I’m playing around with some unknown quality batteries and asking why. **fire never give what they claim and no 2 ever match. All my batteries are going to be only Panasonics based cells with AW’s only for odd sizes from now on. Please don’t hate me, its just being cheap on batteries is killing the fun of being cheap on lights.
Most of my batteries are Panasonic's. The only other's I have are Xtar's, HiMax, and Keeppower. I got rid of my cheap ****fire's. Reason, beside not coming close to their claimed capacity, it's the potential fire hazard they *might* have. Better to be safe than sorry.
P.S. The HiMax's have been good so far. I still use them with caution in single cell lights just to be on the safe side
all mine are going to be straight panasonic.
i’m partial to cgr18650ch, which for me eliminates the need for IMR
i might eventually start buying 3100 o 3400 mah panasonics
i hate crappy batteries. waste of time and money
While not personally hung up on AW (still own a few) I can relate.
I only use Panasonic- or Sanyo-based quality cells in my lights to avoid the 'fun' associated with the no-name cells.
The multi-cell, multi-emitter lights that have come to market only reinforce the need for a quality power source.
Bob (Kumabear) has been getting my business lately, as his KeepPower cells have performed admirably.
texas shooter, you're not a snob, just being cautious. Cheap Chinese can be dangerous, and even deadly. I wish everybody had your sense.
We all learn the lesson at some point. No cheapie batteries, ever. They are dangerous and don’t last, just as surely as they don’t put out as advertised. And consider this all the more when gifting or selling a light to a non-flashy—you don’t want to give them something dangerous!
Mine are Hi-Max (Samsung), XTAR, Sanyo, Kumabear’s Keeppowers, and Panasonics. Can’t go wrong with these.
EDIT: Yeah, you aren’t a snob. This has made me kick myself so much, and now, everyone I ever sold a cheapie to - whether they reported problems or not - have been upgraded for free to newer ones at my cost. It’s that important.
Joe, I had no idea Hi-Max's were Samsung's. Good to know!
I only use panasonic or sanyo based cells… i have a few mnke and king kong 26xxx as well
fast tech had a pretty good deal going for panasonics if i remember it was like $15 for a pair of protected
I bought 2 pairs of the Panasonic 3100 mAh protected 18650's from Fasttech. I should have them Friday
Yeah, I’ve had great luck with Hi-Max’s. Only complaint is they are too obese for some lights. But I believe Keeppowers are Samsungs, too.
JMPaul320, I still have a few 26650s and Trustfire batteries I use in my personal lights, especially ones that are not too demanding by way of current.
actually i just found an old trustfire 26650 flame i got about 4 months after ordering it from tmart… they refunded my order and it showed up 8 weeks later lol. I emailed them to try and pay for it and they said the order was closed…… i tried!
that fasttech deal is great, if i needed batteries i would grab a few pairs… i remember paying $20 a piece last spring for 6 aws
but that was when i was noob. 
I only use Panasonic, or Panasonic based cells. Safety and performance both being important.
I have just ordered a couple of Samsung INR18650-20R’s though.
Some probably are, but most are Panasonics and Sanyos. Same goes for XTAR (Sanyos and Panasonics).
FastTech shipped my 10 Sanyo 2800’s unprotected yesterday. I’ll be running those with a supplement of good recycled laptop cells (mostly Sanyo, test to 2000mAh+).
I’m also getting a 4-pack of SpiderFire 16340’s to try them. The selection in non-18650 formats is abysmal; pretty much forced to play roulette with __Fire brands.
18650 fill most of my lights, but I also use 26650, 18350, rcr123 and 14500’s. Who makes these that are the BEST, SAFEST and RELIABLE.
Keeppower has some great cells.
I wouldn't care as much if Ultrafire batteries just had true capacity far below claimed capacity, but they are extremely inconsistent. That's what makes them dangerous. Even if they were used in single cell applications, I'd have to test each cell and label it so I'd have some idea of what to expect when taking it out for a long bike ride at night. I don't want the hassle, I don't want to gamble, and I'd like to have cells that could work in multi cell applications.
You are a snob. The Trustfire Flames 2400mAh and 3000mAh are good quality.
anyone remember the fake battery shrink wrap?
you can basically get junk in any brand. my 2400 flames have been very consistent for me, even though they were unprotected when i bought protected
Looks like just about everyone is on the same page regarding Panasonic and Sanyo in the 18650 department.
I’m pretty much set on AW for all my 16340 and 14500.
Does anyone know who makes FourSevens 26650, or seen a review on them? I have two of them, but haven’t really used them much yet.