There’s lots of knowledgeable people , here on the BLF and I need your opinions about size 16340 & 14500 batteries.
1-What’s the best brand names for both sizes ?—( meaning: mAh , volts , etc.)
2-What’s the cheapest of the best brands of 16340 and 14500 cells
List more than one of each if you like. Your help will be appreciated.
Thanks :+1:
16340 and 14500 aren’t really made by any of the major OEMs. With the exception of the Sanyo UR14500P they are all rewraps and there is no promise of consistency under that wrapper. Efest and Vapcell are sometimes good and sometimes not.
Ultimately being in the US you probably don’t want to bother with the hassles of importing cells so you will be kind of limited to a handful of trustworthy US-based shops. These are all of the 14500 and 16340 cells that they stock 
Parametrek , That’s a impressive list that you have shown me to search for 16340 & 14500 cells. Thanks for your input in my cell search.
Can someone here on BLF , look at that list and make some suggestions ?
Highest capacity 14500 and cheapest:
Absolute cheapest 16340 at 3,69$US: http://www.mtnelectronics.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=754&search=16340
Higher capacity unprotected 16340 for 3,95$US: Efest 16340 - 850mAh - Protected Button Top
I use the Windyfire for all my 14500 Li-Ion needs. I don’t really use 16340 cells. But I do have some of the Lumintop branded ones. Not sure who makes them but they do just fine on my lights. They are protected and the few lights I do have that use them don’t have low voltage protection so it keeps me from damaging a cell. The Windyfire’s can be had from Mountain for $2.99 a piece and a 4 pack of Lumintop 16340 can be had on Amazon for $10.
I recently got 6 TrustFire red/gold high drain 16340s from FastTech and they’ve been decent so far. They are, however, flattops and won’t work in lights with reverse polarity protection, so be aware before you buy.
Chris
These look like a good choice for the 16340 format, rated at 700mAh and 14A.
https://eu.nkon.nl/rechargeable/14500-16340-18350-18490-18500/enercig-16340-700mah.html
But this is for the European market.
Does anybody know if this cell is offered elsewhere? I think this is a tensai cell.
As somebody that uses 16340s in my regular EDC lights, there’s no way that those can discharge at 14A. The best we can hope for with ‘quality’ ChiCom 16340s is 3A, perhaps 4A of continuous discharge and then that’s even a ‘roll of the dice.’
Run from those. If you want a decently tested high drain 16340 cell, look towards the genuine TrustFire red/gold 16340 flat tops.
They might not last for years, but they’re good in modern 16340 lights that can take flat tops.
https://lygte-info.dk/review/batteries2012/TrustFire%20IMR16340%20650mAh%20(Red-gold)%20UK.html
They won’t work where you need button tops, but they’re, or were, the ‘king of the hill’ not too long ago.
Original TrustFires are GTG. Look at FastTech.com.
Chris
Well, I can’t argue with experience, you mean these right?
Unfortunately there is currently no battery shipping at all to Greece from Fasttech.
I found a few sources for these on aliexpress but nothing at a good price. (cheapest was $12 for 2)
I highly recommend WindyFire 14500’s. They come in both Flat Top & Button Top configuration. Priced at $2.99 at MTN Electronics.
It says 600 mAh, but all of mine have measured a bit over 650 mAh. They were tested for discharge capacity on both my Lii 500 & Opus. The measured capacities from the Opus were corrected for the known issue that the Opus discharge capacity measurements are high.
These are great cells. Priced right. Highly recommended!! :+1:
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Unprotected, flat top or button top. This is one of the best “high drain” 14500 cells available, outperforming even the venerable AW and Efest 14500 cells—check out the discharge comparison picture!
Read HKJ’s review of the cell.
Diameter:14mm
Height: 49.1mm
Manufacturer Cell Specifications:
These cells, like all lithium and IMR cells, should not be discharged below 2.5 volts.
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The VapCell 14500 - 1000mAh, mentioned above by BSM ; are fairly close to the WindyFires up to 2A discharge & of course have more capacity. But at 3A discharge the separation begins in all but capacity. At 5A discharge the Vapcell falls on it’s face. At 7A discharge it is dying. It sells for $3.50 at Illumn.
In fact, up to 1A discharge the VapCell slightly beats the WindyFire.
At 1A discharge they are about equal.
So, up to 3A discharge if you want or need the greater capacity; the VapCell is a good compromise I think.
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This is a good 14500 too, it is just barely better than the WindyFire. It costs $4.25 at MTN Electronics.
They probably don’t deliver 14A, but I bought a couple and without the ability to do HKJ tests I found them pretty good, at least way better than my Efest 16340 V2 cells from a few years ago (that may not be optimal anymore). See What did you mod today? - #6914 by djozz