Switch Disassembly, Repair, and 1980 5D Restoration

This is part of a series of posts I've written about common Maglite repairs. I've also covered the following topics:

Removing Battery Corrosion and Straightening Bent Lights
Stuck Batteries
Stuck End Caps
Stuck Retaining Rings
Switch Removal and Stuck Switches

Disclaimer: I'll start out by saying that these repairs are tedious and challenging. It is very rewarding to make an old Maglite light again though. If you have a special light and don't feel up to the challenge I do restorations and custom work on most vintage flashlights. My contact info is at the right side of the page.

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When a Maglite fails to light some of the problems are fairly obvious. Dead batteries and bulbs are fairly obvious solutions and those are easily diagnosed by changing the battery or bulb. Maglite even has it's own factory service manual which can be found here. But what should you do whenever everything appears normal but the light will still not light?

This is a fairly common problem I've encountered on restorations and I've run into it on a 5D light I'm restoring for someone currently. As you can see there is no visible corrosion or damage but still it won't light.

The common sources of this problem are internal corrosion of the switch or corrosion of the tail spring. If you have an extra working switch and tail spring they can be easily swapped to diagnosed the problem and most users opt to purchase a new switch at a cost of around $12 rather than try to diagnose the non-working switch. This is an easy, inexpensive fix but I'll still go into how the switch mechanism works and how it looks as well as some simple fixes. I prefer to leave the light as stock as can be and always try to fix parts over replacing them.

To understand how the switch works we must first understand how the light works. In order for the light to work current must flow from the negative side of the battery to the positive side.

1 - The positive side of the battery sits up against the switch and the current flows up to the plunger.
2 - The plunger opens and closes the circuit.
3 - On the opposite side of the plunger the circuit picks up again. This connects to the positive terminal of the bulb. If you look closely you can see that this terminal is wrapped in a plastic insulator. This insulates it from the housing of the bulb which acts as the negative terminal.
4 - The housing of the bulb then connects to the negative contacts that slides along it when focusing.
5 - This is connected to the body of the light through the set screw.
6 - The body of the light is connected to the tail spring and back to the negative side of the battery and the circuit is complete.

You'll notice that this switch is specifically for a non-letter serial light. However, all flashlights work in the same manner. Most aluminum and steel lights flow current through the body. The voltage of the batteries is relatively low so you won't feel a shock as the current is drawn back to the negative terminal of the battery rather than to ground. Because the batteries generally have a low voltage any internal corrosion of the switch or tail spring will usually generate enough resistance to stop the flow of current. That is the case with this 5D I'm working on.

So let's take a look at a working Maglite to see what kind of resistance we're talking about. Shown below is an multi meter set to ohms (a measure of resistance) hooked to the positive and negative side of a new switch. As you can see it reads about 11 ohms. It should be noted that the switch must have a good bulb in it and the switch must be in the on position otherwise the ohms will not register.

The body and tail spring will provide negligible resistance. Checking the resistance between the edge of the end cap that is not anodized that sits up against the very end of the barrel and the end of tail spring confirm this as shown below. Typical resistance is around 1 to 5 ohms depending on the amount of corrosion on the spring.

Now we have a good baseline. We know that ideally the circuit operates with a nominal resistance of 11 ohms. So let's take a look at the light I'm working on and see what kind of resistance it has and I'll see if I can get it's resistance down to the resistance of a good assembly. Shown below is my switch removed from the light and hooked to my multi meter. This removal process can be found here and elsewhere on Youtube.

You can see that the switch has infinite resistance which means there is a part that is not making a connection somewhere or is missing and is inhibiting the flow of current. Next I'll open up the switch and test the individual parts to see if I can find the culprit. This process will be detailed below. All of the values obtained should add to be the total resistance of the switch. If you have a resistance of 60 ohms and you find one part that is 45 ohms you can stop testing because that part is the problem.

As can be seen below the positive battery contact to the positive bulb contact across the plunger has an infinite resistance when engaged. This is most likely the culprit. However, I'll clean all of the electrical contacts as shown below to ensure the circuit operates properly. I'll soak these parts in vinegar and then wire brush them. DO NOT soak steel parts in vinegar because they will corrode. Make sure you only soak the parts shown below as they are copper and aluminum.

Pay extra attention to parts that have visible corrosion as the corrosion is the likely cause of the higher resistance. The set screw and negative bulb housing contact as shown below are a likely culprit as well. This contact rubs the bulb housing and the wear causes it to corrode or the set screw itself corrodes because of the dis-similar metals contacting each. See below for an example from this light with a lot of corrosion.

