L0P died...

ginaz

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Nov 30, 2004
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508
it had been in the glove-box as a handy light at the ready and when i went to use it today... nothing. tried several different batteries and nothing. anyone else had this experience? i dearly love my Fenixi but now i'm a bit nervous about them. any thoughts?
 

TORCH_BOY

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Have you tried cleaning the surfaces and where the Flashlight barrel
makes contact with the head and tailcap
 

ViReN

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TORCH_BOY said:
Have you tried cleaning the surfaces and where the Flashlight barrel makes contact with the head and tailcap

worth repeating....

just replacing batteries wont be sufficient, you have to try cleaning the contacts... the glove box may be humid and at high tempratures which will enhance the chances of corrosion...

also, it would be worth if you could give additional information, like how long it has been in the glove box...

Edit: to update the quote format.
 
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Tacfolder

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Mar 15, 2006
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Mine died also. Sometimes it work, sometimes it wouldn't. Cleaning contacts

didn't help mine.

Wayne at AmondoTech has it now, checking it out.

I'll let everyone know what turns up.
 
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ginaz

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Nov 30, 2004
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oh yes, i cleaned the contacts. i figured the pots and pans cycle of my dishwasher would clean them pretty well... just kidding. yes, they are clean. it had been in the glovebox for perhaps a period of 2 months. it had done keychain duty before that with no complaints. i'm curious as to what Wayne says. <looks at L2T with a tear in his eye... don't leave me baby!>
 

steve_vance

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ginaz said:
it had been in the glove-box as a handy light at the ready and when i went to use it today... nothing. tried several different batteries and nothing. anyone else had this experience? i dearly love my Fenixi but now i'm a bit nervous about them. any thoughts?

Outdoors Fanatijc said:
That's why it's impossible to compare china lights with high-quality american flashlights.

I'm hearing MORE AND MORE about Fenix quality issues.... it seems like Fenix is the latest CPF "cult" light (replacing Arc Flashlight), but I'm seriously concerned about their quality AND commitment to customer service.
>Ref: the thread about how Fenix parts are not available.
>Ref: the thread "I dropped my Fenix, now it doesn't work".
>And MANY others.

I know this will bring a firestorm of criticism, defense, etc., I'll probably get flamed for this by the Fenix lovers, but too bad, IMO it's the truth. :xyxgun:

And the suggestion about "cleaning the contacts": they wouldn't need to be cleaned if they were plated with a noncorrosive/nonoxodizing material, like Peak, Inova, Pelican, Streamlight, Surefire and the other AMerican-made lights are.

I even heard it suggested in one thread recently that the guy who couldn't get parts for his Fenix should "buy another one and scrap it for parts". A dealer offered to sell the guy all the Fenix tailcaps he wanted for $40 each... the price of a new light. Come on, guys..... enough is enough.

You all know my friend runs Inova, but that is not where this is coming from...

it's simply that most of the Chinese lights don't measure up to the quality and engineering standards of the American lights. AND I own a ton of Nuwai. Guess what, though. If they fail I just throw them out, because I know I can't get any parts or service.

Guess what, GINAZ. I'm -offering- to send you an Inova Radiant AA, FOR FREE, including shipping, to try and keep. Just a friendly offer.

Try it, and see if it isn't as good as the L0P for a glovebox light. Just as bright. Small packaging. Better battery life (six times the runtime). You could buy THREE of them for the price of one Fenix L0P. And it has a lifetime warranty, and you CAN get parts.

I was going to send you a T1, but I see you already have one.

