Which brands of rechargeable and non-rechargeable batteries do you prefer?

[HighlanderNorth]

When you buy common batteries like AA, AAA, D, C, or even CR123's, the big battery companies like Duracell and Eveready(Energizer) make them, but when you get to many of the so-called specialty batteries, I've found that the big battery companies are nowhere to be found for some reason. So when I go looking for RCR123's, 18650's, 16340's, etc. what I find are companies I've previously never heard of.

These would include Tenergy, Ultrafire, Titanium Innovations, LG Chem, Trustfire, etc.

There are other brands that are a bit harder to find that I have not heard of and dont remember the names. So I have no idea which battery companies produce the good batteries and the not-so-good batteries. If I'm putting them into fairly expensive equipment, I'd like to know not only which ones will hold up the best, but also whether some brands have a bad reputation for exploding or corroding and damaging my stuff!

I've also read that some brands' batteries might be longer or larger than others, even among the same type of battery.

So, which brands do you prefer, and have a stellar reputation, vs the brands you wouldnt use because of their not-so-stellar reputation?

 

[kramer5150]

AA Eneloop, Energizer Lithium
18650 Panasonic, Sanyo

 

[archimedes]

AW, eneloop, Energizer, SureFire

(no alkalines....) - 🙂

 

[diesel79]

I have AW, Eneloop, and Redilast for rechargeable batteries and either Surefire or Battery Station for primary 123's.

 

[Labrador72]

AA primaries - Energizer L91 (Lithium): I keep a few mainly for back-up and emergency
AA rechargeables - Sanyo Eneloops and Eneloops XX

CR123A primaries - Duracell and Panasonic: aside from using them with my Fenix PD30, I keep a few mainly for back-up and emergency
Li-ion rechargeables: AW 18650s, 17670s, and 14500s.

 

[Yamabushi]

AAA primary: Energizer L92, rechargeable: Imedion 950
AA primary: Energizer L91, rechargeable: Sanyo XX or Imedion 2400
CR123 primary: Surefire

 

[Raze]

None other than Energizer Ultimate Lithiums for primary AAs and AAAs, Eneloop Pros for secondary/rechargeables. I use adapters for C and D cells.

AW protected 18650 (prefers the 2900 mAh for less voltage sag compared to 3100 mAh version)

I've always used none other than SureFire SF123 for primary CR123. Though, SF's recent endorsement of the LFP 123A lithium-phosphate rechargeable batteries is exciting, but I would wait for the reviews first.

I would use the rechargeables mentioned above in my lights to enjoy 'guilt-free' lumens, but would ALWAYS carry their lithium primaries as back-up, or when you really need to depend on your lights.

Even for the lithium-phosphate rechargeable 123s, I can use Goal0 solar panels (or even better- Cottonpicker's) to recharge these secondaries for even more guilt-free lumens.

 

[tandem]

When you buy common batteries like AA, AAA, D, C, or even CR123's, the big battery companies like Duracell and Eveready(Energizer) make them, but when you get to many of the so-called specialty batteries, I've found that the big battery companies are nowhere to be found for some reason. So when I go looking for RCR123's, 18650's, 16340's, etc. what I find are companies I've previously never heard of.

The reason is simple: Lithium ion cells - loose cells, not those found in your laptop battery pack - are not consumer items.

Why?

Li-ion cells aren't intrinsically safe.

Consumer friendly cells include AA, AAA, C, D alkaline and NiMH rechargeables. Within reason, a consumer can mishandle them, treat them very bad, over-charge or over-discharge the rechargeable chemistries - and about all that will happen is the cell may fail early. In short, these types of cells are intrinsically safe and that is why you see the big brand names putting them out on retail store shelves.

Li-ion cells on the other hand, if badly mistreated, can turn your flashlight into a pipe bomb.

While so-called "protected" cells do offer a good deal more safety they don't approach the level of intrinsic safety built in to NiMH rechargeables. Large consumer names like Eveready and Duracell aren't going to ever dip their toes in to the Li-ion loose cell market because of liability concerns.

For the educated flashlight user who buys good products and adopts prudent li-ion use and handling procedures, they are safe to use. They just don't have that consumer-friendly level of safety baked into them.

Loose li-ion cells of the Li-Co (Cobalt) variety are among the most volatile and potentially dangerous but also offer the most capacity for a given volume which is why they are popular with laptop makers and flashlight uses alike. These brands you've heretofore never heard of take a base Li-ion cell produced by others - Sanyo/Panasonic are held by many as the gold standard of li-ion cell makers - and add to that base cell a small printed circuit board and other features, including another exterior wrapper - which help make the cell safer in the hands of consumers. Relative to the vast quantities of 18650 cells sold to OEMs producing laptop battery packs (said packs contain their own protective circuitry thus a PCB per cell is not needed), individual loose protected cells sold to consumers represent a tiny fraction of annual demand.

Small companies pick up the slack. Thank goodness they are around. But not all are created equal. Some names, often ending in "Fire" (a bad choice for a cell label in my opinion) produce lesser cells of questionable parentage. Others, like AW, Redilast, Eagletac (some cells), and some newer entrants all offer high quality Panasonic 18650 cells with their own distinctive PCB and wrapper.

Avoid eBay for cells and battery purchases. Probably wise to avoid Amazon too. And avoid Deal Extreme and similar venues. You just don't know what you are going to get from those sources. Fake cells - forgeries - are becoming a problem too. It seems sensible to me to stick with an established flashlight retailer who is carrying one of the well known brands, or buy direct from the well known brands.

 

[HighlanderNorth]

Where do you get AW's though?

 

[tandem]

AW sells cells direct - see the Dealer's Corner in http://cpfmarketplace.com/ - and through a number of flashlight specialty retailers such as Oveready. They are also sold in the U.S. by another distributor/retailer on-line - check CPF Marketplace.

I've mostly bought cells from AW direct but will buy his product from a retailer if I'm buying something else at the same time. Usually shipments from Hong Kong to Vancouver take the same length of time, or at most a day or two longer, than from the U.S. to Vancouver.

For good quality protected 18650's there are some other choices you can turn to as a number of brands are incorporating the good quality Panasonic cells AW has been using in his high capacity protected 18650s. Myself I buy AW's product partly out of loyalty -- he's been a good equipment supplier to the flashlight community for a long time, and personally I like to reward good retailers with my business however small it may be. I also like dealing with AW directly because he carries a much broader range of cell formats and chemistries than most do, so I can do a one-stop shop.

 

[awenta]

As mentioned AW and Redilast are excellent cells. But we also cant forget about Callies Kustoms. Also great cells (panasonic iirc).

I will reiterate what was said above, dont buy any crapfires. Youll save a few buck but at the risk of a hand it hardly seems worth it.

And make sure you use an adequate charger as well. Namely the Pila IBC.

 

[awenta]

Read this thread for some good information.

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?257543-LiIon-18650-battery-comparison

 

[Shadowww]

AA/AAA Primary: Energizer Lithium (Ultimate for flashlights, Advanced for remotes, wireless mouses and other low-power stuff)
AA/AAA Secondary: Eneloop (classic blue/green 1500-cycle ones)
D Secondary: Tenergy Premium
18650/26650 LiFePO4: A123 Systems
18650 Li-Ion: unprotected Sanyo UR18650FM's in 1-cell lights, protected Panasonic NCR18650A's (Intl-Outdoors, RediLast) in multi-cell lights

For chargers:
18650 Li-Ion: Xtar WP2 II
26650 Li-Ion, 18650&26650 LiFePO4 & custom Li-Polymer packs: Junsi iCharger 106B+
AA/AAA NiMH: Maha C9000
D NiMH: Junsi iCharger 106B+

Read this thread for some good information.

http://www.candlepowerforums.com/vb/showthread.php?257543-LiIon-18650-battery-comparison

That comparison is quite old (2010) and doesn't includes any of modern cells, this one is way more up-to-date: http://lygte-info.dk/review/batteries2012/Common18650Summary UK.html

 

[TinderBox (UK)]

I don't, I am busy replacing all the non-rechargable battery`s with low discharge one`s , I have two big bags or AA and AAA, C,D, PP3 non-rechargable battery`s i suppose i will give to friends and family.

John.

 

[HighlanderNorth]

I'm looking into Redilast, AW, and Callies customs..

**Are there any other reliable Li-ion manufacturers of 18650-18500, etc. batteries out there that should be listed?

 

[RI Chevy]

I have had good luck with Duraloops (white top) for AA, and AAA, and use Callie's Kustom 3100's for 18650. There are many good brands of Lion, and also some not so good brands. Good advice given by our members. I have a couple of xxxxxfires. The money saved is not worth it to me. I will not by any of those again. I now go by the mantra, "you get what you pay for."

