Eneloops in EDC and D cell maglite

I'm carrying a Lux Pro LP290 (2xaa), for an EDC flashlight. I bought 4 1900 mah eneloop batteries and the bq-cc17 charger bundle from amazon for it. I also keep a 2xD cell maglite in my truck for a better throwing (light output and physically... lol) light. I actually have 2 of these d cell maglites. I'm wanting to get some 3xaa to d cell adapters and run 6 eneloop aa batteries in them. I use my flashlights daily and run through batteries pretty quickly. I was thinking about buying another bq-cc17 and the 4 eneloops it comes with. For $18 it's a bargain, imo.

My question is, do I need a charger that can fully discharge the batteries from time to time to help keep them in top shape? Or is it not necessary on these new LSD nimh batteries? The bq-cc17 is a good smart charger from everything I've seen, it's a little slow but that's fine for me, I figure I'll get more cycles at a slower charging rate anyways.

If I do need a charger/analyzer to keep my batteries going strong, what would you all recommend for nimh batteries? I only have aa/aaa batteries right now, but wouldn't mind having a charger capable of charging D cell batteries if I decide to pick some up later instead of the aa to d cell adapters. D battery charging capability isn't a requirement for me at this time, but I would like having the option.

fivemega said:

If you already have 2D M*g, then use 6 fully recharged Eneloops in pair of these battery holders and 6D bulb. 5D bulb will be brighter but bulb life will be short.
Make sure battery holders you are buying are connected in series.
These are cheapest option for 6 Eneloops but there are also many more options for brighter 2D at higher cost.

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I was gonna run them in parallel. Basically just a replacement for the standard d cell batteries.
Like these, I can't hyperlink from my phone on here.
Aobiny Battery Case 2x Parallel Battery Adapter Holder 1.5V Output Case Box Convert 3 AA To 1 D Size https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0746BFH73/?tag=cpf0b6-20

Not sure if you have a costco near you or not but they are selling an eneloop package including 4 D cell adapters (1 cell per adapter I believe), 4 C cell adapters, 4 AAA cells, 6 AA cells, a smart charger with a USB output, and a carry case for the whole thing. $30. I guess you already have a charger, but if you are planning on running 6 D cell batteries the carriers provided would get you most of the way there, and you would have the 6 AA cells.

I can't find where i read it now but I am pretty sure I read just use eneloops, don't worry about cycling or conditioning them. Might take a look at the eneloop 101 website, there is a link to it in the sticky in this sub forum, or just search eneloop 101

sbslider said:

Not sure if you have a costco near you or not but they are selling an eneloop package including 4 D cell adapters (1 cell per adapter I believe), 4 C cell adapters, 4 AAA cells, 6 AA cells, a smart charger with a USB output, and a carry case for the whole thing. $30. I guess you already have a charger, but if you are planning on running 6 D cell batteries the carriers provided would get you most of the way there, and you would have the 6 AA cells.

I can't find where i read it now but I am pretty sure I read just use eneloops, don't worry about cycling or conditioning them. Might take a look at the eneloop 101 website, there is a link to it in the sticky in this sub forum, or just search eneloop 101

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There is a costco near me, but I'm not a member...can you even shop there without a membership? I want to use the d cell adapters that hold 3 batteries each in parallel, 6 aa batteries in place of 2 d cell batteries. It's 3 aa batteries in each adapter in parallel, then the adapters will be stacked in series in the 2D maglite. I would have triple the battery capacity over the eneloop adapters.

TwiceFuzed said:

I was gonna run them in parallel. Basically just a replacement for the standard d cell batteries.

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If you use parallel battery holders, original 2D bulb will work fine but if you decided to get brighter output using 6D bulb, then serial holders will be needed. 6D bulb with 6 series Eneloops is much brighter than 2D bulb with 2S/3P Eneloops. The trade off is run time.
Again, there are more options to choose from. For example 5 Eneloops with M*g Charger bulb. THis set up is even brighter than 6D bulb.

fivemega said:

If you use parallel battery holders, original 2D bulb will work fine but if you decided to get brighter output using 6D bulb, then serial holders will be needed. 6D bulb with 6 series Eneloops is much brighter than 2D bulb with 2S/3P Eneloops. The trade off is run time.
Again, there are more options to choose from. For example 5 Eneloops with M*g Charger bulb. THis set up is even brighter than 6D bulb.

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I'd prefer the runtime over the brightness. I could get higher capacity D rechargeable batteries to extend the runtime further, but I like the idea of the 6xaa setup, my maglite is just a backup that stays in my truck, I could steal the batteries for my EDC light if I needed to. With the 3x parallel I could steal a battery (or two if needed) from each adapter and still use both lights if I needed to.


