Kitchen Panda
Enlightened
My much-used daily companion, the Fenix LD02, has developed a fault - it will no longer go to high mode. If I bypass the switch by screwing the head onto ar twisty body, all three modes work - but I really like the rear click switch. It's out of warranty, bought it in 2016. I've always used Energizer L92 or Enelooops in this light, so it's never had a leaky cell in it.
I can't see how the switch is assembled into the body, there's no visible screw holes or pin holes. While trying to remove the rubber cap, I tore it completely off - and still didn't get any idea of how to remove the switch.
I've seen variable reviews of Fenix factory service running from "Oh, sure, they'll fix it in a couple of weeks for postage and the cost of a switch" up to 4-month epics of shipment to China.
It'd cost me $7 or $8 to mail it to a US service facility - I doubt they fix anything in Canada.
Is it worth considering Fexix factory service?
Is there a tear-down video out there? If I could get at the switch to body interface, I could probably clean the crud out of it.
I don't think I'm extremely hard on my pocket flashlights and yet I don't get much life span out of them. The Iluminati CA1s I had a few years back only lasted a year or so, and the NextTorch keychain light fell apart after 18 months. The Fenix UC01 got demoted to a "bag light" because it runs down in my pocket. The Inova AAA got demoted to a "multitool sheath" because of its awkward combination twisty/momentary button user interface.
That's a lot of money spent on bitty lights in not many years - a couple hundred dollars? - and here I am today with no light! Well, I still have a UC02 which survives because it has a twisty interface so it gets used much less than the LD02 did.
Luckily my Quark AA still works great - it's a little big for the pocket but maybe that buys more life span. And I just picked up some 14500 LiIons so it can be as bright as a 2AA.
Maybe I should just buy whatever WalMart has hanging on a pegboard in the 1 x AAA format and throw it away every time the battery runs out - it would probably cost me less per running hour than the small fortune I've paid for more "technical" lights. Walmart has a wall-full of fiercely-named lights which don't cost any more than no-name Ebay items and which are probably as reputable in terms of meting their specs.
Sadly,
Bill
I can't see how the switch is assembled into the body, there's no visible screw holes or pin holes. While trying to remove the rubber cap, I tore it completely off - and still didn't get any idea of how to remove the switch.
I've seen variable reviews of Fenix factory service running from "Oh, sure, they'll fix it in a couple of weeks for postage and the cost of a switch" up to 4-month epics of shipment to China.
It'd cost me $7 or $8 to mail it to a US service facility - I doubt they fix anything in Canada.
Is it worth considering Fexix factory service?
Is there a tear-down video out there? If I could get at the switch to body interface, I could probably clean the crud out of it.
I don't think I'm extremely hard on my pocket flashlights and yet I don't get much life span out of them. The Iluminati CA1s I had a few years back only lasted a year or so, and the NextTorch keychain light fell apart after 18 months. The Fenix UC01 got demoted to a "bag light" because it runs down in my pocket. The Inova AAA got demoted to a "multitool sheath" because of its awkward combination twisty/momentary button user interface.
That's a lot of money spent on bitty lights in not many years - a couple hundred dollars? - and here I am today with no light! Well, I still have a UC02 which survives because it has a twisty interface so it gets used much less than the LD02 did.
Luckily my Quark AA still works great - it's a little big for the pocket but maybe that buys more life span. And I just picked up some 14500 LiIons so it can be as bright as a 2AA.
Maybe I should just buy whatever WalMart has hanging on a pegboard in the 1 x AAA format and throw it away every time the battery runs out - it would probably cost me less per running hour than the small fortune I've paid for more "technical" lights. Walmart has a wall-full of fiercely-named lights which don't cost any more than no-name Ebay items and which are probably as reputable in terms of meting their specs.
Sadly,
Bill