Looking for 26650 charger

[kwinter2000]

I came across this great forum and think it's the perfect place to vent my frustration and get a recommendation. I recently bought a light that uses 3 (yes, 3) 26650 cells. I've been frustrated in my search for a charger because they either don't handle enough of the cells or are underpowered and will take forever. Here's my wish list. I just don't know if it exists.

1. Ability to handle at least 3 26650 cells at the same time. For some reason, most of the 4-bay chargers will only handle 2 26650 cells in their outer bays, yet the 2-bay chargers from the same company can handle 26650s in both bays. I could use 2 separate chargers, but that is obviously not as convenient.

2. Power of at least 1.0A. The chargers I've looked at with 4 bays split the current so that charging more than 2 cells will drop it to 0.5A or even less. I'd settle for something between 0.5 and 1.0 if I had to. But charging 26650s at 0.5 could take about 10 hours by my calculations based on discherge status.

3. I don't need USB charging.

4. One of the intelligent chargers that handle Lithium as well as NiMH cells would be a bonus.

5. A couple of fingers is ok, but a whole arm and leg is too much.

Someone recommended the Enova All-40, but the review on this forum doesn't really specify whether all 4 slots can take 26650s. From the photos, its hard to tell. The specs also say that 26650s would charge at 1.0A. So if it can really hold 3 cells and charge them all at 1.0A, I think it might be a winner.

Any suggestions?

 

[ChrisGarrett]

Two Xtar VP2s, or VP1s, if you have to shave a few bucks off of the deal.

Both charge at 1A and will hold a pair of 26650s.

I just charged one of my Efest IMR 3500s last night and my VP2 has plenty of room for two.

My 4 bay NiteCore i4 v.2 will only hold two of them and then only charge at 750mA, IIRC.

Chris

 

[UnderPar]

Two Xtar VP2s, or VP1s, if you have to shave a few bucks off of the deal.

Both charge at 1A and will hold a pair of 26650s.

I just charged one of my Efest IMR 3500s last night and my VP2 has plenty of room for two.

My 4 bay NiteCore i4 v.2 will only hold two of them and then only charge at 750mA, IIRC.

Chris

Plus 1 here. You may also check Xtar website for several other models. HTH

 

[Ferdinando]

take an hobby-charger, and balance-charge all your 26xx connected in series, with the current you want

 

[kwinter2000]

Two Xtar VP2s, or VP1s, if you have to shave a few bucks off of the deal.

Both charge at 1A and will hold a pair of 26650s.

I just charged one of my Efest IMR 3500s last night and my VP2 has plenty of room for two.

My 4 bay NiteCore i4 v.2 will only hold two of them and then only charge at 750mA, IIRC.

Chris

The VP2 is on my radar screen. I was hoping the VP4 would handle it all, but I don't think it will. I would just prefer to have a single charger. The Enova ALL-80 is an 8-bay charger that would probably do it, but huge and more money.

And I actually remember reading that the NiteCore i4 splits the 750mA into both circuits, so it would actually only charge at 0.375A.

take an hobby-charger, and balance-charge all your 26xx connected in series, with the current you want

As a newbie, that is probably beyond my capabilities and I would burn my house down. But thanks for prompting me to learn more about it.

 

[ChrisGarrett]

And I actually remember reading that the NiteCore i4 splits the 750mA into both circuits, so it would actually only charge at 0.375A.

Yeah...kind of. There's a duty cycle (pulsed charging) depending on your chosen bays. You can get two cells to charge at 750mA, without having the charger pulse between them, albeit at 750mA.

I have it all written out on the back on my charger. Fast charge (non-pulsed):

Bays 1&2, 2&3, 3&4 and 1&4 for non-pulsed 'fast-charging,' is how I understand it.

Bays 1&3 and 2&4 still charge at a rate of 750mA, but one is on while the other is off, so you take twice as long to charge up identical cells in those linked bays, than you would the previous mentioned combos.

Anyhow, two NiteCore i4 v2 chargers shouldn't cost you more than $45 shipped, with the Xtar VP2s being close to $40 ea. and the Xtar VP1s being even a bit less, upon casual perusal.

I paid about $52 shipped, for my VP2 when it first hit the streets a year ago this past February.

