I may have missed it but can’t find a good C8 switch replacement.
I think I damaged 3 switches from FT by just turning it on with 10x AMC7135!
Maybe these are not really capable of handling around 3A?
Please recommend what you use. Link would be great!
Those switches are garbage, and there's no reason a C8 can't be fitted with a 20mm PCB switch like almost everything else.
I have run over 12 amps through one of these and it's done fine. And I use a lot of these (optional pre-mounted on 20mm PCB), the only forward clickie I know how to get hold of relatively easily, though I don't have one being used at extreme currents like the Omten. I have that 20mm mounted version in my C8 and even though it's taller than the original toy switch it still tailstands fine and doesn't interfere with the tailcap to battery tube fit.
Thanks comfychair! I’ll try them.
While we're (sort of) on the subject, why the hell are bare 20mm switch PCBs so hard to find? I managed to get a few from FT but only after they were on backorder for months, and they've been listed as out of stock ever since. IOS has the 17.something size, but not the more common 20mm. Am I really going to have to go slumming at DX or KD to get some?!
You should try the Omten. It is a very reliable switch. The switch in your link is rubbish. I bought a 5 pieces pack from DX and they all expired within one week.
I just finished a batch of assorted 501Bs and 3 had the toy switches with no PCB at all, just the tabs making (or not making) contact against the sides of the tailcap. But one had a real PCB, with a spring soldered on, and a real Omten switch. But the tabs on the switch were bent around under the switch, and sitting unsoldered on the PCB pads, making contact only through the clamping force applied by the retaining ring. Crazy the shortcuts they will take to save half a cent.
I have pumped 15A through those Omten switches. They seem to have very low contact resistance. Not sure how long before the arcing from switch on/off cycles changes that, but so far it is good.
I will be getting a few of those forward clickie switches. I have
e become a major fan of them. I also hear that gords loves them 
I just found out that I got this from FastTech. It’s the same right? Lower price too.
But any info how to use this on the C8? How do you solder the spring?
And just bend one side to make contact to the tail?
@tivo532
you need PCB board to solder them on to, maybe you could pull it off just by bending one tab and soldering the spring on one end but…
btw, I have ordered (on 6/13/2013) couple of those forward clickies from IO but still didn’t get them :~
I use these in many C8's and other lights: fasttech-15a-250v-reverse-clicky-switches-2-pack - never had a problem - basically the same switch in a BTU Shocker. I've used it up to 4.5 amps. The Shocker is 3.6 amps or so stock at 12 volts.
Anybody have a source for the bare switch PCBs?
The photo shows the pins of the switch are very short. It seems it is a surface mount switch. Have you used this switch before? I would like to have your comment on the quality of this switch.
IOS forward clickies are great. They are not surface mount, they have through-pins, but to use the switches on a flat PCB you have to bent the tabs and trim off what hangs over the edge. Their pics in the listing for the bare non-mounted switches shows the pins trimmed off flush, but mine did not come that way, they were full length. So you can use them in a through-hole setup, or bend them under, or bend them outward and trim off the excess.
comfychair/sirius,
Is there a PCB available for this switch from any vendor or you have improvised/created one?
Comfychair,
Thanks for your information. I shoud buy some to test if it is durable.
I have some of these from FT: http://www.fasttech.com/products/1203604 but it has been sold out for months. I got a few forward clickies w/PCB and a bunch of bare switches from IOS, but I'm almost out of the bare PCBs and the mounted switches. I need more!
If you have a light that had a PCB in it to start with it's almost always compatible (or adaptable) with the bare switches, but if it's like your C8...
Is there any good switch that’s already assembled with the PCB so I can just swap them out without any soldering?
http://intl-outdoor.com/forward-clickytactical-switch-module-20mm-pcb-p-736.html
I don't know of a source for the Omten reverse clicky pre-mounted, though I'm sure they do exist somewhere.
2pcs vs 5pcs....
Got some of those from IOS, they hold up fine so far.
You’re right! Thanks.