they've sold the same products for 40 years. I think they've varied their line up quite a bit over the years and at any given point in time have performed on par with comparable lights of similar specification.

 

[Monocrom]

There have been other members who have had issues. To me it just seems odd that for a company praised for making an excellent product, I've ended up with a handful of them that weren't. One or two could be understood as a rare lemon that squeezed by Quality Control and ended up in my hands. But a handful? Certainly not a large enough sample to come to any scientific conclusion. But enough to make one wonder. Enough for me to look elsewhere.

Porsche has varied their line-up more often. It's still the same set of lights year after year. When I bought my 2AAA Mini-Maglite, the tiny bulb fell out as I was exiting the shop and putting in two batteries. I returned to the shop to see if they could help me. The guy behind the counter took out an older 2AAA Mini-Mag that was covered in dust. Must have been at least 20 years old if not older. Took the light out of the packaging, pulled its bulb, and put it into my brand new 2AAA model. I still have that penlight. The old bulb worked perfectly. Nothing had been updated or tweaked. M@glite's models have been over-shadowed for years by LED and even inca. offerings from other brands.

 

[peterkin101]

In comparison to the number they sell, the return rate on Maglite is very small indeed.

How do I know?

Well for a few years from 1993-2000 I worked at a retailer which sold every type of Maglite under the sun (with the exception of the Magcharger)

And out of the dozens I sold in that time...not a single return.

And again I have to reiterate, it is no good if you have a faulty item throwing it away and kicking off on a forum.

The manufacturer needs to know about it, after all they could end up upgrading your torch for free.

A bit like my Nokia N900 which suddenly went then was repalaced by an E7 as they couldn't realistically fix it.

 

[tam17]

Not sure what this means in Mag's terms, but new LED Soli is now listed as a product at OfficerStore.com (not available yet, but price is already there).

Cheers

 

[Lynx_Arc]

Not sure what this means in Mag's terms, but new LED Soli is now listed as a product at OfficerStore.com (not available yet, but price is already there).

Cheers

I see it listed on google shopping at another store for $12.99, a reasonable price but nothing exciting. I expect to read a review before I even consider waiting for a black friday sale on them at 9.99

 

[tam17]

Lumen rating is also puzzling. Although there are no hard ANSI specs available yet, announcement at LED-Resource.com stated 37 lumens and now they say 25+ lumens?!

Waiting for more info...

 

[leon2245]

Lumen rating is also puzzling. Although there are no hard ANSI specs available yet, announcement at LED-Resource.com stated 37 lumens and now they say 25+ lumens?!

Waiting for more info...

either 25 or 37l works for me. Same with $10 vs. $13 lol. I'm pretty much down with anything MagLite comes up with like this one, single cell, single mode, TFoff etc. (now do a premium Aa magtech style) w/ no offense to Monocrom intended, because I too would probably have just as passionate an internet agenda against any company I had THAT much bad luck with- not to mention doing your friend like that? I'd be mad too. Heck I AM mad now!

M@GLITE!

:whoopin:

 

[Monocrom]

I post honestly regarding my personal experiences with various brands. If some choose to believe I'm pushing a personal agenda, nothing I can do about that. If you think this is bad, you should check out my comments on the TAG Heuer sub-forum over at watchuseek.com

Some of those guys want to rip my head off. Not my fault the President of the company made a topic to address questions directly from the brand's fan-base, and then vanished after the soft-ball questions came to an end. But I digress . . .

 

[leon2245]

I post honestly regarding my personal experiences with various brands. If some choose to believe I'm pushing a personal agenda, nothing I can do about that. If you think this is bad, you should check out my comments on the TAG Heuer sub-forum over at watchuseek.com

Some of those guys want to rip my head off. Not my fault the President of the company made a topic to address questions directly from the brand's fan-base, and then vanished after the soft-ball questions came to an end. But I digress . . .

Hahaha you must have pwnd him! Sounds like mandatory reading- link (or do you remember the thread title)?

It's true though, your m@glite rants are mild in comparison to the type of anger that can be caused by knowing too much about watches. blows away anything that goes down here.