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Page AR-15 » Optics, Mounts, and Sights
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Posted: 10/10/2014 1:52:24 PM EST
First off, thanks for looking

Tomorrow morning I'm taking a coworker to the range for the first time, to teach her how to shoot. Earlier today I started checking the gear I want to bring, and I discovered that the battery in my XPS equipped Colt was dead. This rifle hasn't been used in about six months, but the Surefire battery was new when I last put it away.

My experience with EOTechs is fairly limited - I've only owned one other before this one, and that was the old AA battery version. To those of you with more experience: do you think this is a fluke, or are the newer XPS models known to drain batteries when not in use?

Ultimately it's not a huge issue either way, I love the XPS, but it would be nice to know if I need to start storing this carbine sans battery.

Thank you in advance for your expertise.

Pic - obviously it's the middle one



Edited for clarity.
Link Posted: 10/10/2014 1:59:13 PM EST
[#1]
I have owned a 512 and an XPS. Other than a set of alkaline batts leaking in the 512 (whoops) I had the same set of batts in it for two years and it worked fine.

The XPS I had the same batts in it for 6 months and it still worked fine.

I would personally contact EoTech and get a new sight just to be on the safe side.
Link Posted: 10/10/2014 2:17:35 PM EST
[#2]
Thank you for your reply brother

I'll shoot them an e-mail and see what they say. I suppose it could have been a bad battery as well, so it will be interesting to see what happens. I'm reluctant to send the optic back until I rule out the battery. Don't want to cry wolf until I know for sure
Link Posted: 10/10/2014 4:58:25 PM EST
[#3]
Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:
Thank you for your reply brother

I'll shoot them an e-mail and see what they say. I suppose it could have been a bad battery as well, so it will be interesting to see what happens. I'm reluctant to send the optic back until I rule out the battery. Don't want to cry wolf until I know for sure
View Quote


Is fixing for free, selling on the EE, and get another Aimpoint an option?
Link Posted: 10/10/2014 5:31:40 PM EST
[#4]
Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:


Is fixing for free, selling on the EE, and get another Aimpoint an option?
View Quote View All Quotes
View All Quotes
Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:
Quoted:
Thank you for your reply brother

I'll shoot them an e-mail and see what they say. I suppose it could have been a bad battery as well, so it will be interesting to see what happens. I'm reluctant to send the optic back until I rule out the battery. Don't want to cry wolf until I know for sure


Is fixing for free, selling on the EE, and get another Aimpoint an option?


I sold my XPS to buy something...wish I hadn't :(

I think everyone should have an EoTech AND an Aimpoint. They really are both awesome optics.

edit- oh and OP, good choice on stocks. I love my VLTOR clubfoot mod stock and my EMOD
Link Posted: 10/10/2014 5:32:58 PM EST
[#5]
What brand was the battery that was in the XPS.

Some of the Chinese 123 batteries I have seen/used are not worth the price even though they are a "bargain".
Link Posted: 10/10/2014 5:52:55 PM EST
[#6]
Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:


Is fixing for free, selling on the EE, and get another Aimpoint an option?
View Quote View All Quotes
View All Quotes
Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:
Quoted:
Thank you for your reply brother

I'll shoot them an e-mail and see what they say. I suppose it could have been a bad battery as well, so it will be interesting to see what happens. I'm reluctant to send the optic back until I rule out the battery. Don't want to cry wolf until I know for sure


Is fixing for free, selling on the EE, and get another Aimpoint an option?

This XPS was a Christmas present from my wife and daughter, so I wouldn't want to sell it. And, despite being more of an Aimpoint/ACOG guy I have really enjoyed having it After all the trouble I had with my old EOTech I vowed to never own another one, but my girls never got that memo

Technically I wouldn't even need to buy another Aimpoint - I've got a brand new CompM2 and mount sitting on a shelf in one of the safes. It just needs a home.

Oddly enough I've found that brand new shooters tend to do extremely well with the EOTech versus other optics, once I move them up from rimfire. Can't explain why, but that has been my observation. When introducing a new shooter to long guns I typically start with a 10/22, then a Sig 522 or rimfire converted AR, and finally a 5.56 carbine. That formula seems to work, and keeps them from feeling overwhelmed or intimidated.