PM me if you want it.
 

lightningbug

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Outdoors Fanatic said:
That's why it's impossible to compare china lights with high-quality american flashlights.
bumpit.gif

This remark is both inappropriate and untrue! Chinese designed and manufactured lights vary in quality just as lights of any origin, and in fact offer some very innovative and affordable technology- in high quality offerings. It seems there are many quick on the draw to ridicule products not made in the USA, and most of their comments are ridiculous and unfounded. Let's not forget that many things we've enjoyed for centuries were "borrowed" from the Chinese. Things like Pasta, Fireworks, Gunpowder, certain Firearms and Ordnance, the Piano, the Abacus (still more effecient than a calculator in the hands of a talented user),etc. were originated in China. I enjoy my US and Japanese electronics and other products bearing names like Zenith, RCA, Emerson, Sony, Toshiba etc., all of which are made in China, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia etc. I have a shop full of machinery of various ages, and those machined in the USA are great if made in the 50's, 60's or 70's, but those of more recent manufacture are by and large of poor quality and reliability. However, most everything else of decent to excellent quality is made in Taiwan. Mainland China is now becoming very competitive in machine manufacturing of excellent quality, the latest being the "hybrid" cabinet saws made by a company called Orion, and sold at Sears as Craftsman. These Craftsman saws are excellent in quality and sold at competitive pricing making them affordable for many Americans who can't afford to buy a US made saw such as the Powermatic 66 (incidentally, this is the only table saw manufactured in the US anymore). I dearly love my Powermatic 66, but 3 of the other table saws in my shop are from Taiwan, and offer excellent quality and performance. Moreover, the total cost of the 3 saws combined was less than 1/3 the cost of another Powermatic 66. Powermatic (a Tennessee based company) now offers a new model made overseas for them that is superior both in features and build quality, and priced for less than the US made 66.

In many of my lights that I've accumulated over several decades, simply cleaning the contacts may not be the only maintenance necessary. It is sometimes necessary to use a mild solvent such as rubbing alcohol to eliminate oxidation buildup or migratory lubricant on the threads and ends of the battery tube, tailcap and head. Another simple trick is to rub the positive and negative ends of the battery on your jeans to ensure good electrical contact. Don't forget the retaining rings holding pcb's and switches together sometimes need to be loosened and tightned to remove oxidation as well.

Another culprit I've found is cold solder joints. Sometimes heating up those solder connections properly is all that's needed. Cold solder joints are nortorious for oxidizing at what little contact point they have.
 

TiberiusBeeKirk

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Jan 29, 2006
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I haven't bought a "flavor of the month" type light in a while.
The last one was my Nuwai Q3, so far, no problems at all with this one.
And with R123's, I'm using it even more.
Sorry to hear bout the probs the fenixs' are having.
I didn't know the Innova radiants were made in the USA? good to know.
 

Sanny

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Jun 4, 2005
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Switzerland
Well... same happened to my L0P here in Switzerland, too.
The light was just a few weeks old, it was on keychain duty and one day it just didn't light up anymore... :shrug:
and I was working at a car show at the time ...so I wouldn't say it was used in harsh conditions ;)

4sevens kindly sent me a new one, but the tint is definitely not as good as the first one :(
 

ginaz

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Nov 30, 2004
Messages
508
thanks for that awesome offer Steve, PM inbound. i guess we are right back into the "get what you pay for" debate. what should you get with a 40 buck light? beyond "flavor of the week" cachet? more than a few months, i would say. i have had an L1P for much longer with no problems at all and my L2T has pleased me in every way so far (well, not EVERY way...). only time will tell. in my haste i threw away all the fenix packaging, is there a warranty?
 

Jay R

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Mar 10, 2006
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Outdoors Fanatic said:
That's why it's impossible to compare china lights with high-quality american flashlights.:bumpit:

Not meaning to be rude but aren't Surefire and Maglight supposed to be in this range of quality ??? I'm only asking because many of the people posting here seem to have a fairly low regard for Mags and as for Surefire, the number of complaint threads about the U2 seems to beat any other topic. As for customer service, need I mention Surefire again...

Above are only two Fenix LOP's bust and I suspect they have sold far more of these than the U2 and I suspect Fenix have sold more total lights than Inovas. Virtually every other post I have seen about Fenix lights has been positive.

