Just got 6D Maglite, Q's on Batteries

So i now have the BEAST haha, just looking at some reliable rechargables.
so the more i pay the higher the mah rating, what will this mean ? are they worth the extra investment and how far up the scale do i go ?
stock cheapos about 2500mah, next lot around 5000mah then up to 10k +
any advice or experiences ?
cheers

How do you plan to charge them? Stock cheapo batteries at about 2500 mAh will charge in a stock cheapo charger. But if you get the high quality 10,000 mAh kind, you will need a much better charger. For instance, the Energizer Family Charger (~$30) with its 200 mA charging current will take well over 50 hours to charge a 10,000 mAh battery. Can you wait 2-3 days for a charge to finish?

More mAH translates to more runtime, with the stock bulb, you could expect around 3 hours runtime on 2500mAH cells, 10,000mAH cells would run for over 12 hours. The 2500mAH cells are actually smaller cells that have a D size can wrapped around them, this results in a lighter cell, the high capacity 10AH+ cells are going to be pretty heavy.

Best option IMO is to invest in a MAHA 808 charger, and some Accupower low-self-discharge 10,000mAH D cells.

hi, thanks for the insight, obviously id get a matching charger ( also adding to the expense) but like all mags and quality flashlights its a long term thing eh ?
it will be running the terralux 300m, runtime of 2-3hrs would be good, i have no idea how much that will drain and which batts ill need for a useable run - where would you go ? still 10k ? just get the best and be done ?
thanks again for the input

Think long term. Buying a charger, like the one recommended above, can be a real investment. You will be able to charge most NiCd and NiMH batteries for your flashlights and other portable electronics. When I started I tried to go the cheap route. Now that I think I know what I'm doingI regret wasting money on the cheap stuff.

A 6D Mag can be surprisingly versatile and might last longer than my house. Not only will it hold 6D or 4F cells but with the proper adapters it will also hold 24AA cells, a bunch of C cells (haven't tried that on yet) or maybe even batteries that we don't even know about yet.

I have several 6D Mags. My two favorites have been turned into a Roar of Pelican (ROP) using the 6 D cells mentioned above and my latest monster seen here: https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/218453

Your imagination is the only limitation. Good luck.
:welcome:

This belongs in the BATTERIES section.

Hey no need for the big writing ? since i was asking about a well known incandesent light, move it fair enough but no need to be like that ?

Frustration, as a result being in a constant state of moving battery questions, has lead to larger text Don't take it personally. It's sort of an inside joke for many of us.

I made the same mistakes when I was new here! Look how far I've come!

Exactly Mdocod........

Now for the comment....what everyone is hinting here at is you have a very serious question to answer. Most of us here have answered it yes and have never enjoyed a hobby quite as much as this flashlight thing.

Are you going to be serious about this hobby, or so-so?

Serious, you absolutely MUST purchase a quality charger as a minumum or at the most, a top of the line hobby charger (what the RC people use). It has made the absolute difference in this hobby for me and as a side note, has made it easier for anything else in my house that takes batteries.

(another shameless plug to get more Voltcraft battery holders from Europe over here.....please....)

If you are going to be so-so about the hobby, go get a quality mid line charger (do some searches and you will come up with endless threads to read about chargers here) that will be more than like under 50 dollars and probably under 35 or 40. That will also make a huge difference on your participation in this hobby.

My LSD 10,000mA D sized batteries I got over a year ago are wonderful. I can charge them fairly quick with my Triton2, and they work incredibly well in my D cell flashlights that I use them in. I need to get more.....

Bob E.

zs&tas said:

Hey no need for the big writing ? since i was asking about a well known incandesent light, move it fair enough but no need to be like that ?

Click to expand...

I actually meant that as a sort of half-joke, but it has obviously backfired - my apologies! As mdocod indicated, it certainly wasn't meant in any way personally to you. I should have picked a more appropriate thread for it, from someone who has been around here a while and could be expected to know where things should be posted.

hey no probs, i sorta guessed u could be joking but you never know ? i was also extremelly tired when i read it - different time zone - i usually let stuff like that go ! i apologize as well

anyways thanks for the input everybody, im reading up on chargers and researching now, thing is it always starts as a small interest hobbie and tumbles from there dont it ?
can anyone recomend a good 'average' price charger - above run of the mill to run average batteries with good average runtimes ? or just fire some names at me to go research thanks.

C or D size NiMH batteries always cost several times more than AA size. The AccuPower ones that mdocod suggested seem to be well regarded.

As for C and D size chargers, AccuManager seems to be at the lower end of the price range, Maha more in the mid-range, and at the top end you are looking at hobby-type chargers such as Bantam, Hyperion or Schultz.

Be aware that the hobby chargers are aimed at pack charging rather than individual cell charging. This is fine, but requires a bit more knowledge from the user, and more effort to connect up the cells. The AccuManager and Maha chargers are more suitable if you just want to drop in the batteries and walk away.

Dollar for dollar, here's a charger that's hard to beat:
http://www.batteryjunction.com/md-3000-charger.html

However, it's only going to charge 4 cells at a time, so that adds complication to a 6 cell setup. The MAHA 808 is certainly the preferred choice in your situation.