Flashlight choices based on battery type????

"because the AA/AAA is easier to get than CR123, etc."........

Pardon me, but I never understood this line of thinking.

We spend hours on this forum discussing the pros and cons of various flashlights ad nauseum.

And yet, time after time, I see someone post how they love a certain flashlight "except it runs on CR123 batteries" and "I want AA/AAA batteries because they are easier to get in an emergency/extended blackout", etc... But if you've ever lived thru an event like a hurricane, or a snow storm that knocks out power, batteries are the first thing to disappear off store shelves.

Excuse me? Am I missing something? You spend all this time and money researching and acquiring the ultimate flashlight, and you don't stock up on batteries? You can get 1300mAh CR123's for $1 each on line. Oh, I get it. You can buy a flashlight on line, but don't want to buy batteries on line?:thinking:

I'm sorry, but I just don't get it.

I carry and use CR123 powered lights daily: NovaTac 85T, LumaPower IncenDio, SureFire M2, G2, and beside my bed is a 9P. In my van is a 6P.

In the single cell lights I use RCR123's, and in the others I use lithium primaries. I just add 10-20 batteries to my flashlight/drop in orders.[I like the ROV RL123's @ $1.50 from Lighthound]

So, I guess my point is: I think it is unwise to limit your flashlight selection by battery type thinking that type X is easier to get during an emergency than type Y. Get the light you want, and take the preparations ahead of time to stock up on batteries.

My $.02.

so in a blackout, do you think having some RCR123s is going to be more useful than having a lot of 123 primaries? that should be pretty easy to understand...

and in general, what battery types do you think are more well stocked and supplied and available - AA and AAA, or 123s and 10440s and 18650s and other less commonly used batteries? even if stocks go fast, youd still have a better chance of finding some, or using old partially used ones etc.


i personally limit myself to primary AA, AAA and CR123A only.

HoopleHead said:

so in a blackout, do you think having some RCR123s is going to be more useful than having a lot of 123 primaries? that should be pretty easy to understand...

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I would run the RCR123's down, and have the primaries as "reloads" for that situation. But I also have a generator and could recharge the RCR123's if the blackout was long enough to warrant it. Besides, my 85T and IncenDio on low will run forever on 1 battery, it seems.

HoopleHead said:

and in general, what battery types do you think are more well stocked and supplied and available - AA and AAA, or 123s and 10440s and 18650s and other less commonly used batteries? even if stocks go fast, youd still have a better chance of finding some, or using old partially used ones etc.

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A couple dozen CR123 primaries on hand will last a looooong time, and I don't have to worry about going out and getting more batteries.

I guess my point is, be prepared and don't count on having to go get more during the "crisis".

sounds good in theory but when the @#$^ hits the fan not everything turns out like it should, the batteries may not be fully charged, you may be running low on your stock and if you get stuck in a hurricane and your batteries are stuck in shipping transit what are you gonna do...aa and D are the k.i.s.s. method and most reliable...not everyone has a generator or gonna put batteries in their fridge

qip said:

sounds good in theory but when the @#$^ hits the fan not everything turns out like it should, the batteries may not be fully charged, you may be running low on your stock and if you get stuck in a hurricane and your batteries are stuck in shipping transit what are you gonna do...aa and D are the k.i.s.s. method and most reliable

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Do you have emergency food in transit? Emergency water in transit? Or do you stock up ahead of time. Treat batteries the same way.

Besides, even in the dead of winter, it is only dark 12hrs a day at most.

What type of cells do remotes, clocks, children's toys, wireless mice and keyboards all use? What type of cell is most likely to be in your mother's kitchen drawer?


Personally I use light which offer the greatest range of choices. With a CR123 light you are limited to only two choices. Expensive CR123 primaries (yes, even if bought online, $1 per cell is expensive if that's all you use), or RCR123 cells which which have other safety issues involved. Also, giving a non-flashaholic a multiple cell CR123 device is just asking for trouble.


AA for example offers a much wider array of choices.

You can still use lithium primary, which can be bought online for $1 still, or in stores for FAR cheaper than CR123 cells, at less than $2 per cell vs $5-7 per cell for CR123. Also, L91's have MORE energy stored in them than a single CR123. They also offer a better shelf life, of 15 years vs 10 years. Stocking up on them can also be smarter, since you are more likely to own other appliances which use AA's such as radios.

You can use idiot proof NiMH cells, which store more energy than their RCR123 counterparts, and are completely safe for non-flashaholics. They can be bought in a number of local stores.

