Flashlights

OK, Thanks for the website, those are good prices.

 

I remember watching that Project Farm video before buying my last bunch of 18650 batteries. I think my problem is buying them from eBay and getting clones and not authentic brands.

I have those green batteries in that video that say Samsung on the outside of the batteries but are made in China instead of Korea.

 

I’m a fan of Streamlight. The Stinger and ProTac series are both great. The newer models use rechargeable lithium ion batteries that are interchangeable with the CR123A batteries. Price is reasonable with some starting less than $50 and up as high as you want to go.

 

Love my Streamlight stuff. No complaints with SureFire. Had an Nitecore MH25 that was babied and shit the bed, haven’t gotten around to sending it in for warranty (been 2 years now), probably because I don’t really miss using it.

 

Mtnelectronics https://www.mtnelectronics.com/
Good prices on batteries, chargers, lights, diy stuff too if you’re into that which I am. I’ve modded or made several from scratch. You can do way better than hi-lo-strobe these days.

 

Sanyo, Panasonic, LG all reputable li-ion battery manufacturers. Pass on the Chinese brands.

 

I am fine with the Chinese brands but take things in to consideration. #1 don't bother reading the MAH. They pretty much are all fake. Just get the right size and hope for the best.
18650 and 26650 batteries I have used by many brands over the years. I have had high price Japanese ones go bad as well as Chinese ones. As far a length of use the most important thing is to get a high quality charger and not use the crap that they give away with your battery purchase. If you use a cheap charger you will not get good use out of any battery.

In my personal experience with 18650 batteries this is the brand I have had the best price / life with. 8 batteries with a flashlight and a throw away charger. I charge and use the batteries daily for the flashlights but mainly for a portable fan that I use when gaming on my computer.

I feel confident enough that I bought more to replace the cells that swole up in my EGO battery and will give these ones a go to see how they compare to the originals.

 

I LOVE my Zebralight sc62w! Had it probably 4 years now and still works great.





http://zebralight.com/

Bought the batteries from their website at a reasonable price and they lasted well for a few years of heavy use, so I bought the replacements from their website again. They are unprotected, as the Zebralight lights have a protection circuit built in.

.5 lumens to 900 lumens with a single 18650 with many different programmable levels in between.

I had problems with the Fenix switches going bad and heard good things about the Zebralight so gave them a shot and have not been disappointed. They are expensive, but have "potted" circuit boards and have been very reliable.

Newer models have higher output, (up to 1300 lumens I think) but 900 has been plenty for me. More of a flood, but plenty of light for my needs, I was so impressed that I bought the AA versions (sc52) for my wife and my mom because the cheaper lights they had ended up with failing switches or terrible output.

 

It's pretty amazing that we have these little lights with so much output. 20 years ago, these little lights would have had about 90 lumens or so.

I have several Fenix lights. I've never had a problem with any of them. I'll have to check out Zebra the next time I'm thinking of buying another flashlight.

 

Do them both a favor and get some Energizer Ultimate Lithiums, alkalines will eventually leak and ruin those AA lights. The Lithiums will last longer and will never leak.

 

I’m at work I’ll post mine when I get home. My wife calls me a flashlight nerd. I don’t have to explain to you guys why I need more than 2

 

Thanks for the advice. They both have Eneloop rechargeables. I think they are Ni-cad batteries, but have been working well. We do have alkaines around the house, but they get used for things that run down quickly and get used a lot (rc car, shaver etc)

 

Bad advise. Chargers matter, cells matter. Playing fast and loose with either one is Chinese roulette.

 

Even better!

 

Can never have too many! I like having one handy at all times.

Lol!

Agreed!

 

Maybe I need to go to Vegas then and bet on black.

I have had around 100 18850s and 16 26850s so far. Of the Chinese ones I have had 6 18850s and 4 26850s go bad. That is over a 15 year period. Not one of them blew up, leaked or caused any damage. They simply quit charging.

All the others work fine and are charged and rotated in use as needed. I know which ones hold a charge/last longer, the ones I posted earlier last the best. I put them in my most used flashlights.

I also have lots of Lipo batteries for RC that would probably make you hide under your bed but again I have not had any problem with them either. I just charge and store them properly.

 

I hope you don’t live in an apt building. Tesla’s use thousands at a time but even their quality cells occasionally go carbeque. A few survivors on a boat 2 years ago found out what that losing bet can cost. 35 others never woke up again to know. So yeah, I think using the cheapest cells you can find and recommending others do the same is bad advice. Stupid, careless, reckless, dangerous, self centered, “let’s play roulette and see how long we stay lucky” bad advice. But you go ahead, just don’t do it in a building you share with others.

 

Maglite, six D cell, LED. Awesome light.

 

Like you just stated any cell can go bad. The odds are not that much different.
I got a new character for you. Kind of a mix of two others.

I worked on that boat case. A friend and co-worker had scuba dived from it many times.

 

I did trips on all 3 Dive boats, many times over the last 20 years. It always struck me how awkward the emergency exit would be and that it came out in the same space as the main bunk stair which was already more of a ladder. We got away with that arrangement for several decades but that didn’t make it a good one. There are many situations where not everyone pays the penalty for a bad idea or practice, doesn’t make it a good one though. For flashlight use good cells are available if you’re willing to go to reputable dealers like Illumn or Mtnelectronics. If you buy in bulk from unknowns and use them for packs then test each cell for capacity and charge voltage and only use well matched cells in a given pack. Quite often online sellers will offer counterfeits in both cells and packs. I found out when some 18V Makita packs died prematurely. The BMS pcb’s were devoid of chips having only the wires and solder tabs necessary to join the cells. I work in people’s houses and charge batteries there, it’s not even a question of risk, it would be irresponsible to knowingly charge such packs or buy them where it could place others at risk.