Why are there no B-cell Batteries?

Crenshaw

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its simple...cos then you

"wouldnt know when someone was stuttering"

"excuse me, can i have b-batteries"

:D

support stand up comedians

Crenshaw
 

dano

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...And this has what to do with LED flashlights?

Off topic is one thing, but WAY off topic is another, I guess...
 

allburger

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Give the guy a break, he probably had LED flashlights on the mind when he posted, or he realizes that that he wants a good answer and most people frequent the LED threads
 

portezbie

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I think if I posted about fishing methods of the eskimos that would be way off topic. As if no one has ever discussed batteries in this forum before.
 

LED-holic

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...And this has what to do with LED flashlights?

Off topic is one thing, but WAY off topic is another, I guess...
I appreciate the info the OP posted. I didn't know about these batteries at all.

Now I have more useless knowledge stuffed in my head.

I'm sure this will be moved to the batteries forum, but I don't think it was that big of a deal that it was posted here. It's not like this forum is running amok with thousands of posts a day.
 

Sir Lightalot

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Hey I saw one of those 22.5 volt batteries at a local Ace Hardware. I guess they still sell them for old radios and stuff. It looked almost exactly like a AA except it was slightly squarish instead of round.
 

Fird

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B batteries used to be for plate/grid/screen voltages in old radio sets. The A battery would light the filaments in the tubes, a high current and relatively low voltage operation for battery operated sets. Then a high DC voltage is needed to operate the plates. That's where the B+ voltage comes in, at anywhere between 22.5v and many hundreds of volts for final amplifier stages.

Obviously radios and other tube devices operated from wall current instead of batteries would need multiple transformers or at least multiple windings to supply these voltages, but the high voltage winding was still called B+.

Anyway, your B battery was a high voltage low current/capacity device.
 

linterno

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Here you can find information about why there are no B batteries.

This is what I found somewhere doing a google search:

"B batteries are no longer widely available because nothing uses them any more. Old radios used to operate on vacuum tubes that required two different batteries: an "A" battery to heat the vacuum tube, and a "B" battery that ran the rest of the radio. Improvements in technology did away with vacuum tubes in consumer electronics, which ended the need for the "A" and "B" batteries".
 

Mike Painter

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its simple...cos then you

"wouldnt know when someone was stuttering"

"excuse me, can i have b-batteries"

:D

support stand up comedians

Crenshaw

That might lead to an argument in a store run by a Mexican.

"excuse me, can i have b-battery"
"que"
"No, b-battery"
"si"
"NO I WANT A B- BATTERY."
"si, si"
...
 

lctorana

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Focus, people, the question was no "B-Batteries", but "B-cell batteries".

There ARE B-cell batteries!

Here is a 3-B-cell Energizer:
http://www.battery-force.co.uk/detail_EN3LR1001A.html

A Varta:
http://www.batterydoctor.com.au/store/view_product.php?product=Varta4912-BP5

A Chinese one:
http://www.batterydoctor.com.au/store/view_product.php?product=Varta4912-BP5

A Duracell:
http://www.batteriesplus.com.au/pd/309/144/mn1203-3lr12/


A B-cell is the same length as a "D" cell, but is a bit fatter than an "A" cell.
In full-length form, it found most use in 3.8V cycle lamps, anf is still in production today.

The WWII-era vest-pocket fisheye torches were made to take that battery, and I hope all CPF members worthy of memberhip have at least one in your collection. If not, get one. If you can't find one, keep looking.

Then, of course, there was the shorter "BF" cell (e.g. Eveready 927), same diameter, and sold in a series pair as the No.8, which powered the world-standard size indoor/bedside torch. And we all have one of those too, don't we?

We can talk about "E" cells another day...
 
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