cheap chinese video light review

[Scuba-Lad]

Anyone have a broken "CH" type (I think) light that they might want to unload? I got mine today, and they work great, but I managed to burn one of the negative battery contacts off by putting in one battery backwards. No other harm, just that battery no longer will make contact. (The battery was unharmed). Basically I need the back half of the light. Alternately, anyone figured out how to disassemble the rear piece to get access to the negative contact board?


Edit: Got the rear housing apart and the board out. Might be a simple repair if I can scrouge up a close-enough replacement spring and solder it in.

View attachment 637511

Edit 2: Think I got it fixed up. Found a suitable spring and was able to solder it into place without too much hassle. Did a test to make sure it was working by just using a single cell for a quick run, then did a few longer burns (with breaks to not make the light too hot) with all 4 cells. When I put them on the charger, they all indicated roughly the same state of charge. No sign that the replacement spring is getting hot or anything that would indicate a bad connection.

How was it that you were able to disassemble the rear housing?

 

[TravisD]

How was it that you were able to disassemble the rear housing?

More torque, basically. It unscrews just like the light head, but it's much tighter. I might have used a couple of rubber strap wrenches.

 

[MrChen]

Disclaimer: these torches are bad, they're cheap for several reasons! Unreliable, very short lifespan, bad manufacturing, lacking attention to details. Only advantage in buying them is they're cheap.
That's my humble opinion on what I've personally experienced. People may disagree.

Anyway, one of the ones I own stopped working (in such a similar way as others report, here too) and instead of throwing it away I tried (and succeded) in reapairing it. This may help someone. Here's how.

I'm talking about the A15 model, as mentioned in the starting post. I suppose other models are very similar if not identical.
The culprit seems to be the internal pcb which is not fixed in place, it rotates when you close the battery case and tears the wiring inside.

The details follow.

First sign of failure was the coloured leds not working. After a short time (I'm talking minutes) the white leds stopped working also.
The torch didn't flood nor did the buttons show any sign of damage.

I opened the battery case, removed the round metal spring holding the pcb in place and immediately saw the wiring connecting the main pcb to the external ones (those inside the front case, where buttons and leds are mounted) being torn apart (not all, just a few ... well, several!).

It seems like the rounded metal spring holds that pcb in place but doesn't stop it from turning when you close the battery case, like ... you screw the case (with the batteries inside) and because of friction the batteries' + pins force the pcb to rotate with it a bit. You repeat the process several times and the pcb rotates so much that it breaks the wiring hidden behind it.

View attachment 676803

2x4 small black wires connect the main rounded pcb to the front casing where leds and buttons are mounted (from point B to point C).
Those are so tiny that cannot hold the stress and become loose after a while (see floating wires on A).

Other 4 biggish wires (red and black) survived the stress. I guess they provide current to the LEDs.

I simply soldered back the tiny wires and everything works again. No LEDS has been harmed in the process
You need steady hands, but if you're used at soldering it's not that difficult, it's not like SMD or similar.

In order to prevent the same from happening again I placed a small plastic thingy inside the oval notch on the PCB (point X), where it aligns with underlaying rounded notch on the casing (point Y), hoping it will stop the PCB from rotating again under the mechanical action of the batteries. It's not a fool proof solution, I will try and block the PCB in a more definitive way in the future, but at the moment it works.

View attachment 676804

Thank you for this post. I just fixed @Scuba_Jenny 's light, it had this exact problem.

