I'm wondering if anyone has tried using MEK (methyl ethyl ketone) to assisst in the removal of heatsinks, light engines that have been epoxied in? I'm aware that many use boiling but this doesn't seem to have much effect on the Fenix heatsink. What about Acetone?
MEK to remove epoxied heatsink from fenix?
- Thread starter xochi
- Start date
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MEK is pretty aggressive. It's one thing to use it for wiping down equipment, cleaning the counter, etc, but are you talking about soaking something in it? I don't think I'd use it on a flashlight, and would be concerned that anything not metal(like LEDs, wire jackets, circuit boards) might suffer damage from too much contact.
goldserve
Flashlight Enthusiast
Looks like you wanna get that thing out badly! I'm never giving up my V2.0 Fenix!!! muhahaha
You know, now that I think about it, IIRC it may have come in metal containers but we used it in plastic squeeze bottles which it never seemed to hurt.xochi said:
We used it for cleaning lab equipment, and on test panels of powder coat paint to check solvent resistance by scrubbing with a MEK-soaked rag.
It may indeed help with epoxy, but I don't see it penetrating very far on it's own, which is why I envisioned you soaking something in it.
In other words I have no idea whether it will help or not
Robocop
Moderator, *Mammoth Killer*
Ok this may not work for all Fenix lights but it did for me. I just got my LIP and even though I really like it the modder inside of me wanted to swap the emitter for a better tinted one.
After heat had no effect and brute force seemed to leave me cursing and bleeding from my knuckles I almost gave up. I remembered a trick from when I opened up my ARCs and it also worked on the Fenix.......Instead of loosening the heat sink I tried to twist it as if trying to tighten it. This broke free the seal ever so slightly and allowed me a little room to move the threads back and forth a little. After several minutes it was loose enough for a complete revolution however always seemed to get stuck after one turn trying to back it out of the bezel.
The only danger with this is that I can see how it may damage the emitter if you try too hard to tighten it....it only takes a very small amount of movement to free the siezed heatsink and even less to crush an emitter base so be careful.
After realizing the sink was getting harder to turn the farther I backed it out I thought it may have been cross threaded from the factory. I wrapped the body with a cloth and every few turns I had to squeeze the body just below the level of the heatsink in a circular motion following all the way around the bezel. It seems weird but this seemed to loosen the sink ever so slightly and allowed me to slowly back out the sink. I did not hold the body with the pliars and only used them to squeeze the sink from the outside every few turns. I was able to hold it tightly in my hands for the turning and with a little grip and leverage it moved ever so slightly each cycle.
Just imagine twisting the pliars until it will not turn anymore....then wrap the head and squeeze hard as if trying to re-mold the shape of the body. After this it would allow about 1/4th of a turn then had to be squeezed again. It took about 20 times of doing this and with each turn it came out a little further. It is important to keep the jaws of the pliars at the same level of the bottom of the sink in order to not crush the body. After about an hour it was out and once it was out it now goes in and out easily and allows me easy access to future modding.
For pliars I used some smaller needle nose pliars that I had filed the ends down a little.It just fit inside however this is not something I would ever attempt again....it was just too much trouble and I know see why Warren had to cancel his modded lights for sale....This new version is just too hard to mod in any group offering.
A little strange but I did not really notice any epoxy inside mine and still can not figure out why these are so hard to open. Anyway the deed is done and I now plan to experiment a little....good luck.
After heat had no effect and brute force seemed to leave me cursing and bleeding from my knuckles I almost gave up. I remembered a trick from when I opened up my ARCs and it also worked on the Fenix.......Instead of loosening the heat sink I tried to twist it as if trying to tighten it. This broke free the seal ever so slightly and allowed me a little room to move the threads back and forth a little. After several minutes it was loose enough for a complete revolution however always seemed to get stuck after one turn trying to back it out of the bezel.
The only danger with this is that I can see how it may damage the emitter if you try too hard to tighten it....it only takes a very small amount of movement to free the siezed heatsink and even less to crush an emitter base so be careful.
After realizing the sink was getting harder to turn the farther I backed it out I thought it may have been cross threaded from the factory. I wrapped the body with a cloth and every few turns I had to squeeze the body just below the level of the heatsink in a circular motion following all the way around the bezel. It seems weird but this seemed to loosen the sink ever so slightly and allowed me to slowly back out the sink. I did not hold the body with the pliars and only used them to squeeze the sink from the outside every few turns. I was able to hold it tightly in my hands for the turning and with a little grip and leverage it moved ever so slightly each cycle.
Just imagine twisting the pliars until it will not turn anymore....then wrap the head and squeeze hard as if trying to re-mold the shape of the body. After this it would allow about 1/4th of a turn then had to be squeezed again. It took about 20 times of doing this and with each turn it came out a little further. It is important to keep the jaws of the pliars at the same level of the bottom of the sink in order to not crush the body. After about an hour it was out and once it was out it now goes in and out easily and allows me easy access to future modding.
For pliars I used some smaller needle nose pliars that I had filed the ends down a little.It just fit inside however this is not something I would ever attempt again....it was just too much trouble and I know see why Warren had to cancel his modded lights for sale....This new version is just too hard to mod in any group offering.
A little strange but I did not really notice any epoxy inside mine and still can not figure out why these are so hard to open. Anyway the deed is done and I now plan to experiment a little....good luck.
Christoph
Flashlight Enthusiast
Robo that is exalty how it went for me back and forth the locktite is only in the top thread or so as I went back and forth I picked the locktight out of the threads. then it turned out easy the rest of the way.
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