RARE MAGLITES

[LiftdT4R]

Turns out the Kodak promo was a 2x aaa. Alluminum body with a gold colored coating.

I had heard that sometimes production rejects were used for promos. This one has a few minor flaws so I suppose that at least in 1988 that was the case. Flaws exist in the knurling on the barrel and the bezel. What a shame to the customer who likely paid extra.

Note, no mention of 7D in '88, but 7C still listed

1988 was a good year for America

I've noticed factory seconds being used a promos that Maglite did as giveaways. I don't have any evidence of this other than what I've seen though.

The Kodak lights were actually purchased by Kodak and they weren't Maglite giveaways so they shouldn't be factory seconds. I have two and both are worn but otherwise look ok but the QC on AAs and AAAs was never very good because they were a less expensive light. There are many Maglite giveaways but only a handful of laser etched ones. The ones that come to mind are:

Lillehammer, Remember Sarajevo, Olympics AAs
George H.W. Bush AAAs
George W. Bush 2001 and 2005 AAs
9/11 3Ds

The 7Cs were discontinued in 1989 right before Mag started laser etching bezels on their full size lights so that's why they still show up. 7Ds were discontinued in 1982 after only 3 years of production so that's why they're not there.

1988 was a good year for America. Fox body Stangs, Metallica!!!, and Magnum P.I.. Need I say more!!

 

[bykfixer]

In the end they didn't work because consumers wanted the same Maglites cops carried. Like most other flops that Maglite and others had they are rare now so there are folks that collect them.

I wonder if there was a point in time where Don and Tony were taking a stroll through the factory and Tony says "Don, the people want a non cop light colored light"... and Don thinks "uh oh, here it comes" and Tony says "how's the name Vare Beam sound?" Don responds "Remember the Stud Light?" as they walk past a really loud lathe and Tony thought Don said "Good idea"....


The customer I spoke of in the 2x aaa promo post receiving less than top quality lights was Kodak.
Part of me thinks it's cool to own a fairly early edition of a light that was coated with what looks to be metal crumbs still in the grooves of the bezel. But the barrel part... that was just plain ugly. Like the cutter had gotten dull and it passed through QC that way.... like the QC guy was still distracted that some "Hulk Hogan" charcater had defeated Andre the Giant at Wrestlmania...

 

[LiftdT4R]

From the old stories I got the Stud-Lite was actually promoted by Norm Nelson because he came from the trucking industry, Per-Lux, so he thought there was a market there for a special flashlight but he wasn't correct. This was done after Don already left Kel-Lite.

On the other hand I don't think Tony or Don wanted to produce a redundant model but several big box retailers said they would only place orders if they could have a "consumer" model rather than a "cop" model. Money talks, so Mag Instrument made them. Later on the retailers were stuck with inventories of Vari-Beams because consumers would purchase Maglites instead so they caved and ordered Maglites in larger quantities and either switched the Vari-Beams to a silver and black model or sold them at discounted prices.

 

[SIGINT-228]

Where did you get a 24k gold plated Mag?oo:

In a Super Drug Bust

 

[LiftdT4R]

Score! I picked up a second 7D! Now the age old question, keep it, flip it, or mod it???

 

[torchsarecool]

Im going to throw that Phrase out again.....7d's are like buses

Keep them and go for the trio

 

[ven]

Score! I picked up a second 7D! Now the age old question, keep it, flip it, or mod it???

2 more and you have legs for a custom MAGtable, be it for coffee or for flashlights Be easy to level out as well!

 

[Toohotruk]

A Mag table would be way cool!

 

[LiftdT4R]

I like the suggestions! Thanks guys! There's another one on fleabay now. It's crazy because sometimes you won't see these for years and then 3 or 4 pop up. I'd really like to have a red or blue one but they are next to impossible to find.

 

[Chauncey Gardiner]

A Mag table would be way cool!

With a red, white and blue acrylic top that would be illuminated by the Mags. Perhaps an American flag.

~ Chance

 

[ven]

An under lit MAGtable displaying MAG's.................is that a MAGaholics dream..............even this guy here who is not a MAGaholic wants one

Those 7D's are beasts!