Shown below are the cleaned up parts. The copper parts should shine like a new penny and you'll notice the resistance is remarkably lower.

Shown below is the resistance test of the switch after I put it all back together. You'll notice it is only 0.8 ohms which is basically the resistance of the bulb. Why the difference vs. the "new" switch above at 11 ohms. Well mainly because the copper parts will naturally oxidize (corrode) over time due to even the most minuscule amounts of moisture in the light which ups their resistance. Right now the light is clean as a whistle but with normal use and exposure to the atmosphere the copper parts won't keep this shine. That's ok though. The corrosion stops after a natural layer has formed and the switch will average out at around 11 ohms.

Maybe you've found the switch has the same resistance as a new switch or that the light still won't work. The next item to check is the end cap and spring. A lot of times if there is a lot of resistance you'll notice that the spring is corroded, the spring seat is corroded, or the non-anodized edge is not making contact with the end of the barrel. All of these items must be completely free of corrosion so that their surfaces all make contact.

With all of the parts now free of corrosion did this light shine again? Judge for yourself in the pic below. So, why did I save this light? Well, another collector I deal with asked me to. Also, it is stamped "Paten Pending" opposite the serial number and lacks the features of a 1979 light so it is a 1980 light. It's from only the second year of Maglite production and is serial number 49,126 so it is relatively low. Please see my Quick Dating Guide if you're interested in these details. The light is nearly 40 years old and in excellent condition other than the non-operable switch so I figured it is a worthwhile restoration especially because someone valued it all these years to keep it going. Here are some pics of the light after it was all repaired.

This light came from a fellow collector who picked it up at an estate sale with the above accessories as well. The estate was from the owner of a large Tennessee construction company and this was likely a personal light of his. A personalized 1980 3D also came with it. The 5D bulb is an old "Safari-Star", a knock off of the Magnum Star Maglite brand produced by police equipment company Safariland. The Maglite belt suspender carriers the old Maglite logo embossed into the leather and on the package so it is from 1980 to 1984. This will certainly make a nice addition to his collection now that it's all back in working order.

As always I'm looking to buy Vari-Beams and Vintage/Rare Mags. Please let me know if you have any, top dollar paid.

Why a Maglite? FAQ

Why a Maglite?

I get this question a lot. There are tons of flashlights on the market right now. Some much more expensive and some much fancier than a Maglite. So why go with a Maglite and not one of these "higher end" models? Better yet why bother spending any money at all when you can pickup "budget" LED flashlights for $5 a pop? I'll answer all of these questions and more in this post!

In short Maglites are the best bang for your buck, period! They will never let you down and will provide all the light you could ever need or want.

What is the best light to buy right now?

Hands down the Maglite ML300L.

The ML300L has 3 brightness settings, going up to 625 lumens and awesome run times:

16 Hours on High (675 lumens)
77 Hours on Medium
117 Hours on Low (115 lumens)

Try and find any light with better run times. Guaranteed there aren't many out there.

Throw in a few NiMH rechargables that will never leak and you have yourself the best flashlight on the market that will last a lifetime. The light will run you $40 on Amazon and the batteries about $20 plus a charger if you need it. $100 gets you the whole shebang.

Are these fancy lights really that much brighter?

Yes, but do you really need all that light? I've had these lights and I don't think so. In fact sometimes the extra brightness is a disadvantage.

Most higher end lights out now will easily put out 5,000 to 10,000 lumens which is a startling amount. I reviewed a high end Adventure Sport Maglite that puts out 4,000 lumens. I've had it for over a year and I use a flashlight every night for work and weekends when I'm having fun. I probably use one far more than the average user does. How many times have I needed 4,000 lumens? None. I also have a Malkoff 800 lumen drop in in an old beat up 4D. How many times have I used it? None. Not only do they go unused but I couldn't use them if I wanted to. They are actually difficult to use because of the amount of light that bounces back to your eye. They will temporarily blind you in close quarters like a house or working on a car. If you're using them around co-workers or buddies you'll definitely blind them. About the only use I could see for these lights are impressing your friends or if you were employed on a search and rescue team.

I'll also warn the folks that are reading that no one checks or verifies lumen ratings on lights. Many many manufacturers will print any lumen rating they want on a light and there is no real recourse you can take if it is not accurate. Tools to measure lumens are not cheap so most consumers rely solely on how bright they perceive the light to be and unfortunately sometimes how good the marketing of the light is. I have seen $5 and $10 lights at Lowe's that advertise 1,000 lumens and having owned several 1,000+ lumen lights and seeing how much light they throw this is simply not true. Most large manufacturers have their name to stand behind when publishing lumen ratings and for Maglite this is no exception.