If Li-Ion is your preference, you can even use 14500 for that extra voltage punch if so desired.

Need be you can still scavenge alkaline and heavy duty cells from the small appliances around you.

Also, once you're stocked up on CR123's, what about powering everything else you own? A good stock of NiMH can power ever battery power device you own, flashlight or otherwise. If you've ever had to feed children's toys, you learn quickly how beneficial it is to not use throw aways.

So let's tally up. That's 2 power choices for CR123 lights, and 5 power choices for AA or AAA powered lights.

That all being said, I do keep an Inova X5 in my BOB along with my other choices, so I will still be able to use just about anything I can find if need be.

qip said:

not everyone has a generator or gonna put batteries in their fridge

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Survival of the fittest, I guess.

But what if you count on being able to go to the store to get more D or AA batteries, and the snow storm makes it impossible to do that? Or you get to the store and they are closed due to no pwer, or are sold out of batteries? Then what? Your KISS principle will do you no good.

well i could use the water from tap..and i could drive to one store the supermarket and get food AND batteries and cr123 are $10 for 1 as compared to others where i can get several for the same price ...to me the cr123 is a WANT light where as a AA/AAA/C/D are Need in emergency ....but thats just me

what if im visiting a relative on the other side of country or if im not anywhere near home ,im certainly not gonna bring all that stock and again the batteries could be needing a recharge but the electric goes out and i cant charge my batteries ..in the end i gotta go buy some which will cost me a pretty penny


and if i cant make it to the store then we are all screwed..if you cant make it like i cant then we both have no food and have to rely on the batteries we have in which case i have like marduke says remotes and other appliances around to get batteries out of...and i do stock up on some E2 lithiums and D cells so im good

When traveling (and this is mainly because of the way I travel), I prefer to have all my lights use the same battery type, and I prefer that type to be AA. Again, it depends on the trip and where I'm going, but travel is one instance where my flashlight choices are based on battery type.

Brigadier said:

"because the AA/AAA is easier to get than CR123, etc."........

Pardon me, but I never understood this line of thinking.


Excuse me? Am I missing something? You spend all this time and money researching and acquiring the ultimate flashlight, and you don't stock up on batteries? You can get 1300mAh CR123's for $1 each on line. Oh, I get it. You can buy a flashlight on line, but don't want to buy batteries on line?:thinking:

I'm sorry, but I just don't get it.

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Well yeah, you might be missing something. Batteries dictate quite a bit. Sure, you can buy the light you want and then learn to live with the different battery technologies but at some point, it's very likely you will become unhappy with the light IF that battery technology doesn't do what you need/expect.

Non-flashahoics and/or non-net folks might have a hard time digesting the $4.50 per CR123 cell from Wal-Mart and Walgreens. This very thing has thwarted my every effort to set-up people with CR123 lights, which, let's fact it, are the most fun.

Even a rich guy will tire of going through one or more sets of primaries a day if a light is used that much. Rechargeables would probably more desirable in this scenario.

AA/AAA lights might not have enough output or runtime for a given situation (though there are some impressive AA lights out there now).

For a more specific example of what I'm saying, lets say one decides they must have a P3D but they're other requirements are rechargeable batteries AND a long run time for several hours of use a day . . . . I bet after a while they'll tire of that when they could have bought an 18650 light.

I can sit here and come up with dozens of examples as to why you should taylor the cart to your horses but I'm sure you get the idea. Of course one should consider the battery. In the long run it will make the purchase that much more enjoyable and right.

So, someone show me a AA/AAA powered light that can match my NovaTac 85T? 4 levels available with one hand. from .3 lumens for night reading/house navigating/long run time. 85 lumen and tactical strobe for tactical situations. All with the click of a button.

Fenix fails because you need 2 hands to twist the bezel.....

My point - you have to compromise the flashlight due to the battery.

And as for traveling, how much room does a half dozen CR123's take up, anyway? A poor excuse.

Brigadier said:

A poor excuse.

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Perhaps, but you didn't ask how I travel, to where I travel, and under what conditions. The compromise only exists if the flashlight in question is indeed the best one for the situation. If, for example, a Nitecore DI is better suited to a given task than the Novatac, then there is no compromise if I also wish to use an AA cell. This whole topic really boils down to the individual user's needs and the situation in which the light is being used.

I've been a serious user of 123 Lithiums for years, from Surefire L1, up to M6. Some lights these days (the L1, pre Cree version) give spectacular runtimes on a single cell, but the availability and cost of Lithiums is still a factor.

