cheap 18650 batteries including charger

Hello. I'm looking at this flashlight: http://www.manafont.com/product_info.php/ultrafire-wf501b-t6-5mode-led-flashlight-118650-black-p-7639. It looks pretty good by specs and might be a good flashlight for me. Then again, I got a little problem with the money right now, so I need a 18650 battery and a charger. I got a GP power bank charger for AA and AAA but nothing for a 18650. I've never even had any batteries of that type (or seen them in the Netherlands...)

So I'm on a tight budget (€10 / $14) is it possible to find a good charger and 18650 battery for that money? I've searched the forum and I found out that these $2 chargers are a little crappy. I also found some good 18650 batteries, but they are pretty expensive for me. I can find a lot of Ultrafire, Superfire, Uniquefire (how originalfire....) and GTL batteries on ebay or chinese sites. Most of them say they are around 2600 Mah or higher, but I doubt that for a pack (2) for $5 incl shipping.... Is it possible to get some good batteries and charger for my budget or should I just stay away from these cheap items?

I have at least five of these chargers http://www.manafont.com/product_info.php/ac-lithium-battery-charger-for-18650-1meter100v240v-p-5642 and have never had a problem, use them all the time. The trustfire flames are usually regarded as decent quality cells. http://www.manafont.com/product_info.php/protected-trustfire-18650-37v-2400mah-rechargeable-batteries-flame-2pcsset-p-5560 I have never had a problem with them either. I have been buying what are supposed to be better batteries lately because I just like getting different stuff. The flames have always been fine for me.

As a good start I would recomend realiable TR001 and some 18650 from the same site. As a first time custumer you can get 15% discount (see https://budgetlightforum.com/t/-/431) so you can go as low as 10$. You can still buy better batteries later on but the charger can stay for a while (quite some of us using it).

Thanks for all the replies! I guess it's just like gambling :P I can go the cheap way, but I'd never know what I get... I see the flame ones got some good reviews so I might take these. I don't know for the charger, but I ain't got much left to get one :P.

@ledoman, do you have one of these batteries? They are pretty cheap in my opinion... and I'd like to know what the true capacity of these things is. One the site they tell me they should be around 2000Mah? (saw 20000, no possible :P love these typo's...)

I do have them, but don't know actual capacity, I've never drain them much. Anyway it's not too bad. For the price and to start with are good enough. Next step (when you get rich ;-) ) is to get flames one......

vertigo3 why don't you try this at only $9.30

I don't know how good it is.

"cheap 18650 batteries including charger"

"...In related news, a Dutch man died today in a mysterious explosion. Police are operating under the theory that he was, in fact, carrying a small pipe bomb in his right hand. In other local news, the annual canna..."

Seriously though, I wouldn't ever buy GTL brand batteries again. They have impossible ratings (I have 4 GTL "2000 mAh"! 16340's) and, so far, dodgy quality. One is dead outright, and all are outperformed by my old, ugly blue ultrafires.

If that drop-in that comes in that light puts out a real 2.8A as stated thats cheaper than just buying a bare drop-in and getting a free host.

I don't care much for the 501B personally, But saving $2 and getting a free host makes it look alot better.

BTW im vote goes to the Trustfire TR-001 and a set of Trustfire flame 18650 2400mAh cells.

About drop-in see https://budgetlightforum.com/t/-/3225#comment-59015

spend a few dollars more and get the xtar's 2600 and a reasonable charger. You will regret buying cheap batteries.

I bought one of those cheap Battery/Charger combos from ebay. Make a long story short, they ended up in the garbage because that's what they were, total garbage. I now have and Xtar WP2 charger with Xtar and Panasonic cells. I'm a happy camper now

i would not recomend buying batteries from buyincoins, i made the mistake of buying some 3000 mah nimh and after many cycles the best they would take was 700 mah less then 1/3 of the claimed mah, i also got some ulftrafire from them they to performed realy bad took less then 1/3 of the claimed mah rating plus each cell was a diffrent size and type with the same lable on them, i got a refund after a while.

ive also brought known brands off ebay and they have been fake all take less then 50% of claimed can only take very low c rate charges like under 0.2 amp and with use in a 2 amp torch voltage drops to 0.99v dangerous, most of the realy cheap ones seam to be fake

if you want some thing cheap and reliblem that will take the claimed or close to the claimed mah rate and will give you long run times for the price this is as cheap as i would go, ive brought 12 from here and all work as they should.

http://www.manafont.com/product_info.php/protected-trustfire-18650-37v-2400mah-rechargeable-batteries-flame-2pcsset-p-5560?rp=522815

10$ for the 2xflame tf was a little high for me too, but I took 5$ off coupon at Dinodirect (for the 8$ coupon I got spik sk68), so the price was like 6$, which is very reasonable for respected fire trustfire cells. I would buy it eventually evenat the price of 10$, because there is really no good cheaper alternative to this cells.

Im also confused, at DD, they have 3 sets of flames, 2 PCB, and 1 non-protected

these for 8.73

and these for 11.30

they look the same, protected, but after asking they told that the more expensive ones are better... but didnt tell why..the original price of the cheaper ones are actually higher.. so for that reason it doesnt make sense they are "worse"..

How can they be "better"?

and they also have the flames, unprotected for 10.80

Just received answer... (very quick) and supposedly the protection system is worse on the cheaper ones.. ? never heard that the exactly same products have 2 different protection systems.. which look outwardly exactly same..

how can you tell that your flames are the "good" ones.

It was recently noticed on DX that the "new" flamefires have lessor protection (1 vs 2 fets) vs. the older ones people received.

This is an area where cheap is a really stupid way to go ...Spend the minimum to buy decent batteries ..I'd say any company who even sells bty batteries is one to avoid.

What you're asking for doesn't exist .. there isn't any cheap decent 18650's apart from revrend jims unprotected panasonics .lithium ion batteries is the one place scrimping is a horrible idea ..it becomes pennywise and pound foolish . this is one area where you need to spend the money .it's a rechargable so it will pay for it's self no matter what you spend .

+1

spend a few dollars more and get the xtar 2600. Nb: I got dodgy Trustfire flames from dx last year.

thats why i get them from here

http://www.manafont.com/product_info.php/protected-trustfire-18650-37v-2400mah-rechargeable-batteries-flame-2pcsset-p-5560?rp=522815

not the cheapest, but i know they are not fake they take claimed mAh and they perform really well for cheapies, they have over charge protection.

i found this intresting

http://www.light-reviews.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=9&t=513

Unless you're sure they're not the latest ones people are getting from DX (which you can't really tell unless you take apart), they're not going to be very good in XML with direct drive. There were some pretty good deals for xtar 2600 here, which use sanyo cells and are generally better than the chinese cells.

Somewhat ironic that flamefire go down in quality just as XML's become more common.