MagLED mod = alkaline sudden death?

[Buck91]

Well this is strange... I come home today and switch on the ssc p4 magled mod for sh_ts and giggles while chat'n with the gf, and no light!! All batteries are under 1V (no load). So I throw fresh batts in and check the switch off voltage and current, both zero. Check the brightness with fresh batts with the light in its normal storage spot, highly noticable. So that eliminates a few days of switch on runtime by accident.

Any ideas why my alies would suddenly die (works a few days ago, but the past few weeks seemed dimmer tha usual) without switch-off battery draw? I'm rather confused, thought alkies self-discharged slowly as they nearly the end of their shelf life. Any thoughts?? BTW, there was no leakage and the only date on the batts is a copywrite for 2001.

 

[Marduke]

Usually the date on alkalines is the expiration, not the copywrite.

 

[Buck91]

Yeah, but this is definately a copywrite as it has the "(c)2001 CVS/pharmacy"

 

[wasBlinded]

My guess is the GF or someone else used it when you weren't looking. Or they are just bad batteries.

One other possibility is that they were nearly dead when you last used it, and kept going because the Vf of the LED is lower when hot. When you turn it off and it cools down, the Vf goes back up and now is too high for the weak batteries to restart.

 

[Stereodude]

I have a SSC modded MagLED 2AA, and I just checked it. The batteries are still good and it's been sitting for at least a week with alkaline batteries in it.

I would guess someone has been using the light, or it's turning on by itself. :thinking:

 

[Buck91]

Yeah I dont know... The light has some runtime on the batts, both before and after the mod, but only a fraction of the tens of hours it should get. It must have turned on somehow and was left there