So, what amount of light do you need?

300 to 600 lumen LEDs seem to be the sweet spot. Having multiple brightness modes also makes the light more versatile too.

Let's be honest, incans aren't going to do it anymore. I love incan lights and I use them a lot mainly because I'm nostalgic though. 150 lumens is the max a big light is going to put out with any reasonable run time and that's just not enough for most situations. I have found that around 300 to 400 lumens is just the right amount. To get that you're going to need to go to LED. I personally use a Malkoff XP-G drop in that puts our around 350 lumens. Unlike other lights the Malkoff is heat sinked so it's going to put out 350 lumens for a long long time. Other lights are rated for 350 lumens or more but only for the first few seconds when the temp increases and the brightness decreases.

For most folks it doesn't make sense to upgrade an old incan light unless you're really attached to it. But have no fear Maglite makes several brand new lights that fit comfortably into this lumen range and even have multiple brightness levels to increase their versatility.

What kind of batteries do you need? Is lithium ion worth all of the hype?

Rechargeable D cells or high quality Alkalines are your best bets. Fancy lithium ion batteries have more power but are high maintenance and cannot be replaced by inexpensive Alkalines in a pinch. They also don't have the capacity and run time of a D cell.

For most average users lithium ion batteries are not going to worth the extra money or effort. Do they throw more current and volts from a smaller package? Yes, but there is special care involved in maintaining the cells and they are significantly more expensive than rechargeable D cells. I highly recommend NiMH rechargeable D cells or high quality Alkaline D cells like Energizer or Duracell. As with any alkaline cells though keep a close eye on them or better yet store them separate from the light if it isn't used very often. Skip the 18650s, 26650s and all the like as you won't find those at a gas station at 2AM if they die. Rechargeable Ds can always be replaced by cheap Alkalines in a pinch whereas lithium ion cells cannot. The run time is also worth mentioning and is another huge advantage. The highest capacity batteries you can get today are likely 18650s. There are some higher capacity lithium ions but they are fairly uncommon sizes. You'll need at least 3 18650s until you get to the run time of a 2D Maglite.

What about tint?

LED Maglites may not have the best beam color (tint) but it won't make much of a difference to the average user.

Ok ok, so tint might be a spot where a Maglite could use some improvement. However, most folks don't even know what tint is or probably care to know. Malkoffs have a much nicer tint than stock Maglites but stock Mags really aren't that bad. The average user is not going to see an increase or decrease in the red spectrum at night and will likely never appreciate a "warmer" beam of an expensive light. I use my light every night and the Malkoff renders colors just fine for me.

For those wondering tint is the color of the beam. Incan lights throw a beam that is very close to natural sunlight and renders all colors the same as they are in the daytime. LEDs cannot match that but more expensive lights get close. Less expensive lights have a blueish or greenish tint to the beam and as such they will skew colors at night.

If Maglite or Malkoff is reading this I think they could go far with a "warm" LED. It isn't much more expensive to produce and if the benefits are marketed correctly I could see users paying a small premium for the light. Please find a pic of incan beam color (tint) vs. LED beam color. The LED is on the left and the incan is on the right.

How much do I need to spend?

$50 gets you a good light. $100 gets you a better light. $170 gets you an awesome restomod light.

As I priced out above if you want a good off the shelf light plan on spending $50 or so for an ML3000L. If you really want to go all out for rechargeable batteries and a charger $100 tops and you have a light that's good for life and won't ever be obsolete.

If you want to piece together a vintage beauty with some real authentic scuffs and nicks my breakdown is as follows:

- Ebay TM or R bezel D Cell Maglite $30 shipped
- Malkoff D Cell Drop In and Adapter Sleeve $60 shipped
- KAIDomain.com Aluminum Reflector $10 shipped
- FlashlightLens.com Glass Lens $15 shipped
- 4 Pack Tenergy Centura LSD Rechargeable NIMH D cell - $25 shipped
- Battery Charger - $30 shipped

Total - $170

I'll also build these to order for a small premium from my stock of old lights. If you're interested my contact info is at the right. I did a more detailed post about these restomods a couple months back.

What light do you carry every day?

A 2001 3D Incan Maglite with a Malkoff XP-G LED upgrade and rechargeable batteries.

