instead of ordering superlube (50$ shipping costs amazon acehardware) i will consider visiting the local hardware store and ask for advice (especially for bare aluminum on bare aluminum, and o-ring compatibility). if they have stuff which is cheaper than superlube, then i'll buy it.
basically i regret having applied silicone grease on my lights. on the Xeno, fine, who cares. there is no twisting UI. but on the Romisen (twisting zoom action) it's squeaking now. and on the Quark it was a total catastrophe (and where was MixoMaxo to hold me in the arms. baby me crying haha).
Silicone grease is good for sealing a cap (which you never want to twist again).
Silicone grease is not good on o-rings for twisting action/UI's.
Silicone grease is not good on non-anodized threads.
Silicone grease is not good on anodized threads.
These are 4 simple statements, and they are not exaggerated. And they all originate from the high friction causing stickiness of the silicone stuff as opposed to the slipperiness of soap water or oil films or frozen ice.
I, like others advised you about nextorch grease, now the only thing that come in my mind to make you stop crying about stupid lubes is give you a better new reason like crush your squirrel's nuts xD
it is still out of stock. for months actually. ive just talked to james on the DX chat. and for people interested in the silicone oil, better ask James if it is IN STOCK before you place the order.
it is a little diffcult to get a partial refund on unshipped items (=canceled items). try to avoid asking for partial refunds, if you can avoid it.
Me too. Had it for years and use it on everything. Doesn’t eat any O-rings that I know of. Easy to find. I got mine at a gunshop but prob find at hardware store.
I seem to be the only one who thinks the "stickiness" or "thickness" is actually a pro and not a con. The light scuba silicone grease I use will stay were it belongs..... on the threads. I used various lighter mineral lubes and nyogel before and hated it. They went everywhere... battery, tailcap and my clothes... they were too thin... so I actually prefer thicker lubes because it makes fiddling around with not so well cut threads so much easier. Also silicone lube is non-toxic. I use it on everything twisties, clickies, anodized, non-anodized ... no problem at all. The slightly higher resistance is a non-issue for me. Although, I noticed that my light scuba grease is not as solid as the nextorch stuff, it moves at very slow speeds when I move the jar.
if we all lived in the States we would probably use exclusively the Superlube stuff. 3$ for a litttle tube (1/2 oz), 5$ for a large tube (3 oz) and available from many vendors (incl free conus). the generic term for super lube is either < teflon grease > or < teflon oil >. Those lubricants are popular among cyclists (where are our cyclists@BLF when we need'em in the discussion?) and gun hobbyists, and any gun shop and bicycle shop would offer teflon-based lubes (also < teflon spray >).
Superlube seems special in many ways: The entire company is specialized on selling it (Synco Lube), the stuff is patented, and more sophisticated than the generic teflon lubes. And last but not least, it's cheaper than the competition.
Ebay asks 8-10$ for global shipping of a mini tube of 3$ Superlube (no thx!), so i am checking now a few other sensible sources..
Vectrex your stuff seems to be much better than the stiff sticky Nextorch ***p. Am just thinking that any teflon based lube must be way superior on the threads (if one wants soft and easy twisting action).
@ Vectrex: I think one of the problems can be quality. There seems to be more slop in budget lights' threads, requiring more lube, attracting more grit or leaving more lube behind.
You are likely using higher-quality torches with the thicker lube, as well as with diving lights - the thicker stuff being extra insurance against water intrusion.
I generally use the thicker stuff in joints that are less frequently used, along with those using metal/plastic threads. (e.g. Jetbeam PA40, Fenix LD40)
I like the thinner stuff (RemOil, et.al) on tailcaps, since they are more frequently removed for battery installation, and are more often wiped down (and re-lubed)
I had the silicone jelly on a Fenix L1P and a Quark at one point. The Fenix particularly didn’t like it because of its fine threads.
My silicone jelly came from a plumbing dept, so there may be thinner versions. It might work good on lights with sloppy threads.