Survival and Emergency Preparedness

ratf51 wrote: ↑Sat Jan 04, 2020 2:15 pm is it safe to put an 18650 in a light that uses 2 CR123s-- in other words are they fully interchangeable?

A 18650 going to be too fat to fit into lights intended for 2 CR123's unless it is bored out or it was intended to work with both types of cells. A 16650 button top should fit most any 2 CR123 light or you could use a 14500 in an adapter. The Voltage will be lower with a Li-Ion so you won't blow the electronics, but some 2 CR123 lights may not run on 3.7V.

Thanks guys! The specs on the flashlight state that 2 CR123s are ok in the light. I have another light that takes 2 CR123s. So, bottom line, there is a power difference between 1 18650 and 2 CR123s along with a size/diameter difference. I appreciate the answers; I am trying to exercise the old advise of "never assume."

XXO makes a good point above about an 18650 being fatter than the CR123. An 18650 is the same diameter as the 18350 battery, which is simply a shorter version. My BLF A6 and Convoy S2+ lights have 18350 adapter tubes so I can shorten the tube and use the 18350 battery if I want a shorter light. Capacity suffers but sometimes you want/need a shorter light.

A CR123 is the same size as a 16340 battery. A 16340 is about the same length as an 18350 but smaller in diameter. You can use a 16340 in place of a CR123 as long as the light can handle the increased voltage. Additionally, you can put a 16340 battery in a sleeve and use it in place of an 18350 battery. The sleeve fills up the tube so the 16340 isn't rattling around and allows it to remain in full contact of the points. A 16340 and an 18350 have roughly the same capacity so it isn't much of a difference between using the two. Depending on the battery in question, they are all around 650mAh to maybe 900 mAh which is about the same as the typical 14500 battery.

Update on batteries as I use them.
1. I have three game cameras which each take 8 AA batteries. I made the transition from regular batteries to quality rechargeable. If there are 500 cycles in the rechargeables, fine. I am having to recharge at least every three months. If I were using regular batteries, I would have to consider filing for bankruptcy.
2. I have a few AA timers with no on-off switch. So, they are always on. When I run out of AA batteries in my non dedicated supply, I will switch.
3. I do have dedicated alkaline batteries. They are not rechargeable. They have a place. If shtf, there is a supply stored with each communication device. Why? Because there is no economical, compact solar recharger on the market that can recharge the batteries for multiple units at the same time - and recharging with solar takes a long time. I keep track of the age of those batteries and then use them when I gift cheap AA PRC lights to relatives and friends. Whether in a radio or a flashlight, they would be good only for a few hours or a couple of days.
4. The quality of rechargers is very critical. I have a bunch of no-name (and what I call non-automatic shutoff or non monitoring) units that i would actually give away if someone came to my doorstep and asked for them. I do have the 16 unit AA recharger units. So, I can be done with switching out batteries fairly quickly.
5. Always buy quality batteries. In sorting through my 123a batteries, I found Surefire batteries that were 20 years old and still good. I am trying to get away from 123a batteries. Moreover, there are now rechargeables. So, I bought a decent recharger and just a few rechargeables.
6. Have multiple battery testers available and use all of them to test batteries. Eventually, those testers will fail, one by one. Don't start throwing out batteries without double checking. I had some reliable Radio Shack testers. One by one, they are getting trashed.

Batteries and the renewed shutdown of the state.

Yes, the two are related.

Let's get past the literature touting rechargeable batteries and deal with the realities. I am speaking to my limited knowledge and invite correction:
1. they are not distributed fully charged.
2. all though they may last a number of years, unused, the charge does not start will full charge and the battery loses charge over time whether it is used or not.
3. as delivered, many of the more expensive rechargeables have a desired plastic wrapping.
4. not being totally knowledgeable, I won't get into the esoteric discussion about when you recharge and how it might shorten the life of the battery.

Up until this point, my approach has been to charge up the batteries that are going to be placed immediately into use and a couple of backup batteries that would be cycled through when the first set went dead. It worked for me because I always have multiple lights available.

With the re-shutdown, I perceived more danger in my situation. So, I have opted to fully charge some more back ups (and put a card in the container(s) when they were charged up.)

I am going through the deployed lights in the house using rechargeables and bringing them to full charge.

Calling resident expert David!

Does this work?

https://youtu.be/BSeQ-h1COJM

Using innards of a 9 volt battery to replace a AAA battery.

Probably depends on the brand. And maybe as a last ditch. I know laptop batteries contain 18650 batteries, I’ve pulled from old ones before.

bdcochran wrote: ↑Tue Jul 21, 2020 8:36 pm
Using innards of a 9 volt battery to replace a AAA battery.

Yes and No... A 9V battery contains 6 - 1/2v small cells that are smaller is size of a AAA battery and many do not have button tabs on an end.
Also capacity is less than a normal AAA.
But, as we all know if it fits and can be rube-goldberg'ed it will work.

Just easier to have some AAAs in storage.

Something I was thinking about last week during my drive home from farm...I think the best battery to standardize on would be those 3020 button battery.
Today you can find RDS, flashlights, head lights, etc. that uses 3032 size battery and while they may not be the brightest flashlight or longest lasting for RDS they all work pretty good. 3032 batteries are pretty cheap as I was able to buy 25 Duracell for $1 each to replace on my home window sensors few months ago...first time in 11 or 12 years. They also have very good shelf life and never leak. They are also used on everything...most FOB uses them, wireless alarm sensors, toys and practically every electric device and laptops and desk top computers. After SHTF you may run out of AA or CR123 batteries but you can always find unused, damaged or broken computers every where and chances are there is a 3032 battery inside.

Yeah it was a long boring drive home.

I guess I couldn't decide on which cell to standardize on, so I made some adapters to run 'em all.