Why is ArmyTek maligned or ignored in this Forum?

[Tachead]

I asked again this week NKON as well as Armytek.ca what should I do in case any of my Armytek lights breaks within 10 years. Both told me I just have to send it to them (no video is required at all) and I will be send replacement and shipping fee compensation after they receive my light. So are those mentioned warranty problems with video difficulties very recent? :shrug:

My last one was just before Christmas. I dealt with Armytek directly(not a dealer) and I had to make them a video(2 actually).

They are probably just telling you what you want to hear. Not to mention, the best warranty is the one you don't have to use. A company could have the best warranty on the planet but, if you constantly get left in the dark at the most inopportune times, it means little imo. Reliability is one of the best traits a flashlight can have and as you can see from this thread alone, this is a trait AT lights lack.

 

[niraya]

My last one was just before Christmas. And, I had to make them a video(2 actually).

They are probably just telling you what you want to hear. Not to mention, the best warranty is the one you don't have to use. A company could have the best warranty on the planet but, if you constantly get left in the dark at the most inopportune times, it means little imo. Reliability is one of the best traits a flashlight can have and as you can see from this thread alone, this is a trait AT lights lack.

How in the world can they know what I want to hear? And where is the time for making any video when light will be already posted and tracking nr. send to them? And what exactly do expect from them? Sending new light to anyone who send them email claiming his flashlight broke? :shakehead

And yes,I have/had many Armytek lights over years and I know few more people living here with same lights, and none of us ever needed to care about Armytek warranty, none of us had been left in dark with Armytek,

I am just trying to verify what I read here.

 

[Tachead]

How in the world can they know what I want to hear? And where is the time for making any video when light will be already posted and tracking nr. send to them? And what exactly do expect from them? Sending new light to anyone who send them email claiming his flashlight broke? :shakehead

And yes,I have/had many Armytek lights over years and I know few more people living here with same lights, and none of us ever needed to care about Armytek warranty, none of us had been left in dark with Armytek,

I am just trying to verify what I read here.

Every person I have ever heard from has had to send them a video as part of their warranty claim. People have criticized this since their company opened several years ago. No other flashlight company on the market that I am aware of ask for a video. Most just ask you what the problem is, have you send them the broken light, and then repair it or send you a new one.

Well, you are one of the lucky ones. Many, many have not had the same luck. Personally, I would not trust the ones you have and always bring a backup.

If you want to verify just check their sub forum, run a search on CPF, BLF, Reddit, Yourtube, etc. there is reports all over the internet(both of failures and of people issues with their customer service and need for a video).

 

[niraya]

Every person I have ever heard from has had to send them a video as part of their warranty claim. People have criticized this since their company opened several years ago. No other flashlight company on the market that I am aware of ask for a video. Most just ask you what the problem is, have you send them the broken light, and then repair it or send you a new one.

Well, you are one of the lucky ones. Many, many have not had the same luck. Personally, I would not trust the ones you have and always bring a backup.

If you want to verify just check their sub forum, run a search on CPF, BLF, Reddit, Yourtube, etc. there is reports all over the internet(both of failures and of people issues with their customer service and need for a video).

The thing is: I send them email this week (NKON and Armytek.ca) both told me I just need to send the broken light, gave me address and ask me to email them tracking nr. - how can any video be made after I post the light already. And yes I have seen some angry posts about video requirements on reddit and elsewhere, but they were so ridiculous, I just prefer checking the reality personally. And yes, I believe they ask some people for video, but even that seems completely reasonable to me.

On different topic, I see people worry about some writing/logos on flashlight, about how much it matters where it is manufactured .... etc etc. Everybody has his ideas about perfect light for him. I just recently wrote down some points that I cant stand on any flashlight no matter what:
Not having moonlight bellow 0.2 lm
Not being able to turn ON/OFF at moonlight
Strobe not well hidden
Visible PWM
Next mode memory
Titanium or stainless steel body
Moving between all levels in one direction only
Blue/Magenta tint
Too big/heavy
Not being able to use it in headband (hands-free use)
Having any kind of zoom
Not being waterproof
Shutting off suddenly without going to emergency moonlight first
High parasitic drain
Red Loctite threadlocker

Armytek is one of few flashlights I found that fits in, and same time I put number of them through very harsh environments and never had any failed. So I am sorry some people had problems that I never encountered, but we are all different and our experiences and our requirements are not same.

