# O-Ring problem after applying silicone lube



## WildChild (Oct 23, 2006)

I just applied silicone lube on an o-ring and it made it inflate. This is the first time I see that. Have anyone ever seen that?

http://img164.imageshack.us/img164/4831/imghg1.png


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## FlashKat (Oct 23, 2006)

That will happen to the cheaper rubber o-rings. Silicone lube still has a slight amount of petroleum base in it. You can replace the o-ring from an automotive parts store and it should be okay.


WildChild said:


> I just applied silicone lube on an o-ring and it made it inflate. This is the first time I see that. Have anyone ever seen that?
> 
> http://img483.imageshack.us/img483/6480/img1192ys2.jpg


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## Casual Flashlight User (Oct 23, 2006)

> I just applied silicone lube on an o-ring and it made it inflate.


Holy heck! It certainly did!







CFU


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## WildChild (Oct 23, 2006)

Can you give more informations? I've used this lube on many other flashlights and this is the first time I see this! 



Casual Flashlight User said:


> Holy heck! It certainly did!
> 
> 
> 
> ...


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## WildChild (Oct 23, 2006)

Is there anyway I can make it get back its original size?

Thanks


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## FirstDsent (Oct 23, 2006)

I understand that silicone grease will ruin silicone O-rings -go figure. Regardless of the composition of your ring, It is ruined. I have never seen a gasket or O-ring return to its original shape after being harmed by chemicals. If you can precicely measure the diameter of the groove, and the cross-sectional thickness of the ring I can tell you the exact size you need to buy. PM me if you have the info.

Bernie


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## scott.cr (Oct 24, 2006)

What is the brand/type of lube you used, and what kind of flashlight was this o-ring from?

Most of the time, a black o-ring means it's Buna-N, which is quite resistant to acids, alkalies and petroleums--things you would be likely to find in lubricants.

So either the lube you have is incorrect, substandard or faulty and/or the o-ring is not Buna-N.

Neoprene o-rings are usually black in color and will absolutely fall apart under acid or alkali conditions as well as most sythetic lubricants. That would be my best guess. Neoprene is very difficult to keep lubricated since most types of lubes (except vegetable oils) will destroy it.


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## WildChild (Oct 24, 2006)

This is the o-ring on a Fenix L0P SE. Before I bought this one, I had a standard L0P and I used the same lube on it without any problem. I used this lube also on Arc AAA-P, Maglites 2D and Fenix L2T and L2P without any problem. The lube is Motomaster Silicone Lube (bought from Canadian Tire). With all Fenix, there is always at least a spare o-ring, on this one I used olive oil and it seems perfect for now! 4sevens (I bought it from Fenix Store) said he could send me some more o-rings if there is any other problem.


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## Sub_Umbra (Oct 24, 2006)

Wow! Interesting. I've been using a basic silicone 'plumbers' lube on O-rings for a long time and I've never seen anything like that. Wild.


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## win67 (Oct 24, 2006)

WildChild said:


> This is the o-ring on a Fenix L0P SE. Before I bought this one, I had a standard L0P and I used the same lube on it without any problem. I used this lube also on Arc AAA-P, Maglites 2D and Fenix L2T and L2P without any problem. The lube is Motomaster Silicone Lube (bought from Canadian Tire). With all Fenix, there is always at least a spare o-ring, on this one I used olive oil and it seems perfect for now! 4sevens (I bought it from Fenix Store) said he could send me some more o-rings if there is any other problem.



Had the same problem with the factory o-ring of fenix lop-se!!! lubed it with silicon grease from my saeco coffee machine. this works perfectly on all o-rings, including fenix l1p, fenix p1. but this fenix lop-se got wider...

Jens


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## mchlwise (Oct 27, 2006)

It's not the lube wrecking the o-rings!

I just got a L0PSE yesterday, and had the same experience as you did after lubing it up with a silicone based paintball gun oil made for o-rings. It seemed to wreck it. 

I took a chance, and lubed up the spare - and it wasn't affected. I e-mailed 4sevens about this, and he confirmed to me that the L0PSEs are shipping with o-rings that are slightly different than the spares. The installed rings are slightly larger, softer and more elastic (easier to stretch). This could be to create a better seal, but to me it's more of a "bug" than a "feature", and I'm much happier with my spare installed.


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