6P tailcaps and me

mejesster

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So I purchased a Cabela's XPG combo as per the Good Deals section of CPFM and went to turn on the flashlight only to find that the tailcap was defective(thanks to CPFM members for helping me to isolate the problem!). Cabela's sent me a new one immediately, so I've got a functioning light, but I thought to myself "wouldn't it be neat to start building a light out of different parts?" So I go back to the BST and pick up a surefire 6P tailcap. It arrived in the mail today, but there is ZERO action on the button. It appears to be completely stuck in the on position. Screwing it onto either light results in the bulb immediately turning on. So obviously my luck with tailcaps sucks (2/3 defective?!) but I'm wondering if there's anything I can do to fix these. Suggestions?
 

Chrontius

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That's a tough one, and I have no idea (RMA?) but I'll share an anecdote that may make you keep hope. I bought a new without packaging Surefire E2 on Ebay, and when I put in bulb and batteries, I realized the switch - a normal clicky - wasn't latching. There were two little springy things that needed to be bent inward a hair with jewler's screwdrivers. Now it's perfect.

The moral of this story: Surefire makes things that aren't meant to break and be thrown away. If you can't fix it, they'll probably be able to make it better.

Edit: what kind of 6p tailcap is it? Clicky or twisty?

Oh! And welcome to CPF! :welcome:
 
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mhubble

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I had the same problem with a surefire z59 tailcap. I took it apart and cleaned and lubed it and it works fine now. Theres alot of different versions and methods to take apart a surefire tailcap. Check the threads, theres a bunch of them out there with instructions. Worse case call surefire and tell them about it and theyll ship you a new one for free.
 

mejesster

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Well I was expecting it to be a clicky switch. According to the seller, it is in fact meant to be twisty, which it is, but was not specified on the thread! The other problem is since I'm using a *slightly* different host body, it doesn't seem to work for momentary at all. I assumed I had received a defective clicky, which made me pretty upset, but getting a twisty is still unappealing.
 
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Panaphonic

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was it an actual z59 or just a standard momentary tailcap?

sounds like you're screwing a momentary tailcap all the way down for constant on when you're expecting clicky action

edit:
and are you backing the tailcap off?
 
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KeyGrip

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The seller should have specified. They may have thought that it was implied, but it is always good to specify. I'm not sure what to do to make the momentary function work. Perhaps the spring in the tailcap is too short for the XPG body?
 

mejesster

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was it an actual z59 or just a standard momentary tailcap?

sounds like you're screwing a momentary tailcap all the way down for constant on when you're expecting clicky action

edit:
and are you backing the tailcap off?

I don't know what tailcap model I purchased. I could post pics, but there are already some up on the seller's thread here: http://www.cpfmarketplace.com/mp/showthread.php?t=175810
I screw the tailcap all the way on and get light. At this point there is a small gap between tailcap and body, just about 1/8". I back it down to the point where the light turns off and attempt to press, and get nothing. No matter how hard I press, no matter how careful I am about backing it down, no press will get the light to go momentary.
At first I was kind of upset, being pretty new to the light scene, but in the end, I am learning something new about these lights and about how to conduct business on these boards.
 

Bullzeyebill

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The current 6P stock tailswitch is always only a momentary/twisty/lockout switch and the momentary function works reliably with a Surefire C/M series body, except M6 of course. The end of a C/M series body has a precisely cut surface that interfaces perfectly with the momentary button body contact part. An exception is the Surefire Nitralon bodies that do not interface very well with the P6 tailcap momentary function, though a Surefire clicky switch will work ok.

Bill
 

Flash_Gordon

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The standard 6P tailcap is a twisty. An optional tailcap, the Z59 is a clicky.

Your expectation that the 6P tailcap will work perfectly (or at all) on a body other than a Surefire is unrealistic. You are experimenting and may have to mod the tailcap to get it to work. I don't know what the advantage over the the XPG tailcap would be.

Mark
 

mejesster

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The reverse-clicky XPG tailcap was defective. I could jump the battery to the battery tube for light, but with tailcap on, lumens went into hiding. The XPG tube was described as being 6P compatible (which it is, more or less) but experience shows that it doesn't interface precisely with the twisty tailcap. Like I said, a learning experience.
 
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stitch_paradox

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Maybe the reason why your tailcap isn't working is because you are using a different body. Have you tired using the tailcap in a surefire body?
 

Chrontius

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Yeah, Surefire 'compatible' seems to be limited to the P60 lamp module that's slowly becoming standard. Didn't think about that one. If modding is required, I'd sooner mod the Cabelas body than the Surefire tailcap.
 

Illum

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The XPG tube was described as being 6P compatible (which it is, more or less) but experience shows that it doesn't interface precisely with the twisty tailcap. Like I said, a learning experience.

I think the computability exists only in terms of lamp assemblies...at least this was the reason people bought XPG lights, for P60 dropins:ohgeez:
yeah thanks Chrontius :huh:

I don;t think the seller was at fault, no one is. From experience we consider by default 6Ps to use a twisty switch, not a clickie.

I have an XPG...my only grudge is the fact that it doesn't lock out:thumbsdow, if this wasn't the case, then you could supplement it with a stock 6P tailcap
 
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1pt21

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I have both a 6PL and a Cabela's XPG in front of me right now and can confirm that the Surefire tailcap does not work on the XPG.. I think the anodizing goes down too far, or its not threaded enough to make proper contact.

--Paul
 

1pt21

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Forgot to note; the XPG tailcap works on the 6P haha...
 

1pt21

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O RLY?
w00t!

Yup, worked like a charm... And actually looks halfway decent on there too, though I prefer the momentary.

I wonder if the Surefire tailcap would work if you sanded the anodizing off the bottom of the XPG??? I will try tomorrow and let you know.
 

mejesster

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On my XPG, it looks like the problem is that the body extends a little too far before the threading starts. The part where the two o-rings are, the 6P might be shorter.
 

nikon

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I'm glad I found this thread, I'm the seller. I had no idea this tailcap was going to be used on a light other than a Surefire.

I just sanded the anodizing off the rear of an XPG body and the 6P now works in both the full on and momentary on modes. However, once every few presses of momentary the light strobes at a rate of about 4 or 5 times a second. I don't mean it acts like a bad connection, I mean it strobes perfectly even pulses as if it were designed to do so. I had this same thing happen the other day when trying to use a 6P tailcap on a Surefire G2. This will be a fun thing to try to figure out, but not tonight.
 
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