Peak Caribbean disappointment

I just received a Peak Caribbean -- very disappointing, and it's going back to the vendor because of what I consider to be extremely poor quality control in manufacturing. The lens is held in with a threaded retainer ring that screws in via some type of pin spanner, and when the threads were cut on the bezel it left very sharp edges on the front of the bezel (sharp enough to cut flesh or rip fabric) and thereby exposed raw silver aluminum on the front. The lens was very dirty on the inside, with large specks of dirt (not dust, dirt!). The LED was yellowish and not centered (significantly). And there was absolutely no lubrication on the threading for the body.

Hmm. Due to the severity of the problems you describe, it sounds like a reject or prototype somehow got delivered to you. I don't have one of these lights, but I don't remember reading about problems like this before from Peak. Odd.

Maybe you should ask Peak about is as well as the vendor, for information's sake.

How is the heat level if you leave it on for 10 or 15 minutes??

I had the same issue with the sharp edge on mine. I took it to a wet stone and ground it flat. Also had two specks of HA that were missing on the bottom of the pocket body that were covered with permanent marker. This of course rubbed off quickly..

Hmmm. My pocket body also had two specks missing in the same spot! Maybe they were from the same run but it seems like an odd cooincidence.

The "specs" are caused by the anodizing rack. The lights have to have contact on both ends. On the pocket bodies there is no other way to rack them. You don't see any markings on the heads because they have a second operation that is performed after anodizing. On our other body styles they are able to rack the parts so the marking can not be seen.

- Robyn

JML said:

I just received a Peak Caribbean -- very disappointing, and it's going back to the vendor because of what I consider to be extremely poor quality control in manufacturing. The lens is held in with a threaded retainer ring that screws in via some type of pin spanner, and when the threads were cut on the bezel it left very sharp edges on the front of the bezel (sharp enough to cut flesh or rip fabric) and thereby exposed raw silver aluminum on the front. The lens was very dirty on the inside, with large specks of dirt (not dust, dirt!). The LED was yellowish and not centered (significantly). And there was absolutely no lubrication on the threading for the body.

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PM sent

- Robyn

RobynS said:

The "specs" are caused by the anodizing rack. The lights have to have contact on both ends. On the pocket bodies there is no other way to rack them. You don't see any markings on the heads because they have a second operation that is performed after anodizing. On our other body styles they are able to rack the parts so the marking can not be seen.

- Robyn

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So every pocket unit has these two specks?
And you guys manually use permanent markers to cover each and every piece before sending them out??? :huh:

JML said:

I just received a Peak Caribbean

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I got mine 8 days ago and i love it!

JML said:

.. very sharp edges on the front of the bezel (sharp enough to cut flesh or rip fabric) and thereby exposed raw silver aluminum on the front.

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Can't confirm that. Yes, there's aluminium on the front, but no sharp edges or something like that. I just tested it and my index finger is not bleeding very much (ok, joke! )

JML said:

The lens was very dirty on the inside, with large specks of dirt (not dust, dirt!). The LED was yellowish and not centered (significantly). And there was absolutely no lubrication on the threading for the body.

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Can't confirm the dirt or off-center LED either. But, you've got a point with the lubrication: There wasn't any in my Caribbean either. Fortunately, theat's not much of a problem. I greased it myself and now everyting is fine.

A great little light!

-Walter

icebeng said:

So every pocket unit has these two specks?
And you guys manually use permanent markers to cover each and every piece before sending them out??? :huh:

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Magic Marker did not cover mine when I received. I tried a fine and extra fine point sharpie and the ink doesn't stick for long.

smoke it over a candle for a minute, wipe off the soot and do it again a few more times. Usually gives it a little more durable black coating.

I had a similar experience with my Carribean, it had the anodizing specks missing, and had fingerprints on the reflector and inside the lens.
The lens retaining ring had anodizing missing in the tool grooves, but no sharp edges.
I called Robyn, and she kindly offerred replacement or return, but I simply cleaned the reflector and decided to live with it.
I'm glad I did because it is now one of my favorite pocket lights.
Perhaps they need more QC in their assembly dept, but they are great lights if you look beyond the initial impression.
I'm looking forward to the upcoming Volcano and Hurricane series.

I haven't purchased very many things that if you look closely and long enough you can, most often, find some slight imperfection. 'Slight' as in the tiny 'specks' where the anodizing didn't make contact. Such things I can overlook as long as the light performs as intended. And I can assure you that after you have dropped the light a couple times and carried it for awhile, you won't notice those specks or give them a thought. Use and enjoy the light. Put the magnifying glass away. I have 20 peak lights and each has a tiny ding or scratch somewhere if I look hard enough with my optivisor. These are great lights and a minuscule blemish isn't going to change that for me. Go and cause the darkness to flee before you..........

