Yet Another Cycling Forum
General Category => The Knowledge => OT Knowledge => Topic started by: Hot Flatus on 24 September, 2023, 09:58:05 am
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Are these no longer a thing?
It's a while since I've used them, but I've always regarded them as potentially dodgy with the market flooded with old laptop cells re-wrapped and sold as new sometimes labelled as known quality brands like Samsung.
I only ask because I've dug up a couple of old torches and bike lights that use them.
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Torchy the battery boy is your man.
http://www.torchy.co.uk/
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Battery Station, another reputable store, still lists them. I have the Xstar variety for a couple of torches.
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Protected batteries are preferable - they have short-circuit current limiting -
nuBattery were very helpful - Ollie sent me four tubular battery boxes FOC for carrying spares during Paris-Brest-Paris
https://www.nubattery.co.uk/keeppower (https://www.nubattery.co.uk/keeppower)
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Have 18650s been like CDs, displacing AAs only to in turn be displaced by built-in batteries, while AAs trundle along in the background like vinyl (only nowhere near as trendy – but I'm expecting a D-cell and Ever Ready revival anytime soon ;))?
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They frequently are the built-in cells, which is how they were originally intended to be used. Having them be trivially accessed by the user has gone out of fashion as reliability improved, in much the way of swappable mobile phone batteries.
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Also seems 21700 batteries are becoming more popular instead. They are like 18650, but a bit bigger and fatter. So can store more energy. Quite a few torches using them now, and apparently make up Tesla batteries.
You can get adapters to use 18650 in place of 21700 if necessary.
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I use Fogstar (https://www.fogstar.co.uk/) for 18650s. Possibly not the cheapest but always reputed to supply genuine batteries.
I think one of the problems was people using 18650 batteries in vape mods that were not rated for high current discharge and as a result, mods getting a bit hot and melty in peoples faces.
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I’ve got a dozen that I swap between lights and battery boxes so they’re still a thing here. A 2S2P box with 4 x 3500mah cells will run an IW-XE and Secula rear light for about 7 hours.
I also replaced the dead 2,000 mah battery in a mate’s expensive,’sealed’ front light with a new 3,500 mah model when the original failed.
I think it’s worth being careful about charging them. I do worry a bit about the sealed packs and how effective the balancing is, but charging them in a dedicated charger achieves good balance every time.