Has anybody here had good results (over a long time period) with just using eneloops with a smart charger and never fully cycling (conditioning or refreshing) them, just recharging whenever it's convenient?

TwiceFuzed said:

There is a costco near me, but I'm not a member...can you even shop there without a membership? I want to use the d cell adapters that hold 3 batteries each in parallel, 6 aa batteries in place of 2 d cell batteries. It's 3 aa batteries in each adapter in parallel, then the adapters will be stacked in series in the 2D maglite. I would have triple the battery capacity over the eneloop adapters.

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You can often get in without a membership, but you need the membership to purchase items. Maybe you could go with a friend or co-worker?

I like the idea of D cell adapters that hold 3 AAs in parallel, much closer to D cell capacity that way. The ones that come in the package I described take only 1 cell. Not going to get much life out of a AA trying to do the job of a D cell, that's for sure. But if you don't mind recharging often not such a big deal I suppose. I found someone on ebay who sells a 3 AA to 1 D converter for $4 each, or maybe a bit less if you buy several. My wife has a 3D maglite, I am tempted to convert these to eneloops . . .

sbslider said:

You can often get in without a membership, but you need the membership to purchase items. Maybe you could go with a friend or co-worker?

I like the idea of D cell adapters that hold 3 AAs in parallel, much closer to D cell capacity that way. The ones that come in the package I described take only 1 cell. Not going to get much life out of a AA trying to do the job of a D cell, that's for sure. But if you don't mind recharging often not such a big deal I suppose. I found someone on ebay who sells a 3 AA to 1 D converter for $4 each, or maybe a bit less if you buy several. My wife has a 3D maglite, I am tempted to convert these to eneloops . . .

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I'll probably just stick with amazon for now. I might get these, or these, along with some more eneloops and the bq-cc17 charger. I've read that the EBL nimh batteries are decent, I might try a set of them at some point. I have some older Rayovac AA rechargeables (1350 mah I think) that I'll run in my 2D that I keep at home and rarely use. I don't wanna buy more batteries than I realistically need, they only last a few years, I'd rather use a set of batteries heavily and then replace them with a fresh set a couple years down the road rather than have a bunch of cells sitting around degrading on the basis of time rather than use. I always have extra alkalines around if I need them in a pinch.

looks like you found a better deal on the adapters, nice job.

As far as the eneloops go, they should last more than a few years, but that's not a reason to buy more than you need. I will say I found a couple AA eneloops in the battery recycle bin at work that I have been using for some time. I have paired them with two new eneloops in my Thrunite TN4A.

But I have also found eneloops in the recycle bin that are not longer good.

If you want to find out how someone who has lots of eneloops handles them, see this post and ask the person about them.

Another thread about long lasting eneloops.

sbslider said:

looks like you found a better deal on the adapters, nice job.

As far as the eneloops go, they should last more than a few years, but that's not a reason to buy more than you need. I will say I found a couple AA eneloops in the battery recycle bin at work that I have been using for some time. I have paired them with two new eneloops in my Thrunite TN4A.

But I have also found eneloops in the recycle bin that are not longer good.

If you want to find out how someone who has lots of eneloops handles them, see this post and ask the person about them.

Another thread about long lasting eneloops.

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Its not a good idea to mix older and newer batteries, the older batteries will deplete before the newer ones, if overdischarged, the weaker cells can reverse charge and potentially vent....then your flashlight has effectively just turned into a pipe bomb if it has a sealed battery compartment. Just keep them topped up if you're gonna keep using them, as long as all the batteries are sufficiently charged you shouldn't have any issues.

TwiceFuzed said:

Its not a good idea to mix older and newer batteries, the older batteries will deplete before the newer ones, if overdischarged, the weaker cells can reverse charge and potentially vent....then your flashlight has effectively just turned into a pipe bomb if it has a sealed battery compartment. Just keep them topped up if you're gonna keep using them, as long as all the batteries are sufficiently charged you shouldn't have any issues.

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YIKES! I had forgotten this, thanks for the reminder. Just swapped out those batteries, and installed the new ones I just got. The ones just removed were tracking pretty close, but they will be relegated to back up duty. No sense pushing my luck here.

I ordered the stuff listed below just now, I'll let you all know how the 3aa to d-cell adapters work in my maglites when I get them. I decided on the Amazon basics AA rechargeable batteries for my extra 2D maglite that stays around the house, they were pretty cheap at $1.73 each and rated at 1000 cycles/1900 mah so I thought I'd give them a try. I already have one of the Panasonic bq-cc17 chargers and the 4 white AA eneloop batteries it came with, so this gives me the capability to charge 8 batteries at a time. 2 of the eneloops will go in my EDC light and the other 6 will go in my truck maglite. I bought the amazon AAA rechargeables for my headlamps, they were just about $1.50 Each.

