Maglite 2 AA problem

[nyyanks]

When I twist the head to turn it on, the light will come on but if I bump it or accidentally hit it on something, the light will go off then come back on only if i give it a tap. With the light turned on, there is a little play and if I jiggle the head, the light goes off them comes back on. I think somehow its not making good contact when the head is jiggled. What is causing this and is there a fix?

 

[**DONOTDELETE**]

If all else fails, they have a lifetime warranty. Their office is 10 minutes away from me so I've been there before. I've taken in a magcharger before and they replaced the switch, glass, o-rings, and got it working again in 2 days. No questions asked, they just grabbed it from me, handed me a claim receipt and fixed it.

If your not near Ontario, CA you'll have to ship it. They will pay for shipping back to you I think.

 

[nyyanks]

I am in NY so I definately have to ship it out. Maglite recommends on the website to use registered/certified mail to be extra safe. The Maglite is light enough to be sent 1st class without the batteries of course in a padded envelope. Is it really necessary to use those extra mail services. I mean I don't want to pay more for shipping than what the Maglite costs. Has anyone had experiences sending in their Maglite?

 

[Roy]

Try streaching out the spring in the tail cap! It may not be keeping enough pressure on the batteries.

 

[nyyanks]

I just stretched the spring a bit. I tried again and the light turns on and off when I rock the head of the light. It seems to be sensitive to the rocking. Even a very light tap to the head will make the light go off for a fraction of a second.

 

[Roy]

Is your bulb tight?

 

[nyyanks]

Yes the bulb it tight. You know that plastic piece that the bulb sits on that says "do not remove". If I take the head off it will not go into candle mode until I give that part a little push or move slightly.

 

[nihraguk]

nyyanks:

it is probably dirt or oxidation under the lip of the bulb-end of the barrel that's causing a poor contact.

what i did to fix it, was to remove the switch assembly by pulling out the part that's labelled "do not remove", and use cotton buds or something similar to clean out the underside of the lip where the metal contacts of the switch assembly make contact. i usually use some kind of metal polish to get rid of the oxidation, and after that i rinse out the barrel with water to get rid of dirt.

let me know if that helps

 

[snuffy]

Originally posted by nyyanks:
Yes the bulb it tight. You know that plastic piece that the bulb sits on that says "do not remove". If I take the head off it will not go into candle mode until I give that part a little push or move slightly.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">Try removing the batteries and then pry the "do not remove" part off. The rest of the switch will drop out of the tube. Scrape/burnish the underside of the lip where the switch fits into the tube then degrease the lip and switch contacts with alcohol. Burnish the contacts with a pencil eraser, reassemble and you should have your problem solved. If not

new ones sell for around $9

(edit) I need to learn to type faster or get a faster ISP.

 

[GJW]

If you do disassemble the switch, the negative switch contact will likely fall out of the switch assembly.
It's no big deal, it pops right back -- just watch for it and be careful.

 

[nyyanks]

I just took it apart and cleaned out a light film of grease that was caught under there and reassembled and the problem was solved. Thanks everyone

 

[Monsters_Inc]

And for anyone wanting to remove the "do not remove", be careful of that tiny tiny metal piece, I assume what GJW referred to as 'the negative switch contact'. It's really small and potentially very easy to lose in deep pile carpet.

 

[Roy]

You bet'ya Red Rider! Learned THAT lesson the hard way!