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Cheap but VERY bright lights.


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OK, I'm one of those guys that when I find something cool, I share it. I bought one of the T6 LED lights for about 12 dollars. In the instructions, it mentioned to get the full amount of lumens, I needed a special battery..... OK, interesting, I started looking. I got a couple of the batteries, and noticed a significant increase in brightness. They seem to stay brighter longer than the small plastic 3x AAA holders. The 3 x 18650 light below is blindingly bright. A good truck light to have around. Strong enough to illuminate or change attitudes. I remember when the mini-mag light's were considered awesome. They seem like a candle now.

 

 

$12.99

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

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Larger than AA, rechargable with quite a bit of energy storage.

 

 

$11.99

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[img2=JSON]{"data-align":"none","data-size":"full","src":"http:\/\/theboresite.com\/filedata\/fetch?filedataid=493&type=thumb"}[/img2]

 

$7.29

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

 

[img2=JSON]{"data-align":"none","data-size":"full","src":"http:\/\/theboresite.com\/filedata\/fetch?filedataid=495&type=thumb"}[/img2][img2=JSON]{"data-align":"none","data-size":"full","src":"http:\/\/theboresite.com\/filedata\/fetch?filedataid=491&type=thumb"}[/img2]

 

 

$19.90

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[img2=JSON]{"data-align":"none","data-size":"full","src":"http:\/\/theboresite.com\/filedata\/fetch?filedataid=494&type=thumb"}[/img2]

Edited by CavalryDoc
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I have a 3900 Lumen, three 18650 cell flashlight that I have used now for almost 5 years. I liked it so much, I bought my son one also, and his experience mirrors mine with the battery life and type.

 

Initially, I was severely disappointed with the life of the batteries between charges. It seemed that I was always recharging. So I searched for the highest Amp Hour rated 18650 batteries and bought a variety of them to test out. The result was disappointing. No matter the rating of the battery, I was always charging after a very short time of use. MY disappointment made me look into these Lithium rechargeable batteries in some depth.

 

I found that there are two versions of the 18650 battery. One is the "protected" battery which results in a very limited life per charge when used in my 3900 Lumen flashlight. The other is the 18650 "unprotected" battery.

 

The Unprotected are fairly expensive but provide significantly greater life between charges. I have purchased many different "protected" batteries of a wide range of Amp Hour ratings, but found they can't compare at all to the Unprotected versions.

 

My experience is only with flashlights and I cannot relate to any other uses.

 

The "protected" version lasted a couple of night for me and my son. This equates to about a half hour to one hour running time before needing a recharge.

 

The "unprotected" versions will last a month or two, in the same use before recharging. The difference is astounding. So is the cost difference. My flashlight cost $40, and 4 18650 unprotected batteries cost $40 (for 4 batteries) also. However, after the sticker shock, my son and I both bought a second set to alternate between charging and use, based on their far superior performance.

 

I use the cheap "two cell" 18650 chargers I bought on EBay for a couple of dollars each. These are the same chargers supplied with sets of "protected" 18650 batteries and I have had a very good experience with them. The charging cycle takes a day or so using them with the "unprotected" batteries. This is about twice or more as long as when used with the "protected" batteries.

 

The protected batteries have a chip internally that limits the rate of discharge. so with high rates of discharge, the battery seems to be depleted much earlier than expected.

 

The unprotected do not have this limitation built in.

 

The issue is that if you short circuit the unprotected battery, it might cause severe damage. I have heard the arguments against the unprotected batteries, and found that in researching them, they are not the threat many think they are. Yes, you have to be sure you don't short them out, (the same as working with a lead acid battery) other than that they have been reliable and give quite a long lifetime. Neither of us have experienced any failures to date.

 

One set I have are about 5 years old now and show no degradation in performance for repeated charging cycles. The other set is only 2 years old and have shown the same performance. My son's experience echo's mine.

 

Surprisingly, these unprotected batteries are the same as used in some electric cars (for example, Tesla), and have shown superior performance.

 

The point is that for the high price these batteries have proven to be an excellent power source for my flashlights and we have experienced no problems in 5 years with them. They are still going strong. I am amazed at how long they last compared to any Amp Hour rated "protected battery". With proper caution, they are not the life threatening batteries some think they are.

Edited by janice6
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I have a couple solar powered lights with 18650 unprotected batteries that light my flag at night.  On the low setting they light the flag all night quite well.  Will be interesting to see how they work during the winter months.

https://www.amazon.com/URPOWER-Upgraded-Waterproof-Landscape-Spotlight/dp/B07BT2VGRK/ref=dp_ob_title_garden?dpID=41EIALL9CEL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=detail

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After losing a very expensive light during a foot pursuit (insert curse words here), I started buying cheap lights for duty use. I was trying to find the best low cost light I could so if I lost it I would not give a crap. Most of them could not hold up to the rigors and weather exposure of police work. Even the very well reviewed lights, that probably spent most of their time on a night stand or junk drawer, would fall apart and stop working after a month or two. The best budget friendly higher lumen light I found that was durable enough to keep using was the Streamlight Polytac C4 LED. For as light as they are they can stand up to some pretty serious daily abuse. And the one I did manage to break after a year Streamlight repaired for free.

 

 

Edited by mlk18
Can't spell
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