Anyone else make the switch to only AAA/AA?

[speedsix]

With the exception of my Surefire tac light mounted on my nightstand pistol which uses CR123s, I have decided to make the change to only AAA/AA and the rechargeable once I order some more.

I am done with having to find and buy batteries for lights that I don't use in anything else. These include the C and D cells in my old maglights and the CR123s in my flashlights with the one exception of my tac light that doesn't leave the house much and doesn't get a lot of runtime to run down the batteries. I can manage to keep it fed with CR123s and have a spare set standing by for it.

For my headlamps and flashlights that I take out of the house and use camping, I want AAA/AA so I can buy them at any out of the way gas station that might be near the trails or remote location I visit. CR-123s and C/Ds cells are not sold at some smaller hillbilly stores because they carry the bare minimum. Often they will have AA/AAA and nothing else in some of the really backwards gas stations I have seen.

I am into flashlights but not having to worry about where to get a special size is one less thing to think about and that makes life a little easier.

I never need super power from my lights anyway. I can understand a cop who needs to blind someone or whatever but I often find the brightest setting too bright for me in my AAA/AA lights anyway.

 

[carrot]

Nope. I have a healthy mix of CR123A, AA and AAA lights, but by and large I prefer my CR123A lights. I haven't yet encounted a situation where I needed to actually buy batteries at a store.

I prefer the high density energy afforded by CR123A, which gives me a brighter, longer lasting light in a lighter, smaller package. The only downside is cost of batteries, which is pennies compared to what I've spent on acquiring lights so it hardly matters anyway.

I find alkaline incredibly frustrating in most high-output lights, and I see no reason to use my NiMH (mostly reserved for game controllers) on flashlights I don't use often.

To get the same kind of output or runtime as a CR123A you need two AA batteries. For the length and weight of two AA batteries, you can have three CR123A, which can increase your output or runtime by a whole lot more. So it's just common sense for me. CR123A is clearly a better battery format, except in the single instance where availability is an issue.

And for what its worth, my EDC is only 50-70 lumens max.

 

[Anak]

I am with you on the value of only AAA/AA dependency.

Not only are those batteries most readily available, but so to are chargers for them. I have yet to see a foldable, backpacking style solar charger for CR123s, but I know I can easily find one for AA, and I can probably make it work for AAA if need be.

I also like the fact that I can pull AA batteries from another piece of equipment if need be.

The CR123s may have some performance benefits, but until they become more commonly used I am not sure I want to be dependant on them.

 

[jbrett14]

No.

Although I understand what you are saying, it has never happened to me in real life. Most of the places I go for camping & hiking are no where near a store anyway. Being prepared for the number of days I am gone is the key to not running out of battery power.

As far as lights used inside the house, I prefer rechargeable AA's. But for camping, hiking, etc., my experience has been better with 123's (more runtime, etc.).

Having said this, it probably would be easier for me to use nothing but AA's while camping\hiking\kayaking, simply because that is what my camera & GPS use. Because of this, I end up taking plenty of both, AA's for the camera & GPS, and 123's for the headlights.

I usually end up taking extra AA\AAA lights anyway, just to have more options in case something get's lost or damaged.

Interesting thread. Curious to see comments from others.

Jonny

 

[carrot]

For me, the ability to restock on AA's or AAA's is mostly theoretical. I have never actually needed to buy batteries in a store.


However, I have made one concession to the availability of AA's, because I carry an AA flashlight (Peak El Capitan) in my bag, and my Saint is capable of using AA's when no 123's are available.

 

[RAGE CAGE]

I kind of am evolving in the opposite direction- used to be AA/AAA only with Eneloops and Duraloops and Lithium,Alkaline Primaries. I still use them, but have aquired a new EDC that takes a single 123. It is my only Ti light- and the combination of brightness, light weight and run time are hard to beat. I purchased a pelican case with the 15 foam cell cut out holder and keep it full of Energizer and Surefire 123's. I am trying to migrate away from Li-Ions for now with the exception of my single AW IMR 18650 light. For a short term power outage- sometimes all of the AA/AAA cells are off the shelf first and odd cells (for non-flashaholics) like Cr123's likely will remain at the bigger stores, camera stores, etc. For a long term SHTF situation- scavanged AA/AAA might be the only cells available.
Don't rule out CR2 of N cell lights either.

 

[travelinman]

Nope, as a matter of fact I'm expanding my rechargeable lithium stock. Going to try some little 10440s and some 14500s as well as getting some more 18650s and rcr123s now that I've got my tiny little travel charger that will charge everything! :twothumbs

 

[andrewnewman]

Not to strike too discordant a note but I have to admit I have never fully understood the reasoning behind the "single battery size" or "single battery chemistry" position. Variety and heterogeneity are the spices of life. To be fair, my illumination needs includes some light sources that run off of household current and during a power outage my flashlights and my oil lamps compliment each other.

