Nitnos
Newly Enlightened
At first when I received my A4R2+ and took it out of the package it disappointed me, but little did I know a day later it would be my favorite flashlight I own. I found the switch hard to use until I opened it up and saw that the foam cushion was out of place. I already owned a Rev1 Second and had troubles with the switch before. Please note that I’ve used one other Rev1+ and its switch was easier and more comfortable to use than either of my own. Also, my Rev2 was harder than Hades to turn on if I used Surefire batteries. I have 4 boxes of Surefire batteries, so any light I buy must work with those batteries. I offered to trade this light to a couple people on the CPF for a Rev1+, but am glad I didn’t since I wasn’t aware of the battery problem at the time. The switch worked great with Duracells, but I missed the short profile and feel of cy’s 1.1 tail switch mod. I was about to fall asleep at about 2 o’clock in the morning when I had an idea for a Rev2 adaptation of the 1.1 tail switch mod. The mechanism I had envisioned in my mind turned out to be far more complicated than it needed to be. The only modification that needs to be made to the 1.1 mod is an extension of the plunger. For my tail switch mods, I’ve used 1/16” gasket material that I bought from my local hardware store, a thumbtack, and a furniture glide. I used a dremel tool to cut circular pads out of 1” furniture glides known as Grippers made by Waxman. The diameter of the pad is the same as the tack. Instead of a rivet I used a thumbtack which was 1/16” X 7/16” and cut the pointy-end so about 1/16” remained on the tack itself. The plunger was at first much too long and caused the light to constantly stay on. From there I began shaving the pad down piece by piece with a razor blade until the pad was about 3/32” thick. And what was the end result? Well let’s just say now you couldn’t pry my A4R2 out of my hands if your life depended on it! I thought I would have problems with the plunger slipping out of place, since the length the wafer in the Rev2 needs to be pushed out more than the Rev1 by a significant amount. The sharp point on the tack secures itself to the pad when inside the switch and the plunger stays in place. I then tightened the tail cap down as far as I could and the mod was finished. I think the stiffer gasket material might be a better choice for the Rev2 tail switch mod, since it will hold its form better. I can only speak from my own experience having seen only one A4R2. I’ve read about others having switch problems and cy encouraged me to share my experience with the CPF. READER’S NOTE: I am an amateur modder, this being my first attempt at a mod which previously did not have directions. Much of the mod was not calculated, but done with more of a “feel it out as you go” approach. As for it being water proof, I have the same mod on my Rev1, but with less wafer extension, and it is completely water proof. This may be because you can tighten the tail cap down completely until it is snug. I would post pictures, but alas, I still haven’t bought a digital camera. Perhaps it’s because I keep buying flashlights... hmm. Anyway, I wanted to say thank you to cy for the inspiration and I hope this helps some people who have had switch troubles recently. I may make a few kits as cy did, but I need to find more materials as well as time.
Summary:
Gasket Material: 1/16” cut to diameter of the rubber boot
Thumbtack: 1/16 X 7/16”
Extension Pad: 3/32 or 1/8 X 7/16”
Note: see cy's Arc4+ tail cap mod, version 1.1 for similar visuals
Nitnos
Summary:
Gasket Material: 1/16” cut to diameter of the rubber boot
Thumbtack: 1/16 X 7/16”
Extension Pad: 3/32 or 1/8 X 7/16”
Note: see cy's Arc4+ tail cap mod, version 1.1 for similar visuals
Nitnos
