Surefire L6 Problem - help!

I think I already probably know the answer to this - send it back to SureFire - but since there are so many really clever folks here, and since this is my favorite light and the thought of parting with it for a while fills me with great sadness, I have to ask...

I have this SureFire L6. It's a great light - but - if I unscrew the switch and screw it back on, like when I change the batteries, the light frequently won't turn on unless I unscrew the switch a small amount. (But not too much - that locks it out altogether.) Sometimes it works fine, no matter how tightly it's turned, but frequently it has this problem. When it does this, if I shake the light, it'll turn on and off. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/icon15.gif

So I called SF a while back, and they sent me a new Z58 clickie switch - no questions asked. (Well, OK a couple of questions asked - my address, for one thing.) Anyway, I got the switch today, I tried the new switch, and it's actually worse than the original one.

So I called SF again, and they said "wow, sounds like it's the LED head, send back the light"

Oh no!

Aside from not wanting to part with the light, the LED in this one is really, really good. It is the purest, whitest LED I have. So I think the odds are that I'm gonna get a worse one in trade - what are the chances of winning the lottery twice in a row? (No diss to SureFire here - they've been really nice on the phone, and the state of the art of Lux V LEDs is what it is - they vary.) So before I do this, anyone have any ideas for something I could try myself?

If the right answer is just to send it back - I will - but I'll definitely /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mecry.gif.

The fellow on the phone did suggest I write a letter explaining the problems and my concern about getting an equally nice LED. Anybody think this will actually help?

I know it's silly to be so worried over a flashlight - but this one is GREAT! Any ideas about how to fix this myself will be really appreciated. Thanks for listening - if nothing else I feel better having a shoulder to cry on.

P.S. Yes, I really am a whiney cry-baby about this light! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mecry.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mecry.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/mecry.gif

P.P.S. Is this a valid excuse to buy another flashlight - what will I use while this one is being repaired!?! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/tongue.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/santa.gif

you need to isolate the problem. first bypass the clicky by taking tailcap off and shorting from batt to bare rim of batt tube.

if light makes contact and light up each and every time. then th KL6 head is not your problem. problem is tailswitch not making contact.

Thanks. Maybe that's the problem. This is switch #2, and it doesn't work right either. The batteries seem to rest between two sets of springs, two on the LED head, and one on the tail switch. I can short the battery directly to the body of the light, and it comes on - but I think I probably put a lot more force on it than the tail switch does, so if the springs on the head were out of spec, I might be compensating for that?

Yes, it is a valid excuse - get one rushed to you ASAP! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

It might be worth writing a letter to them to explain to the repair shop not to replace the LED.

OH yes... do that. Send them a letter.. What I do is use a permanent marker to write my name on the inside of the head. ( right next to the contact to the battery)

-tom

MrBenchmark,

One way to be sure you get your light repaired instead of replaced would be to have CM fix your light. He isn't very active on CPF lately, but he is one the electronic gurus of CPF. He can fix it!!!

My L6 had this exact problem! I've been waiting to see if somebody else had it. It is the springs, mine was the center spring on the head. It only needed a tweak to get it to consistently center itself on the + terminal. The larger spring on the head makes contact with a milled ledge inside the barrel. That one won't give you problems.

The first time it happened (during a battery change) I was bummed. I smacked the head lightly into my palm and it flicked on, did it again and it flicked off again. Opened it up and saw what was wrong.......spring off-center and able to bounce against the battery terminal.

It's a really easy fix. Just adjust it so it looks centered with the head on and looking down the barrel.

Hope this helps.

EDIT to add: Mine is the whitest, prettiest LED beam I've ever seen. I live 20 minutes from SF and there is no way they're getting it back unless it self-destructs!

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/happy14.gif

Hey JB, you the man! That was precisely the problem with mine! I adjusted the center spring on the LED head a little bit with a small pair of pliers, and so far it seems to work rather well know. I'm keeping my fingers crossed!

Thanks a bunch for the tip - I really didn't want to send this one back. I agree with you about this light. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif