Battery rattle

[pabst]

i am new to the forum so excuse me if i am posting in the wrong section or if this has already been discussed.

in a few of my lights the batteries rattle around because they are a bit skinnier than the light. so i was wondering what i could wrap the batteries in to hold them tighter. i guess what i am asking is there materials to stay away from? is paper fine? what do you use?

thanks.

 

[Billy Ram]

If your light is bored for 18650s you can use the battery sleave for cr123s and do away with the rattle.
Billy

 

[Billy Berue]

A lot of folks (perhaps most), including me, just use paper. I used to be on the lookout for a more "elegant" solution, but I have since come the conclusion that paper is very effective, cheap, and easily adaptable to various shapes, sizes, and thicknesses, depending on the requirements of that particular situation.

 

[pabst]

thanks for the quick replies. yeh my light takes 18650 and cr123 so the boring is the problem...and paper is the solution!

 

[pathalogical]

How about some masking tape. One wrap around your battery with no overlapping might do the trick. Adding extra thickness may make it difficult to get the battery out, if it doesn't slide in on its own, don't push it in !

 

[Oddjob]

Paper for me as well for small shimming. For more width I actually cut some of the thin cardboard from a toilet paper roll. I did this so that my 17650 cells are snug in my 18650 Ra Twisty tube.

 

[bstrickler]

I made my own battery sleeve for my 6P with PVC tube + my manual lathe. Took me a few hours to do, because I'm anal about it being the right size. It works amazingly well for RCR123's, but CR123's are still a little small, and rattle a little bit inside the battery sleeve, but it's better than no sleeve.

~Brian

 

[garilla]

sometimes all it takes is a strip of thicker than paper like what comes on glossy magazine covers. Just don't make it so tight you have to jam the batteries in, it might be hard to get them out. A little loosness is always good.

 

[45/70]

I'm one of the paper crowd. It's cheap, easy to do, and easily replaceable, as well. At one time, I tried the masking tape route. The problem with that is, eventually you'll end up with "sticky" all over the inside of your battery tube. This is even more pronounced if your light gets warm in use.

Dave

 

[TooManyGizmos]

Plastic notebook sheet protectors and or dividers .

Better than paper if your batteries leak or swell up.

Easier to get the bad batt's out . ) paper just jams em in there !)
.

 

[45/70]

Plastic notebook sheet protectors and or dividers .

Better than paper if your batteries leak or swell up.

Easier to get the bad batt's out . ) paper just jams em in there !)
.

Ah, but paper absorbs the "goo" better. Sort of a built in sponge! ;)

Then again, I generally don't use batteries that leak. :)

Dave

 

[TooManyGizmos]

But plastic is slick , less friction , and allows easier removal .

Try it .... you'll like it better !
.

 

[pabst]

i cut about 2cm off the long end of a business card, rolled it up, slid it in, and it works perfectly. the batteries slide back out with a flick of the wrist.

 

[bwall85]

battery rattle solution?

Yeah, it's my first post. I've lurked here for a while and done some reading, but never posted. Lots of great info here!

I recently received a Jetbeam M1X w/ cell extender as a gift and while there is no problem with the function, there is some battery rattle with the extender installed.

I'm currently using surefire 4 123a batteries. I was wondering if I wrapped a little electrical or duct tape around the middle of a battery or two would be a big problem? I tried it and it did fix the rattle, but I didn't keep it in there because I don't want to use it a lot if I wasn't sure it was safe. It doesn't touch either end, its just like about a .5 inch wide strip of duct tape wrapped around the middle.

Thanks! :)

 

[Hondo]

Re: battery rattle solution?

What you are describing will work fine. A more permanent solution, and easier, is to cut a piece of paper the length of the tube and roll it up and insert it in the tube. You can trim the width of the paper until there is just enough space for the batteries to slip in. The paper should stay put during battery changes, and when used in lights with alkaline batteries will cut down on some of the damage when (not if) the cells leak.

And, Welcome to CPF, bwall85! :wave:

 

[VidPro]

Re: battery rattle solution?

and put your name and address on the paper, in the event that someone would return your light if discovered lost.

 

[photonstorm]

Re: battery rattle solution?

your rolled up business card may work as an anti-rattle and ID solution

 

[core]

Re: battery rattle solution?

and put your name and address on the paper, in the event that someone would return your light if discovered lost.

Or come burglarize your place now that they know you lost your gun mounted light. :ooo:

j/k that's a good idea actually. Thanks for the tip.

 

[twdant]

Battery Rattle Fix?

My new Dereelight uses 2xRCR123s and it's great, but the battery rattle is annoying as heck. I was thinking about wrapping the batteries in cardboard or duct tape to make them fit tighter. Will that cause any issues with regard to heat?

 

[twdant]

Re: Battery Rattle Fix?

Problem solved: Duck tape. As they say, if you can't Duck it...