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Skilhunt E3A went poof (self.flashlight)

submitted 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago) by solrize to c/flashlight

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I took it out of my pocket and tried to turn it on, hmm, twist switch was rather tight. Tightened it down or maybe it was already down. It didn't turn on but I figured I maybe had left it on all night by accident and drained the battery. Started to remove the head and heard a popping sound. Battery (alkaleak but fairly new) had some kind of black stuff on the casing near the negative terminal, no other obvious damage to the light or battery. I put in a new battery => won't turn on. So I guess the circuit is blown.

I like the light and they are affordable so I guess I'll get another, but it seems like a shame that I don't see much of a way to repair it or scrounge usable parts from it. I will try to remove the circuit board when I get a chance. Not now though.

Oh well. Bring a spare.

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[–] SammysHP 2 points 1 month ago (3 children)

… alkaleak but fairly new …

Spot the mistake.

So I guess the circuit is blown

Unlikely. How could it blow just because the battery runs out of power? It's a long way from the negative terminal to the driver. The negative spring is probably corroded. Clean it and check continuity with the body with a multimeter.

[–] solrize 1 points 1 month ago* (last edited 1 month ago)

Hmm good point, I'll check the spring. Though the negative battery terminal had no crap on it. The tight head and popping sound made me think the battery had vented some gas from a short. (Added: there may have also been a spark when oxygen got in). But I'll check further. Thanks.

[–] solrize 1 points 1 month ago

I got around to looking and there did seem to be a little bit of crap on the spring. I sprayed contact cleaner on it and rubbed it a bit with the battery terminal, no change. I'll mess with it some more when I get a chance. Probably not tomorrow since it's a big US holiday and we'll have visitors and stuff.

[–] solrize 1 points 3 weeks ago

I just got around to cleaning the spring and body with a Q-tip and white vinegar. When I put in a battery and tighten down the head, the LED pulses momentarily and stays off until I disconnect the head and let it sit for some moments. Loose inductor on PCB or something? I'll try a multimeter check but I don't have much other tools or equipment here, and there are still a lot of distractions. I've been EDC'ing my SP10 Pro and that has been working out ok.