Another rechargeable D cell option?

[Mark_Paulus]

Hi all.

I have an Elektrolumens TriStar 3x3, and in the interests of the ongoing quest to keep this thing fed, I was wondering
if something like this would work. They would need to be slightly adapted to have a positive nipple and a negative plate, but I wondered if 3 in series would work.

I have heard that the Tristar can run off of (4) C cells so the voltage should be ok.

I have 2 main questions:
How would one go about charging these things when depleted?
Any gotcha's or other things to worry about using SLAs in a hand held torch??

Thanks for any inputs.

 

[eluminator]

Lead acid batteries are heavy. You might need to hold it in both hands. Maybe a shoulder strap would be useful.

 

[markus_i]

Charging:
if you use three, buy a commercial 6V SLA charger (walwart) and build a 6V battery pack from the three cells, i.e. don't charge them separately. Otherwise, charging instructions are printed on the cells (constant voltage charging, limiting the inrush current to C/10 is nice on the cells, voltage is IIRC 2.35 V/cell).

Possible problems: the light you mentioned relies (among other things) on the interior resistance of the batteries for correct operation. Putting a different type of battery in there may either fry the LEDs or leave them quite dim. Unless you can measure what you're doing (and know how to do it right), be prepared for disappointment.

Bye
Markus