4x18650 battery box question

Hello everyone, I bought a 4x18650 power box to use as a power source for my iphone when I hunt. I also bought 4 unprotected 18650 batteries that are currently on the slow boat from china. My question is, how do I charge it?

her’es a link to the exact unit I bought

http://www.ebay.com/itm/280996213277?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&\_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649

will those chargers charge unprotected batteries safely?

Most DX chargers are crap.
If you want safe 18650 charger for cheap, your best bet is Xtar WP2 II for ~$15-$20.

so it looks like my best bet is to find a 5v dc wall wart. Would this one work?
http://www.amazon.com/Premium-External-Adapter-2-5-inch-Enclosure/dp/B001PUSERA/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1354127841&sr=8-1&keywords=5v+dc+adapter

if I read the ad a little better, it provides a link to a charger that works. I bought this one
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=280913414884&ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT

So this should stop charging the unprotected batteries before they explode as long as the internal protection works. Is there any way to test that before I start charging?

a lot of these 4 x 18650 boxes use a tp4056 chip which does follow a CC/CV protocol. Check yours and if it does have one you should be ok to charge using a USB wall wart. It will be slow however as 1 amp is the max charge current (—> 250ma per 18650).

http://www.tpmicro.com/goods.php?id=47

The one I ordered that looked like one of those did not. Another option would be to just get a ML-02 charger and carry around a few spares. I can vouch for it as I EDC it daily along with a spare 18650 stored in a L2P. ;)

whats the best way to check if I have that chip?

If you post picture of the circuit board in it then we could look for you. :) Or just look for a chip labeled tp4056. It will look like this one.

I cracked it open last night, and if you click the link below my original post it takes you to the ebay page with a picture of the internals visible. Ill look again when I get home, but I didn’t see a chip with any distinct lettering. Just the “100”, whatever that means.

I already looked at the one on ebay and I can't make out the lettering on the chips since it is at a angle. There is one that could be the right one from the little bit I can see.

This is the link from the same person that you bought it from for the charger. I guess this would work.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/AC-100V-240V-Converter-Adapter-DC-5V-2A-Power-Supply-US-DC-5-5mm-x-2-1mm-2000mA-/280913414884?ssPageName=STRK:MESE:IT

Hey I have a similar ordered last week from suntekstore but there is also a USB in for charging.
I am not sure why I need this but someday I would like to charge some batterie with a solar panel to transfer the daylight in the night or so.
Please describe your experience with this.

Yup! It’s there. It says TP 4056 1220, which is a little different then the one you posted a pic of. My eyes are starting to go.

1220 is most likely a build date code.

I wonder if I could just use a usb to usb cord, plug it into my iphone wall jack and charge it that way. From poking around on here Ive kind of learned that 18650’s can potentially be dangerous, and I dont want to charge it and come home to my town house burned to the ground. Mostly because of all the cool stuff I have, not because of the house itself. My goal is to be able to charge my iphone for as long as possible and doing it cheaply and safely. 4 of the unprotected batteries were $13, the charger was 5.50 and the box was 8.44, so if this works I should have a 10000mah battery pack for $27

$3 batteries vs. being safer. Choose 1.

EDIT: This doesn’t say what you have is unsafe. It says there are probably safer options to address the concern you raised about safety. Can’t know what you have under those wrappers . . . but personally I’m more comfortable with known oem cells, or even those from a good laptop pack.

Why do you think they are unsafe?

Which batteries did you buy?

http://dx.com/p/trustfire-18650-3-7v-2500mah-rechargeable-lithium-batteries-2-pack-19770