Guide: Where to buy 18650 & 26650 Li-Ion batteries

[Dusty_Lenses]

Why not just add a pile of solder on the top? Soldering the neg- bottom / case is not wise but if you're fast, the tops can handle a quick soldering when quickly quenched on a damp sponge.

 

[IWLSR5]

Why not just add a pile of solder on the top? Soldering the neg- bottom / case is not wise but if you're fast, the tops can handle a quick soldering when quickly quenched on a damp sponge.

Honestly, The cost difference between a local shop and liionwholesale.com is $1. i'd rather spend the $1 extra per cell and just get button top cells. My time is more valuable.

 

[Thorsteenster]

Batteryhookup.com looks like they have a plethora of 18650s in stock. I came across them a few months ago watching videos from people making DIY solar battery banks.

Search: 37 results found for "18650"

Battery Hookup

batteryhookup.com

 

[farbe2]

I would check everything against:

Battery test-review 18650 comparator

But I only buy cells from real manufacturers (Samsung, Lg, Sony and so on) rather than rebranded cells from china.

 

[Thorsteenster]

I'm looking for 2 to 4 14500 button tops, any recommendations on brand & source?
Looking around Amazon there's so many off brands that seem hit or miss.
Figured I'd ask here before buying some Sanyo's on Ebay.
Also checking source links in this thread...

Edit: Just placed an order with liionwholesale.com, got 4 vapecell 14500s, a couple store brand 18650s just to appease the on-topic thread Gods, and a nice Nitecore charger.

 

[cmak]

Hi, I’m getting back into my laser collection while recovering from brain injury. Would someone please guide me on what the best battery for my DL Spartan (CNI PGL-III-M) is? I searched very extensively on here for which 18650 and the best advice I found was LG E1 but it’s not listed at a single site of the many I’ve tried (the only ones that have it ship internationally and don’t show a price). It appears to be high voltage. Protected vs unprotected and flat-top vs button-top, I wish I could remember. A charger recommendation would also be very highly appreciated.

I’ll ask 10440/18350 questions for my Sanwu Pockets/Guardians a bit later. Thank you all so much! I’m really excited to be back into this.

 

[RedCowboy]

Liion Wholesale Batteries | Li-ion battery/cell distributor

Liion Wholesale is a US-based wholesale distributor specializing in authentic high quality lithium ion batteries, fast shipping, and expert customer support.

liionwholesale.com

Battery Junction - Thousands of Batteries, Flashlights, & More!

Shop the largest selection of batteries, LED flashlights, chargers, gear and more at BatteryJunction.com! With Free Shipping over $50, BatteryJunction has what you need at a price you'll love.

www.batteryjunction.com

18650 Battery Store - Trusted Supplier of Lithium Ion Batteries

18650 Batteries | 18650 Chargers | 18650 Accessories | Discover a wide selection of high-quality 18650 batteries and accessories at 18650 Battery Store. Shop with confidence knowing you'll find top brands, exceptional performance, and competitive prices.

www.18650batterystore.com

Onlybatteries.com - Lithium Ion Batteries

onlybatteries.com

Temu | Explore the Latest Clothing, Beauty, Home, Jewelry & More

www.temu.com

https://www.aliexpress.us/item/3256806265324301.html?src=google&src=google&albch=

 

[Gryphon]

I like these:

Molicel P28A 18650 2800mAh 35A Battery

Discover the Molicel P28A 18650 2800mAh Battery. Made by Molicel, this high-performance battery offers a 35A continuous discharge rating and a long-lasting 2800mAh capacity. Buy now for exceptional power and reliability.

www.18650batterystore.com

 

[cmak]

Thank you! I’ll snag those Molicels. Just confirming that I shouldn’t worry about them being unprotected, and that it doesn’t matter that they aren’t 4.35v like the LG E1’s?

Also, I’ll snag a Nitecore i2 charger if it’s not particularly inferior to the pricier XTAR’s. Thanks again!

 

[RedCowboy]

Most li 18650 cells are rated 3.7v but will float @ 4.2-4.3v fully charged, that said the voltage will go down as they are discharged and will sag as well under load, so plan your build accordingly.

