fix UltraFire torch flickering/mode jumping

i have this with the 5 mode XM-L T6 led in it, and it is VERY BRIGHT!!! (the equivalent of a 1M candlepower spotlight  or a 40W desk lamp)

but after a few days playing with it, it started to jump between modes, dim out, flicker etc. ocasinaly, it would cut out completely

well, i read somewhere a dieing battery causes it. that's not the case. however it does help to have a charged battery Vs. one not fully charged.

so, like, ME, i decided to tear apart the torch and find the problem. i looked at the drop-in module... thats,not the case. my suspicion was the switch going bad. so i looked around for a replacement, no luck.

my next challenge was to find out how to take apart the tailcap to get to the bare switch. and found out (by the way the switch was housed in there) how to fix it. as you will see in step 2

Step 1 Close look inside

well, i found out how to take the tailcap apart to the point i can see the inner workings. i drew a simple diagram what i found, and lied them out in order ( the cylindrical spacer goes inside the other washer / toroid shaped spacer)

Comments

[jhoward11]

I have the same problem with my Ultrafire OSRAM LED torch. It is a pretty unique torch...running 3x16850 side by side. Since it is no longer made, and I would never risk sending it to the manufacturer, I'm stuck with trying to fix it myself. I will give this a try and hope that I don't break the light in the process!

[dhartman2]

Thanks, mine had the exact same problem and this seemed to fix it!

[-max-]

great! i figred out with mine, this is a temporary fix. to permanitly fix it, i need to solder the switch ciucuit board to the screw/washer part

[dhartman2]

Thanks for the followup. I noticed a little flickering so I went ahead and soldered mine too, it's been great since. I'm glad, because I spent almost $50 on this light several months ago and it's just been sitting around because I didn't know what to do with it. It was described as putting out 1200 lumens, but I think it's closer to 800. Nice light though, I'm using it as a headlight on my bike.

One additional tip I noticed: After I soldered, I found that the washer didn't need to be as tight as it did before the solder for it to work. If it was too tight, it started flickering again. I think pressure was being applied to the switch causing it to change modes or get stuck in between them. I backed off the washer a little bit and it burned solid for about 15 minutes, even knocking on it a few times. Good enough for me. Now I just need to see if the battery lasts the whole way through a ride, I'm riding a lot more than I did when I first bought it.