Best Flashlights from China

[RI Chevy]

Seems like foursevens and Fenix IMO are standing still. Not pushing the envelope so to speak.Of course some may say
if you got a good thing why mess it up.However i think sunwayman,jetbeam and thrunight,just to mention e few.
Are constantly pushing forward.Just my limited observation and ive only recently gottin the Light Bug.

I think the Surefire law suit may have something to do with the status quo of these companies.

 

[madecov]

I think the Surefire law suit may have something to do with the status quo of these companies.

Valid point. Some of the manufacturers have stopped doing lock out tail anodizing.

 

[BLUE LED]

With over 360 lights. I think the Thrunite and Sunwayman are very good. Although I do also like my Xeno G42 U2.

 

[skyfire]

Does 4sevens have their own manufacturing? Everyone seems to have good feedback with 4sevens... Just skimming through this thread, it seems 4sevens, fenix and sunwayman have the edge.

Any feedback on Niteye? The eye10 seems like it's built well.

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Foursevens contracts their manufacturing. also, David Chow, founder of Foursevens is the president of Olight.
Xeno brand belongs to one of the larger flashlight manufacturers. who are the makers to many brands.
i dont think Zebralight and Spark are affiliated. but they could be contracting the same manufacturer.
founder of Sunwayman use to design for jetbeam. i think its safe to say he was the reason for jetbeam's early success, and also jetbeam's declining line-up since his departure.

 

[HaileStorm]

Foursevens contracts their manufacturing. also, David Chow, founder of Foursevens is the president of Olight.
Xeno brand belongs to one of the larger flashlight manufacturers. who are the makers to many brands.
i dont think Zebralight and Spark are affiliated. but they could be contracting the same manufacturer.
founder of Sunwayman use to design for jetbeam. i think its safe to say he was the reason for jetbeam's early success, and also jetbeam's declining line-up since his departure.

Wow, you really know your lights! So in this sense, olight is somewhat affiliated with foursevens?

I'm not sure about jetbeam. Never had one but their rrt-01 has got me itching.

Currently looking for a very small edc but I'd like to prioritize quality this time so I could conpare it to my other lights. Quite expensive though for $80++. SWM's Mr. Elfin also looks nicely built.

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[skyfire]

Wow, you really know your lights! So in this sense, olight is somewhat affiliated with foursevens?

I'm not sure about jetbeam. Never had one but their rrt-01 has got me itching.

Currently looking for a very small edc but I'd like to prioritize quality this time so I could conpare it to my other lights. Quite expensive though for $80++. SWM's Mr. Elfin also looks nicely built.

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well...i am a proud flashaholic
olight and foursevens does have the same person calling the shots... but david chow only became president recently. no more than a year ago.
olight was already established by then, and was one of the first high end brands from china.
i think olight's original founder had to step down, maybe health reasons? im not certain.

mr. elfin looks like a very nice light, i have their v10r ti. and feel the control ring UI is best without the tailswitch. which surefire already perfected many years ago with their titan.
actually, mr. elfin is maybe the only made in china light thats on my buy list. im a sucker for that tan finish.

 

[kramer5150]

Fenix, ET, 47 are my faves... OOPS forgot about Zebralight
I have my share of ultrafire, trustfire, MXDL types and these lights aren't in the same league... at least not out of the box. With a little DIY efforts they can be made to go toe to toe with the better brands though.

 

[Kevinkw1]

Wow, you really know your lights! So in this sense, olight is somewhat affiliated with foursevens?

I'm not sure about jetbeam. Never had one but their rrt-01 has got me itching.

Currently looking for a very small edc but I'd like to prioritize quality this time so I could conpare it to my other lights. Quite expensive though for $80++. SWM's Mr. Elfin also looks nicely built.

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I have the rrt01 and can say that its a really nice edc. Its quite small being a twisty only and can easily turned off and on to full with one hand. The build quality is really good and the stainless steel bezel and titanium clip helps this. Solid dark grey annodizing that is slightly better than the SWM imo. Has a lanyard, but no holster.

You can get around 500lumens with a RCR123, but the beam is bit ringy. I dont find this an issue but.

 

[ericjohn]

None Period. The only good ones were those that were made in Hong Kong and Macau BEFORE 1997. Those two states weren't under china's control back then. For example; my Garrity R300G was made in Macau sometimes between 1994 and early 1997. When I was 17 (2004) I bought another version of it (probably chinese) and it couldn't hold a candle to the original. A very kind stranger I met on here gave me another Garrity Mini Rugged Lite (R300G). I keep it safely in my safe deposit box. That is how much it means to me.