 

[Dive_and_video_Tom]

So I've got some similarly designed lights:
33.19US $ 41% OFF|BORUiT 5*XM L2 LED Scuba Diving Flashlight 6000LM 3 Mode Diving Video Photography Torch Underwater 80M 18650 Spearfishing Light|LED Flashlights| - AliExpress

Out of 3 lights, all of them were actually superglued so that they wouldn't rotate. Makes disassembly a pain, but prevented that issue. The reason I disassembled was to replace the switches with piezoelectric ones from here:
piezo switch 16,19,22mm PS series (I contacted customer support, they shipped me 2 switches for like 20 dollars freight cost)
OR

Removing the first (crappy) switch is easy if you have the right tool. I've got some cuticle clippers, which were sufficient. For all of these lights, you can jerryrig a fixture to open up the fronts. Not needed for switching the light switches, but if you need to re-solder better wires to the actual LEDs, you'll want to have that. In that third picture you can see the telltale white marks of the superglue. The piezoelectric switches were a smidge on the small side (I don't think there are any available that will fit the diameter of those threads, so I used marine J-B Weld to fill the gap (it only should theoretically need to withstand 100ish psi). The switch itself works flawlessly, and I love it. No leaks or anything out of the switch port.
View attachment 678353 View attachment 678354 View attachment 678355 View attachment 678356 View attachment 678357 View attachment 678358 View attachment 678359 View attachment 678360

I'm considering retrofitting/selling a batch of these particular ones if there is any interestI see t

I see the new piezo switch has only 2 leads. The original switch had 4 connections. Do you now get just ON-OFF and no 4-step different intensities for the light?

 

[Addison Snyder]

I see the new piezo switch has only 2 leads. The original switch had 4 connections. Do you now get just ON-OFF and no 4-step different intensities for the light?

For that particular light, the four leads were for a switch and an LED. I gave up the indicator LED that showed battery status, and left that all disconnected. The 4-step was all cycled via that one switch.

As an update, that light I replaced the switch with died probably 3 years after I started using it. I flooded it by not having it fully screwed tight, and later dried it. Eventually one of the LEDs got too hot and melted right off. The other ones worked for a while longer before the entire thing died. Since then I upgraded to an Orcatorch canister light. It works well enough, but I'm still convinced that multiple/redundant handheld primary lights is the way to go unless you're doing massively long dives. No cord to deal with, redundancy, price, and hot-swappable batteries are something I miss. But I've got like 5 other projects, and no time to really pursue these things anymore.

Really depends on your use-case. Are you a recreational diver, and/or want to get into overhead diving? My thought process as a cave diver is that it would make for a decent backup light, but maybe the switch might accidentally turn on. A lot of on/off magnetic switches can be jammed off with surgical tubing to keep your backups off in your pockets (see pic). If you're going to need multiple lights, I'd suggest sticking to 18650s as they are the most common. Also, if you're getting multiple lights/batteries the rear charging port becomes less relevant.
View attachment 729286

As a primary for recreational diving it looks good though. Obviously YMMV and I haven't bought/used this light, simply going off of the product page.

Also another update, I've probably bought 10 of these lights (keep giving them to buddies!) and about 6 months ago I had my first one fail. As any diver should, I do a quick on-off test of my lights whenever I get the chance. Before leaving for a dive one of my more battered ones would turn on super-dim. Messed around with it for a few minutes before chucking it.. 20 whole dollars down the drain. Ordered 3 more. I abuse the crap out of these, and they have all gotten this worn-down gunmetal look to them. The surgical tubing is huge for preventing it from accidentally turning on, and is something I highly recommend doing if you get this light.

 

[Dive_and_video_Tom]

Whoever is looking at cheap chinese flashlights, know that batteries are not where you should ever skimp. Never buy the provided batteries/chargers, they are the bottom of the bottom of the barrel! Strongly suggest these instead, which are top-rate batteries, better than you'd get in most brand-name US products (I've bought probably around 40 of them over the course of several years, given/sold them away, all very good):

0.95€ 92% OFF|Heißer liitokala 100% Neue Original NCR18650B 3,7 v 3400 mah 18650 Lithium Akku Für Taschenlampe batterien (KEINE PCB)|li-ion battery|battery for flashlightbatterie 3400mah - AliExpress

Smarter Shopping, Better Living! Aliexpress.com

www.aliexpress.com

I fully agree! Most cheap batteries don't have the capacity they say they do. And internal resistance is another issue. You want the lowest internal resistance possible so that power is not wasted in "warming up the battery". I did my research and ended up buying these: EFEST IMR 18650. I had bought a cheaoer one before and when I measured the capacity, it was a mere 1,650 mAh. I measured the EFEST ones and they had 3,460 mAh, which is what they claim they have. Very happy with these.

