Posting here out of desperation, I’ve been trying for half a day to take this flashlight apart, I need to get the chip out and I absolutely cannot turn the aluminium section that holds it in place. It does not move in the slightest, in both directions, not under the most force I could possibly apply. I tried it in the vice, I tried pliers, two screw drivers, I cannot turn this I tired hammering nails into it, I even zip tied pliers together and tried pulling on it with my whole body weight, this does not move.
I then looked up online and found guides such as this Everything I see they just unscrew the “pill” but none mentions of what to do if it is solid and can not be unscrewed.
Any help would be appreciated, what else can I do to get in there? This has to somehow open there because the other side is all milled aluminium, they could not have built this otherwise. I can’t even get to the battery contacts to see this from the other side. Maybe someone here knows what can be done? Thanks
photo because I unfortunately don’t have a brand name or info on this lamp
You should be able to unscrew it with needle point pliers, but yeah, sometimes it can be nearly impossible. With thermal expansion, and/or if it was initial over torqued, it could be very difficult to remove. Who knows, it could have been originally screwed in by the hulk with highly levered pliers.
Since you are having such a struggle with removing the retaining ring, it appears that it is glued in. Perhaps try heating up the head to loosen the adhesion.
Very rarely they make some of these things with reverse threads. Instead of losening it, it gets tighter.
I dont know if this is the case just thought I would throw that out there.
You might drill bigger holes in that piece with the two existing holes or drill thoses out bigger to get a bigger set of needle nose pliers in there.
You might try reverse threading it also.
If I had to do it by any means, first I would try moderator007’s suggestion of checking the reverse thread. If it wasn’t the case, I would spay WD-40 on the sides, avoiding hitting the LED. If still didn’t worked, I would try WD+heat.
Other than that, there’s always destructive methods…
Is that a round wire spring clip in the picture—it appears to fit in a slot with one end partially removed? If so then it might need to be removed first to unlock the threads.
With those shallow tool divots it was likely installed using a thread locking compound. You would need to drill those out a bit deeper to engage a watch spanner tool, then heat it to about 250-300F to liquify the thread lock. i would avoid WD40, it will not help with thread locking compound and might fog up the emitter dome.
[edit] On second look it does appear to be a thread-locking ring clip. Use a spanner to tighten back the ring slightly in the normal RH thread direction in order to open the slot to allow removal of the spring clip (it is pinched right now).
Heat up the side of the head/ host with a heat gun or hair driver, it will have a enormous effect on whether you can loosen the pill out of the this host.
Maybe it’s an idea to try to press the ring clip back into its groove with the tip of an ordinary screwdriver. The threaded retaining ring seems to be blocked by the ring clip which is not properly seated.
Henk may be on to something there, push it back into the slot. One way or the other the ring has to be moved out the pinch point—you won’t turn it like it sits.
If the spring clip is the locking feature, then they may not have used thread compound so no need for heat.
The issue could also be with the tool that onoes331 is using. Some of my Convoy tailcaps have been screwed in so tight that I was convinced that Simon finally decided to thread them the normal way (righty tighty, lefty loosy). But after some serious torque (righty loosy), they would come loose.
I filed down a needle nose pliers that I got from Harbor Freight just for removing and tightening retaining rings. It is very strong and has been able to un-tighten everything so far.
Ok so I’ve got some angled pliers and they fit perfectly, but I still can’t turn it, even with a ~50 cm bar extension as a lever.
I rigged it up with the heat gun and heated it up beyond all sanity with no effect, but I only went at it from the side, I fear I’ll destroy some solder points inside at >250 degrees if I blow the hot air right in.
I unfortunately don’t see this ring you guys are mentioning, in fact I can’t see any movable part. I sprayed some silicone spray (chain lubricant) inside, also with no effect. I don’t have wd40 but I have graphite spray made for locks and such, but I also fear it’ll damage the chip. I ordered a tube cutter so I can cut the whole thing apart next week but I was hoping to fix this light instead of just harvesting parts.
What a shame actually. Here are some photos of my attempts, maybe one of you can make some sense out of this and see something that I missed.
Maybe you can make a tool out of a pipe the diameter of the ring with a protrusion that fits into that slot . Grind down the end leaving the nub. This can be turned with a pipe wrench or large pliers.
Things are buggered up pretty bad where that piece is broken out. How did you break that half moon piece out of there? You’ve got the plier Jaws on the head backwards which leads me to believe you’re trying to tighten it. It’s so buggered I don’t think it’s coming out
You might try the reverse of heat and freeze it. I have had stuff break free with both extremes.
If they used alot of the red loctite you’ll probably destroy it before it turns loose.
I had a SWM V10R in titanium one time that had red loctite between the two head pieces that I had just about given up on getting apart. I finally spent a few hours making some clamps special to fit the two head pieces. I stuck one in my vise and A pipe wrench on the other. I twisted until I was red in the face but it finally broke free. It was still tough to get off until the last few threads. When I was straining my guts out, I kept thinking this thing is going to break in half. I have taken many, many hard to get out bolts off before. The amount of force it was taken me I would have sworn it was going to destroy it. It being a rare and highly sought after light really worried me but I was on a mission. Luckly it came free and I was able to do a led swap and clean all that loctite off.
For the size it appears to be if they really glued it good heating it hot enough to change the color of the anodizing (something lower than the melting point of aluminum) maybe the only way you break it free. Also wondering if you tried reverse threading?
and or freeze the light, then heat the outside, try to unscrew at peak heat
hard because now it is hot - and if you put it in a vise, you might flatten it and make things even worse
unlikely it is reverse threaded though…… [someone else mentioned that]
sometimes they are just glued and will not come out
try drilling the holes deeper. make something very strong to get in there
but then you have to hold it very tight
which too again may warp /flatten the whole thing
making it worse
It has definitely been moved. In the first picture one corner of the LED and the half Moon damage line up with the left HIGH side of one of the points of the cranulation. In the second set of pictures the corner of the LED and the half Moon damage lineup with a left LOW side of the cranulation. The lighting and angle is different in the pictures so I can’t tell if you’ve tightened it or loosened it or which direction it’s moved. I think you’ve been poking around in that half moon hole too much and you’ve damaged threads on the aluminum housing.
I tired hammering nails into it, I even zip tied pliers together and tried pulling on it with my whole body weight, this does not move.