 

[mossyoak]

None Period. The only good ones were those that were made in Hong Kong and Macau BEFORE 1997. Those two states weren't under china's control back then. For example; my Garrity R300G was made in Macau sometimes between 1994 and early 1997. When I was 17 (2004) I bought another version of it (probably chinese) and it couldn't hold a candle to the original. A very kind stranger I met on here gave me another Garrity Mini Rugged Lite (R300G). I keep it safely in my safe deposit box. That is how much it means to me.

Ignorance has no bounds...

 

[dc38]

Ignorance has no bounds...

For a better pun, "Ignorance KNOWS no bounds"

 

[LGT]

I really don't know what the best lights from China are. But I think my Zebra lights, ,EagleTacs, Jetbeams, sunwaymans and others are good lights that work the way their supposed to. It's all a matter of opinion as to which the best light is. This broad question will probably give you ten different answers, but this is the best place to ask.

 

[Lou Minescence]

The three Chinese brands I like best.
1) Sunwayman
2) 4sevens (made in China)
3) Jetbeam

It seems I always go for these brands of lights the most when I go out. The reason I like them is they feel good and work well. None of my five 4sevens lights has ever quit or gave any trouble.

 

[HaileStorm]

I think I'll just have to try them one by one and sell those I don't like...

I already have a thrower, a bunch of mid-range lights and an edc. I honestly don't know what I'm gonna do with all of them

Most of the brands stated here have really good offers with jetbeam topping the lumen ratings and, correct me if I'm wrong, sunwayman, olight and 4sevens topping the quality segment. This is for small edc's, of course.

I can't decide between the rrt01 and mr. Elfin. It's quantity (of lumens) vs quality respectively.

Maybe we should segregate these chinese brands in this regard, quality vs quantity. Would help newbies like me a lot, hehe! I wonder where klarus fits in as they seem to be a mix of both?

As for those biased against chinese lights, i guess it's just a matter of opinion and being open-minded. I honestly can't justify spending $200 or more on a quality light. Budget restrains me from doing so.

Hence, the better alternative for me and for other flashaholics in cpf who can't really shell out that amount of $$$ on a light (or would rather direct those extra funds elsewhere) are these affordable lights from china. They seem to hold up well, if not just as well, as those really expensive lights. Okay, well maybe not but you're not exactly going to retrieve your light if it falls from the tip of mt. Everest, right?

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[Bigpal]

I like Fenix and Jetbeam. Check out EagleTac especially because they've got some high power, compact lights (D25LC2, D25C2) for excellent prices (around $60).

 

[LightWalker]

None Period. The only good ones were those that were made in Hong Kong and Macau BEFORE 1997. Those two states weren't under china's control back then. For example; my Garrity R300G was made in Macau sometimes between 1994 and early 1997. When I was 17 (2004) I bought another version of it (probably chinese) and it couldn't hold a candle to the original. A very kind stranger I met on here gave me another Garrity Mini Rugged Lite (R300G). I keep it safely in my safe deposit box. That is how much it means to me.

The Fenix LD12 is rated at 3 lumens for 97 hours and 115 lumens for over 2 hours on one AA sized battery, the Zebralight SC80 is rated to run 29 days on low and 200 lumens on high on a single AA sized battery.

There was nothing close to this in 1997, not even 2007. It's time to upgrade from the Garrity.

 

[nightb]

My favorite is Ray Bow.

 

[pounder]

I own zebralight and sunwayman and they are amazing lights..I own solarforce lights and they are very very good for the price..

 

[Bwolcott]

My favorite right now is probably Sunwayman because of the diversity of what they offer, quality is very good as well.

I also like Fenix for the little details they put into their lights but I agree with them being kind of at a stand still and they really need to push forward.

I recently have been buying xenos and I have impressed with all of them so far especially for the great prices they offer as well as the tests they perform on their own lights

 

[HaileStorm]

Sunwayman seems like a very interesting brand. I also like the quality of fenix lights, it's just that they do seem to be falling behind in terms of power. I really wish they'd move that mode button somewhere near the tailcap, though. This is the reason why I really love what klarus offers. That two-button interface is just really convdnient. I wish fenix would do the same if not something like it. And add more "oomph" to their lights.


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