LED Lenser P5.2 with NiMH Rechargeable Batteries ????

Witterings

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Can I use rechargeable batteries with the P 5.2 .... I think I saw somewhere that's it's not recommended by the manufacturer and if not does anyone know why / will it damage the torch or do they simply say that as it won't achieve the quoted 140 lumens with the slightly lower voltage????
 

stephenk

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The recommendation is due to the light being direct drive and NiMHs having lower internal resistance than alkalines. I use NiMHs (Eneloops) in my P7.2 with no issues.
 

Witterings

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The recommendation is due to the light being direct drive and NiMHs having lower internal resistance than alkalines. I use NiMHs (Eneloops) in my P7.2 with no issues.

Thanks for that, I thought it'd be OK ...... I wonder why they advise against it???
 

CelticCross74

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its because LED Lenser wants you to buy their brand cells. Forget the NiMH's and buy a pack of L91 AA's better known as Energizer Ultimate Lithiums. 3000mah and they crank 1.5v right up until they die. Get a great deal on a bulk box of them at battery junction
 

Witterings

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its because LED Lenser wants you to buy their brand cells. Forget the NiMH's and buy a pack of L91 AA's better known as Energizer Ultimate Lithiums. 3000mah and they crank 1.5v right up until they die. Get a great deal on a bulk box of them at battery junction

Haven't checked in for a couple of days mainly due to rubbish at work :rolleyes: so only just seen this response will certainly have a look at although they're out of stock in the UK ... I did just try the torch with a normal AA rather than a fairly old ish duracell rechargeable and there was quite a difference .. problem is though I'll be using it an awful lot so rechargeable will save me a lot but I guess there's nothing out there that will perform like the 1.5v ones????

What happens if I stick a 14500 in one of these will it fry it???
 
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CelticCross74

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yes a 14500 will blow your emitter and likely fry the rest of the electronics. 14500 is 4.20 volts man. Fresh L91 Energizer Ultimate Lithium AA's come at 1.7 volts then after some use settle at or very close to 1.5 volts right up until they nearly die. L91's are also an amazing 3000mah. They are indeed expensive. Get mine in bulk online. Just got a box of 20 for $35. But hey if rechargeable is your think then literally any AA size Eneloop from the standard white ones to the older XX to the new Pros. Best non Eneloop NiMH available here are the Duracell Ion Core AA NiMH's are the next best thing. The Ion Cores are available everywhere here. They are 2400mah and have long been rumored to be re labeled Eneloop XX cells. Fresh off a good charger any of the rechargeable NiMH cells I have mentioned are 1.5+ volts. That extra voltage gets used up and they settle in at or around 1.2 volts for a good while. Since the light in question is a direct drive Lenser you will know when to recharge when the light starts dimming more and more,
 

CelticCross74

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alright OP I went to Lensers site and looked up your lite and read the PDF manual. They do not even mention rechargeable cells. They do specify 1.5v which would actually mean using even eneloops would be underpowering the light at 1.2v. There are endless sites here in the states to buy cells in bulk so IDK about the UK. I know Nkon(somewhere across the English Channel)is very reputable source for cells. Battery Junction and illumn here in the states have just about anything you can think of and buying in bulk is easy.

So, no NiMH cells they will actually be underpowering the light. Best alkalines are the standard Energizer Max AA(they have a patented seal to prevent them from leaking) and Duracell Quantum Cores. There is some new way Duracell is making the alkaline so they hold their charge longer and they have a power test strip along the side where you press both ends of a strip and it gives you a power left indication in how much of this bar turns green.

Still the absolute best cell you can put in the P5.2 is the Energizer Ultimate Lithium L91 AA cell. 3000mah is amazing for any kind of AA cell. The L91 is resistant to very extreme temperatures and best of all they dont leak. Please do not put some average cheap alkaline in the light you will only be getting 70 percent the performance the light is capable of and...alkalines leak. Should an alkaline leak out in your light it ruins the light.