 

[cmak]

Good to know. BatteryJunction has both P28A’s and 10440’s. Would you recommend UltraFire 500mAh unprotected or TrustFire 600mAh protected? I would prefer the extra safety benefits of protected cells where possible, unless there are significant downsides I may be unaware of (like just not fitting in certain hosts). The Sanwu Pocket has a spring which seems like it’ll fit either one, so I’m leaning towards protected cells. If it’s not unreasonable to also get a protected 18650 (really scared of potential fires) instead of the Molicels, would you please make a recommendation? Thanks

 

[Gryphon]

Thank you! I’ll snag those Molicels. Just confirming that I shouldn’t worry about them being unprotected
Also, I’ll snag a Nitecore i2 charger if it’s not particularly inferior to the pricier XTAR’s. Thanks again!

Unprotected is fine so long as you, the user, don't allow the battery to drain excessively. In my experience high power lasers start to produce sub-par performance before the battery gets low enough for the protection chip to take over so it usually finds itself back on the charger before protection kicks in. I've been using unprotected cells in all my flashlights and lasers for as long as I can remember without issues.

An I2 will do just fine, I use the D2 variant which is the same charger but with a screen in place of the indicator lights.

 

[paul1598419]

I've purchased many 1860 batteries from Li Ion wholesales. They have been the best that I have found, but you might want buy all that you feel you will need for awhile as shipping costs will get you otherwise.

 

[RedCowboy]

Good to know. BatteryJunction has both P28A’s and 10440’s. Would you recommend UltraFire 500mAh unprotected or TrustFire 600mAh protected? I would prefer the extra safety benefits of protected cells where possible, unless there are significant downsides I may be unaware of (like just not fitting in certain hosts). The Sanwu Pocket has a spring which seems like it’ll fit either one, so I’m leaning towards protected cells. If it’s not unreasonable to also get a protected 18650 (really scared of potential fires) instead of the Molicels, would you please make a recommendation? Thanks

I would NOT recommend ultrafire or trustfire, instead go with a high drain IMR or INR cell such as Molicel, LG, Imren, Sony, Efest, Vapcel..... just read the specs, mAh is how much energy it holds, but more important to us is the discharge current...... so if 1 cell is 3000mAh but only 10A rated where another cell is 2500mAh but 35A rated, then you will have less voltage sag with the higher drain cell and actually get more runtime and better performance in the higher drain/output devices depending on number of cells, ect....

 

[cmak]

I would NOT recommend ultrafire or trustfire, instead go with a high drain IMR or INR cell such as Molicel, LG, Imren, Sony, Efest, Vapcel..... just read the specs, mAh is how much energy it holds, but more important to us is the discharge current...... so if 1 cell is 3000mAh but only 10A rated where another cell is 2500mAh but 35A rated, then you will have less voltage sag with the higher drain cell and actually get more runtime and better performance in the higher drain/output devices depending on number of cells, ect....

To clarify, I’m 100% decided on Molicel P28A’s for the 18650’s. Thank you for the tip.

For 10440’s, I’ve looked at most of the recommended sites and so far only BatteryJunction has any 10440’s at all. The three options for 10440’s are Trust/UltraFire and one called,

“Xtar AAA 1200mWh 1.5V Rechargeable Protected Lithium-Ion Lithium Nickel Manganese Cobalt Oxide (LiNiCoMnO2) Button Top”​

Would you please point me to a top-tier model of 10440’s and a place to get those? If I must buy the 10440’s and Molicel P28A 18650’s in different places and pay more for shipping, so be it, but I’d prefer not to, of course. I also need a couple 18350’s but can’t find any BatteryMooch info on any of the four 18350’s BatteryJunction has (JETBeam JR11, ThruNite, Olite ORB-183C11, SureFire SF18350) so I’m feeling lost. Also, I liked that 18650batterystore had a NiteCore i2 for just $10. Thank you, kind folks.

 

[Gryphon]

None of the usual suspects seem to have Efest or Vapcell 10440's on hand, but amazon has them in stock.