It seems as though the Dry group buy is going to be a hit. I for one, do not have a good set of 3 18650's to use with it. I figured I could begin this thread for those who also need a good set of batteries for this big new purchase.
What would you recommend for us new Dry owners in terms of batteries? Please give reasoning, as well as a purchase link.
Thanks!
I ended up buying the hi-max 2600 batteries reviewed on this site. Not sure if those were the best choice but I needed to buy 12 and they were a good price while the trustfires seem to be bad cells at this particular moment from what I gather.
Sanyo 2600s are good for "testing" and playing around. They give the most current/juice and has the flattest discharge plateau (as tested by mitro at various high current levels). But bad for bouncing off the low voltage threshold, as the DRY does not LV cut.
XTAR 2600/Hi Max 2600 protected is good for general usage. XTAR 2600 sags quite a bit, prob due to the PCB, but generally helps to not overheat/overdrive this flashlight equipped with a big-ass turbo inside. hehe... Even then, be careful of using the light when you have charged say a triplet of XTAR 2600s to 4.22V/12.66V. (well that happens right?). Try to bring it to a more sane voltage of say 4.1V with High/Med and then switch to Turbo then.
Edit - Ditch the XTAR 18700 2600s - they do not fit the new DRY with metal carrier.
Can try the Trustfire Flames 2400 as well.
Especially be careful when strobing at 4.2V. A DRY driver in the Fry Ray SR3800 rev 0 (ie same as the DRY, not a drop-in) fried one of my 16mm XM-L star. Strobe is full power ahead.
It is things like this that makes the flashlight fun as a hobby. 
I would second the Sanyo 2600, as well as the Panasonic 2900 and 3100Mah variants.
The newly-reviewed high-discharge Panasonic cells are a very good choice for this torch, since they have relatively little sag at the DRY current draw. Mind the voltages, as 2100 says.
if you search mitro his thread with graphs will come up first
if you're going w/ turbo version it would seem high current performance is key
I just spent an hour deciding between these
http://www.intl-outdoor.com/panasonic-cgr18650ch-2250mah-liion-battery-p-291.html
http://www.intl-outdoor.com/panasonic-ncr18650a-3100mah-liion-battery-p-213.html
but didn't want to get the 3100s until the protection is upgraded, so I went with the former.
I found a e-cig shop w/ those for $8 (don't know what shipping would be) but decided I'd rather give my business to a light dealer...
Maybe we should elaborate on this topic and discuss the dangers of using this light. So is someone seriously going to obliterate their hand using a flashlight? Should some people consider not buying this light for that reason? I'm sure not every potential buyer is ready and willing to monitor precise voltages and a system of mode switching :P
This is definitely a good thread to learn about batteries to use in such a flashlight, since the majority of us are not as familiar with this kind of power.
If I remember correctly from reading your posts over the past two months, protected batteries do not fit in the metal battery carrier that is sold on intl-outdoor.com. Not knowing if the Dry V3 has the old plastic carrier or the metal one, this novice is confused on what battery to get as well. I thought that I would start with Ric's Sanyo 2600's and go from there. Please correct me if I am wrong.
i have dry metal battery carrier purchased from intl-outdoor last month. Xtar 18700 (2400mah) will not fit. Well, maybe if you cut the whole spring off - the space is almost exactly the same length as those cells.
I'm thinking a voltage monitor mod might be in order, eventually. I'm assuming space would be the major hurdle....I'll see in a few weeks:)
edit: i just measured - a battery with overall length 68mm will fit in my carrier, the spring is totally compressed. my xtar cell measures 69.6mm
Good info, thanks. This pretty much rules out my Xtars and Lumilights. Maybe I just get those 2600 Sanyos at first.
oops! I planned on using XTAR 2600's. Hmmm... now on to Plan B
I need good protection because one will be a gift to my dad.
Thanks dthrckt. Exactly what I wanted to know. That would mean that the Callies Kustoms 3100 at 68.9, AW 3100 at 68.16, Redilast 3100 at 69.03 etc would not fit in the metal carrier either.
We still don't know if V3 has the metal carrier though do we? If it comes with the plastic carrier I will use protected batteries in that one then buy the metal carrier and use Sanyo 2600's. That way I will have a speedloader like with a six shooter.
Ok, updated my post regarding the XTAR 18700s that do not fit.
Why does the specs call for unprotected batteries? Is it a length issue or is there another reason?
| Size | 152MM*58MM*47MM | NetW | 350g |
| Material | 6061-T6 Aluminum | Current | 3A~4A on HI ; 500~700mA on Lo; |
| LED | 3 x CREE T6 1A / 3x T6 3C Neutral White | Power | 3x Unprotected 18650 (not included) |
| Runtime | 1 Hrs on Hi | Lumen | 2000~2500lumens |
| Protection | IPX 6 | Mode | 4(L-M-H-Strobe) / 4(L-M-H-Turbo) |
68.16 would probably squeeze in there w/o damage to carrier or cell - that's literally a hair bigger than the cell I used to gauge, which incidentally was a 17670 w/ a drop of solder for a button, I did use a decent pair of calipers to measure.
but the other two, yeah, you'd have to mod the carrier or risk damaging it.
You need to slot a battery carrier into the light. It is the new battery carrier that is a hair smaller than the old plastic one. In fact you can buy the old one from Manafont for 4 bucks shipped i think. The carrier is sort of "OEM".
So no worries if the plastic one is thought to be "flimsy". I never broke my 4 DRYs' battery carriers before, if you wanna know, plus support is there. I accept the fact that CPF hardcore folks might diss a plastic carrier though....i mean the Fenix TK41's is though to be flimsy even. LOL! 
You might be able to ask Ric to send you the old one if you really need to use XTAR 18700 2400s. I am sure he has quite a number in the store room because the new one just came in. LOL! 
No reason not to buy the DRY for 70 bucks shipped because of a smaller metal battery carrier. This is the absolutely highest output pocket rocket you can get while small enough to fit into a holster for "EDC", and yet with choice of CW/NW/WW tints and 4 output levels. And now with 700Hz PWM. If you can't afford 280 bucks shipped for the TM11, then this is it!
I haven't disassembled it, but I don't think it'd be tough to mod the metal carrier to be 1 - 1.5mm longer. I just didn't mention because I don't have a light to see if that would create a problem. Sounds like it wouldn't be.
I bought the carrier for a light I'm building.
I don't have a big problem w/ a plastic carrier, but I do prefer the metal. It is actually quite nice, especially for $8 shipped, and better than some I've seen (in reviews) in much more expensive lights.
you've got me looking through the cabinet for a bottle just big enough for the carrier lol
Here's a couple of quick pics with the new metal battery holder, along with a Callie's Kustom - my longest cells.
It just fits, with full spring compression.
How are the Solarforce 2400's for this particular application?
Let's make a list of definite options so we don't have potential buyers backing out. This is directed at you experienced DRY owners 
chicago-x
nice, I stand corrected, assuming our carriers are the same length, and I think they are...our definitions for fully compressed are just 3/4mm different lol. w/ my 68mm cell the spring is compressed but not into itself...just stacked.
there's no way to cram my xtar in mine - but anyway, I can't see why somebody would not buy the light because of this 1 to 1.5mms we're discussing. it is assembled w/ philips screws and making it longer would be easy...
edit: correct me if I'm wrong, but unfortunately I don't think you'll find many experienced owners w/ the metal carrier - although, I wouldn't be surprised if nearly ever member that bought one w/ a plastic carrier ordered metal as soon as it was available