I don't know Inova lights but I'm sure that they are well made and reliable but to start slaging off other makes just because one chap has a broken Fenix and another chap said he had the same problem seems a bit extreme and typifies the " everything we have is better than yours" attitude that many Americans like to shout. They then sit back and wonder why other peoples around the world call Americans loud mouthed, arrogant and insular.

Don't get me wrong, I work for an American company with loads of Americans and I like them very much. I lived in California for a year and count many Americans as some of my best friends. However, a great many seem to believe that other races and religions that hate America do so because America is 'The Best' and they are jealous. They haven't considered that perhaps it's because Americans seem to think themselves better than everyone else and therefore superior. Many countries such as Sweden, Singapore and Switzerland have similar or higher standards of living and the reason that they aren't such targets of hatred and terrorism is because they don't go around the world telling everyone else that they're inferior. (Of which the posts above are perfect examples.)

 

carrot

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If thousands of L0P's have been sold and only two reported failures so far, this is a pretty good track record. No one starts talking crap about "bad quality" manufacturing in the US when an Inova X1 dies after a fall or a Surefire U2 clickie breaks. Just an error, something that slipped by QC, but definitely not a sign that Inova or Surefire is junk. Instead, usually it's "Cheers to Inova" or "Cheers to Surefire" because of the lifetime warranty... something Fenix has too -- why not give them the chance to honor it as well? So, why the hate for Fenix, simply because it's a Chinese manufacturer? I find this thread to be becoming increasingly racist. Just because something's from overseas doesn't mean we should value it differently, if quality is shown to be consistent and up to par, as I've found my own Fenixes to be.
 

rider

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Apr 16, 2006
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lightningbug said:
This remark is both inappropriate and untrue! Chinese designed and manufactured lights vary in quality just as lights of any origin, and in fact offer some very innovative and affordable technology- in high quality offerings.

lightningbug said:
Another culprit I've found is cold solder joints. Sometimes heating up those solder connections properly is all that's needed. Cold solder joints are nortorious for oxidizing at what little contact point they have.

Do I even need to add anything to this?
 

steve_vance

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Jay R said:

I don't know Inova lights but I'm sure that they are well made and reliable but to start slaging off other makes just because one chap has a broken Fenix and another chap said he had the same problem seems a bit extreme and typifies the " everything we have is better than yours" attitude that many Americans like to shout. They then sit back and wonder why other peoples around the world call Americans loud mouthed, arrogant and insular.

for the record, that's not my attitude. I do understand and sympathize completely with, your disdain (as a British Citizen) for the "Ugly American" attitude and all it represents. I couldn't agree more. However, there have been numerous complaints regarding Fenix, not just two. I do not now nor did I ever hold the (chauvinistic) belief that "everything we (Americans) have is better than yours". My gripe is with perceived poor quality and service, and lack of parts, not with country of origin. I'm also IMMEDIATELY suspect when something attains "cult following" status, so I take a closer look. My deepest apologies to anyone who was offended, or perceived any racist or anti-Chinese tones....that wasn't the point of my remarks. I own a Japanese car, and lots of Chinese lights, my pantry is full of excellent British tea and China, etc. and would never disparage a particular nationality or country. With me it's just quality/service period.

PEACE!!!
 
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steve_vance

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carrot said:
So, why the hate for Fenix, simply because it's a Chinese manufacturer? I find this thread to be becoming increasingly racist. Just because something's from overseas doesn't mean we should value it differently, if quality is shown to be consistent and up to par, as I've found my own Fenixes to be.

I agree 100%. No racism intended, nor should any ever be tolerated on this forum. My only issues are quality and service. While it's true that the great majority of "cheap led lights" are Chinese, there is nothing wrong with Chinese lights per se. I'm just concerned about the increasing number of incidents being reported. But I do give Fenix credit for innovation, and an attempt to produce a very good quality light. I hope the quality issue is a non-issue :)
 
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