Shown below is the 3D I've carried day in and day out for the last 16 years as of this post date. I'm pretty attached to this Maglite because my dad and I bought a bunch of Maglites when we went into business together and this was the one I ended up with. It's been upgraded to an aluminum reflector, glass lens, with a Malkoff drop in and I use rechargeable batteries but otherwise it's the same light. This option is for the folks that would rather drive a Grand Wagoneer or a Ford Bronco rather than any of these bland looking crossovers.

What are the reasons to own a Maglite?

There are many great reasons to own a Maglite. They are American made and wonderfully reliable. They are as American as apple pie and really are a part of American heritage and history. Despite what many folks in the flashlight community and elsewhere say, they are extremely relevant today and are the best tool to get the job done. Speaking from experience I've had zero failures in thousands of hours of service. Every failure I've ever seen on any of the lights I've worked on has been from battery corrosion from cheap alkaline cells left in the light for far too long. Overall it's very satisfying to carry such a well worn, trusted tool with me that I know will be around long after I'm gone.

As always I'm looking to buy Vari-Beams and Vintage/Rare Mags. Please let me know if you have any, top dollar paid.

C Cell Quick Dating Guide

On to Part 2, for those wondering: How old is my C cell Maglite?

The D Cell Quick Dating Guide can be found here.
The Mini Maglite Quick Dating Guide can be found here.

C cells are far less popular than D cells. Even now, aside from 5C and 6C lights, there isn't much collector interest in them. A lot of it is likely due to lesser variety vs. the D cells. This guide pieces together the little information I have on them. My contact information is on the right if anyone needs assistance too. Parts are sometimes switched making the lights difficult to identify.

Below is a checklist of which features are found on which age range lights. Below this checklist I'll go into detail and provide pictures of the features in each age range.

Early 1981 - Late 1981
1981 was the first year of manufacture for C cell Maglites. The early production was already hammered out on the D cells so there are less early differences on the C cells. I did a post on early C cell history here. Only a handful of the very lowest serials are stamped "Paten Pending"opposite the serial. These early 1981 C cells are extremely rare.

TM Bezel
TM is stamped after the Maglite logo as the trademark was claimed but not registered.

Paten Pending Stamped Barrel
Only serials 1 - ~3,000 of each model are stamped "Paten Pending" as production started in early 1981 and the patent was approved by August. They are so rare I only have one example. A 5C Vari-Beam.

1982 - 1986
In August of 1981 the Maglite Patent was approved. Going forward all C cells were stamped "Patented Made in U.S.A." opposite the serial number.

TM Bezel
TM is stamped after the Maglite logo. The trademark was registered at this point but the bezel wasn't updated until later 1987.

Patented Made in U.S.A. Stamped Barrel
Barrels are now stamped "Patented Made in U.S.A." as the patent for the light was approved early into production.

1987 - 1989
An R with a circle replaced the TM after the Maglite logo.

R Bezel
The Maglite trademark was registered in 1981 but it wasn't until 1987 that Maglite decided to update the bezel and step up enforcement of their trademarks due to competition from other manufacturers.

Store-A-Bulb End Cap

Starting in 1987 C cell Maglites come with an extended end cap that had room to store an extra bulb. A store-a-bulb end cap is shown on top and a standard end cap on the bottom.

1990 - 1991
1990 marked a minor change. The bezel is laser etched instead of stamped. Also, 7Cs are discontinued.

Laser Etched Bezel
In order to save on production costs bezels are now laser etched. 1987 - 1989 stamped bezel (left) vs. 1990 -1991 laser etched bezel (right).

1992 - 1995
In 1992 the panther logo is added to the bezel.

Panther Logo Added
The panther logo is added to the bezel. The trademark of the panther logo wasn't approved until late 1995 so 1992 - 1995 models have a TM after the logo.

1996 - 2002
R Panther Bezel
The trademark of the panther logo was registered in late 1995 so starting in 1996 the TM was replaced by an R with a circle after the panther logo.

2003 - 2009
In 2003 the C cell lights were modernized into the model that's currently available today. I've detailed these differences here. These lights are typically referred to as New C Cells, Panther C Cells, or Letter Serial C Cells. 5Cs and 6Cs are discontinued shortly after the changeover.

Letter Added to Serial
C was placed at the beginning of serial to designate the cell size and to avoid confusion when ordering parts. 2003+ Letter Serial (top) vs. a 1981 -2002 Non-Letter Serial (bottom).

Patented in U.S.A. Stamped Barrel
In Late 2003 the barrel stamping was changed. Some early 2003 lights are Letter Serials and are stamped "Patented Made in the U.S.A." but are few and far between.