And yes once again a 14500 will make your light go poof in a acrid plume of smoke. Will look around for a UK source for L91's for ya and oh BTW Lenser cells are garbage dont get suckered into buying them,
 

CelticCross74

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totally different hardware. Yes the rechargeable 5.2 takes a 14500 and has electronics designed to handle a 4.20v 14500 but the non rechargeable does not have the microprocessor and other electronics the rechargeable version has. So no they actually do not have the same components they are totally different. The M5 has 3 modes so the components there are also different. P5.2 just a slim low output EDC with killer variable focus. 5 hours of run time on one alkaline AA. With a L91 you should get no less than 8. The P5R.2 is 240 lumens. Not sure why they designed it for a 14500 though 14500's are low capacity.
 

Witterings

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totally different hardware. Yes the rechargeable 5.2 takes a 14500 and has electronics designed to handle a 4.20v 14500 but the non rechargeable does not have the microprocessor and other electronics the rechargeable version has. So no they actually do not have the same components they are totally different. The M5 has 3 modes so the components there are also different. P5.2 just a slim low output EDC with killer variable focus. 5 hours of run time on one alkaline AA. With a L91 you should get no less than 8. The P5R.2 is 240 lumens. Not sure why they designed it for a 14500 though 14500's are low capacity.


The one I bought in the end was the M5 which has the 3 settings ..... they claim the P5R.2 has seven hours run time and if so that'd one one F... of a great torch ... I wonder how realistic that is.
 

CelticCross74

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that run time rating for the P5R.2 is likely realistic. Even though the most common capacity for a 14500 is only a mere 750mah it still packing a 4.20v wallop. That is just overkill for 240 lumens. I am sure they get that kind of run time by metering out that huge amount of voltage with its microprocessor. With the best 14500 available which is the Sony based protected Keeppower 840mah 14500 instead of the sh*tty LED Lenser cell would net no less than 20% more run time.

As for the M5 it will blow in a cloud of acrid smoke if you put a 14500 in that one as well. L91 AA is still the best possible cell you can put into it just as it is for the P5.2. Wow searching for battery retailers in the UK is impossible! Here is a link to the closest I could find. Its AmazonUK. The link is for a 10 pack of L91's. They are expensive as 16 pounds is roughly 30 dollars. I got a 20 pack for $35.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B004G6NYB6/
 

ven

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Presuming it's a direct drive , at 7hrs it will probably be single figure lumens. Either way you will not get 7hrs of 240lm
from a 14500 cell. Maybe 7hrs at 20lm is what the specs mean. Often lights are advertised with their max output and max run times, these are two separate figures from different outputs(lowest for max run time spec ).
 

CelticCross74

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the rechargeable Lensers are only direct drive at max output. Im sure Lenser is skewering the numbers in some shady way but still. Why a 4.20v 14500 for a mere 240 lumen light? I came one key stroke from buying the M14X. I am very glad I stopped myself. I already have the better Coast lights anyways and I see no visual difference between the Coast reflectorless focusing system and the Lensers reflector plus focusing lens system visually. The Coast HP7 is an awesome house light at 360 lumens powered of course by L92 AAA's. Have both the old HP17 and the new 970 lumen HP17. They are both huge, built very well, as solid as a brick and could smash a large pumpkin without a scratch. The new XP-L HP17 cranks like crazy, has over 425 yards of throw and huuuuuge flood beam. Was all cheap too...
 

Fireclaw18

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I've stuck 3.7v lithium-ion rechargeables (14500 and 10440) in LED Lenser lights.

These higher voltage cells don't blow the emitter. In fact, the emitter tends to produce more light. However, these cells DO tend to blow the boost driver. Basically, if you run a 3.7v li-ion cell you may no longer ever be able to run 1.5v AA cells in that light. The light will probably still work, but only with the higher voltage cells.
 

Witterings

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I've stuck 3.7v lithium-ion rechargeables (14500 and 10440) in LED Lenser lights.

