Ra Twisty O-ring

[JohnTz]

I love this light but after a year of ownership I can't get smooth twist action out of it. Seems that the supplied o-ring is too big. Any body out there use a different type or size ring that makes it smoother? What size is the stock size. Maybe I can down-size on increment to loosen it up some. It doesn't see rain too often so I'm not worried about water penetration. thanks for your replies.

 

[chaoss]

If you are not worried about water intrusion just remove the ring and apply a littlt more supplied lube to the threads. The lube itself acts as a barrier to moisture and dust. I believe that the primary reason for the ring is to block water in a pressure environment, (under water?).
This should free up the twisty action.

I know i read a post not too long ago from Henry (RA LIghts owner) where he stated that they removed the ring in the twisty used in their shop because they were not worried about moisture and wanted a little smoother, easier action.

 

[JohnTz]

Thanks Chaoss. I think I would still like an o-ring in there. Maybe one that is slightly smaller to ease up the action somewhat. I just dont know how o-rings are sized and what size the stock one is so I can't just go to the store and get one-size smaller. So what I hope someone answers with is the stock o-ring size and what 1-2 sizes smaller would be so I can try those out.

thanks,
John

 

[Enzo Morocioli]

Hey John...

Now that I think about it, I don't even know what size the O-ring is.

But I thought of something you might do in the interim. Do you still have the bag of grease that was supplied with the light? It has a spare O-ring in it that you can swap out with the old one.

If we can't get an answer, then take the o-ring down to a hardware store and go play in the bucket for awhile. You'll find one pretty quick by visual inspection.

 

[JohnTz]

Hey John...

Now that I think about it, I don't even know what size the O-ring is.

But I thought of something you might do in the interim. Do you still have the bag of grease that was supplied with the light? It has a spare O-ring in it that you can swap out with the old one.

If we can't get an answer, then take the o-ring down to a hardware store and go play in the bucket for awhile. You'll find one pretty quick by visual inspection.

Hi Enzo. I went to the hardware store and nosed around. This one from the Twisty is real thin. The thinnest they had at the store was 1/16 inch. This one is thinner than that and I want an even thinner one to make the action less stiff. I guess maybe Henry may answer with some information.

 

[Oddjob]

I had the same issue when I first got my Twisty. Here's my e-mail to Henry:

"Hello Henry,

I have been enjoying my new Twisty over the past few days but I am finding it difficult getting used to using two hands to operate it. I swapped the Twisty O-ring for a smaller O-ring from my HDS spare kit and it is now much easier to use one handed. I know this will affect water resistance but I'll just change it back if I am going out on the water. My question is where can I buy a few more HDS battery case O-rings (1mm x 22mm I think) or something similar? I only need a few. I always like to have spare O-rings for all my lights. Any help would be appreciated. Thank you."

Here was his reply:

"If you are going to use a 1mm O-ring, you probably want to use 21mm instead of 22mm. O-rings are commonly available from many hardware stores (Ace Hardware in the Tucson area). They should also be available from most industrial supply stores. McMaster-Carr has them ($7.35/100, part number 9262K619). Since this affects the water resistance, we cannot recommend the smaller O-ring. But we certainly understand modding the light to customize a particular characteristic.
That said, a 1mm O-ring will not bridge the gap and will thus leak water.

Henry."

Hope this helps.

 

[JohnTz]

Thanks oddjob

 

[JohnTz]

I talked to Henry. The o-ring stock size is 1.5x20.5mm. FYI