After 23 years of being "Made in the U.S.A." Maglite could no longer source enough parts made in America to meet the California definition. As such the barrels are stamped "Patented in U.S.A." instead of "Patented Made in U.S.A." as shown below. Please find more info in the following article: http://maglite.com/maglab/made-in-california-but-not-the-usa

O-Ring Moved
The O-ring was moved from being placed in the head to on the barrel. Shown below is a 2003+ light on the left and a pre-2003 light on the right.

Barrel Wall Thickness Increased
The wall thickness was increased slightly and as such the inside diameter is a little less.

R Panther Bezel
The trademark of the panther logo was registered so this carries over from the prior year.

Switch Redesigned
The retaining ring on the switch is replaced by a retaining clip. Examples of each are shown below with the retaining ring on the right and the retaining clip on the right..

2010 - 2017
The "Patented in U.S.A." stamping is abandoned all together. Lights now carry no stamping opposite the serial. All other features of the 2003 to 2009 lights remain.

2018 - 2020
The bezel logo is updated to look more like Maglites LED offerings. The remaining C Cell incandescent product line, 2C, 3C and 4C is discontinued in early 2020 after a 39 year run.

2018 Bezel
The Maglite logo on the bezel is updated to conform with Maglite's new lights. The text is now wider to make the branding easier to identify and the dash has been dropped between Mag and Lite. All other features of the 2010-2017 lights remain. All of the 2018+ lights I've seen are now bi-pin bulbs where as 2017 and earlier lights were a mix of bi-pins and PR base.

As always I'm looking to buy Vari-Beams and Vintage/Rare Mags. Please let me know if you have any, top dollar paid.

Special Order Colors and Panther Maglite Colors

Maglite has produced a seemingly endless variety of finishes on their lights. Full size D and C cell lights have less variety than the smaller lights like the Mini Maglite and Solitaire. One of the reasons for the large number of finishes is that Maglite will make special runs of lights for orders of around 10,000 units or more. This type of order is far less expensive when done on the smaller lights which contributes to their larger variety.

This post will only cover special order finishes on Panther (Letter Serial) Incandescent D cells. I've covered finishes on "Non-Letter" Serials in an earlier post. Finishes on the C cells were even rarer and I've never been able to put together a full list. I've only ever seen Lime Green 2Cs done as special orders in the C cells and they are extremely rare. It's likely due to the C cells being such slow sellers. All special orders were done after 1996 because I've never seen any lights with markings as identified on my Quick Dating Guide. I've also never seen any 5D or 6D special order lights. This is usually because they're slow sellers when compared to other D cells. 4Ds are especially rare in special order finishes but they do exist as I'll detail below.

One piece of information I'm missing is who placed these special orders. I have heard they were from Walmart, Target, and Home Depot. It would make sense because all 3 of these retailers were some of the largest Maglite vendors in the late 1990s and early 2000s during Maglite's heyday. Below is a list of standard finishes and light sizes produced in each of these finishes.

Standard
Black
Color Code 01 (BLACK)
2D, 3D, 4D, 5D, 6D

Red
Color Code 03 (RED)
2D, 3D, 4D, 5D, 6D

Blue
Color Code 11, GU, DZ (BLUE)
2D, 3D, 4D

Silver
Color Code 10
2D, 3D, 4D (Discontinued)

Gray
Color Code 09 (GRAY)
2D, 3D, 4D (Discontinued)

Dark Green (Discontinued in 2018)
Color Code 39
2D, 3D

Purple (Discontinued in 2018)
Color Code 98
2D, 3D

Woodland Camo (Discontinued in 2018)
Color Code 02
3D

UCP Camo (Digital Camo)
Color Code MR
3D (Discontinued)

Below is a list of special order finishes and light sizes produced in each of these finishes.

Special Order
Lime Green
Color Code CZ (LM GRN)
2D, 3D

Jade (Target Special Order)
Color Code IS (JADE)
2D, 3D, 4D

Orange (Sometimes also called Amber, Home Depot Special Order)
Color Code AU (ORANGE)
3D

Midnight Blue
Color Code FD
2D, 3D, 4D

Copper / Bronze (Looks exactly like a new copper penny)
Color Code JY (COPPER)
2D, 3D, 4D

Shimmer Blue (A light Blue)
Color Code DK (BLUE SH)
2D, 3D

Pewter (A lighter Copper)
Color Code 94 (PEWTER)
2D, 3D

Matte (Stealth) Black (From Australia, Big W Special Order)
Color Code 17 (AST)
3D

Special Promotion
Gold
Color Code 04
2D, 3D?

