cjs4760
Newly Enlightened
So, this was a Christmas gift to my Dad a year ago. I'm not exactly clear on what happened; it had - probably multiple times - fallen out of his shirt pocket onto concrete when he bent over. I also have a feeling he put batteries in backwards at one point...
Now, you can see there is corrosion all along the inside of the battery tube - from tail to head. Also, one of the reverse polarity protectors is missing.
My Dad is 84 and I love him dearly, but I wonder if this flashlight is now not SAFE. He lives cross-country, and shipped this to me. It actually still works - with fresh batteries installed correctly
So, what actually happens if 2 AAs are inserted backwards - and the protection is missing? Is it harmful to the driver, or to the batteries (i.e. why there's substantial corrosion) or both? I'm wondering if multiple drops caused the rev.pol. piece to fall out, then subsequently he put batteries in backwards...
I can clean this up, but not sure I can replace the rev.pol. piece. Are they part of a circuit, or just a physical barrier?
Thanks for any suggestions.
-Chris