 

[Shadowww]

I now go by the mantra, "you get what you pay for."

Especially considering $13/piece IOS 18650's and $20/piece RediLast 18650's are exactly same cell, with exactly same protection circuit added on exactly same factory.
😉

 

[tandem]

I'm looking into Redilast, AW, and Callies customs..

**Are there any other reliable Li-ion manufacturers of 18650-18500, etc. batteries out there that should be listed?

Panasonic high capacity cells are widely regarded as the best / safest product commonly available in 2600, 2900 and 3100 mAh capacities. Sanyo has good cells too but typically these are found in lower capacity products.

Any protected cell maker that uses a Panasonic or Sanyo cell inside is worth looking at. By and large the pricing for all these products is within a few bucks of each other, depending on where you buy them.

Callies Kustoms - only carries 18650 size cells; uses the Panasonic cell in its protected 18650 cell. They also offer an intriguing higher capacity than usual IMR (unprotected) cell.

Redilast - only offers protected 18650 cells.

AW - has a very wide range of protected, unprotected, and IMR cells in basically every format under the sun of interest to flashlight users. All his high capacity protected 18650's use Panasonic cells.

Intl-Outdoor - a flashlight retailer - carries a variety of cells from bare unprotected Panasonics (not a good idea for most) to IMR cells. They carry some brands I'm not familiar with. Their protected Panasonic 18650 is likely the same product sold by others, with their own private label on it.

Oveready - a U.S. based flashlight maker / retailer - carries a wide selection of AW cells.

Lighthound - a U.S. based retailer - carries a wide selection of AW cells, and others.

Etc. Just avoid questionable sources as noted earlier in this thread. Finding retailers via CPF or the Internet -- Google is your friend.

If your needs are similar to the average user here, any of these Panasonic based products will meet your needs. Don't over think it.

Buy a good charger.

Learn how to handle them right.

Go spend some money and enjoy.

 

[Shadowww]

Panasonic high capacity cells are widely regarded as the best / safest product commonly available in 2600, 2900 and 3100 mAh capacities. Sanyo has good cells too but typically these are found in lower capacity products.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I believe 2600mAh cells of AW, RediLast, Xtar, Spark, Hi-Max and few others are based on Sanyo UR18650FM, and not Panasonic cells.

 

[HighlanderNorth]

Panasonic high capacity cells are widely regarded as the best / safest product commonly available in 2600, 2900 and 3100 mAh capacities. Sanyo has good cells too but typically these are found in lower capacity products.

Any protected cell maker that uses a Panasonic or Sanyo cell inside is worth looking at. By and large the pricing for all these products is within a few bucks of each other, depending on where you buy them.

Callies Kustoms - only carries 18650 size cells; uses the Panasonic cell in its protected 18650 cell. They also offer an intriguing higher capacity than usual IMR (unprotected) cell.

Redilast - only offers protected 18650 cells.

AW - has a very wide range of protected, unprotected, and IMR cells in basically every format under the sun of interest to flashlight users. All his high capacity protected 18650's use Panasonic cells.

Intl-Outdoor - a flashlight retailer - carries a variety of cells from bare unprotected Panasonics (not a good idea for most) to IMR cells. They carry some brands I'm not familiar with. Their protected Panasonic 18650 is likely the same product sold by others, with their own private label on it.

Oveready - a U.S. based flashlight maker / retailer - carries a wide selection of AW cells.

Lighthound - a U.S. based retailer - carries a wide selection of AW cells, and others.

Etc. Just avoid questionable sources as noted earlier in this thread. Finding retailers via CPF or the Internet -- Google is your friend.

If your needs are similar to the average user here, any of these Panasonic based products will meet your needs. Don't over think it.

Buy a good charger.

Learn how to handle them right.

Go spend some money and enjoy.

So, when I buy the Zebralight SC600 or SC600w, and I choose 1 of the quality brands listed, does it matter much which "type" of 18650 cell I buy, like an IMR, or protected/unsafe, Unprotected/safe? I noticed some types go only up to about 2200mah, whereas other types go to 3100mah, from the same company(Callies Custom). Is there one type I should get and stick to for best performance without a big chance of the battery blowing up or suffering some kind of catastrophic failure? What type of battery would you use in that light?

Are Tenergy's any good?