AmazonBasics AA Rechargeable Batteries (8-Pack) Pre-charged $13.84


AmazonBasics AAA Rechargeable Batteries (8-Pack) Pre-charged $11.99


DSLRKIT 3AA(LR6) to D Size Parallel Battery Convertor Adapter Holder (pack of 12) $13.90


Panasonic K-KJ17MCA4BA Advanced Individual Cell Battery Charger Pack with 4AA eneloop 2100 Cycle Rechargeable Batteries (4 pack) $17.99

I got my second bq-cc17 charger with 4 eneloops (white 1900 mah) and my 8 1900 mah amazon basics batteries today. These are the black ones that are made in Japan, they are indistinguishable from my white (4th gen I believe) eneloops aside from being in a different wrapper. I charged them all and I am now waiting on my 3xAA to D adapters to arrive. They are supposed to be here Saturday.

I really like the simplicity of these chargers, just pop them in there and forget it, when the lights go out you're good to go. They are smart chargers that individually charge each cell, you can charge 1,2,3 or 4 batteries. I also like that they don't trickle charge, they just stop and turn off when they're done. A good charger is in my opinion the difference between loving rechargeable batteries and hating them.

I was watching a video last night on YouTube of a woman complaining about how all of the rechargeable batteries she had bought were bad, some of them had got so hot that they were melting the wrappers, she had tried Duracell, white eneloops, eneloop pros and rayovac. She said that they would only do good for the first couple of charges and then they wouldn't even run her camera for more than a few minutes. Then she goes on to tell about the wonderful energizer charger she is using, she puts them in and waits for the (single) light to go off.... it's a dumb charger with a backup timer. This lady is cooking her batteries in a dumb charger until the timer shuts the charger off and then complaining about her "bad batteries". Why do they even sell dumb chargers anymore? Most people are too lazy to actually learn about how things work, why not make things as idiot proof as possible? I guess this way they get to sell more batteries.

TwiceFuzed said:

I really like the simplicity of these chargers, just pop them in there and forget it, when the lights go out you're good to go. They are smart chargers that individually charge each cell, you can charge 1,2,3 or 4 batteries.

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as well as combinations of AA and AAA cells at the same time. great, simple charger.

looking forward to hearing how your eneloops perform in the D adapters in your maglites

I'm pretty sure the Amazon basics are rewrapped eneloops. Just maybe a previous generation of the eneloop. I might be wrong though...

JoeRodge said:

I'm pretty sure the Amazon basics are rewrapped eneloops. Just maybe a previous generation of the eneloop. I might be wrong though...

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I've read that they are rewrapped 2nd gen eneloops, they look identical to my 4th gen eneloops though. In all reality it doesn't matter to me, the black amazon basics say 1000 cycles and my white eneloops say 2100 cycles.... but in all reality I'll probably lose or damage them long before I use up all the cycles. I have several older rechargeables that are getting dented on the negative end from getting dropped and beat around in my flashlights. They'll make me money if they just last a year. I'm on my third recharge in my EDC light since I got my first set of eneloops and charger in the last week of December. If I was using primary's, I'd be replacing them every week. The energizers I was using are about $0.50 a piece, so these are saving me about a dollar a week in batteries just for my EDC light.

TwiceFuzed said:

Its not a good idea to mix older and newer batteries, the older batteries will deplete before the newer ones, if overdischarged, the weaker cells can reverse charge and potentially vent....then your flashlight has effectively just turned into a pipe bomb if it has a sealed battery compartment. Just keep them topped up if you're gonna keep using them, as long as all the batteries are sufficiently charged you shouldn't have any issues.

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That's definitely good advice, to make sure not to kill the old batteries. But, you're not going to be able to create an Eneloop bomb. You might be able to get them to vent, but they don't explode.

Lithium-ion batteries are the ones to worry about, especially in series if you use unprotected cells.

WalkIntoTheLight said:

That's definitely good advice, to make sure not to kill the old batteries. But, you're not going to be able to create an Eneloop bomb. You might be able to get them to vent, but they don't explode.

Lithium-ion batteries are the ones to worry about, especially in series if you use unprotected cells.

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I never said the batteries would explode, but if you vent them in an airtight flashlight or enclosure, the gas/pressure has to go somewhere.

TwiceFuzed said:

I never said the batteries would explode, but if you vent them in an airtight flashlight or enclosure, the gas/pressure has to go somewhere.

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But the gas doesn't explode, so it provides no more pressure in a sealed light, than it does inside the battery itself. It's not going to blow apart a flashlight, like a lithium-ion battery can do in thermal runaway. You might end up with bloated switch covers, and your light might be wrecked.