My maglite is dead

[Precision]

I really like the multiple (4 and 5) C- cell maglites. Not that I have ever needed to club someone with one, but the opportunity exists and the D-cells are a bit to large for my not so large hands. I have the LED conversion so the batteries last a while 30+ hours vs 4 hours (with some loss of brightness).

But my 4 cell that lives in my truck ,ATE one of the batteries. By eat, I mean is completely welded in place and will not come out for love, money or with a 3/8" extension bar beating on it or a 1/4" lab bolt screwed into it and levered out. But this is the third time I have lost a c-cell Maglite to a bursted battery. Suggestions to keep the light from eating batteries??? I don't have that problem with the AAA or AA ones.


So now I am on the hunt for a replacement.

C-cells are internet order only. $16 for the flashlight and $10 for shipping. $26 for a flashlight isn't an issue but paying $10 for shipping seems so wasteful. Which has me thinking maybe I should upgrade in quality / lumens and downgrade on size. Between the carry gun, BUG and the carbine a flashlight / club seems redundant. I don't want a flashlight that burns through batteries. 4-5 hours of run time for halogen / krypton - or way more with LED.

Suggestions

[randy]

Suggestions to keep the light from eating batteries???

Do periodic inspections (open the light,dump the batteries and give them a good visual look over). I try to remember to do that every couple of months, especially for the ones I have in areas subject to extreme temp variations (car, garage, etc).

I've had the same thing happen to my D cells (fit my hand easily). If you haven't had it happen to AA or AAA it's just a matter of time. You don't want to think of what I found when I opened a AA battery case for a radio I picked up at a flea market once. Baking soda and stainless steel gun cleaning brushes...

[Darrell]

I think Maglites ain't what they used to be.

[randy]

I think Maglites ain't what they used to be.

What he describes is a battery issue. Nothing to do with the brand of flashlight. I've seen the same thing in a variety of equipment.

[Fivetoes]

I have one of the D cell ones laying around that is plugged with leaking batteries. Switch and lamp housing is ruined any ways. Wish it had the Ever Readies in it so I could send it in for a replacement.

[Dinochrome]

Don't let the flashlight freeze with alkaline batteries. The cells have a welded steel airtight case that will split when frozen and lets out the caustic stuff inside to corrode the aluminum flashlight. I've had it happen to the small radios in my vehicle bug-out bag when left out in a hard freeze.

MagLites aren't the first heavy aluminum flashlights; I've got a two-D-cell HI-LITE by Herrett's Stocks Inc. in Twin Falls, Idaho that I bought back in 1977. Still works great.

[Rich Jordan]

If your batteries are a little sloppy in the tube (my 4D units are) buy a piece of thinwall plastic or ptfe tubing. Wish i could give you a source but the one I got years ago came from a departed friend and I don't know where he got the stuff. It was a little large in diameter but very thin wall. I slit it lengthwise after cutting to length,, removed a lengthwise strip so it would slide into the flashlight barrel without overlapping. It took out most of the side to side slop between the batteries and the barrel.

It won't help with the front battery blowing out its front, but it has saved me some trouble twice when 'less than high quality' batteries blew their side seams after a few months installed (and used regularly)

If you can get some kind of flexible plastic or ptfe sheet stock you could also wrap and tape it around the set of batteries before loading it in the flashlight

[Kommander]

Perhaps you should consider one of the newer high lumen LED "tactical" lights. They are not as good for use as a weapon, but they are much easier to use.

[Darrell]

I think Maglites ain't what they used to be.

What he describes is a battery issue. Nothing to do with the brand of flashlight. I've seen the same thing in a variety of equipment.

I understand. Just sayin'... I've had poor luck with Maglites the last few years.

[Precision]

That plastic sheet idea has some very wonderful merit. May have to investigate that concept.