SureFire 8X battery question

[Cyclops942]

I bought a used SureFire 8X this past weekend, and it had two batteries with it. When I charged up the first one, I was all set for the flashlight to knock my socks off, like the 9Z did when I put $18

worth of Lithium 123As in it. However, the tailcap was hard to push far enough to get light, the light that came out was feeble, and even completely tightening the head didn't guarantee that I would get any light out of the business end, let alone the bright light that occasionally came out.

Obviously disappointed, I figured I had nothing to lose, so I ran the first battery down and popped the second one in. Voila! Suddenly, everything worked as I expected!

I looked at the two batteries, and the only difference I could see was at the positive end of the battery. On the battery that made everything work as expected, the raised center portion (that looks like a 9V battery contact) is surrounded by a metal ring, then a very thin "moat", a similarly thin "moat wall" of black plastic, and then an outer metal ring. On the battery that didn't work well, everything looks the same except that the center portion is surrounded by black plastic out to the radius of the outer "moat wall" on the other battery.

Any ideas, anyone?

 

[hmmwv]

Sounds like you have both a b90 and b92 - I spoke with a dealer about what the difference is between them - and he mentioned that the b92 was a redesign after there was a high resistance problem in the b90 making contact - so bad that in some lights it would melt parts.

If you don't have just a plain ol dead battery - then make sure you are making good contact in there - you can damage the flashlight if there is a high internal resistance and a high current.

 

[Brock]

Are the batteries new? If so they take a couple of charges to get them broke in. When I first got mine one of the batteries would last about 5 minutes then quickly dim and then stay at that level for 40 min or so. I ran it dead, charged it and ran it dead again, now it seems to be much better.

Brock

 

[Cyclops942]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by hmmwv:
Sounds like you have both a b90 and b92 - I spoke with a dealer about what the difference is between them - and he mentioned that the b92 was a redesign after there was a high resistance problem in the b90 making contact - so bad that in some lights it would melt parts.

If you don't have just a plain ol dead battery - then make sure you are making good contact in there - you can damage the flashlight if there is a high internal resistance and a high current.<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>


And how would I be able to tell if I had a B90 and a B92? What should I do with the B90 if that's the case?

How can I tell if it's making good contact (and it seems to not be, based on the behavior of the light being erratic), and how can I ensure that it makes better contact?


<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Are the batteries new? If so they take a couple of charges to get them broke in. When I first got mine one of the batteries would last about 5 minutes then quickly dim and then stay at that level for 40 min or so. I ran it dead, charged it and ran it dead again, now it seems to be much better.
Brock <HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

Well, I'm assuming the batteries are used, but they could be new, if the item was returned early on in its life.

 

[hmmwv]

Best advice - call surefire - take advantage of their lifetime warantee (at least I think it's lifetime...)