Possible bans on bare Li-ion cells coming (all communities affected)

Celest

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Sep 9, 2020
Messages
37
Location
New Mexico, USA
Looks like there's gonna possibly be a huge hit all communities that use bare Li-ion cells, especially 18650s, sometime soon. I've been alerted to a "little" (it's big, I'm being sarcastic) problem and I think this needs more widespread attention because it's being stealth-pushed while we're all distracted with the other bad events that have been going on in the past year. The CPSC and other legal entities are as usual not really happy about the sales of bare cells and it's reaching a tipping point where it is being rumored that there might be actual sales bans. I get that there are alot of people who were either not taught battery safety, are ignorant or whatever else and have hurt themselves by misusing Li-ion cells and then tried to blame vaping, battery companies and whatnot else instead of themselves. Overregulation of this nature is NOT the solution, and it also harms people who either use these in non-vape applications like flashlights or like me some more niche electronics. I get that protected cells exist but there a number of issues (draconian current limits, etc...) and bare cells are dirt cheap compared to quality protected ones which is great if you are a money-limited college student like me and already use devices and chargers that have proper protections built in out of the box. Also, having replaceable non-proprietary batteries like 18650s saves devices from landfills and saves us all additional money. It's really stupid in my opinion that just because of a few careless accidents with vapes the government (looking at you, anti-vape politicians) has the nerve to threaten setting a precedent like this. If the government banned everything else that could cause harm by misuse (everyday things like alcohol, cars, propane tanks, high-potency energy drinks, BBQ lighters, matches, and other normal things can and do cause a ton more damage, injury and death when than a blown 18650 or two) then we'd have pretty much none of the things that make everyday life in modern society possible. In short, I as somebody who loathes politics and just wants to live my life freely and worry-free I just can't stand when I have to bother with dumb things like worrying that the bunch of anti-vape politicians are now going to possibly ruin things for other communities and my personal hobbies. I returned too the US a year and a half ago for college and to have more freedom, and NOT to have my precious electronics hobbies possibly spoiled if things continue this way. 100 years ago it was alcohol prohibition, now it's possibly (let's pray NOT) battery prohibition. I used to think that just because I don't vape I would never see overregulation for stuff I use for innocent normal stuff I do in my spare time, but evidently I was wrong.

Relevant articles:

https://www.cpsc.gov/content/cpsc-i...ury-or-death-can-occur-if-lithium-ion-battery

https://tobaccoreporter.com/2021/01/08/court-clears-way-for-e-cig-explosion-case-against-samsung/

https://vaping360.com/vape-news/107841/concerns-over-18650-batteries-arent-news-to-vapers/ (BEST article)

https://www.world-today-news.com/re...ds-to-ban-the-sale-of-cells-in-online-stores/

This is a copy-paste of the previous article but it calls cells "18650 lithium weapons" in the title, which I find absolutely hilarious:
https://pravinfo.com/russia/regulators-in-the-united-states-used-18650-lithium-weapons-and-demanded-a-ban-on-the-sale-of-cells-in-online-stores/
 
Last edited:

ampdude

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Apr 7, 2007
Messages
4,615
Location
USA
With mother Biden in charge nothing is off the table when it comes to things like this. I don't think he ever saw a ban of anything he didn't like.
 

Celest

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Sep 9, 2020
Messages
37
Location
New Mexico, USA
Vapers should use Lifepo4 cells, Having a virtual bomb so close to your face, eeeekkk.

Well it wouldn't work in regulated mods, but would save mech mod users. And honestly, flashlights should be made to support LFP since they can also turn into a pressure chamber with regular Li-ion if misused.
 
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