BASIC FLASHLIGHT TROUBLESHOOTING GUIDE

[BrianHook]

Flashlights are very handy during night. A flashlight should be durable and water proof. Various aspects described by you about flashlights are benevolent and commendable.

 

[Cataract]

Flashlights are very handy during night. A flashlight should be durable and water proof. Various aspects described by you about flashlights are benevolent and commendable.

Thank you. That is why I only buy good quality lights.

 

[Cruncher_Block]

Very good advise. Tried your steps with no fix. I will now contact manufacture.
Thanks.
Ty

 

[Cataract]

Thanks. The manufacturer or distributor are really the next step in the process, but you can also get great advice by starting a thread specific to your problem (if a search does not return results first) is sometimes also a great eye opener when someone else has found a good fix to your specific problem.

 

[Fish30114]

This is good intel, especially for a newbie. Where would one purchase Doxit? I typically use 70% alcohol, and it has worked well so far, but I always like getting the best for the job, if I can afford it!

 

[Bullzeyebill]

This is good intel, especially for a newbie. Where would one purchase Doxit? I typically use 70% alcohol, and it has worked well so far, but I always like getting the best for the job, if I can afford it!

I highly recommend DeoxIT. I work with electronics all day and much of it is repair work. We have tried all types of contact cleaners and DeoxIT works wonders and keeps the contacts looking good for a long time. Grab a bottle and it will last you a long time if all you are doing is cleaning your light contacts once in a while. I just cleaned my Quark 123 contacts with it the other day and they look as good as new now.

Click on the link above. It is good stuff and I have used it. I need to order some more.

Bill

 

[kmnremtp]

Thanks so much! You just saved my fenix ld20 from the trash! She's good as new now! Had corrosion in switch

 

[Cataract]

Thanks so much! You just saved my fenix ld20 from the trash! She's good as new now! Had corrosion in switch

:twothumbs You're welcome! I would definitely hate to see a good piece like that go to waste.

 

[Bullzeyebill]

Gee Cataract, I thought I helped him out here with assistance from Irelander. Not sure though.

bill

 

[Cataract]

Thanks for covering that one, Bill. It sure seems like Fish did get the answer he was looking for :twothumbs: (and thank you Irelander for pointing the manufacturer's website all the way back there )

I guess I was just too dizzy during the "shutdown frenzy" manufacturing plants go through here at the end of July to even notice something was going on. I also want to thank you again, Bill, for making this thread a sticky and I just noticed it was a day before the 2 year creation anniversary of this thread when I quit smoking just this year (thanks to e-cigarettes, as flashaholic-friendly device). I also just noticed that the 2 year sticky anniversary is coming up right this coming winter solstice, which also means 2 years after the predicted end of the world by the Mayan calendar fanatics!!!!
We definitely need to celebrate all of that at once:buddies: (or at least don't let me get drunk alone and look like a jack... )


Everyone who was able to fix a problem thanks to my thread also need to thank Bill for making it a sticky. I can't take 100% of the credit, it was Bill's decision to sticky this (even though I might have brought it up to his attention... once or twice... or was it the PWM sticky? :thinking: Who stickied my PWM thread? Why is it that when you're a kid, a month is like a year, yet we remember clearly what happened a year ago and when we're getting older, years are like months and we have a hard time remembering what happened yesterday?) So Bill stickied this despite the thread being slow, I guess because it does answer the basic questions (it sure wasn't because I sent him money or flashlights...)

Bill: just thank you, I feel like I am somehow stepping into people's monitors and help guiding them remotely on how to go about the basic steps to get their lights working after a fail and I wouldn't have that feeling if no one had made this thread a sticky. I can't fix them all in one guide and I can't fix them all, period, but at least I can feel I'm making a difference

 

[thinkFlashlights01]

One problem I had with my Maglite was it was intermittently going on and off but, the solution was to take out the spring and put it back in. It works perfectly!

 

[Cataract]

One problem I had with my Maglite was it was intermittently going on and off but, the solution was to take out the spring and put it back in. It works perfectly!

Just playing with the spring could have cleared some crud by friction between the spring and the tailcap or removing it might have stretched it a bit.

Thanks for sharing :twothumbs

 

[orictheman]

i dont know if this is the right place to comment but.. i recently recived one of those 18xt6 lamps from ebay and i cant get it to work any tips? Tryed the tips in the thread but no sucsses

 

[Cataract]

If the basics won't help, I would really recommend starting a new thread specific to your light and your problem. This is a different type of light as far as I know and you might need some fairly specific checks and to grab the attention of people who are familiar with the type of assembly in your light. Also, if there is a warranty left over, it might be the best place to start as a lot of the less expensive made in China lights have a higher than average manufacturing defects (sorry about this reality check).

 

[bykfixer]

Thanks for this thread and to everybody contributing.

I had a SureFire Z59 tail cap show up DOA so I yanked on the spring then reassembled.... and light went to flickering/sometimes working.
So I yanked on the spring again and that time permanently stretched it about a 1/2", re-installed onto the switch and it works normal now.

I had read at some point (I think in the 200+ page Malkoff junkie thread...yes I read them all once upon a time when it was like 167 lol)...anyway Mr. Malkoff suggested somebody try that on their non functioning flashlight.
Couldn't count on both hands how many times that has worked.
I don't think changing spring length is what does it, but perhaps it's proper pressure/location or amount of contact that is applied to the switch. body that makes it go again.

If you pocket carry or work in dusty enviornments dust, dirt and grime gets into the darndest places.

You see most light rated IPX4 for example...that means it's not rated against micro particle intrusion like an IP44 light would be.
X is the dust rating...and dust never sleeps.

 

[WyomingWyld]

Thanks for this post. One reason I enjoy this site so much, other than the huge amount of information, is people like this who share this seemingly basic knowledge. To you it's common sense but for many, like me, some of this info helps a great deal. Thanks a lot!

 

[xjive]

I like to thank you guys for this thread. I just got my first flashlight an Eagtac DX30LC2-SR and after putting the battery in it was flickering on every setting. So after reading this I took everything apart and put back together snug and now it works like a dream.

 

[traveldog]

Hi forum: I am having trouble with the switch assembly for an older 9n lite. I have the part that contacts the thumb pad, but nothing between that part and the battery. Worse yet, I have the manual but is says nothing about the switch. Does anyone here know where I can buy a new switch assembly or what parts I need? Please help.
-traveldog

 

[vettex2]

good info :wave:

 

[ingineer]

Thanks guys, so glad i remembered the contents of this thread.
i just received a Fenix cl25r lantern DOA and went trough the usual steps, until "unscrewing" the e-clip.
now it works