Chris

 

[ven]

For an alternative.........the Xtar sp1,now you would need 3!!!! This will allow up to 2a charge rate...............just a suggestion

 

[LessDark]

I just ordered this charger myself, planning on using it for traveling and hiking. Now I can finally bring my 26650 batteries and use them to charge my devices if needed, without having to bring a bigger and heavier charger. Also being able to charge a 26650 at 2A is a big plus compared to the VP2 which I also have. Since these batteries have 5200mah now, it takes quite a bit of time charging them even at 1A.

For an alternative.........the Xtar sp1,now you would need 3!!!! This will allow up to 2a charge rate...............just a suggestion

 

[bladesmith3]

Opus BT-C3100 will charge 2 at a time at 2A

 

[kwinter2000]

Is charging at 2A a good idea? Or does fast charging shorten life or lead to lower charge? I think 1A would be ok for my needs. It should be able to recharge in about 5 hours. But I'll check out the Opus. Thanks

 

[LessDark]

Charging the bigger 26650 batteries at 2A is not a problem.

Is charging at 2A a good idea? Or does fast charging shorten life or lead to lower charge? I think 1A would be ok for my needs. It should be able to recharge in about 5 hours. But I'll check out the Opus. Thanks

 

[kwinter2000]

Charging the bigger 26650 batteries at 2A is not a problem.

Thanks. So that ups the ante for what I would like, but reduces my choices down to almost nil. I checked the HKJ review for the Opus BT-C3100 and it was not stellar. And although some people really like it, it is more expensive than some others with similar stats. The HKJ review is the same reason I eliminated the NiteCore TR-006 from consideration despite it listing a 1.0A charge current. I am willing to settle for 1.0A, but it has to be a decent charger. The SP1 is interesting at 2.0A and very highly regarded. But between the cost of 3 chargers and the requirement to remember to set the voltage before charging, these would have to be dedicated to just my 26650s. And it would require 3 outlets from my charging crate. Not out of the question, but certainly not optimal.

So far the VP2 (or maybe the VP4) and the Enova ALL-80 are the top contenders. The Enova would handle all of my batteries at once with room to spare and require only one outlet, but it would be slow at 0.65A. A couple of VP4s would get me to the same place using 2 outlets and would be faster, but require 2 outlets and be about 50% more expensive. Really interesting that the VP4 and the VP2 are just about the same price. But with a couple of VP4s (or the ALL-80) I could charge my 26650s and have room left for some 18650s and 14500s.

 

[ven]

As with the vp1 and vp2,these reset to 0.25a after turning off, once switched on ,requires a press to 0.5a and again to 1a every time to get to the 1a rate. The sp1 is the same other than 0.5/1a/2a

cheers ven

 

[SubLGT]

…………... The SP1 is interesting at 2.0A and very highly regarded. But between the cost of 3 chargers and the requirement to remember to set the voltage before charging, these would have to be dedicated to just my 26650s. And it would require 3 outlets from my charging crate. Not out of the question, but certainly not optimal…………..

Or you can charge 3 batteries at 2A with one SP1 plus one SP2

 

[ven]

Or you can charge 3 batteries at 2A with one SP1 plus one SP2

Forgot about the sp2...........good call

 

[kwinter2000]

Or you can charge 3 batteries at 2A with one SP1 plus one SP2

Good call. Also a little less expensive that way since the SP2 is less than double. Anyone know why the VP2 costs more than the SP2? I can't see the advantage.

 

[ven]

Digital V read out,will be more, but without going through the specs of each............

The vp2 is my fav charger by a long way,the vp1 is excellent too.

 

[kwinter2000]

You have all been very helpful. I decided to pull the trigger on the Enova ALL-80 to give it a try. If I find that it is too slow with the 26650s for my purpose, I will get one SP1 and one SP2 dedicated for them (or maybe two SP2s for only a few $ more). The Enova will handle all my other needs. Thanks to all.

 

[ven]

Thanks for letting us know your decision,be interested to see how you get on

 

[tripplec]

I have a Soshine SH-4 which is a Universal Charge.
It does all types Li-ion, LiFEPO4 & Ni-MH and a pretty good backlit display showing where its at. When does Li-ion it will indicate the capacity its at and mA put in so you can see how far down it was when you finished charging it. It has the spacing for 26650 batteries as I was going down that road as well. But decided against it for a variety of reasons. Its an excellent all round charger w/1A max current to each slot.