Picking one battery type is sort of like deciding on a canonical automobile tire size so that all my cars have interchangeable rubber. Life is just too short (my life is anyway!).

To use another example, my home is primarily heated with home heating oil (being in New England and all) but is supplemented by a wood stove. The wood stove serves as a heat backup if the power goes out. In addition there are a few "emergency" resistance heaters if need be (obviously not for a power outage!). I also have a portable propane heater that is useful during emergency winter car repairs in the unheated garage. Keeping a cylinder of propane around isn't much of a headache and the flexibility is helpful.

Anyway, just some (rambling) thoughts.

 

[mcnair55]

Living in the UK is far easier to use AA/AAA rather than other cells,widely available and normally cheap enough.I actually buy all my batteries via the internet as I tend to use AA/AAA in Lithium for the collection and eneloop type for my EDC,s.

I have just 1 running on 123 and will buy a spare for that when I see 1 at a decent price.I have only 1 c cell which I have just ordered a cell converter which then will take AA instead,only gets little use as it it is a rather large light and was bought on impulse rather than a need.

I have a few lights which take coin cells and have spares ready for all these.

To round up I would still buy a 123 cell light if I really wanted it but would rather go like the op and stick to AA/AAA.

 

[bfksc]

I have decided to make the change to only AAA/AA and the rechargeable once I order some more.

I went with an AA based light because I already have lots of Duraloops on hand to use in the light and no CR123 devices. And I can always use Alkalines in a pinch, although I don't plan to do that as I usually plan ahead and have extra Duraloops with me to change out the cells. Since buying a Quark AAx2 light, I have put aside all my other lights as this little sucker does it all. It has high output when needed with a fully regulated circuit to provide constant brightness at all power leves. It has 4 lower brightness levels as well as strobe/beacon/SOS modes.

With several brightness levels, it's easy to find a setting for your use and you get great runtime with rechargeables. My light at Low level will run for 5 days straight on a pair of Duraloops if needed. Even at Med level which is more than bright enough for camping/hiking, it will run for 24 hours - that's 6 nights of 4 hours of constant use. With two sets of cells, that's about two weeks of evening light. In practical use with a campfire for ambient light, it's more like two months from the flashlight.
:thumbsup:

 

[bansuri]

If you REALLY want a light source WTSHTF then you should have a light for each type of battery.
For EDC it makes less sense to use a cr123 unless you carry a few spare batteries in the trunk of your vehicle. If something terrible happens when you're away from your house you'll need to be prepared.
Regarding the C and D maglights, I still keep my 2D LED Mag in a drawer with some AA>D adapters in them. Amazing how well those little AAs work in there! They work in my kid's toys also.
Thanks to CPF I've overcome my hatred of AAA lights recently and carry a Liteflux LF2X as my main EDC.
So, yeah, I love me some AA/AAA but I'll never get rid of my Novatac or Ra Twisty!
Always carry spares and a backup in the trunk.
1=0. 2=1.

 

[Robin24k]

I have plenty of AA's around for other reasons, so it's the logical choice for me. My D-cell Maglites have been converted to use 4AA and 6AA, respectively, since they're the only devices to use D-cells. I don't mind spending money on AA's (such as Duraloops and chargers) because even though most likely they will be used in lights, they could also be used elsewhere if such a need arises (I've emptied out my 3D Mag to power some Wiimotes when the rechargeable packs died :D).

I will never find myself scrambling to buy batteries because I keep plenty of AA and AAA rotating in stock, and I'm not afraid to do so because lots of other devices use them too (although lithiums are for lights only ;)), but CR123 are just too expensive and would only be used for lights, for which I cannot justify introducing a new battery type at all. If I get rechargeable CR123, I'll need to get a charger and batteries, and that's even more money spent for something with a limited use.

 

[ZMZ67]

While I think it is a good idea to have some AAA/AA lights I also prefer CR123s.CR123 lights are more capable and compact than AA lights.AAA lights are nice for their size but don't offer the power of CR123s.
RAGE CAGE pointed out that AAs are often hard to find during a crisis.When we had a bad ice storm a few years ago all the AA and D batteries were sold out in short order.You may be able to salvage AAs easily but many "salvaged" batteries are likely to be too depleted to work very long in high performance EDCs,not to mention the fact that alkalines often leak!I keep a reasonable supply of CR123s at home and in my van/truck so it is unlikely that I will have to buy them at a store.In the rare event I do have to purchase CR123s at local retail it would only be 1 or 2 batteries anyway so the outrageous price is not that big a deal.Even though I am not a fan of alkalines I still like some of the C and D cell lights for use at home for the greater battery capacity.Limiting lights to AAA/AA only just cuts out too many of the best lights available IMO.

Just my two cents YMMV.

