Battery leaked in Mag Lite

I have a 2 D cell Mag Lite that I keep in the boat. When I was winterizing it (it's snowing right now::'() I was taking the batteries out of my flashlight and they have leaked in side and I can't get them out. I'd like to clean it up but don't know how to get them out. I looked on the Mag-Lite web site for an idea but it didn't help. Any ideas?

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

Take out the switch assembly and you should be able to pound them out from the front end. Pry off the rubber cover on the switch and then unscrew it with an allen wrench - I believe it's 5/64 but I'm not sure.

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

Toss it. Christmas is coming soon so ask for a new light!!!

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

Just curious here. I don't think I've ever had alkaline swell and leak like that. They go dead, but I don't remember them swelling or leaking. Were these zinc by any chance.

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

Call maglite.... might be covered under there super lifetime warranty.

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

BoatBuoy said:

Just curious here. I don't think I've ever had alkaline swell and leak like that. They go dead, but I don't remember them swelling or leaking. Were these zinc by any chance.

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Every type of battery ever made can leak.

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

Guess I've just been lucky.

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

I do not think that mag lite will cover the damage however, the battery companies used to cover the damage.

I would contact the battery company first.

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

Bob_VT said:

I do not think that mag lite will cover the damage however, the battery companies used to cover the damage.

I would contact the battery company first.

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Ditto. The major batt companies cover batt leakage.

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

The problem is, after shipping the light off to someone you might as well just buy a new one. They're only like $15.

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

I am with tyme and OZ throw the sucker away and get a new one. I had one that the top battery leaked and could not get out so I would just change the back battery it worked for about one and a half years then it quit so I threw it away and got a new one.

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

I got the batteries out by unscrewing the switch as suggested. The batteries were Duracell Alkaline. I damaged the switch while pounding it out. The light was a gift to me for the boat by one of my girls. I was reluctant to throw it away without giving it a try. The switch can be replaced but would probably cost the price of a new light. I guess I'll be getting a new one before summer. Thanks for the help. Mark.

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

Look at this parts link if you are sentimental http://www.orderoutdoors.com/msr_1.html

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

If you mail the whole mess to duracell they will replace it

I have done it twice over the years

" can’t get the batteries out of my flashlight. They're stuck inside. How do I change them? Is this covered by my warranty?
When this happens, it almost certainly means that the batteries have leaked and are stuck inside the barrel. Note: Batteries normally swell before leaking causing them to get stuck inside the barrel. Mag Instrument does not warrant against battery leakage, however, we do have agreements with Duracell, Eveready and Ray-O-Vac that allow us to replace your flashlight. If one of these brands of batteries is stuck (by leaking in your flashlight), send the flashlight to us and we will repair or replace the entire flashlight at no charge to you. We recommend that you ship the flashlight UPS or Postal Insured for tracking purposes. Please send to; Mag Instrument, Inc., Attn; Warranty Dept., 1721 E. Locust St., Ontario, Ca. 91761-7769. You pay the freight to us and we pay it going back. Please also include a letter with your name, address, phone number and a description of the problem. Don’t forget to indicate what brand of batteries is inside if you know. We will check to verify that it is Duracell, Eveready and Ray-O-Vac; and if it is, we will send you a new flashlight at no charge. Occasionally we open the flashlight and we find it contains leaking batteries that are not Duracell, Eveready and Ray-O-Vac. In cases of "off-brand" battery leakage, we can replace your flashlight for a charge of -- $12.00 plus your state's sales tax for a ‘C’ or ‘D’ Mag-Lite® flashlight, or $8.00 plus tax for a Mini-Maglite® flashlight. If you are not sure, send the flashlight to us, with the batteries inside, and we will check to determine the brand. If we find that they are "off-brand" batteries, we will contact you and arrange for payment before sending you the replacement flashlight."



Tommays

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

Good Lord....Dollar Store...buck flashlight, buck batterys. Replace once a year. I've had nothing but bad luck with Maglites. Never work when ya need them. Drain batts too easy. I think it just might be that aluminum shell. Its an answer to a problem that never existed

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

tommays said:

We recommend that you ship the flashlight UPS or Postal Insured for tracking purposes.

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There's the problem. That will cost more than a new light. I got one at Target a few days ago, with batteries, for $12.88.

Scaaty said:

Good Lord....Dollar Store...buck flashlight, buck batterys. Replace once a year. I've had nothing but bad luck with Maglites. Never work when ya need them. Drain batts too easy. I think it just might be that aluminum shell. Its an answer to a problem that never existed

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No....for the love of god...no. If you think a maglite is unrealiable a dollar store flashlight is ten times less reliable. The "buck batteries" make it even less reliable and shorter running. Maglites do not drain batteries faster than anything else, that is ridiculous. The material it is made out of has nothing to do with it. The aluminum makes it stronger, waterproof, crushproof, and useful as a weapon, not to mention looks a hell of alot better than some ghetto plastic light.

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

My Maglites go thru he** I have run over them and last winter on the roof working on heater rolled off the roof. All I did was chage the bulb and it worked great. The leaky batteries is the only thing that has kill them and if you change batteries once a year they seem to last just fine. But if you are buying the (china made copys) they are not the same.

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

I have to agree that maglights are tough. The only "problem" I've had are the light bulbs burning out over the years. At least they put a spare under the cap.

Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

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Re: Battery leaked in Mag Lite

I had the same problem with the same Mag-lite (cheap batteries). Repair was a quite simple cleaning once I found out about the allen screw that ZmOz turned you on to in his first post. Fixed it faster than a trip to the store.

It's been through several years hard service since. The only problems have been the rechargable cells in it now are all crushed from droping it so many times, and the battery acid ate a bit of the chrome on the reflector.