I’ve used a few of these in the past and found one in the garage. Preformed PET bottles generally are a straight tube the same diameter as the cap. They can be found in preformed sizes in any bottle size up to 6 gallon jugs. The 20 ounce soda preform holds 18650’s with very little rattle. Foam or cotton in the bottom pads it well. Google “preform PET bottles” and a wealth of sources pop up. If your a prepper or need tough dry storage these bottle are as tough as they come with the cap being the weakest part.
You talking about something like this (link in pic)?
Yes, that looks like one of them. I’ve found a few dozen sources in the last half hour searching for some more. Most are straight tubes looking like cigar tubes. The largest being nearly as long as a 5 gallon water jug and having a 55mm cap. And the smallest just big enough for 2-3 cr123a’s. Look at any clear plastic bottle in your house or store and it probably started out as a preform. I didn’t post any pictures because a simple google “preform pet bottle” pulls up hundreds. preform pet bottle - Google Search
They sure do look like they could be handy to have on hand. I like your idea for water-tight cell storage. Would be cool if we found a best prices source.
So essentially unblown plastic bottles, so in that form the walls should be substantial and quite strong and stiff?
You can also use these at a $1.50 a pop, they hold my Panasonic, protected, 3400s.
I wish chinese sites would carry preforms. I’ve never seen a good price for a single preform.
Walmart has the Coleman version of the match carriers for a $1.00, I replaced the O-rings,
and bonded two together head to toe for a double 18650 carrier.
Oh yeah the matches work too.
those blue bottles are 23 cents each. Shipping unknown
I want some.
Are they good quality? Good threads that you can tighten firm, compress the o-ring without jumping threads?
Ok, preforms are brittle. Yes they are thick wall, but the PET plastic they are made of, is in it's "amorphous state", so the preforms can break or shatter if dropped on concrete. They aren't supposed to be sold on the open market, even though you can find them. At least the manufacturers who make them for specific brand name liquids don't like them getting out for anyone to have. Trade secrets and all that crap. I was in injection molding for well over 25 years. Ten of those years were in a plant that produced empty bottles for Coca~Cola. I have been around both the preform side and the blown bottle side.
I can only speak as a non-expert consumer, but they seem fine to me, I also like that I can buy these yellow ones, to use with my orange ones.
They seem perfect for waterproof protection of 18650s.
Old-Lumens, you are a man of many talents and back grounds it seems. You wouldn’t happen to have any contacts that could find us a source of these? I had only 10 or so when I got these at a thrift shop. None ever broke but I did throw a few away with old touch up paint in them. I just wish I had bought more they were dirt cheap at the time.
No, it's been years now and any contacts I had then, are all gone now.
This is what I wanted to know. Ill stick to the better options me thinks.
my dog loves to play with plastic bottles, first thing he does is chew the neck\threads, they do not brake, he gets it to the point where it does not resemble neck and threads at all, just chewed up plastic mess, than he pushes it all over the house making crazy noise, but if I was to smack the threaded portion with hammer, it would brake in pieces. I guess it depends of a force that applied to it, it could be brittle, and it could be reasonably soft.
also I noticed, 1\4 inch polycarbonate is britlle, if I was to bend it, it would brake before I got it far, 1\16 thick of the same grade plycarb. I can fold and it wont brake.
years ago I used to win beers by showing people how I can tie a cigarette in a knot, without braking, than untie it and it would be still intact and I could smoke it. people did not believe, but when I showed them they were surprised, all I had to do is remove plastic wrapper from a pack, open it up, and tightly wind it around the cig. long 100’s cigs worked the best.
This is also useful product for all.
We are going to start wholesale of this product and also planning to contact “Taizhou Double World Plastic & Mould Co, LTD”. Any body have any other suggestion about this product.