 

[Paul_in_Maryland]

I switched from only Li-ion to only NiMH and NiZn AA

I've switched from "only lithium-ion" to "only 1.2V and 1.7V rechargeable AA." My reasons were several. The underlying reason was that I was ready to make the move from incans to LEDs, making lower-voltage chemistries more feasible.

• I was feeling stressed out by my inability to decide on a single cell length and width. Moving to 18xxx cells made my 17xxx bodies useless. And 18xxx cells and bodies can in too many competing lengths and widths, requiring workarounds like spacers and dummies for both flashlights and chargers. My preferred cell brand, Wolf Eyes, was too long, or too wide, for 18650 bodies like Solarforce. AW's cells were too short to make contact in a Wolf Eyes body. And how can you rationally pre-position spares in coats and belt pouches when you're not sure whether you'll be using cells with a length of 50mm, 65, or 68? 17.x mm width or 18.x?
  With AAs, length and width are nearly universal from brand to brand, from chemistry to chemistry.

• I found myself worrying about li-ion safety--charging, storing. What if I accidentally let two cells touch a coin in my pocket? Maybe my fears were unfounded, but they gnawed at me.

• I didn't want to find myself boarding a plane with Li-Ion cells that would be confiscated.

• In a pinch, I could raid AA cells from my remote controls. Or vice versa.

• LEDs had become efficient and close enough to mimicking incan's CRI (color rendering index).

[/LIST]Nickel-zinc AA cells offered 1.6V or 1.7V under load, making 2AA competitive.
[/LIST]

• LSD (low-self-discharge) NiMH AA cells like Eneloops rivaled lithium ion in shelf life.

• 3AA bodies had become available from FiveMega and Dereelight, making 3.6V within reach from NiMH.

• I wanted to know that whatever light I was carrying, I could lend to someone safely, or give it away in an emergency, confident that the new user would have no problems finding and using cells.

• probably another reason or two that I haven't thought of.

 

[skyfire]

I strictly only have cr123 and AA lights. i went with cr123a because of the size/output. i use my lights for work 5 or 6 nights a week, so rechargeables were an obvious choice, but do have a stock of primaries. i should of gone with 18650 because its seems the best for using rechargeables and some lights do have the option of using 2 primaries, i probably will buy a 18650 setup in the near future.
i went with cr123a because of the light choices i have, option of primaries, and rechargeables, and just never liked the 2xAA format.
i do value my single AA lights, because i know they will come in handy in any situation, but also try never to use them with alkalines.
i think being prepared is best, i have a stock of AA and cr123a. AA are used for so much more devices, and wii controllers really eat them up. so there are times when i am out of AA batteries without knowing. but my cr123a batteries, nobody touches except me :thumbsup:

 

[Flying Turtle]

Most of my lights are AAA or AA, but over the years there have been a few exceptions. First was an Arc LSL. I just couldn't resist it when Peter was closing them out for $60. Since then I've only added three more (P2D, L1, QMini 123). I've no plans to go exclusively with AAA or AA lights, but they are my preference.

Geoff

 

[LupinIII]

For me, I always thought AA/AAA's were more practical, so up until a few weeks ago, the few nice lights I did have (L2D and Jetbeam Jet I MKII) all ran off AA's. They're widely available and more important for me, relatively inexpensive.

But now that I've done some extensive reading on rechargeable Li-ons, I took the jump to other battery types such as RCR123 and 18650. This was as much for performance as it was the fact that all the cool lights are in CR123 - I definitely agree with andrewnewman's point about variety.

 

[burntoshine]

i sort of did until the Quark Minis came out.

in the last year i was buying all AA lights. bought a Quark AA, D10, LF5XT, TK40, TK20, Zebralight H501w... (recently bought 2 Quark Mini NW AAs)then i found the Liteflux LF2XT; bought 2 of those and some more Fenix LODs.

anyhoo, i now have mostly AA and AAA lights, though i've sold a lot of lights in the past year so i can buy other lights that i want more. i've been buying all neutral white (with one very recent exception...).

recent cr123 purchases: Quark Mini NW 123, Quark Mini Ti NW 123, Quark Mini cool white 123 (on its way), Quark RGB NW

if nothing else, the Quark Mini 123 is a great reason to keep those little powerful cells around; absolutely amazing little light!

 

[kramer5150]

By limiting oneself to only one cell type, you are missing out on a LOT of great designs. For example, limiting yourself to only AA/AAA you are missing out on the majority of MCE and P7 lights, and no one makes an SST-50/90, at least not yet.

Without getting into DIY mods, and lego stacking you are (for the most part) limiting yourself to XRE, XPE and XPG designs.

 

[dandism]

I am down to only AA and just a couple 2D lights. the AA lights arent as bright as cr123 lights, but you can use 14500 cells if you want the extra brightness. I am happy with my collection :D