18650 battery possibility

[kyhunter1]

Is it possible to have a 18650 primary battery that would be have a much higher mah capacity than the rechargeable 18650? We have CR123A and RCR123. I dont see why it could not be done. My light I have on order will only use 18650 and 2 x primary cells will fry it. It would be nice to have primary cells as back up for rechargeable with 18650 only lights.

 

[jerry i h]

18650 primaries? Ain't no such thing. OTOH, depending on the geometry of your torch, you might be able to rig up a 3xAA sub for the Li-ion 18650.
Humbly suggest you carry 2 backup batts.

 

[Fallingwater]

RCR123 cells, as well as 14500s, are an adaptation to the rechargeable technology to known sizes of primary cells. In contrast, 18650 was born a rechargeable chemistry, and it's unlikely to ever change.

 

[Yoda4561]

If you want to keep some primaries on hand due to their long shelf life then I suggest some kind of battery carrier like a pelican 1020 case with foam, and a clearly marked dummy cell. Most lights designed for a single 18650 will run at reduced output on one primary with a dummy cell for a fair amount of time. If it's direct drive it'll be really dim, but if it's a boost circuit it'll prolly still be fairly bright.

 

[kyhunter1]

I had thought of the same thing since I do have a couple of dummy cells. My light has the boost circuitry, so it should work.

If you want to keep some primaries on hand due to their long shelf life then I suggest some kind of battery carrier like a pelican 1020 case with foam, and a clearly marked dummy cell. Most lights designed for a single 18650 will run at reduced output on one primary with a dummy cell for a fair amount of time. If it's direct drive it'll be really dim, but if it's a boost circuit it'll prolly still be fairly bright.