Custom A8 copy fail.

Flashlight Modding and DIY Parts
1

If Old-Lumens can show us his duds well here's one almighty dud.

Two days work sitting here. Yes it was finished, polished up, ready to take pictures before final assembly and on unscrewing the tailcap the threads picked up.

That aint moving. It is as good as welded together.

With Match's words of wisdom ringing in my ears and a slight headache from to many drowning my sorrows beverages the battery tube has been saved but the tailcap is heading towards the recyclers.

There was no way this thing was coming apart. I will start a new thread on the finished light.

2

Heat it, then while still warm dunk the male thread end in ice water(or use dry ice and gloves). Temp differential might free the threads.

3

This is very good advice, I have gotten many things apart with boiling water and dry ice.

4

Thanks guys but it has seriously picked up metal on metal and the worst thing about it I know why and did not do anything about it. This was going to be a 26650 P60 reflector flashlight hence the funny lookin pill driven by the IOS 4 amp driver. I machined the pill so that I could use any P60 reflector as in previous lights I have machined the reflector to suit the application. I've had time to sit back and think about it and I will try and machine the tailcap of. This thing has more threads in it than this forum has and was pretty gutted when it happened. Cheers.

5

Sorry to hear about the seizure. That looks like a real sweet light. I have no machining experience yet. How does something thread together fine then seize tight halfway through unscrewing?

6

Galling. Aluminum in notorious for it. Any slight speck of swarf, burrs, or too tight of a thread can cause it, followed by a lot of swearing.

Damn, MRsDNF....that's one heck of a sweet host you made. I think it can be saved though

7

3 things will get that apart

1 Vise Clamp
2 WD40 ( soak the threads for 15 min
3 You dont really need 1 or 2 unless you want to save whatever it is your about to decapitate
Belt wrench - And make sure the host is good and tight with something soft in between the host and clamp

8

I did that to a tractor supply tail cap. Had a tiny bit of sand in them after blasting.

the walls weren’t think enough to put much pressure on body or cap w/o bending them. I thought it’d never come off.

A squirt of SeaFoam Deep Creep and it unscrewed by hand (though the threads were trashed and I threw it out anyway…).