I have been using AW IMR batteries for the handheld lasers I make to handle the 4.5 amp draw of one of the diodes I use. I am not as familiar with the use of lithium ions for flashlights. I understand by changing the chemistry you can find a happy medium between the ability to draw high currents and capacity.
I just got a hold of some Samsung 30qs which I thought might be good for the Emisar D4 and some 18650 Convoys I have.
I also use Feilong 32650s which I have been very happy with.
1) I would like opinions on 18650s brands and reliable places to purchase.
2) Anybody purchase from Battery Bro in Hong Kong
I like those Samsung 30Q 3000 mAh batteries for my single cell lights. Liion Wholesale has them in flat top for $4.98 each. The button top version is only a few cents more. I bought some flat tops recently and they all ended up well over spec, all of them were well matched too.
Liion Wholesale has been a good reliable seller and the prices are great from what I’ve seen. My LG high drain 18650s have lost capacity quicker than I like, so I’m trying the “pink” 30Q’s now. My LG’s are averaging 1800 to 2,000 mAH after a couple years, down from the 2600 range, mostly used in my thorfire C8 bicycle light.
With the 30Q’s I’m starting out with more capacity, hopefully they will last longer too. I’ve got them in my high drain lights like my BLF A6 EDC, so far so good. I’m going to buy at least 4 more.
My Panasonic NCR 18650B’s have been the longest lasting, I still see over 3400 on my 6 year old cells, not high drain though. They make a good headlamp battery.
I have a goofy way I use batteries. Don’t know if i’m right in my thinking. I just do it and it works for me. I just use UltraFire 9000mah for everything. Kidding of course.
1000 lumens or less=MJ1’s
1000 to 3000lumens=30Q’s
3000+= VTC6’s or HG2’s
I don’t measure for current draw or anything like that. If the manufacturer has that info I will use it to the best of my ability but I don’t have the proper equipment to measure it properly.
“I just got a hold of some Samsung 30qs which I thought might be good for the Emisar D4 and some 18650 Convoys I have.”
Look into the Sony VTC-5As for the D4. The 30Qs are a 15A cell and are good for 98% of the lights we might come across, but the D4 can pull a solid 15A-20A on Turbo and that’s at the redline for the 30Q.
Was going to ask the same question but for much powerful lights… is VTC5A the current best battery for high discharge rate?
Got a light does 22k lumens and I want the max potential from it….
This is a pretty good list, but why don’t you have Sony VTC6 in there?
Right now by Favorites are:
Panasonic/Sanyo 18650 GA cells (general high capacity, medium drain)
Sony VTC6 (High Power, High Drain)
I’m happy with a set of 4 Samsung 30Q I have. They are good for High Drain, Medium Power. However if I was buying today I would use VTC6 in applications where a 30Q was required.
I prefer GA over MJ1, and I have most of the others sitting around if I need them one day, but usually I just opt to use a GA since at one time you could get them at a very good price and I bought a few of them. They are still very reasonable today.
Overall I think the best battery is actually the Sony VTC6 (maybe the VTC7 will be better), but it gets very little discussion for some reason. I don’t know why people don’t seem to talk about this one more. However given the pricing I would not argue with the GA cells being the best overall.
Really… the best depends on the application, since sometimes a GA cell is just not the right cell for the application.
I have lights in use still using the AW 2200 cell, and the Panasonic B, they seem to follow the evolution of flashlights. When I look at my Zebralights the older ones are using AW and the latest is using VTC6. My EDC is a GA cell.
Some say VTC5D replaced the VTC5A according to testing. And because of that, VTC5A is on sale and VTC5D is like $10 a piece…. I’ll just to VTC5A instead lol. I don’t use the light for survival or anything… I use it just to play…
I’ve got ancient Panny GAs from a laptop pull. 6 cells (3S2P), 2 were bricked, 4 are still chugging along fine. Using them in low-stress lights like my ’502, RJ02, coupla others (UV S2+?).
Good choice. Most of my modded lights use sony vct5a and vtc6. Those cells are great. I used to use Sony vtc on my vape device, and after 2 years they are still great. 4.19v.
I didn’t include the vtc6 for a couple reasons. In test the 30q has almost identical internal resistance, and amp draw and a couple or few dollars cheaper usually. And the vtc 6 compared to other cells has a horrible cycle life. It may have a slight .1 .2 volt less voltage sag when new but a few dozen or so cycles in not so much. So I’d rather see someone buy a cell that will give great performance and cycle life. Sony cells arnt known for their cycle life. Great cells if you don’t mind the shorter cycle life.
But other factors go into like depth of discharge, charge current, amp draw etc. A example of this is with xstars 26650 they rate it at 500 cycles to 70 percent. But if you charge it at 250mah they rate it to 750 cycles Mooch is about to release his cycle life test on the most popular batteries. In one of his last videos he even hints at the Sony’s cycle life not being the greatest. Other people have ran tests on the popular batteries can probably find it on google.
As far as the GA and mj1 I have both. I like the GA because of the slight raised top. And mooch has it rated as a 12 amp battery. But the mj1 has a better cycle life then the GA cells. 400 Vs 300 I believe it is to 70 percent.
But for most this might not be a issue if your not draining and charging every day. Even if you charge every 3 or 4 days still looking at almost 3 years until 70 percent. But I charge 12 to 20 cells a day. Some days up to 40
The D4 uses a FET driver, so will only take what the battery can provide. So 30Qs are not an issue, just the initial output may be marginally less than a VTC5A. The D4 also steps down very quickly due to heat, so that high current draw is only required for around 30secs.