Hello ，I am from china,my English name is Steve （My Canadian teacher gave me the name when I was a child.）I like flashlight very much,I have more than 50 flashlights，My favorite flashlight is Surefire。
But、 Almost all surefire flashlights use the CR123a battery，in China Cr123 battery is very rare ，we almost can’t find a 123 battery in supermarket ，So we can only buy this kind of battery online（Taobao China ）Cr123a is a little expensive ， Converted into U.S. dollars ，about 2.5 dollars for each one 。
I heard that in America, CR123a lithium battery is very vrey common, and it is very cheap for you. Your home TV remote control or radio and Children’s toys。。all using cr123a battery？right ？In China, almost all of us use AA batteries or AAA batteries. AA and AAA very cheap。
I like CR123a batterry ，Because this battery has a shelf life of more than 10 years, and it will not reduce battery performance because of cold weather. Very simple ，just take it out ，use it ，no charge ，I have bought over 50 123 batteries 。My first choice always the cr123a battery, and then the 18650 or AA battery.
I’m curious ， what kind of battery is most commonly used in the United States ，i mean unrechargeable battery 。
My English is bad ，i hope you guys can understand what i am saying 。。。sorry for that
My guess for the most common battery in USA is the AA size.
It seems they are found everywhere, gas station, grocery store, pharmacy.
I prefer rechargeable batteries whenever possible, and the AA is available both ways.
AA and AAA
I am American but live in the United Kingdom.
I would say disposable AA is the most popular in both countries.
All of our remote controls use AA or AAA. Our home phones use rechargeable AAA.
Disposable AAA and AA are sold at a low price in large packs.
C and D are common too. 9V (LR9) is easy to find and used in some toys and other gadgets.
CR123A is sold in a few stores but is hard to find and expensive. We don’t own anything that uses CR123A.
I’ve never seen 18650 at a supermarket or a discount store. I buy mine from China. Amazon UK sell them but they are expensive.
Thank you for your reply, now I know we are seem ，haha，But you are very easy to buy cr123a battery, right?Like supermarket ，shops 。
Oh my god ，you were just like us，I also never seen 18650 at any store 。I have a lot of eneloop AA，lg 18650， in China we use 18650 flashlights more than cr123a flashlights，but surefire， i can only use cr123a battery 。。。ike “Surefire E1e” E1L E1b，but surefire L4 can use 16650。。I hope surefire company will change their mind ，Use AA or 18650 ，They can also use the 123 battery, but should be launched to support aa battery or 18650 battery model of the product
AA and AAA
From what I know the primary use for CR123 batteries in the past were (analogue film) cameras. This battery even got the nickname “camera battery”.
AA is the most popular, followed by AAA. At least in Southern California it’s even getting harder to find D size flashlights unless it’s the cheap ones that come with “heavy duty” batteries. I don’t remember seeing CR123’s anywhere except the “special” battery rack at Walmart (where they sell button batteries for watches and stuff), and they were expensive compared to AA’s.
I’m not familiar with CR123’s, but I think they make a rechargeable version? Would those work for you?
IIRC, CR123 are used for “tactical” lights and weapon lights because they hold their charge for long periods. That’s what I heard anyway and I have no idea if that’s correct or not.
I was so foolish to give my wife a SWM 10Ti2. Which pretty much instantaneously became her EDC. Actually more like her EDL (ying around). But last time I checked it was where I saw it before (sigh). I guess it has such a high bling factor that only the rightful owner dares to carry it. This light has a pretty appetite for batteries. CR123A are not cheap (if you don’t know NKON). And “regular” shops sell the so called photo-litium batteries for up to 9 EURO a pop.
A lot of Surefires have a 16.5mm bore. You can put in two 3V CR123A batteries or two 4.2 16340 rechargeable batteries. The latter ones are not very known for their stamina. So you can try using a 16650 rechargeable battery. Or a 18650 rechargeable battery, if you enlarge the bore of the body to 18.65mm. The last suggestion does not apply to the nitrolon lights like the G2. They come with a polymer body and a metal sleeve inside. Those are not bored up easily.
I have seen cr123 batteries sold at my local supermarket for $17.00 each Steve. I live in the state of Michigan. Us Yankees use AA/AAA size batteries the most.
It’s 16340 compatible. You even have slightly higher output as well. But there is no thermal step down so need to do that manually. :sunglasses:
Thanks for your answer ，AA battery ，most popular battery in China 。。。you too
If i put a 16340 battery into surefire e seris （Surefire E1b mv）the high output run time is less than half of cr123a 。。。cr123:1.3hours 16340：maybe 30 minutes 。。 but 16340 can recharge
CR123A 3 volt batteries are NOT re-chargeable. Also, I wouldn’t be too keen on using cr123a in series. JMO from what I’ve read.
9 euros ，that’s too expensive 。。I love surefire E series ，E1L、 E1DL、E1B MV 、E1e……E2xxxxx 。。Beacuse E series is small .and only use 1or2 123a battery ，，i can afford it 。If a flashlight must use four or five ,six cr123a，i don’t like it ，too expensive 。 I only use 2 cr123a batteries a month。
Let’s use the 18650 battery！？By the way ，what is the JMO？