Anyone have $40G I can borrow?

Banshee

Enlightened
Joined
Oct 11, 2002
Messages
388
I'd like to purchase a PALLET or Surefire 123's direct form the factory...but its gonna cost me a few bucks more than I thought :
http://www.surefire.com/cgi-bin/main/co_disp/displ/prrfnbr/885/sesent/00

/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

Lets all pitch in and do a GP!! Who wants the pleasure of repacking all these red beauties ! (jest kiddin' guys)

this is what Sf has to say about their new battery prices !

How can we sell a premium-quality battery for $1.05 that outperforms other major brands selling for as much as $8.00? The answer is simple…those other companies charge much higher margins because they have to cover the expense of major media ad campaigns (drum-beating bunnies don't come cheap), displays in mega-store chains, and all the other costs associated with selling a commodity at the highest possible profit.

We (SureFire) have a different approach. We are in the business of making the world's finest flashlights. Our lights are extremely bright-so bright that the police use them to momentarily blind criminals during raids and arrests. To achieve that level of brightness you need a high-energy power source, which is why, over 15 years ago, we developed the first flashlight powered by 123A lithium batteries.

The first thing people would say when they tried one of our flashlights was, "Wow, that is bright!" The next thing out of their mouth—after their vision returned—was, "$8.00 for a single battery! Are you nuts?" So, as soon as we grew large enough to buy batteries in volume, we decided to remove the only drawback to owning one of our flashlights—the cost of batteries.

Our engineers tested every major brand of 123A battery until they settled on the one with the best performance characteristics for high-drain devices (like high-performance flashlights, cameras, flashes, etc.). Now, one of Japan's leading battery manufacturers produces SureFire brand batteries for us by the millions, and we are passing those economies of scale on to you. We buy in volume, have a minimal mark-up, and keep marketing and distribution costs down by selling primarily over the Internet. After all, we are not in the battery business, we make flashlights.

Making premium-quality 123A lithium batteries available at a reasonable cost makes our customers happy and helps us to sell more flashlights. And, when you purchase a SureFire 123A lithium battery, you can rest assured that it is one of the safest and most reliable brands available for use in flashlights, cameras and any other high-drain electronic device.
 

MR Bulk

Flashaholic
Joined
Aug 12, 2002
Messages
6,059
Location
Hawaii
1,540 pounds??? Hmmm, what's the shipping cost come to? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 

IlluminatingBikr

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Feb 26, 2003
Messages
2,320
Forget 12 or even 72. I found my new source for batteries! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 

Darkaway

Enlightened
Joined
Nov 26, 2002
Messages
242
Location
Valencia, Calif.
Hey, that's only $26.18 per pound, far less than the cost than the cost of some good lobster tails. Sign me up for 6 pallets!!!
 

Xrunner

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Aug 21, 2002
Messages
1,608
Location
Colorado
I wonder how many 123's CPF members go through in a month or a year? Maybe a group buy? /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif

-Mike
 

batterystation

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Joined
May 6, 2003
Messages
428
Location
West Plains MO
Hilarious to see that they claim to be superior to Duracell considering they are made by Duracell! Well, Sanyos are MUCH better than Sanyos.
/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/poke2.gif
 

S4MadMan

Enlightened
Joined
Dec 29, 2002
Messages
638
Location
Anaheim, CA
[ QUOTE ]
MXDan said:
PayPal sent. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif

[/ QUOTE ]


LMAO!!! /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 

Cougar_Allen

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Joined
Sep 28, 2003
Messages
79
Location
Pirate's Cove
Are they still made by Duracell? I've seen a number of posts here and elsewhere on the net suggesting Surefire brand is now made by Energizer. Apparently the change in manufacturer coincided with the change in price.

-Cougar :{)
 

snuffy

Enlightened
Joined
Oct 29, 2002
Messages
487
Location
Indy
I heard they were made by Ray-o-Vac. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/dedhorse.gif Always wanted to use that one. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 

dano

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Aug 11, 2000
Messages
3,881
Location
East Bay, Cali.
Duracell doesn't OEM to other companies.

The SF and Ray-o-Vac cells are identical in appearance (besides labels).

--dan
 

Skyline

Enlightened
Joined
Aug 17, 2000
Messages
755
Location
New Jersey
Considering that none of Energizer, Duracell, and Rayovac have offices in Japan, I would have to say it's not them.

Matsushita? Sanyo? Toshiba? Sony?
 

Ray_of_Light

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
May 11, 2003
Messages
1,147
Location
West Midlands, U.K.
I try to buy 123s in bulk, about 50 a month. Sure, I would feel quite safe with such a pallet of 123, for quite, quite long time...

Anthony
 

Floating Spots

Enlightened
Joined
Aug 7, 2002
Messages
667
Location
Elkhart, IN
[ QUOTE ]
dano said:
Duracell doesn't OEM to other companies.

The SF and Ray-o-Vac cells are identical in appearance (besides labels).

--dan

[/ QUOTE ]

Actaully, until now, I have taken everyone's word on this.
I now have a cross section of batteries including Surefire, Duracell, Energizer E2, and Rayovac.

Here is my assessment. Personally I believe that they are Energizer (possibly E2) cells.

Surefire Features Of Interest:
- Hexagonal Top Plastic Plate Cut
- 2 Small Holes in the Positive Terminal
- Blue Plastic Washer on the Negative Side (Under the Shrink)

While my Rayovac's match the top two, they are missing the <font color="blue"> blue </font> washer. Only my Energizer E2 batteries have this negative blue washer.

Thoughts?
What else an I missing?
 

grcmptrnrd

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Jul 14, 2003
Messages
25
Location
Detroit area, Michigan
In addition to what Floating Spots said, the scratches on the negative terminal from manufacturing match perfectly with Energizer E2 (very edge, under blue washer)
 

Spectre

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Joined
Oct 2, 2002
Messages
123
Location
Oslo, Norway
I compared my SF 123s with my other brand 123s, and found out that my Panasonic "Power Lithium" CR123A's are very similar:
- Hexagonal Top Plastic Plate Cut
- 2 Small Holes in the Positive Terminal
- Blue Plastic Washer on the Negative Side (Under the Shrink)
- Even the wrapping has the same texture (but not print /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif ) and attachment.

CR123_top.jpg

CR123_bottom.jpg

(The black ring on the bottom of the batteries is my way of marking used/empty batteries).
 

Floating Spots

Enlightened
Joined
Aug 7, 2002
Messages
667
Location
Elkhart, IN
Hmmm....
Interestingly enough, my Energizer batteries say manufactured in the USA for Energizer. I know its semantics, but why wouldn't they say manufactured by Energizer?
Do the Panasonics say made in the USA?
 
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