Mini Maglite 2 AA assembly in a Mini Maglite 3 AA body ?

[GasganoFJ60]

So I have a 3 AA MiniMag. It does not work. LED assembly is burnt out, i assume.

I also have a few 2AA Minis. One has a corrosion bubble inside the barrel that makes Eneloops nearly get stuck inside. I took it apart to try and dremel that bubble down.(i know...i know better. But i dont like to waste alkalines so i try to use them up first before switching to NiMH. This bit me by leaking within a few days...)

While out, i noticed the 2AA LED assembly was more or less the same size and shape as the older 3AA.

For gits and shigs I pulled the 3AA off the shelf, took it apart and put the 2AA assembly in. Seemed to fit alright. Slid 3 NiMH cells in and viola, it works! Even the multimode works.

My question is, is the extra 1.2v from that extra cell going to brun it up?

 

[peter yetman]

It's actually only an extra 0.6v as the 2AA is 3v and three NIMH is 3.6v.
It'll probably shorten the life of the unit, but if it works and you like it, there's not much to lose when it eventually dies. You might even lose it first.
P

 

[Lynx_Arc]

So I have a 3 AA MiniMag. It does not work. LED assembly is burnt out, i assume.

I also have a few 2AA Minis. One has a corrosion bubble inside the barrel that makes Eneloops nearly get stuck inside. I took it apart to try and dremel that bubble down.(i know...i know better. But i dont like to waste alkalines so i try to use them up first before switching to NiMH. This bit me by leaking within a few days...)

While out, i noticed the 2AA LED assembly was more or less the same size and shape as the older 3AA.

For gits and shigs I pulled the 3AA off the shelf, took it apart and put the 2AA assembly in. Seemed to fit alright. Slid 3 NiMH cells in and viola, it works! Even the multimode works.

My question is, is the extra 1.2v from that extra cell going to brun it up?

If you try not to "waste" alkaleaks in the end they will "waste" the contacts of anything you put them in sooner or later.
My advice is to make a dummy cell for the light maybe a dowel rod with a wire down the middle and nails on top and bottom or something.
Nimh are more than 1.2v that is "nominal" or under load. Off the charger they can be more than 1.4v and drop to about 1.33v after a few days of rest so 3 of them is 4.2v off the charger or about 4 volts days later about 1v higher than expected and with little sag it is quite possible you could fry the LED in the circuit depending on the design. A boost circuit may be raising the 3V to 3.5-4V and that boost in voltage could be translated on the 4v to make is closer to 5v even.