123 expiring 2018

I have a bunch of 123s that are expiring early 2018.

How much capacity have they lost? Versus new ones that are to expire in 2027 and such?

Have you read Jim's (880arm) review/test of some old CR123's?
http://flashlightguide.com/2015/05/surefire-123a-battery-long-term-test/

It would depend on many factors. I have a few Panasonic cr123 batteries from a 2009 stash that started showing less run time last year that motivated me to change my tune to 100% rechargeable for all lights. The cost of batteries for the next couple years paid for more modern and better feature lights and I won't have to store 10 years worth of batteries anymore. Ammo occupies that space now.

Just give a few test test runs on run time. Yours may be ok for much longer to come but I noticed mine being unsatisfactory after 8 years.

Slumber Pass said:

Have you read Jim's (880arm) review/test of some old CR123's?
http://flashlightguide.com/2015/05/surefire-123a-battery-long-term-test/

Click to expand...

Thanks for sharing that link , one of many reasons I like the Cr123 cell.

They should be OK but mind passivation (they wont be able to deliver the highest current initially).

I also went with the same idea as Boris74. I have switched to rechargeables that get cycled regularly, and I keep enough of them for a bad situation. Every 3 years or so I will recycle a small number and replace with newer cells to ensure my stock is in good condition. Additionally, I keep things like a solar charging kit around for really bad situations - that makes the "rechargeable only" pill easier to swallow.

That's an interesting article. Thanks for sharing.

Another thanks for the article link!

Just went through something similar recently, with stored SF 123 cells from 2006. Other than some initial passivation, they work just fine for being 11 years old.