If somebody has credible evidence how resting shows a significant benefit with that behavior, bring forth.
I only have anecdotal evidence.
The first cells I purchased in late 2013, along with the first decent lights I ever owned, Maratac AAA Al & Cu, were Eneloop Pro AAA. I always immediately threw them on the charger and immediately used them hot off the charger, day in day out, constantly charging or using, They didn't last 6 months, if even that, before they just wouldn't provide any amps. High modes were considerably dimmer.
I joined CPF in 2014, but I still didn't catch a clue when I got a Maratac AA and a quad of Eneloop Pro AA and continued that practice I later learned was battery or cell abuse. Again, these cells did not last long before they were also not remotely performing, and I didn't put them through a lot of charge cycles, maybe 30, before my high modes were really dim. It was upsetting because they were expensive and everyone was talking about how good they were.
I thought it was the cells, brazenly posted that they sucked, but in the responses from CPF members, I picked up the idea that cells need to rest, and adopted that practice. There was an explanation, I just don't remember exactly what it was. It probably had something to do with heat, that a hot cell has more resistance, and applying or drawing amps from a hot cell increases resistance, and eventually permanently damages the cell, something along those lines.
I don't blame you for being skeptical, KITROBASKIN. I just can't believe you also would not have the same results as I did constantly running and charging hot cells. Because when I started resting my cells, they started to last for years and are still going, many recharge cycles and no noticeable degradation of performance.
But I also started charging Eneloop AA cells at higher voltage, because I have to assume part of the problem was missing termination, but it is really the same underlying problem, which is that heat damages and kills the cell, and letting it cool down before charge or use entirely mitigates the issue.
I haven't seen HKJ post in awhile, and I sure hope he is doing well, but I am sure he would back me up and offer more insight, because he taught me a lot about this, about why missing termination damages cells, and I am nearly certain it had to do with heat, Searching for his posts you may find the accurate explanation and become a believer.
Maybe do an experiment on one Eneloop. Charge and run it constantly at high amps with no rest period to empty, immediately charge without any rest, and repeat, and I am sure you will come to the same conclusion that after 15-30 charge cycles, the cell will no longer provide sufficient amps to power a direct drive mode at the brightness you expect, and in fact, much much dimmer. The same will be true of all chemistries, though some chems, like LiFePO4, are surprisingly resistant to abuse.
Then, I think, once you are convinced, either get an analyzer and sift out your weak cells, or just replace them all and treat the new ones better. I also once thought CPF members obsessing about cell performance was silly. But then it started to matter to me. Because I want my lights to perform, I necessarily need my cells to perform, and it only takes a small amount of care to achieve performance that lasts. I used to think cells were cheap and easily replaceable. They're really not. The cost adds up, and on my limited budget, I can't afford to replace my cells twice a year. It's likely you have a larger budget, but I'm sure you'd prefer not to spend unnecessarily.
