TL-3 and the use of rechargable batteries

NotRegulated · Sep 22, 2005

I've owned my TL-3 (green) for just about a week now. It's great.
I would like to use rechargable batteries in it.
I have tried using 2 Pila 150s but they don't work. I have been reading that AW's rechargables work. What is the difference between the two? Why don't my Pila's work?

Paul_in_Maryland · Sep 22, 2005

They definitely should work; Pila cells use a different protection approach that lets them work at higher currents without shutting down. In fact, I've ordered a pair too see whether they'll power a P91 lamp where my protected 17500 cells won't.

So I don't know what's holding back your cells.

A few months ago, Wolf Eyes and Pila upgraded the capacity of their cells. In the 150s size, it went from something like 1000 mAh to something like 1200. Maybe you have old stock that's just a bit too low in capacity (and hence, high in resistance) to power the TL-3.

Have you tried recharging your Pila cells? In case you're unaware, each time protection is tripped, you need to place the cells back in the charger for a while to reset the protection.

litho123 · Sep 23, 2005

Could it be a lack of a nipple on the Pila's? and a small circular magnet would be the surrogate nipple?

NotRegulated · Sep 23, 2005

I'll try it again with yours suggestions in mind. Thanks.

Paul_in_Maryland,
I am currenty using two Pila 150s in my Surefire 9P with the P91 lamp. It works great. You'll love it.
Tip: You will have to click the "ON" button twice in rapid succession to get the P91 lamp to light. The double tap by passes the Pila protection circut on the second tap.
Use with the P90 is just like using 123 lithium cells...you can't tell the difference.

Paul_in_Maryland · Sep 23, 2005

I have a P91 that I'm itching to try, but I'm hoping to avoid the need to double click. What if you just want a momentary operation?

You can single-click a P91 with AW's 18650 or 17670 cells, but not with AW's 18500 or 17500 or Pila 150S. We can safely infer that Pila 168A and 168S cells will also single-click. The only remaining piece to the puzzle is, "Can you single-click with Pila 150A cells?" I've had some 150S cells on order, but thanks to your post, I'll change them to 150A to learn the answer (in a Wolf Eyes light). If the answer is Yes, then for many of us, that would be a compelling reason to choose a Wolf Eyes or Pila 3-cell standard-head light (bearing in mind that the P91 reflector will need a bit of machining to properly fit).

pilot4x4 · Sep 23, 2005

I run my TL-3 lights on 17500 batteries from AW and get almost exactly one hour of nearly full brightness out of them. It's a great setup. The only thing is that the light goes from almost full output to nothing instantly so you have to be ready for that.
John

oklalawman · Sep 24, 2005

pilot4x4 said:
I run my TL-3 lights on 17500 batteries from AW and get almost exactly one hour of nearly full brightness out of them. It's a great setup. The only thing is that the light goes from almost full output to nothing instantly so you have to be ready for that.
John

Ditto they work great.

juancho · Sep 24, 2005

I run my TL-3 lights on 17500 batteries from AW and get almost exactly one hour of nearly full brightness out of them. It's a great setup. The only thing is that the light goes from almost full output to nothing instantly so you have to be ready for that.
John9quote/]

Thanks for the information, are your 17500 protected?
Are they from AW?

I want to run my TL-3 but I want to order the proper batteries!

pilot4x4 · Sep 24, 2005

Yes they are the 17500 protected cells that AW sells. He's great to buy from by the way. I bought some cells from him that were bad and he immediately shipped replacements, only took 6 days to get here from the time I emailed him. John

Dukester · Sep 25, 2005

I too have the 17500 cells from AW and he is great to deal with. I use the cells to feed my little hand cannon (aka TL-3)

TBrogden · Sep 27, 2005

Could someone help clarify a point for me?

Given that the 17500s are 3.7 volts and the TL-3 is a 9V bulb, isn't the bulb underdriven considerably by two 17500s? If that is the case, aren't there implications for output, beam color, etc?

Thanks,

Tony

Paul_in_Maryland · Sep 27, 2005

The bulb is not underdriven, because under load, those three 3V cells depress to about 7.4V. If anything, the two 17500 cells deliver more voltage under load for most of their cycle! The heavier the load, the brighter the difference.

Dukester · Sep 27, 2005

TBrogden said:
Could someone help clarify a point for me?

Given that the 17500s are 3.7 volts and the TL-3 is a 9V bulb, isn't the bulb underdriven considerably by two 17500s? If that is the case, aren't there implications for output, beam color, etc?

Thanks,

Tony

The cells come off the charger @4.20v (peak) each, that's a total of 8.40v. The 17500 cells handle the load much better than the primary cr123's thus providing a flat runtime.

Dave

lightoftheworld · Sep 28, 2005

Please tell me the website address for these AW protected batteries. Can anyone give me a link?

I have two TL-3s, and I don't use either of them, because my Pilas won't work in them.

I've only been using my Surefire with Pilas. I would love to be able to use my TL-3s.

Ledean · Sep 28, 2005

Here is the link to AW's site https://www.candlepowerforums.com/threads/87615

TBrogden · Sep 29, 2005

Dukester said:
The cells come off the charger @4.20v (peak) each, that's a total of 8.40v. The 17500 cells handle the load much better than the primary cr123's thus providing a flat runtime.

Dave

Thanks, Dave!

TBrogden · Oct 4, 2005

Paul,

For some reason, I had previously missed your reply to my question. Thanks very much for the info. It really helped clarify the situation. I've now ordered the 17500s.

Thanks again.

stuartyr · Oct 4, 2005

I have never had to double tap to get the P91 to light up on 2 x 150S, but I think I have read somewhere that the earlier ones had a less sensative protection circut?

TL-3 and the use of rechargable batteries

NotRegulated

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