Here's One for You Troubleshooters

[2LZ]

Wife has tons of battery-powered (mostly AA) decorative lanterns and candles. The lanterns look old fashioned, glow when they're on and have one of those fake flames that wiggle around to deflect the light so it "flickers".

You can always tell when the batteries are dying because the little plastic flame gets really slow. So, Mrs. 2LZ proceeded to change batteries yesterday. I get home....

"The Duracells don't work in the lanterns. Can you check it out for me?"

This morning, I grab my DVOM. Obviously, my first thought was that maybe some dead batteries got put back into the pack on a night filled with adult beverages, or that maybe she slid a battery in backwards, etc....

I test the "dead" batteries she took out of the lanterns. .8V out of 1.5. I put them back into the lantern (four of them), turn the lantern on. It glowed and the fake flame wiggled slowly. Ok... The lantern works.

I take the dead batteries out and put in a group of supposedly new Durocells. Twist the "on/off" knob....nothing.

I take out the Durocells to check voltage. After all, they could be old, dead ones by accident. Nope.... 1.6V on all four.

I checked the little connectors and springs. Everything is in its place as it should be and no, no batteries have previously leaked in the lanterns. All connections clean. I put the original dead (.8V) batteries back in, the lantern works, albeit weakly. Replace the new, known-good, Durocells.....lantern does nothing. WTH???