 

[Dive_and_video_Tom]

Disclaimer: these torches are bad, they're cheap for several reasons! Unreliable, very short lifespan, bad manufacturing, lacking attention to details. Only advantage in buying them is they're cheap.
That's my humble opinion on what I've personally experienced. People may disagree.

Anyway, one of the ones I own stopped working (in such a similar way as others report, here too) and instead of throwing it away I tried (and succeded) in reapairing it. This may help someone. Here's how.

I'm talking about the A15 model, as mentioned in the starting post. I suppose other models are very similar if not identical.
The culprit seems to be the internal pcb which is not fixed in place, it rotates when you close the battery case and tears the wiring inside.

The details follow.

First sign of failure was the coloured leds not working. After a short time (I'm talking minutes) the white leds stopped working also.
The torch didn't flood nor did the buttons show any sign of damage.

I opened the battery case, removed the round metal spring holding the pcb in place and immediately saw the wiring connecting the main pcb to the external ones (those inside the front case, where buttons and leds are mounted) being torn apart (not all, just a few ... well, several!).

It seems like the rounded metal spring holds that pcb in place but doesn't stop it from turning when you close the battery case, like ... you screw the case (with the batteries inside) and because of friction the batteries' + pins force the pcb to rotate with it a bit. You repeat the process several times and the pcb rotates so much that it breaks the wiring hidden behind it.

View attachment 676803

2x4 small black wires connect the main rounded pcb to the front casing where leds and buttons are mounted (from point B to point C).
Those are so tiny that cannot hold the stress and become loose after a while (see floating wires on A).

Other 4 biggish wires (red and black) survived the stress. I guess they provide current to the LEDs.

I simply soldered back the tiny wires and everything works again. No LEDS has been harmed in the process
You need steady hands, but if you're used at soldering it's not that difficult, it's not like SMD or similar.

In order to prevent the same from happening again I placed a small plastic thingy inside the oval notch on the PCB (point X), where it aligns with underlaying rounded notch on the casing (point Y), hoping it will stop the PCB from rotating again under the mechanical action of the batteries. It's not a fool proof solution, I will try and block the PCB in a more definitive way in the future, but at the moment it works.

I made the mod on mine. Now the board sits solid without rotating:

 

[Dive_and_video_Tom]

So I've got some similarly designed lights:
33.19US $ 41% OFF|BORUiT 5*XM L2 LED Scuba Diving Flashlight 6000LM 3 Mode Diving Video Photography Torch Underwater 80M 18650 Spearfishing Light|LED Flashlights| - AliExpress

Out of 3 lights, all of them were actually superglued so that they wouldn't rotate. Makes disassembly a pain, but prevented that issue. The reason I disassembled was to replace the switches with piezoelectric ones from here:
piezo switch 16,19,22mm PS series (I contacted customer support, they shipped me 2 switches for like 20 dollars freight cost)
OR

Removing the first (crappy) switch is easy if you have the right tool. I've got some cuticle clippers, which were sufficient. For all of these lights, you can jerryrig a fixture to open up the fronts. Not needed for switching the light switches, but if you need to re-solder better wires to the actual LEDs, you'll want to have that. In that third picture you can see the telltale white marks of the superglue. The piezoelectric switches were a smidge on the small side (I don't think there are any available that will fit the diameter of those threads, so I used marine J-B Weld to fill the gap (it only should theoretically need to withstand 100ish psi). The switch itself works flawlessly, and I love it. No leaks or anything out of the switch port.
View attachment 678353 View attachment 678354 View attachment 678355 View attachment 678356 View attachment 678357 View attachment 678358 View attachment 678359 View attachment 678360

I'm considering retrofitting/selling a batch of these particular ones if there is any interest.

