Color identifiaction of a Mini Maglate and a Maglite solitaire

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TomVDJ

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I had two Maglites (a Mini and a Solitaire) in storage for a while and forgot to take out the batteries. So after all these years I took them out, and of course in both of them the batteries leaked and heavily damaged the inside of the Maglites :(.

I'd like to replace both, since they have quite a sentimental value to me, but I have issues identifiying the colors. I know it's not easy evaluating colors on pictures on computerscreens, but I'd like to give it a try.

I bought these I about 15 - 20 years ago, if I'm not mistaken. They both are grey-ish in color, but the solitaire one has a slightly more blue-tone in it, while the Mini has not.

Het is a picture of the "head" of the Mini along with the Solitaire (so colors can be compared):


This is a close-up of the Mini part:


And a close-up of the Solitaire one:


If someone has an idea what the exact color of both would be, and possibly where I can still buy an identical one (especially for the Mini Maglite), that would be a great help! Thanks in advance!
 
To my knowledge ML issued 2 "gray" shades on the mm. One was called Antherzit, sold by a Maglite dealer in Germany. It was later called "charcoal-gray". Back here in the U.S. a lighter shade of gray was issued and called Pewter. Today that color is just labled gray. I believe your MM is the pewter gray. The solitaire might actually be ice Blue. Looking at colored pictures of "gray" must be what it's like to be colored blind.
 
In addition, there is significant variations in batches of lights, especially in the gray/pewter/silver colors.
 
Thanks for the feedback! I ordered a Grey Mini Maglite to replace the damaged one. Not a big deal if the color is a bit off, but I'll let it know if it matches the one I have now, once it arrives.

Don't think the solitaire is ice blue, since there really is not a blue tint in there... Might bu just gray, but a very subtle variation, like mentioned above.

Good remark abour evaluating these kind of colors is like feeling like you're color blind ;-). Certainly when trying to match colors on a computerscreen, which is almost impossible unless your screen is 100% calibrated (and so are the pictures you are looking at, which is not the case for the pictures I posted).

Anyway, thanks for the input! At least I learned a valuable lesson: NEVER leave batteries in devices you are not going to use soon. I didn't take them out of my maglites because I thought: in a few weeks I'll use them again, but then you move houses, the flashlights stay in boxes for months, and before you know it, the batteries have time to leak and destroy your gear :-(. It were Energizer and Duracell batteries. You would think those branded batteries woud be a bit more leakage-proof, but apparently not...
 
If you look to buy new updates gray is the color those are called now.

If you are looking at eBay etc for classic incan ones, again gray is the color to look for. Perhaps pewter for the minimag but most sellers would call it gray.

There was a point in time where every Maglite I owned was that color. Some were labled gray while some were labled pewter. A minimag, a solitaire and a 2D were all pretty close to the same color. As jerital stated my minimag was labled pewter, the others as gray.

If you find replacements buy some ultimate lithium batteries to use as they don't leak.
 
Looks like fairly typical gray to me, though Maglite's gray can vary from slightly dark silver to dark charcoal gray, with some more of a blueish slate gray.

Is there a sticker on the back of the box? If so it should have a color code.
 
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No sticker on the box, unfortunately. Today I got the Mini Maglite in, but it was color "Titan Grey" and this is almost black, apparently... Not the lighter grey the picture on the website showed me. I can return it without a cost, so I'm returning it, and looking for the real grey one... I guess I should look for the pewter one...
 
New as in LED version?
Those are much darker. The "modern era" gray ones are much darker. My 1990 something (93?) was listed as pewter, but the D sized pewters took on an almost bronze tone.

Maglite collectors tend to like certain platforms. The big ones (C/D sized) or the small ones (aa/aaa minimags and Solitaires). I'm in the aaa camp. So it may take a bit of time to find your shade of gray minimag.

I found this old thread
https://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?191923-AA-MiniMag-Collection-Part-4
The fellow who started it is still active.
Perhaps you can PM him for information about your lights.
 
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No, it was not a LED one, but the "classic" incandescent one. Thanks for the link to that thread. I think the pewter one comes really close to what I'm looking for...
 
Bought the Pewter one, but that's also way too dark! Man, how hard can it be to trace the correct color, and how hard can it be to post representative pictures in eBay auctions. So just "Grey" and "Pewter" are way off color wise.

Bought this on:



I'd think the color in the picture was quite close to mine. But here is what I got (my old one on top, the one I received on the bottom):

 
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What was the color code on the package? Did it say pewter?

Maglite dose a good job matching the color of different parts of the same light, but different batches do vary, especially gray.
 
TomVDJ said:
Bought the Pewter one, but that's also way too dark! Man, how hard can it be to trace the correct color, and how hard can it be to post representative pictures in eBay auctions. So just "Grey" and "Pewter" are way off color wise.

Bought this on:



I'd think the color in the picture was quite close to mine. But here is what I got (my old one on top, the one I received on the bottom):

Click to expand...


Practically ALL the colors can vary in tint, from minor to very major.
 
In the meanwhile, the Silver one is in, and that's also not the color. Here is a picture of the "Pewter" on top, "Silver" on the bottom and mine in between:



As for the pewter one, there was only Model No: M2A09H and Part No 106-000-517 on the package. The Silver one did not have any code on it, it came in the plastic box...

Since part of the metal is gone due to the battery leak, I'd prefer a replacement, not a repair. If somebody has another idea for the color, please let me know!
 
In reality, you're probably going to have to buy a few, from different sources, and hope that you get a tint match. The silver, gray, pewter were bad about variations.
 
turbodog said:
In reality, you're probably going to have to buy a few, from different sources, and hope that you get a tint match. The silver, gray, pewter were bad about variations.
Click to expand...

Pewter and Silver are way off, even if there are variations. What other Grey tones were there in the past? Could "Graphite" be an option? (Still kicking myself for being so stupid leaving those batteries in the maglite :mecry:)
 
I'd like to kick this thread with an additional question: I tried to order a maglite with code M2A09 (unfortunately it got lost in transport). I noticed that there are also the colors M2A09L and M2A09H. Are these variations. I guess the M2A09H is silver, but I have no clue what M2A09L might be. Someone has an idea about these last letters?

So until now, no success on finding the correct color. Really frustrates me... The more difficult it seems, the more I really want a replacement in the same color :(.
 
The suffix designates the packaging.

blister pack
light with keychain light included
etc

H suffix is blister pack w/ holster
L " is presentation box
C " is combo pack/rubber head/lenses/clip/lanyard
6 " is blister pack w/ batteries and light only
2 " is pres box also?
0 " is clear plastic square tube (1980s style)
D as 4th char means smooth barrel?
 
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