got cheap flashlight on ebay, its decent.. except 18650 batt. Can I buy better batt?

Bought a cheap rechargeable LED flashlight on ebay, cost $16.77 total and runs on one 18650 battery which seemed very light in weight when I opened the package so I was concerned it may not last long. I was right, the light works great, adjustable bright beam, charger shows charge status with a light that turns green, yellow and red, but after 3 weeks of around 10 minutes total use (2 minutes here, 30 seconds there etc..) it started to get dim. Battery states 4200mah, 3.7 Li-ion, made in china and the brand is Tactfire. Charger says output of 4.2V and 500mA The light came with 2 batteries and an adapter that allows the use of three AAA batteries. So I figure I can just buy a decent 18650 battery OR buy alkaline AAAs at the 99 cent store (they are 4 for 1$) - either way I should get more then 10 minutes of use from the light. I also noticed recently that some ebay sellers have exactly the same light with a different brand engraved/stamped on the side.

Its just for occasional home use, I figured I don't really need a SERIOUS flashlight that would cost a pretty penny.
Thanks for any advice ya can give.

Sean G

Can't expect much from such a cheap brand light and cells, unless that brand is Convoy. And unless it is "Surefire," any cells with "fire" in the name are bound to blow. Remember to always rest your cells at least an hour after charging and before use, and after use and before charging.

Also, welcome to CPF :welcome:

Get a good 18650 Panasonic or Sanyo battery at least 3000mA and you'll be fine.

any cheap lights sold with no name batteries you are lucky to get even close to 2000mah capacity most likely 1200 or less making them typically useless for any high performance usage just figure these batteries are only useful for "testing" things not for operating them normally. I agre with Tripplec in that 3000mah is IMO the starting point for recommended 18650 batteries.