I removed the color switch and just left the white light one. I used JB Weld to covet the hole:

So I've got some similarly designed lights:
33.19US $ 41% OFF|BORUiT 5*XM L2 LED Scuba Diving Flashlight 6000LM 3 Mode Diving Video Photography Torch Underwater 80M 18650 Spearfishing Light|LED Flashlights| - AliExpress

Out of 3 lights, all of them were actually superglued so that they wouldn't rotate. Makes disassembly a pain, but prevented that issue. The reason I disassembled was to replace the switches with piezoelectric ones from here:
piezo switch 16,19,22mm PS series (I contacted customer support, they shipped me 2 switches for like 20 dollars freight cost)
OR

Removing the first (crappy) switch is easy if you have the right tool. I've got some cuticle clippers, which were sufficient. For all of these lights, you can jerryrig a fixture to open up the fronts. Not needed for switching the light switches, but if you need to re-solder better wires to the actual LEDs, you'll want to have that. In that third picture you can see the telltale white marks of the superglue. The piezoelectric switches were a smidge on the small side (I don't think there are any available that will fit the diameter of those threads, so I used marine J-B Weld to fill the gap (it only should theoretically need to withstand 100ish psi). The switch itself works flawlessly, and I love it. No leaks or anything out of the switch port.
View attachment 678353 View attachment 678354 View attachment 678355 View attachment 678356 View attachment 678357 View attachment 678358 View attachment 678359 View attachment 678360

I'm considering retrofitting/selling a batch of these particular ones if there is any interest.

I removed the color light switch and simply just left the white light one. I used JB Weld to cover the hole:

 

[Scuba-Lad]

Actually I already did all the mods mentioned here, with two piezo switches (one for white light and one for colour) and drilled two new holes for RGB LEDs which I JBwelded in place, for the battery status. Also soldered an additional copper ring onto the existing one on the board, to give it some extra depth and stop the circlip from shredding the top of the batteries when opening / closing.

I have 3 of these with the above mods and all have been fine so far (about 1 year). Had them down to 40 metres ish. All 3 of them were previously flooded before I modded them, and needed the PCB replacing (they used to sell spare PCBs on Aliexpress but don't think they do any more) but on the other hand, the LED board always seems fine despite flooding, only the main PCB is destroyed by salt water and I even had one that was still working for the white light after me cleaning it up with some alcohol.

I run mine off 4 x 3500mAh Nitecore 18650s and I get something like 4-5 hours max runtime on full brightness (I can't remember the exact runtime but was crazy long).

As others have mentioned, these are stupidly bright (about 7000 lumens from my non-scientific testing) and you have to be real careful about accidentally turning them on if they are pointing at you, especially on a night dive!

The newer model powered by 3x 26650s looks interesting, though I see they still use the same crappy switches that need tossing out.

 

[Dive_and_video_Tom]

Actually I already did all the mods mentioned here, with two piezo switches (one for white light and one for colour) and drilled two new holes for RGB LEDs which I JBwelded in place, for the battery status. Also soldered an additional copper ring onto the existing one on the board, to give it some extra depth and stop the circlip from shredding the top of the batteries when opening / closing.

I have 3 of these with the above mods and all have been fine so far (about 1 year). Had them down to 40 metres ish. All 3 of them were previously flooded before I modded them, and needed the PCB replacing (they used to sell spare PCBs on Aliexpress but don't think they do any more) but on the other hand, the LED board always seems fine despite flooding, only the main PCB is destroyed by salt water and I even had one that was still working for the white light after me cleaning it up with some alcohol.

I run mine off 4 x 3500mAh Nitecore 18650s and I get something like 4-5 hours max runtime on full brightness (I can't remember the exact runtime but was crazy long).

As others have mentioned, these are stupidly bright (about 7000 lumens from my non-scientific testing) and you have to be real careful about accidentally turning them on if they are pointing at you, especially on a night dive!

The newer model powered by 3x 26650s looks interesting, though I see they still use the same crappy switches that need tossing out

Aliexpress still sells the PCBs. I just received one.