These higher voltage cells don't blow the emitter. In fact, the emitter tends to produce more light. However, these cells DO tend to blow the boost driver. Basically, if you run a 3.7v li-ion cell you may no longer ever be able to run 1.5v AA cells in that light. The light will probably still work, but only with the higher voltage cells.

I've heard this before as I looked at an M1 a while ago and a few people said much the same that once you've gone to the higher voltage there's no going back but if it doesn't blow it .................. and this is the big if ........ the run times are half decent with higher voltage batteries I'd go with it but would really want a couple of hours.

I have one of the little Q5 Sipik SK 68 lights which has a very narrow focus beam and is as bright as I need it to be but only has about 40 mins run time ... I'm after something that offers the same / a smidge more power if possible, I'm using it with protected 14500's and I don't like the fact it just suddenly cuts out when the battery gets low ... not great on a fast ish downhill on a bike with lots of ruts :eek:
If it's run time was as the rechargeable P5 claims to be (looked on their website for run time specs and supposedly 4 hrs min at 240 lumens with a 14500) at least if you have a reasonably charged battery before you go out you know it's not going to suddenly die as a car comes round the bend and doesn't see you or you hit a big rut you didn't see.

If I did bite the bullet and stick a 14500 in the M5 I wonder if I'd get similar run times or if blowing the boost driver may reduce it to much shorter times ie 40 mins in which case there's no upside.
 
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CelticCross74

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I have seen so many lights blow their emitter because their owners stuffed a power source far to much for what the emitter was designed for its ridiculous. The smell of an emitter thats gone poof burns the nostrils. Hey I am 100% sure many many people have blown other parts before the emitter as well but man so many people just dont understand to follow the directions that come with their lights.

I looked over the M5 as well. Go for it. Stuff a fully charged 4.20v 14500 in that M5 and see what happens. It will either be an instant blow out or a slow burn and short circuiting smoke bomb. Good luck. Take pics
 

Witterings

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I have seen so many lights blow their emitter because their owners stuffed a power source far to much for what the emitter was designed for its ridiculous. The smell of an emitter thats gone poof burns the nostrils. Hey I am 100% sure many many people have blown other parts before the emitter as well but man so many people just dont understand to follow the directions that come with their lights.

I looked over the M5 as well. Go for it. Stuff a fully charged 4.20v 14500 in that M5 and see what happens. It will either be an instant blow out or a slow burn and short circuiting smoke bomb. Good luck. Take pics

I've got to be honest I don't know how to interpret you answer and if it's helpful advice or dripping with sarcasm?????

I hope it's not dripping with sarcasm because if it is and someone who's relatively new to / green in this area you make yourself look like a complete .... (fill in the 4 dots as you please) but I'm hoping I've misinterpreted it ????

You are dealing with someone totally green to this so I have no idea when someone is being serious or not ... sorry!
 

ven

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CC is one of the good guys:)

If it was my choice and how i run my t7.2(4xAAA loops), i would feed it an AA sanyo eneloop, as good as free to run after a couple of cycles.................

I have used nimh of past issue free, would not worry:)
 

CelticCross74

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did not mean any kind of sarcasm I apologize if I came across that way. I have gone over the manuals for all the Lensers mentioned and posted my findings. OP seems intent on using a 14500 anyways. Want a good 14500 light? Get the new Fenix E25UE. For less than 50 bucks you have a 1000 lumen flamethrower when using 14500's. Thanks for the props ven. I only mean well. Ive got a couple dozen AA Pros that I stopped using when I finally read the L91 PDF spec sheet. Yes it costs more but 3000mah 1.5v till they die on top of first rate resistance to temp extremes make them more than worth it to me. Once again OP you are more than free to attempt an 14500 cell if you wish. Ill just sum up with this-Best NiMH for the 5.2 and M5 Eneloop Pro. Best primary-L91 lithium AA. Should you get the rechargeable 5.2 measure the craptastic Lenser 14500 it comes with and try to match the length on better brand name 14500's. Good luck man...
 
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