BTW I read so many post here recently about problems people have with Zebralight. Does it make me think Zebralights are not worth trying? Definitively not, I personally found their lights to be great no matter what I read here, I just had to try them personally to see that.

 

[Tachead]

BTW I read so many post here recently about problems people have with Zebralight. Does it make me think Zebralights are not worth trying? Definitively not, I personally found their lights to be great no matter what I read here, I just had to try them personally to see that.

All companies have issues from time to time, especially when brand new models and drivers are released. The difference is that AT has had and unusually high number of issues, almost constantly, since they opened shop years ago(I have followed them since they opened so I know). A former employee even posted on Reddit about how high their failure rate was on some models and it was crazy high.

Anyway, enjoy your AT's. I honestly hope you don't have any troubles but, if you do, don't say we didn't warn you.

 

[Modernflame]

Not having moonlight bellow 0.2 lm
Not being able to turn ON/OFF at moonlight
Strobe not well hidden
Visible PWM
Next mode memory
Titanium or stainless steel body
Moving between all levels in one direction only
Blue/Magenta tint
Too big/heavy
Not being able to use it in headband (hands-free use)
Having any kind of zoom
Not being waterproof
Shutting off suddenly without going to emergency moonlight first
High parasitic drain
Red Loctite threadlocker

I don't wish to enter this debate, but I wanted to say that this is a very thoughtful list. I don't agree with everything on it, but I appreciate that you've articulated it so clearly. I would add that I don't like lights that can't lego. I'm in a minority, to be sure, but I'm leery of lights that don't have user replaceable switches and lenses, and that can't become hybrids with other models.

 

[Woods Walker]

I really like the Wizard and Tiara. Have both the pro and standard versions. One of the best overall beams for an outdoors headlamp I have seen. Have some Primes, older Predator (standard) and Viking (pro). I prefer the Standard versions for all of them. I never paid full price. My last Tiara was 28 bucks and the Viking 34.

 

[vadimax]

How in the world can they know what I want to hear? And where is the time for making any video when light will be already posted and tracking nr. send to them? And what exactly do expect from them? Sending new light to anyone who send them email claiming his flashlight broke? :shakehead

And yes,I have/had many Armytek lights over years and I know few more people living here with same lights, and none of us ever needed to care about Armytek warranty, none of us had been left in dark with Armytek,

I am just trying to verify what I read here.

First off, you compare apples to oranges. NKON is NOT ArmyTek. And their customer support is sky high: they never ask you stupid things about or to do. They take the risk of lemons away from the customer. I even suspect that they do their own quality control before selling something. As an example: while ordering a Zebralight SC5c II asked them about tint deviations. The answer was: not a problem, we will personally select the best one for you.

Do you expect the same attitude from ArmyTek? Perhaps, NKON is a rare sample when buying from a dealer is way better than from a manufacturer. Most likely, you have not a slightest idea how many ArmyTeks they had to return.

 

[niraya]

I really like the Wizard and Tiara. Have both the pro and standard versions. One of the best overall beams for an outdoors headlamp I have seen. Have some Primes, older Predator (standard) and Viking (pro). I prefer the Standard versions for all of them. I never paid full price. My last Tiara was 28 bucks and the Viking 34.

I also have Pro and Standard versions, but for me the complete separation between three moonlights and three main modes by double click on Pro versions is ingenious. It makes it the best UI I ever used on any flashlight. In Standard version you can't circle within moonlight modes only, which I actually do very often on Pro. Also the Pro Wizard has wider beam which I found more useful.

 

[niraya]

First off, you compare apples to oranges. NKON is NOT ArmyTek.

No! I do not compare them at all, but since I bought some lights from each (some from NKON and some from Armytek.ca. Of course I know what are they in the first place. I asked both about the warranty and what exactly am I to do when the light I bought there is broken within 10 years.