I have most of the lights in the Special Order finishes in some of the sizes. I was originally looking for the 4Ds as they are much tougher to find. These lights were mainly produced in the late 90s and early 2000s in small numbers and there aren't many left. Jade, Copper, and Midnight Blue do show up occasionally but almost never in 4Ds. Lime Green, Orange, and Matte (Stealth) Black are extremely difficult to find.

Gold finishes are done very sparingly as I've detailed in a prior post. There was a gold 2D produced to commemorate the introduction of the updated, Panther style, Maglites. I have one and it's in the link above with the rest of my gold lights. They are super rare and I don't think Maglite intended them to be a standard or special finish rather a one off.

Shown below is a photo of all of the special order finishes. The ones below from left to right and top to bottom are a 2D Lime Green, 2D Pewter, 2D Shimmer Blue. 3D Matte (Stealth) Black, 3D Orange, 3D Jade, 4D Copper, and a 4D Midnight Blue. Some of these lights I've only paid $20 or so for. I doubt many people know how rare they are so they can usually be had on the cheap when they show up on the large auction site. Orange, Lime Green, and Matte Black though hardly ever show up for sale and usually command high prices.

The Orange 3D is a ~24,000,000 serial, the Midnight Blue 4D is a ~10,000,000 serial, the Pewter 2D is a ~15,000,000 serial, the Copper 4D is an ~11,000,000 serial, the Jade 4D is a ~9,000,000 serial, and the Lime Green 2D is a 12,000,000 serial. All are stamped "Patented Made in U.S.A." opposite the serial and have an R with a circle after the Panther logo which puts them after 1996 but before 2003 as I've detailed in my D Cell Quick Dating Guide. The Shimmer Blue 2D is a ~25,000,000 serial and is stamped "Patented in U.S.A." so it is from between 2003 and 2009. The Matte Black 3D is a ~47,000,000 and has no patent stamping so it is from 2009 to 2017.

The special order lights can be tough to tell apart in photos from other colors. I've posted some photos of the green lights below for comparison. Lime Green is on the left and top followed by standard (Dark) Green and Jade. I've also included a photo below of some of the other Lime Green lights I own as well.

Shown below from left to right are Silver, Gray, Pewter and Copper/Bronze. Only the Copper/Bronze and Pewter are special order finishes but the Silver and Gray are often confused for Copper/Bronze and Pewter. I've never been able to differentiate Copper and Bronze so I think they may be the same finish. I've also never seen separate color codes for them. I am able to confirm Pewter because I have a NIB one and the serial is very close to the loose one and they are identical colors. This series of lights is the most disputed and confused one but I am 100% confident in the colors I've identified.

Shown below are the blue lights too. I have 2 Shimmer Blues and they are both on the right/bottom followed by standard Blue and Midnight Blue on top.

I think it's also interesting that the shimmer blue is the same color as Maglite's old standard blue from before 1992. In the bottom picture you can see a 1980 3D compared to a Vari-Beam and my 2D shimmer blue. The colors all match exactly. The old blue lights were much lighter than the current blue Maglite offers.

Matte (Stealth) Black is one of the newer special order finishes I've come across. I believe there was a small batch of these done in 2009 or so when the ML300LX lights made their debut because the finish is identical and the color code is the same. I've only seen a handful and all of them that I've seen came from Big W, a chain store similar to Walmart, in Australia. Shown below is a comparison of my Stealth 3D and AA Mini Maglite to standard Black 3D and AA Mini Maglite have a gloss finish. I also included a shot with a cool Maglite Security Officer patch that was given to me by another collector. I think it goes well with the stealth motif.

Maglites, especially full size D and C cell models, are not as popular as they once were. Accordingly, it is doubtful many special order finishes will be produced again. The heyday for Maglite's sales department really was in the late 1990s and early 2000s when they were moving 5,000,000 units of some models per year. Due to the introduction of very inexpensive, imported, small LED lights Maglite's sales of full size lights have significantly slowed. In recent years they have started to discontinue certain incan finishes and at some point I imagine they'll discontinue all but a few incan models and significantly reduce their D and C cell offerings. I could see C cells being phased out all together. These are pretty rare lights at a really decent price point which makes them nice for a future collectible.

As always I'm looking to buy Vari-Beams and Vintage/Rare Mags. Please let me know if you have any, top dollar paid.