Fixing loose Fenix LD05 clip?

[Frangible]

Hey,

I have a Fenix LD05 2xAAA light I've been generally pleased with, but a consequence of carrying it clipped in my front pants pocket is that over time the clip has become somewhat loose. (yes, perhaps that wasn't the... brightest... idea) I've stopped carrying it since in that fashion.

Externally, the angles all appear fine, though it has about 1-2mm of play laterally and will no longer stay clipped to thin objects as it used to.

I put as much force into twisting the end as I dared, but could not see any way to easily disassemble it or how the clip is attached.

My assumption, however incorrect, is that the clip is attached via a steel ring between the body and tailcap of the light, and to fix it I need to remove it, bend it a bit, and reassemble. I'm not sure if that's the case and Fenix just used a lot of LockTite, or if I'm entirely wrong.

Anyone have any ideas here? I've tried searching, but I haven't seen anything on actually disassembling the body of the LD05.

Thanks.

 

[parnass]

I carry a Fenix LD05 in a shirt pocket. No problem with the clip so far, so I haven't tried to remove it.

As a temporary solution, try installing one or more layers of heat shrink tubing over the end of the clip to act as a shim.

 

[rookiedaddy]

here-ya-go... LD05 Clip

no locktite, you can use any non-slip pad/rubber (like bottom of your mouse-pad) to unscrew the tail, it will come out. The clip is a U-clip lock onto the switch end and sit in a notch at the body.

EDIT: Cautious: take extra care when you screw it back to the body, you might break the o-ring as the notch is pretty sharp... this is very bad design :thumbsdow

 

[parnass]

rookiedaddy, good photo! :thanks:

 

[Frangible]

Aha! Thank you very much. My clip is now pretty much fixed.

After disassembly, I found the U-notch in the body of mine had some minor wear at the edges that may have been responsible for the lateral play. The finish was stripped on the outer edges and there was a slight angle making it head towards more of a V-notch. I think the forces involved were just too great for the 0.05mm of mild steel to withstand.

The clip ring was also not as tight in diameter as yours; I didn't have the tools to really fix it on me, so I used a small screwdriver to tighten it somewhat by pressing inward along the entire thing.

My clip angle itself was also not-so-great once I could see it without the body, which was easily fixed with some pliers and force. (compared to say a Benchmade knife pocket clip, which I usually have to fix with a vise and hammer)

During reassembly, as you noted the o-ring was in danger of catching, so I pressed down on it while turning the endcap assembly. It seemed to be undamaged.

Net result: about half the lateral play, and a very strong clip grip now. Fixed, in my book.

I'm not sure I'll carry it clipped in my front pocket again -- my fear is the wear to the U-notch will continue -- but it's certainly strong enough now to not fall out of a shirt pocket or pen holder in my bag.

Thanks.

Other miscellaneous thoughts:

1. For deep front pocket carry, it might be possible to:

A) mod in a headcap "lockout" for the rear switch to prevent accidental pocket activation (you can kind of do this as-is but on mine the head almost falls off)... but what could be applied to the threads other than hard anodizing?
B) find a cap that fits the end similar to the eraser cap on a Pentel QuickerClicker side-click pencil.

2. Unrelated, but ... if the head assembly is easily disassembled as well, are there any aspheric lenses (or even smooth reflectors) available that could be swapped in to produce a tighter beam profile with less spill? For some of my uses (nasal/septum examination) a very very narrow beam is ideal.

 

[martinaee]

Oh so you can unscrew the back? Thanks for that photo. Now I see the LD05 has sort of a half moon clip type clip so it is not actually attached permanently to the back. I always wondered how they got that clip on there. It's good to know I could take it off if I wanted too or potentially bend the clip if it ever got damaged or something.

I still love my LD05, but I wish Fenix would update it. Maybe make an XP-G2 version? That would be awesome.