Help. Surefire tail-cap problem?

J

jeffdk06

Joined
Dec 22, 2006
Messages
1,156
Hey Y'all,
I'm the proud owner of a Surefire G2, but after over a year of owning it I'm having some problems with (I think) the tail cap. Here's whats happening: most of the time, when I go to turn it on, I have to press the tail-cap 2-4 times before the light will actually turn on, turning it for constant on does the same thing. The first time you press it does nothing, first time you twist it does nothing, you press/twist again a time or two and it comes on fine. The tail-cap also "rattles" if you shake it when removed from the flashlight. Anyone have any ideas as to what the problem is? and if it's fixable? This is my only high end flashlight, and I love it, but this problem is quite annoying. Thanks in advance,
Jeff W. :confused:
 
check the contacts on both ends. one may be loose, broken, or need a light cleaning.


and have you tried fresh batteries?
 
That was fast.
Contacts seem to be fine, like I said when you shake the tail cap it "rattles" and the inside piece wiggles.
I ended up buying RCR123 batteries because the price of normal CR123's were killing me, and the batteries are fine. Full charge, low charge, anywhere in between, the light still does this. It did it with CR123's as well.
Jeff
 
mine rattles and wiggles too. it isn't glued in, only held in place with a rubber washer/bushing.

look at the contact. the spring should coil so it creates a flat portion which makes even contact with the battery.
 
I ask this question because I've heard of problems where the light draws too much power when you turn it on causing the protection on cells, namely rechargeables, to trip and cut power, so you have to double tap to turn it on. An incandescent light draws more power to turn on than to stay on, so this can happen.

I have had Surefires for years and never experienced the problem you are experiencing; I only use Surefire batteries.
 
Thanks guys,
I would use Surefire batteries if I could afford them, but since I EDC my light and use it an awful lot around the farm as well as when I go places, I go through them too quick. So doing a double tap is just the price of having rechargeable cells I guess. Thanks for all the help.
Jeff


P.S. Morimotem: I can't agree more, Carrot has helped me with light issues before and is most helpful.
 
I have since switched my Surefire C2 to a P60L LED drop-in from Surefire. Runtime is greatly increased and it is noticeably (but not a whole lot) brighter too. It is worth it if you use your lights a lot like I do. It will take up to 9v so rechargeables would work fine. Downside is that the beam is a little bluish, makes natural things look a little unnatural but it should never burn out. A bit pricey but I really like it.

Some other companies offer P60 LED replacements but most of them are brighter and run for shorter periods of time. I like what Surefire did, making the light run for a lot longer. I'm not sure about their claim of 12 hours but I am certain I get at least 1/3 that at full brightness.

An option that you might find works better is a single Li-ion cell that is twice the length of a CR123, I think they are called 17650's, and in conjunction with a 3.7v bulb (available from LumensFactory via Lighthound.com) you will get the same brightness and should not have to do the double tap. You would not be able to use normal CR123's in this setup unless you swapped the 6.0v P60 bulb back in.

Lighthound.com would be able to assist you on questions re: alternative rechargeable setups.
 
Hello,
You may be damaging Your bulb in the process? The G2 runs on the P60 lamp I believe, which is 6V. Lithium-Ion RCR123's after charge usually kick out 4.00 - 4.2V off the charger compared to 3.0V for the standard 123's. Also, did You buy "protected" RCR123's & a smart charger? there is always a chance for "vent with flame" failure(batteries start to burn) if they over charge with something other than a smart charger. Also, make sure to recharge unprotected cells when the light starts to dim, don't let them go dead, and also monitor the batteries while charging (if your not using a smart charger) to make sure they aren't over heating.
 
I assumed he was running a 9V bulb because the P90+RCR's is usually what causes the protection circuit to kick in and require a double-tap.
 