I have just ordered a Fenix L1 D CE, for both the ability to use AAs, and the long runtime and high output options. I do already have lights that run on AA cells, mainly Pelican Recoil LED lights that I use for occasional purposes. I have a few Pelican Sabrelites (C cell), and I like these, but the C cells are more expensive per unit than AAs.

I do have a large stock of Lithiums, but if I were to use my lithium powered lights only, this stock would quickly deplete. I use a Surefire L7 for my routine work, and I love it for this purpose, I used to use a SF 9P on Lithium primaries !

In an emergency situation, just about any working flashlight will do well enough, basically.

So, I have a one light that uses D, one lights that use AA, and a couple that use CR123. When I get my AAA I'm going to be able to use whatever happens to be available (in my inventory or at the local store), which is always a good plan for emergencies.

cant take lithiums on a plane these days...and sure its gonna be hard to match a certain light but thats a bit picky when in an emergency a good aa/aaa light is still a good aa/aaa light and for TRUE one hand operation god forbid i cant just use the low/med/high in general mode or unable to half twist the bezel ..an option is a Dmini that uses cr123 and has a 2aa battery tube with muliple levels so there with one handed operation....novatac is certainly a good light but if i had to take one on a trip or had to rely on a light for extended use it would be aa/aaa/ you can even take that novatac on a trip but i bet most people will have a AA back-up just incase

Your point is based on the fact that you own a well stocked CR123A primaries AND being totally prepared all the time to have back up batteries with you no matter where you go. I doubt everyone here on the board carry spare CR123A's on a daily basis.....nor spare AAs for the matter of fact.

We don't have to use disasters to stress the point. So you're camping with a group of friends and you find out your L1D just ran out of juice.....you forgot that you left the spares in your car, which is about 30 minutes of canoing and 5 km of hiking away from your backcountry campsite. Wouldn't it be easier to ask your friend has has spare AAs for the small boombox he brought along? Or do you think there is a better chance that someone is using a Canon digital camera that uses CR123As anf they have spares?

I don't think we flashaholics should limit the type of flashlights we buy JUST based on the battery type. But if a newbie comes along and wants suggestions on his/her first real flashlight.....I am definitely going to recommend a light that runs on AAs.

And I definitely don't want to just bring one flashlight that runs only on 18650s to any trip.

Centropolis said:

Your point is based on the fact that you own a well stocked CR123A primaries AND being totally prepared all the time to have back up batteries with you no matter where you go. I doubt everyone here on the board carry spare CR123A's on a daily basis.....nor spare AAs for the matter of fact.

We don't have to use disasters to stress the point. So you're camping with a group of friends and you find out your L1D just ran out of juice.....you forgot that you left the spares in your car, which is about 30 minutes of canoing and 5 km of hiking away from your backcountry campsite. Wouldn't it be easier to ask your friend has has spare AAs for the small boombox he brought along? Or do you think there is a better chance that someone is using a Canon digital camera that uses CR123As anf they have spares?

I don't think we flashaholics should limit the type of flashlights we buy JUST based on the battery type. But if a newbie comes along and wants suggestions on his/her first real flashlight.....I am definitely going to recommend a light that runs on AAs.

And I definitely don't want to just bring one flashlight that runs only on 18650s to any trip.

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Two is one, and one is none. I wouldn't bring just one light for the very reason you just mentioned.

Soundchaser said:

In an emergency situation, just about any working flashlight will do well enough, basically.

So, I have a one light that uses D, one lights that use AA, and a couple that use CR123. When I get my AAA I'm going to be able to use whatever happens to be available (in my inventory or at the local store), which is always a good plan for emergencies.

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I have to agree with Soundchaser... we're talking about emergency use right?

In an emergency, any light with batteries to power it will be great. I personally think everyone should have a couple of SMJLED's (PR base) which provide amazing runtime with a great 10 lumen beam. They work well with AA, C, D, lights that use PR based bulbs. IMO, they're a must to have around the house.

Marduke makes a good point about all the remotes, digicams and other small appliances that run on AA's.

"Two is one, and one is none. I wouldn't bring just one light for the very reason you just mentioned."


exactly...so do you bring a AA light with you, cuz if you dont and just use cr123 you are

1. contradicting your point of limiting yourself to specific battery

2. are gonna run that stock of cr123 faster on your journey

and if i can get a 2aa tube for that novatac then yeah thats a good light to match