batteries - More volts better ?

[jamie.91]

i have just been looking on the net for some new rechargable cr123 batteries and have read some info what people who have baught the batteries wrote about them and they say that even though they are 3.6v when they are charged they reach 4.19V, surely this cant be good for my light can it ?

thanks jamie

also sorry if this is in the wrong section

 

[old4570]

Depends on the light ... ?

Primary CR123A 3V
Rechargeable CR123A 3V = Fully charged 3.6v
Rechargeable CR123A 3.6v = Fully charged 4.2v

So depending on the flashlight ?

 

[jamie.91]

oh ok thanks , what would happen if i put the 4.2v battery in a 3v light ?

jamie

 

[Yoda4561]

Depends entirely on that particular light's circuitry/LED/Bulb. Some driver circuits work better at higher voltages, it may overdrive the bulb resulting in brighter incandescent light but lower lifetime, and sometimes will outright fry the bulb/electronics in an instant.

 

[Oddjob]

oh ok thanks , what would happen if i put the 4.2v battery in a 3v light ?

jamie

It can damage the light.

 

[divine]

You need to read the specs for the light.

This is an example, here's a spec for a popular light.

Voltage range: 0.9V ~ 4.2V

This light will run off an AA rechargeable, and AA alkaline, a CR123, or a 3.6 (4.2 volts charged) rechargeable. Basically all of the above.

Watch when that higher voltage range is lower than 4.2 volts!

 

[jamie.91]

hmm to be honest im willing to overdrive it and kill it as the light was not expensive at all lol

jamie

 

[Black Rose]

Is it for your RC-N3? If so, should not be a problem.

 

[kramer5150]

i have just been looking on the net for some new rechargable cr123 batteries and have read some info what people who have baught the batteries wrote about them and they say that even though they are 3.6v when they are charged they reach 4.19V, surely this cant be good for my light can it ?

thanks jamie

also sorry if this is in the wrong section

More volts is not necessarily better, if the light has a good boost/buck circuit.

Many lights are designed to handle the additional voltage from rechargeable lithium ion chemistry. many are not, so you have to pick and match accordingly.

 

[kramer5150]

hmm to be honest im willing to overdrive it and kill it as the light was not expensive at all lol

jamie

You should be aware that Lithium Ion chemistry is DANGEROUS and toxic if the cells are used in a way that they were not designed for.

I am not a proponent of over driving flashlightcircuits using Lithium Ion rechargeable. There is an element of risk in doing that. Lets say the circuit were to fry and short out the cell... you'd have a pipe bomb and fire hazard on your hands.

You should read the battery hazard warnings (in the battery/electronics subforum) first before attempting.

 

[kramer5150]

Is it for your RC-N3? If so, should not be a problem.

the RC-N3 can handle a single RCR123. 2x14500 however will kill it. IIRC it runs DD when Vin>Vf, so cell voltages should not exceed 4.2V. 2x14500 will slam the LED with 8.4V.

 

[LuxLuthor]

You should be aware that Lithium Ion chemistry is DANGEROUS and toxic if the cells are used in a way that they were not designed for.

I am not a proponent of over driving flashlightcircuits using Lithium Ion rechargeable. There is an element of risk in doing that. Lets say the circuit were to fry and short out the cell... you'd have a pipe bomb and fire hazard on your hands.

You should read the battery hazard warnings (in the battery/electronics subforum) first before attempting.

Generally good recommendations to tailor decision to specs of light. Some discounting can be done of the Lithium Ion risk if you use AW or Eagletac cells with protection circuits in each cell. I'm not sure if there are 123 size cells that have effective protection circuits, however.

 

[Black Rose]

the RC-N3 can handle a single RCR123. 2x14500 however will kill it. IIRC it runs DD when Vin>Vf, so cell voltages should not exceed 4.2V. 2x14500 will slam the LED with 8.4V.

I was thinking RCR123.

Forgot about the possibility of trying to use 2x14500 cells with that light

 

[jamie.91]

Is it for your RC-N3? If so, should not be a problem.

yeah i was thinking of my RC-N3 but i do have an Eastward YJ on its way and was wondering about that too

also sorry to change the subject but is there a driver i could buy to replace the one in my RC-N3 ? to make it more efficient and use a better emitter ? i like the design feel of the light and it throws pretty well so i think its worth spending a little on it to give it a few more lumens. Also i hate the 3 modes, i just want ON and OFF or at least high and low because i have no use for a strobe mode.

also just out of curiosity how many lumens is a standard RC-N3 ?

BTW thanks to everyone for there replys

thanks jamie

 

[xenonk]

also sorry to change the subject but is there a driver i could buy to replace the one in my RC-N3 ? to make it more efficient and use a better emitter ?

