old4570
Flashlight Enthusiast
Well , it would seem that the cloners/counterfeiters were busy 2010 .
There appears to have been a massive increase in junk cells hitting the online sellers [ Ebay + the online stores ] . So if you thought it was tricky before buying decent cheap cells , well its even harder now .
Almost all the batteries have clones [ counterfeit ] of themselves now .
The batteries you could buy 2 years ago , and get decent service from , well , now you just dont know if your buying genuine cheap chinese , or really bad rubbish in a counterfeit wrapper . [ be especially aware on ebay ]
Trustfire Flame batteries are being cloned , the grey Trustfires and Ultrafires , possibly Soshine batteries now [ there AA and AAA's were cloned ]
So the big question is , what batteries are not being cloned ?
Now for those who have a reliable source for known batteries , good for you , but for new people into the hobby , or those looking to try something different , well , its more of a minefield than ever before . Also be aware that a lot of new cells made the market , and some of them will be nothing short of Rubbish , not worth 50c with free shipping .
And unfortunately , Ebay is the largest source of these counterfeit cells , so if the price is too good to believe , it probably is !
Pictures are of some recent rubbish tested :
Palight around 300mAh capacity
Superfire 18650 , less than 1000mAh capacity
Trustfire RCR123A = Junk , Dangerous , Did they get the cell from a recycle bin and sell it ?
If your new to 18650 / 16340 , you will have to buy very carefully , or you may end up with some useless or possibly dangerous batteries .
There appears to have been a massive increase in junk cells hitting the online sellers [ Ebay + the online stores ] . So if you thought it was tricky before buying decent cheap cells , well its even harder now .
Almost all the batteries have clones [ counterfeit ] of themselves now .
The batteries you could buy 2 years ago , and get decent service from , well , now you just dont know if your buying genuine cheap chinese , or really bad rubbish in a counterfeit wrapper . [ be especially aware on ebay ]
Trustfire Flame batteries are being cloned , the grey Trustfires and Ultrafires , possibly Soshine batteries now [ there AA and AAA's were cloned ]
So the big question is , what batteries are not being cloned ?
Now for those who have a reliable source for known batteries , good for you , but for new people into the hobby , or those looking to try something different , well , its more of a minefield than ever before . Also be aware that a lot of new cells made the market , and some of them will be nothing short of Rubbish , not worth 50c with free shipping .
And unfortunately , Ebay is the largest source of these counterfeit cells , so if the price is too good to believe , it probably is !
Pictures are of some recent rubbish tested :
Palight around 300mAh capacity
Superfire 18650 , less than 1000mAh capacity
Trustfire RCR123A = Junk , Dangerous , Did they get the cell from a recycle bin and sell it ?
If your new to 18650 / 16340 , you will have to buy very carefully , or you may end up with some useless or possibly dangerous batteries .