 

[irongate]

Ven you should invest in one. Still one on the site I believe a 7. If not that a 6. So much fun for you then🤑

 

[ven]

I dont know what i would do with it(ok maybe a 1 leg table!). 7 D's ............I must admit though, loading a D mag is fun, something about dropping D cells in.

 

[bykfixer]

I dont know what i would do with it(ok maybe a 1 leg table!). 7 D's ............I must admit though, loading a D mag is fun, something about dropping D cells in.

With the 7D... bombs awaaaaay! "Clunk" for the first 2 or 3.

What woulda been cool back then would be a Louiville Slugger promo 5, 6 or 7 D Maglite..C sized too...

 

[1pt21]

Holy crap, these things go for over $200?!?!?!

I'll stick to my 6D's...

In retrospect, I've paid >$200 for many a SureFire in my day, so value is clearly in the eye of the beholder (collector) :thumbsup:

 

[LiftdT4R]

Holy crap, these things go for over $200?!?!?!

I'll stick to my 6D's...

In retrospect, I've paid >$200 for many a SureFire in my day, so value is clearly in the eye of the beholder (collector) :thumbsup:

They've gone up in value in the last few years. I read through a lot of old posts here and 10 years ago they could be had for $40. I think it's because most folks didn't know they existed or were even rare. Now they're hot. I have more questions about them on my blog than any of the really rare lights I have. They're also the most expensive Maglites I've seen sold. I've seen them go as cheap as $175 and as high as $400 depending on condition, color and demand.

A new Lumintop SD75 or a Fenix TK75 sell for the same price and they're making more of those every day. They only made 19,000 7Ds from 1979 to 1982 so maybe less than a quarter exist today. Granted the Lumintop or Fenix might be a little more practical.

 

[LiftdT4R]

Haven't posted any good finds in a while so here's another 7D I'm working on restoring. The battery corrosion was terrible, the switch was missing parts, and it had no bulbs. It's been soaking for a week plus so I'm going to have busy Saturday morning!

I only use PR20 bulbs because I don't actually use any of these 7 cells. I am curious to try a Krypton bulb like a KPR20 though to see how much brighter they are. I'll get a group shot going when it's all back together later. I have 3 7Ds now and 2 7Cs.

 

[torchsarecool]

3 x 7d's.....cool! No table, but maybe a Mag stool, lol

I didnt know they broke into so Many componants though. Nice project. Makes me want to attempt one to

 

[bykfixer]

Awe man, first time I took a Mag switch apart... stuff went flying everwhere. Yikes!!

I found an online how to for reassembly then set about putting it back together. But at first I was freakin' out.

It was a light I was fixing for someone else as the switch operated intermitintley (sp?)
I ended up putting in another one to get it back together quicker and used the old one to learn what goes wrong (when alkaleak goo is not the issue). It was dirty inside the sliding portion of the bulb assembly and wasn't the switch afterall.

 

[LiftdT4R]

3 x 7d's.....cool! No table, but maybe a Mag stool, lol

I didnt know they broke into so Many componants though. Nice project. Makes me want to attempt one to

It's a lot of fun!! There's actually a 2 more brass pieces that don't normally come apart inside the plunger too. I've done a couple dozen of these now and I can take them apart and put them back together pretty easy. The ones with the stuck retaining rings are the most fun! When I first started doing these it was more challenging and fun but it's still rewarding to make them light. If ya do try one I have a whole big write up about switch repair here: http://maglitehistory.blogspot.com/2017/09/switch-disassembly-repair-and-1980-5d.html

Th pre 1982 lights had bare copper internals and were prone to corrosion. The 1982 and after lights had nickel plated innards and are a little more durable.

Also, now that my latest 7D is up kicking I couldn't resist posting a pic of my 7D collection. I bought 2 of them not working. One just had a bad bulb. The latest one needed a lot of work and had a fair amount of corrosion. I'm actually using the latest one around the house until I'm sure it's good. I'll probably flip the 2 latest 7Ds in time. They are both 17,000 and 18,000 serials from early 1982 right before Mag stopped making them. I think they ended around serial 19,000 in mid 1982. The 7Cs soldiered on until 1989 with about 40,000 produced. The one 7C with the flat end cap is from 1982 and came from across the pond from torchesarecool and the other is a 1989 and was found at an estate sale.