ETA:
Quoted:
What brand was the battery that was in the XPS.

Some of the Chinese 123 batteries I have seen/used are not worth the price even though they are a "bargain".

Ronin, it was a new Surefire brand battery with a stamped expiration date of 2021.

ETAA: MadBarbarian87, I love my Vltor stocks. Of all the aftermarket stocks I currently own (Ace ARFX, Magpul M93A, Magpul CTR etc) the Vltor is my favorite and by far the most common in my collection

Link Posted: 10/10/2014 7:55:02 PM EST
[#7]
Well that was not the problem. Surefire batteries are top quality.
Link Posted: 10/10/2014 8:07:30 PM EST
[#8]
The batteries in my two XPS sights have been in there for four years since the day they were new.  This thread reminds me I should change them but they still work and it's not TEOTWAWKI.
Link Posted: 10/10/2014 8:30:24 PM EST
[#9]
my xps2 haas been running on the same battery for a little over a year and I agree everybody should own an eotech and an aimpoint .
Link Posted: 10/11/2014 12:17:48 PM EST
[#10]

Take a new battery, measure it's voltage with a voltmeter.
Stick it in the unit, don't use it for a month.
Take it out and measure the voltage again.

Need a voltmeter that displays the voltage in the x.xx format, like 3.13V.
Link Posted: 10/11/2014 12:31:38 PM EST
[#11]

Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:





This XPS was a Christmas present from my wife and daughter, so I wouldn't want to sell it. And, despite being more of an Aimpoint/ACOG guy I have really enjoyed having it After all the trouble I had with my old EOTech I vowed to never own another one, but my girls never got that memo



Technically I wouldn't even need to buy another Aimpoint - I've got a brand new CompM2 and mount sitting on a shelf in one of the safes. It just needs a home.



Oddly enough I've found that brand new shooters tend to do extremely well with the EOTech versus other optics, once I move them up from rimfire. Can't explain why, but that has been my observation. When introducing a new shooter to long guns I typically start with a 10/22, then a Sig 522 or rimfire converted AR, and finally a 5.56 carbine. That formula seems to work, and keeps them from feeling overwhelmed or intimidated.



ETA:




Ronin, it was a new Surefire brand battery with a stamped expiration date of 2021.



ETAA: MadBarbarian87, I love my Vltor stocks. Of all the aftermarket stocks I currently own (Ace ARFX, Magpul M93A, Magpul CTR etc) the Vltor is my favorite and by far the most common in my collection



View Quote View All Quotes
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Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:



Quoted:


Quoted:

Thank you for your reply brother



I'll shoot them an e-mail and see what they say. I suppose it could have been a bad battery as well, so it will be interesting to see what happens. I'm reluctant to send the optic back until I rule out the battery. Don't want to cry wolf until I know for sure




Is fixing for free, selling on the EE, and get another Aimpoint an option?


This XPS was a Christmas present from my wife and daughter, so I wouldn't want to sell it. And, despite being more of an Aimpoint/ACOG guy I have really enjoyed having it After all the trouble I had with my old EOTech I vowed to never own another one, but my girls never got that memo



Technically I wouldn't even need to buy another Aimpoint - I've got a brand new CompM2 and mount sitting on a shelf in one of the safes. It just needs a home.



Oddly enough I've found that brand new shooters tend to do extremely well with the EOTech versus other optics, once I move them up from rimfire. Can't explain why, but that has been my observation. When introducing a new shooter to long guns I typically start with a 10/22, then a Sig 522 or rimfire converted AR, and finally a 5.56 carbine. That formula seems to work, and keeps them from feeling overwhelmed or intimidated.



ETA:


Quoted:

What brand was the battery that was in the XPS.



Some of the Chinese 123 batteries I have seen/used are not worth the price even though they are a "bargain".


Ronin, it was a new Surefire brand battery with a stamped expiration date of 2021.



