took it apart and and cleaned it up, with alcohol swabs.
20140430_101003 by
chewyicecube, on Flickr
and put a new layer of double sided tape, and then wiped it down again.
adjusted the "spring" on the inside end of the tube, with another black rubber O ring on the outside.
fingers crossed put in the battery, and twisted it in.
AND IT WORKS!
i suspect could be the O ring on the inside it was not seated properly, and could also be that the contact points were dirty.
now the retailer replied, telling me to send it back as it is. and they will refund me, because they do not have stocks for this anymore.
i think i'll hold on to it for another week and test it everyday, to make sure it works, before deciding what to do.
thanks very much for all your inputs! very happy that this community is so helpful!