Surefire E*e 'rubber bumper' (washer alternative)

[monanza]

Surefire E*e \'rubber bumper\' (washer alternative)

I got the new plastic insert for the clip channel on the E*e series this past week. Some comments:

1. It is not meant for clipless carry. It is meant to go behind the clip which must be mounted for the insert to remain in place.
2. It is harder than **** to push into the channel behind the long clip (probably necessary to stay in place). I tried inserting it while the clip was mounted and I tried pushing it in with the clip. The long clip shoulder is not perfectly even so the insert does not fit it that well. The short clip I have has a much cleaner shoulder and the insert fits it like hand in glove.
3. The insert simply fills in the clip shoulder so that it leaves no empty space in the clip channel behind the clip.
4. To me the insert seems a remarkable work of engineering despite its simplicity. Those two tiny bumps on the front give it that extra friction to help prevent it from creeping out.
5. The part number on my invoice is 15289-1
6. I have not tested the setup for water leaks yet. I do not have a camera to post pictures. Sorry!

Edit - In order to make the installation (with long clip) easier I shaved off a bit of plastic in the area where the clip shoulder protrudes. I then pushed the clip and plug against a hard surface to force them in. I have tried removing the clip/plug halfway through insertion and had no problem doing so by wiggling the clip back and forth. This may or may not work once fully inserted.

Anyone else get their's yet? How hard was it to install?

Cheers.

 

[tkl]

Re: Surefire E*e \'rubber bumper\' (washer alternative)

thanks for posting, i got mine last week and forgot to post about it.

i have the long clip and stopped trying to force it in place. like you said, it's a real *****!

screw it, if i'm caught in the rain i'll just have to clean out my E2E when i get home.

i hope sf got their **** together on the A2 with this problem. if i get my exspensive A2 and the o-ring squishes out i'm gonna be

 

[this_is_nascar]

Re: Surefire E*e \'rubber bumper\' (washer alternative)

It's for this whole waterproofing, nylon-ring, channel insert stuff that I've decided to go with the E2 body with the E2E bezel. It seems much better in the hand without the clip and I can't see anyplace that water should get in this configuration.

 

[Klaus]

Re: Surefire E*e \'rubber bumper\' (washer alternative)

For me too the plastic insert was a royal PITA to install with the long clip - but I brought it to its right place with brute force

Klaus

 

[monanza]

Re: Surefire E*e \'rubber bumper\' (washer alternative)

The o-ring squeeze problem may well have been an oversight in the design and test of the E*e. Nevertheless for the units suffering from this ailment and already on the market it is a good solution and an indication of SF's desire to continually improve its products. Hopefully upcoming E*e revisions will have a different seal design.

I also neglected to mention that in order to make the installation (with long clip) a bit easier I shaved off a bit of plastic in the area where the clip shoulder protrudes. I then pushed the clip and plug against a hard surface to force them in. I have tried removing the clip/plug when it was partially in and had no problem doing so by wiggling it back and forth. This may not work once fully inserted.

Cheers.

 

[ToddM]

Re: Surefire E*e \'rubber bumper\' (washer alternative)

Yeah still waiting for mine as well. I'm sure it has to be a bear to install so it stays in. I don't like the idea that it eliminates the feature of clipless carry though. However if it makes the light water resistant again I'll deal.

I still feel the washer and this "plug" are just a cheap bandaid for a design defect. Then again I shudder to think how long it would take surefire to replace hundreds if not thousands of E2e bodies.

Reminds me of a problem rock shox had with some mountain bike suspension forks. They had a pressed in steerer (the part that goes to the frame headtube) and well they were coming loose causing loss of steering and general fork disconnection while riding. Their "fix" was to provide a hard rubber cork like plug that was pounded into the press fit part of the steerer hoping to tighten the fit. After seeing that I decided I wouldn't ride a rock shox product anytime soon.

 

[DonL]

Re: Surefire E*e \'rubber bumper\' (washer alternative)

Originally posted by this_is_nascar:
It's for this whole waterproofing, nylon-ring, channel insert stuff that I've decided to go with the E2 body with the E2E bezel.

<font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial">That's the route I ended up taking as well, simply by swapping the bezel from my E1e onto my E2. Looks like the KL-1 would take care of things just as easily.