ETAA: MadBarbarian87, I love my Vltor stocks. Of all the aftermarket stocks I currently own (Ace ARFX, Magpul M93A, Magpul CTR etc) the Vltor is my favorite and by far the most common in my collection







I suspect there are a couple of factors at play for this.


First, the more open view tends to encourage both eyes open shooting (versus the natural tendency to close the weak eye and squint when looking through something more tube-like), as well as the circle/dot drawing the focus to that small central dot.


Just guesses on my part, but when I had an EoTech before, that seemed to be the case with me.





Nick



 

Link Posted: 10/11/2014 1:06:59 PM EST
[#12]
All eotechs are battery vampires. I say this based on owning four of them.
Link Posted: 10/11/2014 1:35:39 PM EST
[#13]
Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:

Take a new battery, measure it's voltage with a voltmeter.
Stick it in the unit, don't use it for a month.
Take it out and measure the voltage again.

Need a voltmeter that displays the voltage in the x.xx format, like 3.13V.
View Quote


I am not sure that will work with a lithium battery. The power curve is relative flat (voltage constant) until the battery "dies" with a sudden drop in voltage at the end of the battery life.
Link Posted: 10/11/2014 5:03:16 PM EST
[#14]
just another data point. Same batteries in mine for 1 1/2 yrs.  No issue. Pull it from the safe and hit the button, "ON"

Good luck resolving.

Tec
Link Posted: 10/12/2014 2:58:31 PM EST
[#15]
Sorry for the late reply - I didn't realize that more folks had responded until just now. I sincerely appreciate all of you trying to help me out

The more I think about this the more I wonder if the dead battery was my fault. If accidentally left turned on, do XPS model EOTechs stay on like Aimpoints, or do they turn themselves off after a set period of time? While I'm fairly sure I did turn the thing off, anything is possible I guess

The CompM2 on my bump-in-the-night gun (the bottom of the three carbines pictured above) is left on 24/7. For the sake of my own OCD I replace the battery every six months, along with the batteries in the Surefire forend. Aside from that though it's always turned on.

Thanks again for your help!

ETA: On another note, my coworker had a ball shooting yesterday!
Link Posted: 10/12/2014 3:48:22 PM EST
[#16]
Negative. The longest that sight should have stayed on is 8 hrs.
Link Posted: 10/12/2014 5:17:09 PM EST
[#17]
Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:
Negative. The longest that sight should have stayed on is 8 hrs.
View Quote

Well, there goes that theory.

Thank you for your reply
Link Posted: 10/12/2014 7:04:40 PM EST
[#18]
I have an EXPS 3.0 which did the same to me. That reminds me that I need to check the battery again to see if this is an ongoing problem with mine. I am sure that L3 will take care of me if this is still happening.
Link Posted: 10/12/2014 7:30:24 PM EST
[#19]
I have an EXPS-2 that I change out batteries every year. Guess I should let it go longer to see. I do have a Surefire X300 vampire
Link Posted: 10/12/2014 9:34:39 PM EST
[#20]
Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:
Well that was not the problem. Surefire batteries are top quality.
View Quote

While surefire batteries are good, they are no different than CR123 batteries from Duracell, Panasonic, energizer, or streamlight.  I have had bad batteries from all of them. They might have a 10 year shelf life in perfect conditions, but sitting in a shipping container in the heat or cold will shorten their life.

I would put it on the battery being bad unless it is a recurring problem with this unit.
Link Posted: 10/12/2014 10:37:03 PM EST
[#21]
My EXPS drains the battery over time.  I think it is something to do with the way the buttons works.  Mind you, I'm not an EE, so I'm not positive.  What I have been told is that, since there isn't a mechanical on/off, the buttons draw a miniscule amount of power while the unit is powered down.
Link Posted: 10/13/2014 8:43:40 AM EST
[#22]
it should not draw any significant current while not "on".  

L3 will fix the sight free of charge.

