How far do you turn your bezel?

Hi all,

Okay, according to my profile I'm still a newbie, so I guess that means I'm entitled to ask questions like this.

Many of my flashlights are turned on and off by twisting the bezel. I think I read somewhere that you should turn the bezel 180° to turn off a light. Why? It's much more convenient for me to just twist the bezel only slightly beyond the position where the light goes out. Most of my lights have a significant amount of friction in the head so that they are not likely to turn themselves on if brushed or knocked around. Is there some chance that the battery could drain if the switch is very close to being on?

Please tell me, how far you turn your bezel and why.

Thanks,
Ken

Welcome to CPF Ken.

I guess it would help us to know which flashlights you are referring to.

Thanks

Al

Hello Ken,

As Al says, Welcome to CPF.

I believe the major concern is to insure that the light will not come on while you are carrying it.

Another consideration is that there is an electrical path through the threads. By turning 180 degrees, you clean that path a little each time you turn it on. A good connection means a brighter light.

Tom

I keep my pt-40's bezel so that I only have to turn it about half an inch or so to turn it off or on. It's easier this way to operate this light because as you said, there's a lot of friction. As for the bezel being so close to the ON point, I don't think this has any effect on draining the batteries, so long as it doesn't turn on. I haven't notice any unusual drops in battery voltage.

i turn my PT40 off with a quarter-inch turn so i can use it with one hand..

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Size15s said:

I guess it would help us to know which flashlights you are referring to.

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Why would the particular type of flashlight matter? Well, okay, here goes: The lights that I own that twist to turn on are PT Rage, PT Blast, CMG Infinity Ultra, Dorcy AAA (tailcap turns), Mag 2A and Mag solitaire (purchased these before I knew which way was up).

Thanks again,
Ken

Surprisingly my PT40 turned on by itself TWICE. One time it was just on my table (wet->dry) and the 2nd time in my backpack (warm->cold !).

With the PT40 and similar lights it's possible to turn it on by pressing on the bezel if it's only turned slightly past off. This means there is a chance it will turn on in a pocket or pack, and as the post above suggests (although I imagine it would have to be real close to on) by thermal or pressure changes.

I usually give mine a good half turn or more past off.

If I'm using it and want intermittant operation, like a light with a tail push button switch, I will turn it to "almost on" and press on the bezel when needed. If you experiment a bit with your grip, you can make a PT20 or PT40 operate a lot like a PM6 or similar light with a tail button.

Aloha, iG