So I just picked up a 2D LED maglite yesterday for BF and so far I am pretty impressed with it, and likely will get another 1 or 2 today before they go back up. So here’s the thing, alkaline D cells aren’t the cheapest stuff around, and always pretty much will leak. Now, maglite tells not to use rechargeable cells, but as far as i know the only down sides are less output and shorter led life. So do any of you guys use rechargeable Ds on maglites or any D lights? Also does anyone have experience using eneloops with the D spacers? and if you do does it work? and how is battery life?
I’ve been using NiMh in Mags for a long time(mostly mini-mag)with no problems at all.In the D mags if been using some cheap energizer 2500’s from wallyworld…they don’t have anymore capacity than a AA but do ok in the Led versions.I plan on placing an order for some Tenergy 10k mah cells for my new 2D mags…that should give some real runtime.I think after you add the price of the holder and aa cells the real D nimh cells aren’t that much more.-Rick
You just need to have a charger that will 1) fit a D cell and 2) charge it to 10,000mah
I just bought this one amazon.
I have GP 9000mah version of D cells, they really store that much capacity.
I have measured with my hobby charger. They are really heavy.
You need a special charger for them.
There is 2xAA parallel AA-to-D adapters, that is also useful. If you use 2xEneloops, that will be 4000mah.
I haven’t had any problems with using NiMH batteries in Mags. And I don’t think brightness is an issue, given the fact that voltage tends to sag with alkaline batteries. As for using adaptors on AA batteries, this will work. But I don’t think it’s the best way to go unless you have an absolute glut of AA batteries. True NiMH D batteries (as opposed to AA batteries sold as D batteries) have a reputation for being expensive. BUT, they really aren’t that bad. For instance, Tenergy sells some REALLY good D batteries for $15 for two. We’re talking either 10000mAH for HSD batteries, or 8000mAH for LSD batteries - four times the capacity of comparable AA batteries. By comparison, four AA NiMH batteries will cost you around the same price. And you will have to pay extra for the adaptors. But you will only get about half the capacity of true D batteries (provided the adaptors accept two AA batteries). Not to mention more resistance as well as increased chances of failure (battery holders are certainly not 100% reliable). The only catch is that, if you don’t have one already, you will need to get a charger capable of charging D batteries. But it’s certainly worth it to have batteries that last THAT long, and can be recharged.
As far as specific batteries, I recommend the Tenergy Centura LSD batteries. At 8000mAH, capacity is significantly lower than the Premium HSD cells (10000mAH). But it’s still ample. And you won’t have to worry about your batteries being dead if you leave them for a few weeks.
I bought the Eneloop AA to D adapters to use in a MagLite and they won’t work without a modification. Problem is, the adapter is a plastic sleeve to hold a AA with a contact for the positive terminal and relies on the negative terminal of the AA battery for contact. In my D size MagLite the contact spring in the tail is larger in diameter than a AA so it doesn’t make contact with the battery. Short term I put a quarter between the spring and battery and I am back in business. Trying to figure out a good longer term solution.