Short of throwing the kroll away, i looked carefully inside to watch its operation and noticed the round silver plate that touches both springs only contacts a small portion of them. to positivly remedy this problem once and for all, i replaced both springs. both are of a thicker diameter (stiffer) and the internal center spring is slightly longer also. i soldered a brass plate to the bottom of the spring that will contact the internal one and the battery.
after performing this to 3 of my krolls and testing them on 2 aa mags both with badboy 400's and the magstar 2C cell i modded also with a badboy, i never once had any flicker as i had so many times b4. i ran both aa mags down to a low voltage and still no flicker. there is no perceptable extra resistance when pushing the switch after reassembly. i cycled the switches many many times to verify good contact and now need to put my thumb in a splint or head to the gym for thumb conditioning. naaa just grab another beer.
you can see how the springs would
have a small contact area when engaged.
(the larger one not part of the kroll
just for photo demonstration)
much more contact area. (old springs
used for photo)
WAY COOL!! This is something that is sorely needed.
Is there trick to disassembling the Kroll (with out smashing it to smithereens) that you can share? also maybe a source for the springs you used for the replacement?
i have hundreds of misc springs collected from various sources, and found ones that i needed. many electronic catalogs carry a assortment package (includes hundreds of smaller ones).
disassembly is easy. i used a small jewelers slotted screwdriver, a jewelers needlenose plyers and tweezers. removing the side contact spring with tweezers by compressing it. then the battery contact spring with a screwdriver by prying up at the base. the internal spring comes out by the needlenose by grabbing the first coil and lifting up and toward the center of the kroll. with a little manipulation it will slide right out. except for losing a spring somewhere where u will never find it (check on the floor, under the bench, toward the back, next to the gum wrapper, thats on top of the led u lost last week) its hard to break anything on the switch. the formed plastic is all one piece. the rubber cap does not even need to be removed for this upgrade.
[img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbsup.gif[/img] A fellow "springaholic!" (I thought I was the only one. [img]/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif[/img] )
Hmmm, and I've been getting by using a few drops of Radio Shack Tuner Cleaner dribbled into the Kroll switch when they start to get intermittent.
This looks a lot better.
I got here trying to find a single comprehensive fix for the way the Kroll switches become unreliable -- saw mention that the manufacturer has recommended something?
But instead I find dozens! of Kroll switch mentions. Seems it's a mite troublesome and has a lot of fixes.
[ QUOTE ] CNC Dan said:
I ad a dab of anti-oxidant goo to all the metal parts of the Kroll, and it works great.
[/ QUOTE ]
Dan:
Is this something that is commonly available at Radio Shack or somewhere? I have also heard of some type of gel that is supposed to increase electrical conductivity. Does anyone know what it is called or where to get it?
Is this something that is commonly available at Radio Shack or somewhere? I have also heard of some type of gel that is supposed to increase electrical conductivity. Does anyone know what it is called or where to get it?
[/ QUOTE ]
I got mine at an electrical supply store. The place that an electrition would get their stuff. The stuff is used on aluminium wireing to prevent corrosion. The bottle gives the company name.:
Contax
Cat. NO. CTB8
Blackburn
1525 Woodson Rd.
St. Louis, Missouri 63114
I don't know if they are still at that location, as I got mine a long time ago.
Not sure, but automotive stores sell dielectric grease that is supposed to be used on spark plug boots and on electrical system connectors to protect them from moisture. Dunno how it compares to the stuff others are using though.
[ QUOTE ] dangee said:
its hard to break anything on the switch. the formed plastic is all one piece.
[/ QUOTE ]
I thought that too, till I shined a light through it and discovered that it s really two pieces. I tore one apart to see what I could do to change it. This is what It looks like disassembled.
Yes, it snaps back together. The pointy pins around the base are for locating and locking into place. The whole thing snaps together. Sometimes the pins snap off when you pry it apart.
I've several mods in mind for this, if I ever get the time and inclination at the same time.
Complete dissassembly and soldering are slightly over my head. I saw anti-oxidant mentioned.
When I changed a receptacle in my house, I couldn't find one made for AL wire in the color I needed. So I got some "Ideal Noalox Anti-Oxidant Joint Compound" at Home Depot and liberally slathered it on the wires before tightening them.
I just tried some on the contact places I could get to easily with a toothpick on a Kroll I had that was getting flaky.
It seems to have helped a lot!
Someday, I really need to get at least 2-3 more Krolls. If someone were to sell modded ones, and take Money Order, I just might been "in" for some!
Another fix for the KROLL switch
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