STRIPPED BODY!! Eagletac D25A that is - HELP

My goofball little brother stripped out the threads on his Eagletac. He has already superglued the screws back in for a temporary fix. It's no longer holding at this time. I spoke to the guys at going gear and he said we would have to ship it back to China for warranty repair. Has this happened to anyone else? Do I have any other options?

thanks,
Dan

My ET retailer isn't as finnicky as GG. When i had a warranty case with an ET light, i sent him my light (just the light, no packaging) and he upon receipt sent me a brand new replacement sample from his stock and took care of the warranty case on his own.

So my ET retailer does not let me wait for the shipment to reach China, being repaired there (for how long?), and then shipped back to him and eventually forwarded back to me.

If that's GG's going practice. Then i don't like it.

I'll stick with my ET retailer then.

Stripping out the threads sounds like user abuse... not a manufacturer defect. I'm surprised that's even covered by the warranty.

Screws? Do you mean the threads that were damaged are the screwholes for the pocket clip? If that's the case then maybe just use the light as a pocket light without the clip.

Fireclaw18 said:

Stripping out the threads sounds like user abuse... not a manufacturer defect. I'm surprised that's even covered by the warranty.

Screws? Do you mean the threads that were damaged are the screwholes for the pocket clip? If that's the case then maybe just use the light as a pocket light without the clip.

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Thats kind of what I was thinking too. Perhaps I just baby my lights too much, lol!!

No. It's not a defect. He bent the clip and removed it to Rebend it. I think he stripped if out then. If I could just find a new body that'd be great.

Should be harder to strip out of D25A Titanium lights?

Fireclaw18 said:

Stripping out the threads sounds like user abuse... not a manufacturer defect. I'm surprised that's even covered by the warranty.

Screws? Do you mean the threads that were damaged are the screwholes for the pocket clip? If that's the case then maybe just use the light as a pocket light without the clip.

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I was about to say the same thing. Manufacturers warranties are for defects, not abuse or accidents. If I was a retailer, I also would not take it back. If a retailer is taking things back like that, they are either going above and beyond and eating the loss, or maybe have some agreement with the manufacturer.

get some proper self tapping screws...they do exist ya know.
wayyyyyyyyy cheaper than new body

Streamer said:

get some proper self tapping screws...they do exist ya know.
wayyyyyyyyy cheaper than new body

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Another member has done this already. Only problem is you end up with some big hideous screw heads that look like crap!

Thanks for the tip though.

mikekoz said:

I was about to say the same thing. Manufacturers warranties are for defects, not abuse or accidents. If I was a retailer, I also would not take it back. If a retailer is taking things back like that, they are either going above and beyond and eating the loss, or maybe have some agreement with the manufacturer.

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The staff at Going Gear suggested I send it back for warranty repair. I never said it was manufacturer defect. I'm simply looking for a fix here... Short of buying a new light AND a repair that doesn't look like crap. Any HELPFUL comments would be much appreciated. Thanks.

Yeah, that's the problem with the D25s... gorgeous looking screw down clips, but there's little "spring" in the steel they use and so are easily bent. Then they use a proprietary hex head (1.55mm) and so you have good chance of stripping the screw heads with a typical 1.5mm Allen key in addition to the threads on body (Note: a 1/16 SAE fits perfectly).

I think you could find better (smaller more attractive) screws heads than that used by the guy in the DIY mod section.... alternatively, consider a $1.50 press-on clip from SB Flashlights (for their L10s). Works pretty well on the D25s since they have slightly flared tails.

I agree with reppans. Why not just tap new threads and use new screws?

djans1397 said:

The staff at Going Gear suggested I send it back for warranty repair. I never said it was manufacturer defect. I'm simply looking for a fix here... Short of buying a new light AND a repair that doesn't look like crap. Any HELPFUL comments would be much appreciated. Thanks.

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My point was Going Gear recommended sending it to the manufacturer, which will probably fix it at a cost which would be probably be close to what you paid for it. They would not fix it under warranty like they suggested. I think they gave you bad advice. I think the idea somebody had here about self tapping screws would be great if you can find some that are not too large. I do not own this light, but does Eagletac sell light parts where you can buy just the body tube?

While I do agree this is technically a case of user abuse/error, I have read about too many stripped threads, and screw heads, on the D25s, including the one I recommended to a friend. To me, it kind of points to design problems (inflexible steel clips requiring user intervention, proprietary hex sizes, and thin-walled attachment points). ET doesn't HAVE to repair it under warranty, but as act of goodwill, I think they SHOULD.

In another good example, Foursevens Mini AAs have a very thin split-ring attachment point that tends to break after a couple years of key-chain carry. From the reports I've read, 47s simply mails out a new body if you do break it.

JMHO, it may not be worth the cost or time mailing back to China anyway, but maybe send a kind email to them and they might just mail you a new tailcap piece .

It was interesting to find out that Going Gear want's you to send it back to China for warranty work. They will not be getting any orders from me. The stripped screws were user abuse though.

reppans said:

Then they use a proprietary hex head (1.55mm) and so you have good chance of stripping the screw heads with a typical 1.5mm Allen key in addition to the threads on body (Note: a 1/16 SAE fits perfectly)

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Isn't that a contradiction if a 1/16 SAE fits perfectly?

18650 said:

Isn't that a contradiction if a 1/16 SAE fits perfectly?

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Yeah, guess you're right... just read about too many people that (I assume) reach for the standard 1.5mm metric size for the Asian-manufactured product and then end up with a stripped hex head. Per ET, it is a metric 1.55mm, but 1/16 just happens to be 1.58something mm, so if it fits at all, it's a better match.