General opinion about Lumintop?

[325addict]

Just a question for the LED guys: I've been out for nearly 10 years, back then Fenix and foursevens were the brands to go for, then Olight and some others came along.... that's where I somehow stopped being involved in flashlights. Being the incan guy, I never followed the LED business very close, but recently I acquired a Lumintop Tool AAA and I was really impressed... and it was SOOO cheap, despite being sooo good?? How can that be? Mostly "you get what you pay for" but this time that seems to be different... What's going on guys? Is Lumintop really so good for so little money? I looked at their site, and it all looks very, very nice indeed! Copper, brass, titanium... different emitters... whoow!

 

[greenpondmike]

I like the 1aa tool 2.0 and would have bought one if it wasn't cool white.

 

[Jean-Luc Descarte]

My experience with Lumintop is limited (only got three Tools AAA, one Tool AA V2.0 and one B01) but positive. I especially like the high quality of their cool white LEDs.

That said, I never even saw a shadow of fhe FW line, and that one seems to be their Achilles heel. Way too many reports of FW3As and derivatives breaking down for trivial reasons for my liking.

 

[WalkIntoTheLight]

That said, I never even saw a shadow of fhe FW line, and that one seems to be their Achilles heel. Way too many reports of FW3As and derivatives breaking down for trivial reasons for my liking.

I got my FW3A as part of the group buy. Yeah, it certainly comes with flaws, mostly due to a bad design if you want a cheap light. I had to resolder the spring, since it was in danger of shorting they way they installed it. Also, some other minor tweaks needed. The light works fine, but I wouldn't recommend it if you want something of high quality. That said, I think Lumintop has solved some of the more annoying problems with the light, in the newer manufactured ones.

It wasn't Lumintop that designed the FW3A. It was a group of people on the BLF forum. They had their hearts in the right place, but clearly were designing more for aesthetics than practicality. Lumintop was just the manufacturer. So, don't judge them too much on the FW3A.

 

[jon_slider]

I acquired a Lumintop Tool AAA and I was really impressed

Lumintop Tools are my favorite AAA lights

The AA Tool is also very nice:
I like to change the LEDs to High CRI...

Removed stock XPL:

Installed sw45k:

before

after:

 

[Katherine Alicia]

Where did you get the parts from for the mod?

 

[raggie33]

are the lumitop tools aa regulated?

 

[jon_slider]

Where did you get the parts from for the mod?

I do not want to post links on CPF, it is against the rules. PM me if you have specific questions.

are the lumitop tools aa regulated?

Im not sure how you define regulated. I can say they dont use PWM.
I suggest you google for a review with runtime charts and see what you think.

 

[knucklegary]

Jon, really like the mini soldering pen and the bench vice with the grid clamping pins for odd shapes

 

[badtziscool]

I like Lumintop as an organization. They've been around for quite a while, so they're not some one and done company. And they do cater towards the enthusiast audience so they listen and take input from the community. In fact, some of their most well known lights are directly from the input of the community like the FW series and GT series.

 

[raggie33]

wow the review i seen said it was 850 lumens. its weird why lumitop understates its lumen rating

 

[jon_slider]

850 lumens

LOL!
and is it regulated?

 

[richbuff]

Lumintop is the same as most all other names/manufacturers: Some people are just plain very excited about the products that they offer, and some people are just plain not.

I got five Lumintop lights modified by Vinh: FW3a triple W2.1, FW4a quad W2, and three FW21 Pro triple 50.2. I gave two of the FW21 Pro to friends who love them, because they had no idea that a flashlight of such small size could have so much big light performance. The FW "pocket rocket" series is very popular and is a big success for Lumintop. One of several reasons that I like the FW series is the rear electronic switch, so I have easy, full control with mouth hold, which I am a fan of. Also, a few days ago, I pre-ordered the newly announced Lumintop GT94, a very large, very massive quad 90.2 that is in the 20,000 lumen/2,400 meter throw class. Lumintop has also produced a few other very large, massive lights for delighted enthusiasts. Lumintop Tool has been a huge success, and it has many, many fans that swear it is their favorite light.

 

[Vemice]

Recently got my first one; a AAA and really like it so far. Had some minor alterations done.

 

[CSG]

I don't mod flashlights and this isn't a hobby for me. I don't care about tint; I care about how much light I will have and how long will I have it before the battery/ies goes. I received a Lumintop Tool AA yesterday and like it very much. Similar to a Fenix E12 (old version) in length and looks which is a good thing. I would certainly buy another if I lost this one. Very good $19-20 light IMO.

 

[Optiblue]

A lot has changed if Fenix was the last light that you bought 10 years ago. In a way they paved the way towards a quality light at 1k lumens. Even today their lights remain to be of that same quality. And that there is also why fenix has fallen behind. They keep making the same lights without innovating and their price point stayed super high. For thr same price you can go another brand with similar quality but with amazing outputs.

I'll try and limit it to the topic as there are now many other reputable built out of China companies like Olight, Imalent, and Thrunite etc. Olight is more of Fenix quality where although a little outdated, have introduced TIR optics as to reflectors and somehow push more punch out of slightly outdated LEDs but are pretty much indestructible. Price is on par with old Fenix and they currently IMO sell the most worldwide. I like how most of lights focus on a stable output and heat not being too much of an issue. Imalent currently holds the record for brightest 100k lumens, and also the smallest brightest flashlight the LD70 (4K lumens out of a keychain). Slightly pricey, but you pay for pretty much prototype technology that goes nuclear hot at times. Thrunite is still my fav as you get the best value for your money and you get to choose everything in Neutral white. They used to be as cutting edge as imalent, but lately just selling their few years old designs at competitive prices. You can't get better value.

Finally, there's Lumintop which listens to us forum goers the most. Their entire company produces products that were either flashaholics forum driven or something that we all want. I like to think of their series of "FW" to stand for fans wanted. Anyways this company makes pretty good flashlights with their flagships using now slightly older tech, but they're also starting to use the latest bulbs too. They seem not to be phasing out anything but rather still selling it all at slightly different price points. Out of all the cheapie AA and AAA lights these companies produce, lumintop seems to push out the most lumens out of an alkaline. I love how this company uses glow in the dark diffusers and includes it as well. With their FW3A, you can't get that amount of output for cheaper. Currently the cheapest company to get 3k lumen output. I wish they had more neutral white availability as I'm not a fan of cool white. My only gripe with this company is I don't dig some of their designs. It's a little bit plain for my liking.