Turn around is like 3-5 business days.
Link Posted: 10/13/2014 3:27:02 PM EST
[#23]
Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:
My EXPS drains the battery over time.  I think it is something to do with the way the buttons works.  Mind you, I'm not an EE, so I'm not positive.  What I have been told is that, since there isn't a mechanical on/off, the buttons draw a miniscule amount of power while the unit is powered down.
View Quote


This. An out-of-spec electronic switch can pass much more power than it should, thus resulting in premature battery drain. While most of my Eotechs were fine in that department, I did have two 512's that would drain their batteries when turned off.
Tomac
Link Posted: 10/13/2014 11:17:13 PM EST
[#24]
Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:


I sold my XPS to buy something...wish I hadn't :(

I think everyone should have an EoTech AND an Aimpoint. They really are both awesome optics.

edit- oh and OP, good choice on stocks. I love my VLTOR clubfoot mod stock and my EMOD
View Quote View All Quotes
View All Quotes
Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:
Quoted:
Quoted:
Thank you for your reply brother

I'll shoot them an e-mail and see what they say. I suppose it could have been a bad battery as well, so it will be interesting to see what happens. I'm reluctant to send the optic back until I rule out the battery. Don't want to cry wolf until I know for sure


Is fixing for free, selling on the EE, and get another Aimpoint an option?


I sold my XPS to buy something...wish I hadn't :(

I think everyone should have an EoTech AND an Aimpoint. They really are both awesome optics.

edit- oh and OP, good choice on stocks. I love my VLTOR clubfoot mod stock and my EMOD


I agree!




Link Posted: 10/14/2014 7:27:25 AM EST
[#25]
Shoot them an Email.  They will respond.  It might be a known issue that they resolve quickly.
Link Posted: 10/14/2014 3:16:07 PM EST
[#26]
Never leave any kind of battery in any device that you are storing/not using for 6 months even if it has no drain issue.
Regardless of what battery manufactures say none of them are fool proof.
I have heard of Lithium CR123a battery's leaking gas, not good in a sealed compartment like the Eotech.
If it's not your go to weapon next to the bed don't leave battery's in it.

This is advice from someone who has suffered damage even from in date non discharged batteries.
Link Posted: 10/15/2014 2:39:30 PM EST
[#27]
Wow, they responded quickly!

Instead of returning it right away like they suggested, I think I am going to install a new battery and test it every month or so - just to rule out the battery being the culprit. It would be kind of absurd to go through all that trouble (and expense on the part of L3) just to find out that the whole issue was because of a bad battery.

My interaction with L3 was very impressive.

ETA: Once I rule out the battery one way or the other, I will heed your advice NM556. I appreciate your post - thank you for taking the time

Posted Via AR15.Com Mobile
Link Posted: 11/26/2014 4:44:44 AM EST
[#28]
UPDATE

It's been a month and a half since I asked you folks for help, and it looks like my XPS will be going back to L3. Checked it last night and the brand new Surefire brand battery that I installed last month is deader than hell.

I'll ship it out this weekend - thanks again for your help everyone.
Link Posted: 11/26/2014 6:22:07 PM EST
[#29]
Sounds like a plan. They probably need to replace the electronic switch. I have an exps3 that I purchased from another member here and I never changed the battery it came with. Took it to the range for a few hours to teach the gf how to shoot and its been in my safe for the last 7 months since and turns on no problem.

Amazing how quick time flys... I started a new job around the time I got the eotech and only had a chance go shoot with it once since...
Link Posted: 11/27/2014 4:15:25 AM EST
[#30]
Discussion ForumsJump to Quoted PostQuote History
Quoted:
My EXPS drains the battery over time.  I think it is something to do with the way the buttons works.  Mind you, I'm not an EE, so I'm not positive.  What I have been told is that, since there isn't a mechanical on/off, the buttons draw a miniscule amount of power while the unit is powered down.
View Quote


I agree with this,  my EXPS is good for about 14 months on a battery.  The CR123s are so cheap these days, including SFs, I will start changing them when I change my smoke detector batteries

77
Link Posted: 11/27/2014 7:16:14 AM EST
[#31]
I'd return it in heartbeat if that is what they suggested.  Solid advice of not leaving batteries in something (anything) if you have no plans on using it as they are weak link that can ruin any type of electronics.
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