You could get a Q5 and boost circuit from DX that would fit, but I probably would have just gotten a shiningbeam version N3 in that case. The overall price is similar, and it's preassembled.

i do have an Eastward YJ on its way and was wondering about that too

I had a YJ-XAQ5 from KD that was pretty poorly constructed and had the driver became flaky after a couple of months. The head was also glued on, making accessing the pill a chore through the bezel.

Very thick aluminum, good output and a good budget thrower... but just shoddy workmanship by whoever put it together.

It became something of a public use light and has suffered horrific abuse and damage over the past year. Body all scraped up, a few broken lenses, reflector ejected (thankfully no major damage to the inner surface), bezel threads jumped & cross-threaded, emitter star crushed and gouged, broken switch mechanism, a couple of torn switch boots...

Many repairs later, it still more or less works. The emitter is now tilted at a slight angle because the body ground wire had to be moved below the star (it would short to +ve when screwed on top due to gouges). The new driver is a 3-mode, with a 2-stage resistored tail switch so it now has a confusing 6-mode configuration (3 modes, with or without resistor).

The battery tube refuses to give in to abuse with a wall that's 4.5mm thick at its thinnest point, though.

 

[jamie.91]

You could get a Q5 and boost circuit from DX that would fit, but I probably would have just gotten a shiningbeam version N3 in that case. The overall price is similar, and it's preassembled.


I had a YJ-XAQ5 from KD that was pretty poorly constructed and had the driver became flaky after a couple of months. The head was also glued on, making accessing the pill a chore through the bezel.

Very thick aluminum, good output and a good budget thrower... but just shoddy workmanship by whoever put it together.

It became something of a public use light and has suffered horrific abuse and damage over the past year. Body all scraped up, a few broken lenses, reflector ejected (thankfully no major damage to the inner surface), bezel threads jumped & cross-threaded, emitter star crushed and gouged, broken switch mechanism, a couple of torn switch boots...

Many repairs later, it still more or less works. The emitter is now tilted at a slight angle because the body ground wire had to be moved below the star (it would short to +ve when screwed on top due to gouges). The new driver is a 3-mode, with a 2-stage resistored tail switch so it now has a confusing 6-mode configuration (3 modes, with or without resistor).

The battery tube refuses to give in to abuse with a wall that's 4.5mm thick at its thinnest point, though.

thanks for the info its much appreciated as i have not found many reviews lol TBH i bought it hoping it will be a good little thrower going of the reviews i did find and was hoping to mod if after a while and maybe add an aspheric lense but i dont know yet

BTW how different was your YJ-XAQ5 to my YJ-XGR2 ? mine is rated at 250 lumens but i doubt it is so how many lumens should i expect ?

thats why i love cheap lights they can be took apart and modded with no regret lol

also you said "The battery tube refuses to give in to abuse with a wall that's 4.5mm thick at its thinnest point, though. " just out of curiosity how thick are most battery tube walls ? say on a fenix or surefire ?

thanks jamie

 

[xenonk]

BTW how different was your YJ-XAQ5 to my YJ-XGR2 ? mine is rated at 250 lumens but i doubt it is so how many lumens should i expect ?
[snip]
just out of curiosity how thick are most battery tube walls ? say on a fenix or surefire ?

I don't put much stock in DX's lumen ratings. My XAQ5's original driver was probably very similar to the one they put in the XGR2. It pulled a little over one amp from a fully charged battery.

If the XGR2 runs its R2 emitter under the same conditions, it would be on average 6% brighter. You wouldn't really be able to see that difference without a light meter.

The battery tube wall on my Surefire 6P is 2.6mm at the threads and thickens to 4mm further down. The XAQ5 thickens to about 4.5mm at the shallows of the body scallops, and somewhere around 5.5mm at the tops.

 

[DM51]

We'll leave your thread here, as it is fairly wide-ranging across a number of subjects.

I see you are leaning towards LED lights, but there is a thread you would find very good reading which will help you understand voltages and batteries much better. Mdocod's Guide is angled towards incandescent lights, but a great deal of it applies just as well to LED set-ups. Have a look at it - I'm sure you will find it worthwhile.

 

[jamie.91]

We'll leave your thread here, as it is fairly wide-ranging across a number of subjects.

I see you are leaning towards LED lights, but there is a thread you would find very good reading which will help you understand voltages and batteries much better. Mdocod's Guide is angled towards incandescent lights, but a great deal of it applies just as well to LED set-ups. Have a look at it - I'm sure you will find it worthwhile.

okay thanks

jamie

 

[soulrider]

Depends on the light ... ?

Primary CR123A 3V
Rechargeable CR123A 3V = Fully charged 3.6v
Rechargeable CR123A 3.6v = Fully charged 4.2v

So depending on the flashlight ?

Is the above a typo? A rechargeable CR123A that is 3.0 (3.6v charged) AND a rechargeable CR123A that is 3.6 volts (4.2 charged)? Or, is that 2nd one meant to be 18650?

I don't mean to be nit picky but I'm somewhat new to this and that one confused me if it's not a typo.