Um, guys, P60 is rated for 6-9V. Right?
My batteries come off the charger with a max of 3.8V, usually closer to 3.6-3.7V
Carrot, I'm looking into buying a P60L once this lamp eventually burns out. I was kinda worried about their "12 hours" being something like 5 or less lumens the last six hours, and only 50-60 for about an hour according to a chart I saw. But you're the third person I've heard of getting 3-4 hours at full output.
Jeff
 
P60 is rated for 6v. P90 is rated for 9v.
P60L LED is rated for 6-9v but will give usable light below 6v.
 
jeffdk06 said:
It did it with CR123's as well.
Click to expand...
Then you have a contact issue. A single "dead" CR123 will light up a P60 by itself, it just won't be very bright--anything it doesn't light up will be a contact problem.

If you want to make sure the problem is the tailcap, take it off, and make contact between the insert in the body and the negative of the batteries(edit: you can use a multimeter set to read amperage, or just a paper clip, knife blade, etc). If it lights up on the first try every time, the tailcap is the problem.
Usually not a problem with the P60, but sometimes with off-brand lamp assemblies, you need to "seat" the LA by pressing it into the head firmly to make sure it is making contact consistently. This is unique to the G2 due to its construction. I've had some LAs that did something kind of like what you are talking about intermittently because the lamps ground spring wasn't making contact. Sometimes the lamp wouldn't work at all, sometimes after a few tries, sometimes it would be dim. These LAs had ground springs that were too wide and had to be mashed into place. A P60 shouldn't have that problem, but it's worth a look if you can't find anything else to blame this on. If the ground spring is too short, it could allow the batteries to push the lamp forward so that the lamp isn't grounding properly. G2s don't have much extra room in the head, and I've never seen anything like this with a factory SF lamp, or in a head that wasn't shock isolated, but anything is possible. Another thing you could try is removing the head, and pressing the switch while holding the lamp in place. If it works fine while you're holding it, but not with the head installed, then the problem may indeed be with the lamp, or the sleeve that it makes contact with may be short. All of these things are unlikely, just brainstorming...

Some things don't make sense here.
Strange stuff about a P60 and R123s. It shouldn't survive that. Should pop quickly if not instantly.
Your R123s should be coming off the charger at 4.2V if they're rated 3.7V. They shouldn't read 3.8V until they're about dead.
If they're 3V Li-ions, I can understand the voltage being lower, but they should still be killing that P60.
 
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Your tail cap is normal for a G2----Surefire has known issues with the "clickie" tailcaps---but the G2 doesn't have that--unless they have upgraded to a clickie recently.
 
jeffdk06 said:
Um, guys, P60 is rated for 6-9V. Right?
My batteries come off the charger with a max of 3.8V, usually closer to 3.6-3.7V
Carrot, I'm looking into buying a P60L once this lamp eventually burns out. I was kinda worried about their "12 hours" being something like 5 or less lumens the last six hours, and only 50-60 for about an hour according to a chart I saw. But you're the third person I've heard of getting 3-4 hours at full output.
Jeff
Click to expand...

The P60 bulb will blow immediately if you stick it in a 9P. This happened to me by accident.
 
{Provide you have a clicky tail cap}

If the "short" method described above by owen indicates it is indeed the clicky, call surefire they may just send you a new tail cap. I had problems and they just sent me a new one.
 
Ditto sounds like a warranty issue to me

I have a 6p . I use rechargeables in mine without problem.

I quickly changed bulb to a led there are many options ranging from 9 USD to 65 - makes an enormouse difference in light and battery life as they ar e just much more effeceint, robust and longer lasting. Only downside is that they are often a cooler light. Incandescent globes are clearly a superseded technology for handlights now

There are also a number of ater market tailcaps

This forum provides a list of dropins and comments from people who are as obsessive about lights as some people are about knives!

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?t=193992

I have several of the dealextreme.com ones which have worked very well so far - you can even get multi mode ones - so you can adjust power levels when wanted
 
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