 

[Tachead]

No! I do not compare them at all, but since I bought some lights from each (some from NKON and some from Armytek.ca. Of course I know what are they in the first place. I asked both about the warranty and what exactly am I to do when the light I bought there is broken within 10 years.

I bet if told AT you actually did have a warranty issue they would ask you for a video. I would take what AT told you with a grain of salt.

 

[Woods Walker]

I also have Pro and Standard versions, but for me the complete separation between three moonlights and three main modes by double click on Pro versions is ingenious. It makes it the best UI I ever used on any flashlight. In Standard version you can't circle within moonlight modes only, which I actually do very often on Pro. Also the Pro Wizard has wider beam which I found more useful.

I like them both but for me the Standard works better when cold and beaten down. Once accidentally triggered the lithium ion mode on a Pro Tiara effectively killing it in the field. I didn't have a 14500. I needed to use 2XAA and some wire to jump it back into life then change the mode. I find the flashing button on the Pro more annoying than of value. Once I tried to turn it on all the time as a maker when sleeping in a bivy bag. I turned the "tactical mode" on by mistake and it was hell changing it back at 5F..... 11pm. Again cold and tried played into the user error. Tonight I was breaking down my day camp late. When hiking out in the dark some deer broke cover and somehow ran right by me. A rare mistake in judgement forced by the terrain. It's easier to jump the Standard UI to Turbo than the Pro which I did in this case to see what the heck was going on. That said I used a XHP-50 pro Wizard for a multi day winter camping trip last weekend in the Dacks. It was just fine. As for the beam profile that has more to do with LED than UI. For example my XM-L2s all look the same pro or standard. I think there might be differences between XHP-50 with XP-L Wizards for beam profile. I own those as well. In any case both have a memory so often just use one mode for hours when hiking or in camp.

 

[niraya]

As for the beam profile that has more to do with LED than UI. For example my XM-L2s all look the same pro or standard. I think there might be differences between XHP-50 with XP-L Wizards for beam profile. I own those as well. In any case both have a memory so often just use one mode for hours when hiking or in camp.

That is correct, I also have Wizard Pro with XHP50 (yellow button) as well as with XP-L (white button) and the XP-L Pro has the same narrower beam as standard version. In any case I like the XHP50 Wizard Pro more than any flashlight I ever touched

 

[niraya]

I bet if told AT you actually did have a warranty issue they would ask you for a video. I would take what AT told you with a grain of salt.

No, you are plain wrong! They already gave me address where to send it and ask me to just email back the tracking number to them.

 

[Tachead]

No, you are plain wrong! They already gave me address where to send it and ask me to just email back the tracking number to them.

What did you tell them was wrong with it?

 

[niraya]

What did you tell them was wrong with it?

Broken rubber ON/OFF button. An regarding the bet you suggest - lets bet USD 1000 - settled with Paypal, OK?

 

[Tachead]

Broken rubber ON/OFF button. An regarding the bet you suggest - lets bet USD 1000 - settled with Paypal, OK?

I have dealt with them a few times now(once about 2 months ago)and they always wanted a video and had me do a bunch of troubleshooting. This was the case for most other people that posted on multiple forums as well. If they changed that policy that's good but, I will still never buy from them again. Their lights are unreliable garbage imo and I don't support companies that aren't honest.

Anyway, I am not interested in discussing this further enjoy your AT's.

 

[nbp]

Settle down Tac. Just because someone else has had a different experience than you doesn't mean they are automatically wrong. It's OK for some to like brands you don't. The beauty of competition: lot's of choices!

 

[Woods Walker]

I stand corrected with the flashing button being worthless on the pro. I am in the Tipi with woodstove running on the AT. Weathered the storm last night. So anyways had the headlamp ceiling bouncing for area light. Noticed the flashing turning yellow and then redder. Changed battery which is good as have walk outside soon. The battery only has enough power to push this phone up 2% with the Lii100.

 

[wweiss]

Winter camp? One of the best times to be out in the wild. We had 8" in Weston CT - where on the AT are you?
The UI on ArmyTek has always been my favorite. Just need to take a spare along whenever I'm way out in the field...