Where is Balder on the flashlight food chain?

ExtremeX

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Nov 8, 2011
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Brands I own... Olight, Fenix, Klarus, Jetbeam, ITP, Maglight, Solarforce....

Where do these guys stack up?

Quality, design, features?

Personally Olight, Fenix, and now Klarus are my go to brands... I find JetBeam around the same but with a little better fit and finish.
 

davecroft

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Aug 23, 2011
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I've taken a lot of advice from the guys on CPF, so my lights are Fenix, Olight and Nitecore (not prepared to shell out for a Surefire, sorry!) Just ordered a Jetbeam. Not been particularly impressed by 4sevens but will try them again.

Not gone for any of the slightly lower level brands (in my opinion) yet, but there are some nice lights fron Balder and Xeno which are very tempting. They get some good reviews, but don't seem to have the hardcore following of some of the more established makers.
 

tre

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May 3, 2010
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Northern IL USA
Honestly, I don't think they have been around long enough to establish where they fit in.
 

ExtremeX

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It is just another chinese based brand?

@tre, thanks, didnt know that. I didnt know they are new kids on the block...

@dave, I feel the same as you, wallet is still a little tight for Surefire and HDS, but I do like the E2D Defender from Surefire...
 

SirJohn

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Apr 15, 2010
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As others have said, they are very new. I have reviewed a couple of their products. From my initial impressions, they are pricing more on the low side of the market. Their build quality is definitely on the mark with other brands. Everything works and I have experienced no flakiness. Long term durability is yet to be determined. Styling is somewhat different than the usual generic look without being ugly. Regulation is ok but not near Fenix level. Where they fall behind many of their competitors is UI. All their lights use the standard cheap chinese half press of tailswitch to cycle through all the modes, and they have not expanded beyond a basic three mode light. It works, but its not as slick as some other lights. Their lineup is still limited so future models may allow them to catch up on the UI front. CS again is a complete unknown at this point.
 

ExtremeX

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Nov 8, 2011
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Thanks for that quick review.

They look good, but what sells me on lights is really the UI and the regulation circut, Fenix set the bar on this one for me personally... Its why Klarus shot up on my list right next to Fenix and is now my most owned light... I also like to see a company that spends time on reflector design. The UI and tail switch on the Balder lights seem very DX / P60 drop in style (based on your review)... While I like those little Solarforce lights, the DX drop-ins and UI really kills it for me.
 

SirJohn

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Apr 15, 2010
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I should add that the regulation is a lot better on their 18650 lights vs their 1xaa lights. The BD-4 is actually pretty close to that Fenix level as seen by HKJ's review of the BD4, but they do use PWM unlike the direct current that Fenix often uses. On the 18650 BD-2 and BD-4, it is fast enough to not be visible or noticeable without testing equipment. However, their 1xaa lights of the BD-1 and SE-1 do have visible PWM. Here's HKJ's review:
http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb...-BD-4-with-measurements-and-outdoor-beamshots
 
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