Defective D20?

I just received my new D20 today. I've never owned a light with the Smart PD before. However, I am afraid something might be amiss with the light.

Just FYI, I am running it on fresh eneloops.

The instant switching is no problem. However sometimes when I press and hold to ramp up or down the brightness, the light flickers sometimes turning off and coming back on at a diferent brightness level.

When I twist the head for momentary mode I run into similar issues, obviously without the ramping, just flickering off momentarily then coming back at a different brightness.

I am no expert but it seems like it is not making good contact. Is there something simple I can do or do I need to send it back.

Thanks

I think the most common cause of flickering is dirty contacts. :shrug:

Have you tried disassembling the light and cleaning all of the contact points with something like Deoxit?

My NiteCore D10 did the flickering thing as well when I first got it. After disassembling, cleaning, re-lubing and reassembling the light, it has worked flawlessly so hopefully it is just an issue with dirty contacts.

Well, I don't have any Deoxit. I used some alcohol. It seems better but still not 100%. Basically I wiped the positive center and negative ring in the head. is there any place else I should be hitting?

See if you can clean out the spring contact in the piston as well.

Deoxit is great for cleaning contacts, if you can get some. Most electronics stores should carry it, and it's available in spray form, pen form, wipes, liquid, etc. I usually start with Deoxit Red, then follow up with Deoxit Gold. Alcohol should probably work fine but I am not sure how well alcohol compares to a purpose-formulated contact cleaner like Deoxit. :shrug:

Will do, thanks for the advice. it still is a bit disappointing to open a brand new box and have to clean the contacts. :candle:

One2gofst said:

Will do, thanks for the advice. it still is a bit disappointing to open a brand new box and have to clean the contacts. :candle:

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You have to with any light from any brand at any price.

Marduke said:

You have to with any light from any brand at any price.

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I respectfully disagree. Did not have to do that with my Surefire.

ltiu said:

I respectfully disagree. Did not have to do that with my Surefire.

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Good for you, but your exception is not the rule. Still holds true for all lights.

Marduke said:

Good for you, but your exception is not the rule. Still holds true for all lights.

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Also disagree. I haven't had to do that with ANY Surefire I've owned.

To add to that, I also haven't had to do it with any Nitecore or Fenix I've owned either.

With the single exception of the D10. Although my D10 did work fine out of the box without the need for contact cleaner, I did wipe off the thick *** lube they put on it just for sake of better piston operation.

There is a big difference between "not having needed to" and recommended preventative maintainence. Most lights will work fine with little or no attention, and most do. But CPF is a demanding crowd, and as such using detoxit or at the very least an alcohol swab is the absolute first thing you should do for any new light to ensure the best performance.

Removing every possible bit of dirt helps to decrease resistance and wear, and increase brightness, efficiency and longevity.

I've used "SNAP" lube. it's a combination of acetone and silicone lubricant.
I think that the acetone is extremely good at dissolving grime.. (then again, it's also good at dissolving plastic..)