NoShadow said:

I haven't purchased very many things that if you look closely and long enough you can, most often, find some slight imperfection.

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I'm with you, NS- delivering Concours i.e. flawless quality, would run the prices way up and, as you point out, be of little value in a using light. I mean, I certainly don't want to pay $10 more to cover the cost of rejecting of perfectly good bodies due to minor blemishes.

As it happens, I've got a Caribbean on the way and will add my data point to this conversation when it arrives. Based on the six other Peaks I've purchased, I'm expecting it to be just fine.

Peak charges a luxury price. Quality control shouldn't be a luxury. The time taken by dedicated customers to call the company or work themselves to fix even minor problems has value, too. Any company has a responsibility to deliver a product up to a certain standard. For a high end product like the Caribbean, customers should not have to rationalize mistakes or obviously lacking refinements in the manufacturing process. (Other HA3 finishes on competing lights don't have "anodizing rack" marks, do they?) And, neither should the company rationalize these things. I do believe Peak is a good company, with nice people, but they need to look at themselves with honesty, and work to improve areas such as quality control and, respectfully, one of the worst designed websites I've seen from a modern-day company.

onthebeam said:

Hmmm. My pocket body also had two specks missing in the same spot! Maybe they were from the same run but it seems like an odd cooincidence.

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My Caribbean also has 2 specks missing on the bottom. You think we got photocopies?? :laughing:

If I buy something this expensive, I want it to be designed and produced in a manner consistent with the quality of their competitor's products. A light of this price should be compared with SureFire, ARC, Inova, Pelican, JIL, etc. I'm not talking about custom or semi-custom products. I don't want any of my high-quality lights to have dirt in the lens, rough threads, missing anodization, poor anodization, off-centered LEDs, poor color, or exposed rough threads. I don't see those flaws on the other lights I have, and if I did, I would return them as not up to spec.

I have returned other products I consider defective or flawed. The same thing goes with pens, knives, watches, electronics, etc. I know others may not be so inclined, but a premium product should be designed and produced with great attention to all the minor items. The quality of production and design are factors in the success of Inova, SureFire, and others, and the reviews all point out the quality of the product. Reviews of any high-end consumer product always pay attention to these issues of design and production. Think of what people expect from Apple, Infiniti, BMW, Pelikan, IWC, Sinn, Benchmade, William Henry, etc.

Products of consistently high quality made by a manufacturer who stands behind the product and who goes the extra yard to satisfy the customer are those who will succeed. Others won't. It's that simple.

By the way, if you want to touch up black anodizing, go to Micro-Tools: http://www.micro-tools.com/ and look for their touch-up pens and paint, designed for matte black and semi-matte black camera bodies and similar equipment.

JML said:

By the way, if you want to touch up black anodizing, go to Micro-Tools: http://www.micro-tools.com/ and look for their touch-up pens and paint, designed for matte black and semi-matte black camera bodies and similar equipment.

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Isn't that something Peak should be doing for us? Why pay extra for their anodizing rack irregularities???

Your comments were right on the money!

Good posts with relevant information. I have been an admirer of the PEAK Carribean since I read the review at flashlightreviews.com. as much as I like my QIII, it isnt suited for keychain carry. I would agree that at $100, quality control issues should not be an issue. For about $50, ARC shows the world what world class quality and customer service are all about! I have been planning on getting a PEAK Carribean because it seems to be the most powerful light its size suited for keychain carry. I am REALLY interested in any "improvements" or subsequent models from PEAK, but again must say that for a "non-techie" person, issues like removing the lens or adjusting the LED are a concern. My ARC AAA Prem is like a ROLEX in feel, and quality.

Hi guys,

We understand not everyone is going to be 100%+ satisfied with our lights, that is why we have the satisfaction policy we do. If you ever have a problem please feel to contact us or drop me an email direct at [email protected] and we will do everything we can to fix it.

Even though I work for the company, many will tell you that we uphold two things above all else Customer support, and quality! If there is an issue we do want to know about it, and my staff knows very well that I will scream louder then anyone if performance and quality are not uphold to the highest standard.

As for the HA Pocket bodies ( Specks ) Robyn is correct in regards to the racking, some wind out with the speck and some do not. This has always been a pain for sometime. If you have a problem with the body send the unit back.

Thank you guys for the info, I will be bring it up quit soon!

If your issue has not been resolved, Please email me at [email protected]

Have a Great Day!

MJ