Any flashlight gurus out there?

res1cue

res1cue

Joined
Feb 2, 2010
Messages
2,138
So I have a SF 6PX pro and a LX2 Lumamax and I have Tenergy protected 3.0Volt RCR123A's for my Eagletac T20C2 Mark II, and I am hesitant to use them for the SF's bc the site I got them from says specifically that it is not compatible with SF, but reading up on CPF, people are using AW RCR123A's in 3.7 volt with no problem. I would have to widen the bore to use 17670's so I have considered that,but don't trust myself to do it yet.

Do you think Tenergy RCR123A's will be okay if they are protected and is only 3.0 Volt?

Or should I get protected AW's in 3.7V?

Any comments would be very much appreciated!
 
SureFire wants you to use their batteries because that's the only way they can keep making money off of you.

It's virtually the same battery. Output wise and maybe minimum difference in runtime
 
I saw photos of a guy who put camera 123's in his surefire M3 I think it was and it blew up messing him up pretty bad
 
The issue is that the 6P and LX2 require two CR123 batteries, rather than one. Even if the Tenergy batteries are protected, it'd be best to stick with primaries, as they can still come off the charger hot. Too high a voltage and you might kill the driver board on the LX2, and you'll definitely kill the P60 drop-in.

Edit: I see now that you mention it as the 6PX Pro, rather than the original 6P. In that case, it'll probably work to use the Tenergy's, but it'll probably reduce the life of the LED. I probably wouldn't simply because it's a relatively new light, but if you want to, go for it. I'd do some more research on the candlepower forums first to see if someone has already tested it.

Edit #2: After reading around, it seems like the LX2 CAN handle them fine, though it's best to stick with quality cells, such as the IMR 16340s and AW RCR123As. Otherwise, the light may flicker. Apparently, it is fully regulated to handle voltages up to 8.4V. Now, as for the 6PX Pro, many say simply to not use any RCR123As at all, while a few mention that it has worked for him/her. Your choice.
 
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crackerjax said:
I saw photos of a guy who put camera 123's in his surefire M3 I think it was and it blew up messing him up pretty bad
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IIRC, that particular pop was when someone used 2 cells that weren't at the same charge, so one was depleted while the other had juice, and that was the major factor leading to the pop. Only use batteries at the same charge.

Zero
 
Not that the cause was because of the brand or manufacturer's inferior parts. The guy most likely used cells with different charges, creating a Extremely high drain current on the full battery while charging a low battery. That causes overheat, and it will happen with any device with a high drain current with cells in a series configuration
 
While I have an m3 light for work
I don't use it much. I use my modfied outdoorsmen the most. Your most likely correct on the discharged mixed with the full charge. My m3 caught my shirt on fire once I sat on it and it turned on as I was driving wondering what the smell was the guy in the back of the car was like sir your shirts on fire... I could not feel the heat due to having a vest on.... Ever since the light stays in the trunk... I also had it mounted to my 870 for a while until the bulb kept breaking during night fire training...( maybe it was because it was the high output bulb??)
 
xtestifyx said:
Not that the cause was because of the brand or manufacturer's inferior parts. The guy most likely used cells with different charges, creating a Extremely high drain current on the full battery while charging a low battery. That causes overheat, and it will happen with any device with a high drain current with cells in a series configuration
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It was due to the manufacturer having a dud slip through the cracks with a low charge. The user used 3 brand new batteries.

EDIT: Duds do slip through QC testing on occasion, but I've seen more reports of Chinese cells exploding than American made ones hence why BatteryStation changed from having them manufactured in China to USA.
 
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YayILikePie said:
The issue is that the 6P and LX2 require two CR123 batteries, rather than one. Even if the Tenergy batteries are protected, it'd be best to stick with primaries, as they can still come off the charger hot. Too high a voltage and you might kill the driver board on the LX2, and you'll definitely kill the P60 drop-in.

Edit: I see now that you mention it as the 6PX Pro, rather than the original 6P. In that case, it'll probably work to use the Tenergy's, but it'll probably reduce the life of the LED. I probably wouldn't simply because it's a relatively new light, but if you want to, go for it. I'd do some more research on the candlepower forums first to see if someone has already tested it.

Edit #2: After reading around, it seems like the LX2 CAN handle them fine, though it's best to stick with quality cells, such as the IMR 16340s and AW RCR123As. Otherwise, the light may flicker. Apparently, it is fully regulated to handle voltages up to 8.4V. Now, as for the 6PX Pro, many say simply to not use any RCR123As at all, while a few mention that it has worked for him/her. Your choice.
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Thanks! That answers a lot of my questions.. but still one thing, though, the AW RCR's you are referring to is 3.7 V right? I have been kind of gun shy of those since I burned out my Eagletac T20C2 MkII that is rated to 9V with two UNPROTECTED Ultrafire 3.7 V batteries. Currently after it got replaced, it is working fine on the Tenergy's, but do you think then, because I'm all for ammo/battery compatibility, that I should switch EVERYTHING over to AW's or keep Tenergy's?

Right now I have got the Tenergy Charger and 16 batteries, for various lights.

I'll probably keep using primaries for my 6px pro, but I would really like free lumens for the LX2
 
res1cue said:
Right now I have got the Tenergy Charger and 16 batteries, for various lights.

I'll probably keep using primaries for my 6px pro
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Why? There's not much difference in voltage, and all of these 2x123 lights are operating with a battery voltage higher than the forward voltage of the emitter, and using a buck circuit. Some of them do have a high limit on voltage, and low levels can be brighter with Li-ions because some achieve those levels by using resistors that make current output dependant on input voltage, but all you have to do is measure the wattage at each level with primaries and rechargeables(and see if it changes significantly) to know if your light is regulating with whatever batteries you're trying. There is no reason using Li-ions will lessen emitter life unless they are overpowering and/or bypassing the circuit, so that the light goes into direct drive. This is usually an issue with single cell lights that use a boost circuit. It's possible for them to damage the circuit by exceeding its voltage limit in a multiple cell light, but this really shouldn't be a problem with your Tenergy cells. Something to beware of when trying 3.7V Li-ions, though.

There has always been controversy over using the E2DL with 2x3.7V cells, but I've used AW's protected 3.7V nominal R123s for a couple of years with the E2DL for ~1hr. per night with no ill effects. I do use 17670s with my E2L because the low level was affected with the AW cells at full charge, though.

I don't see why you would have any issues with the 3.0V Li-ions in either of your lights. We're talking <1V of difference between a pair of fully charged 3.0V Li-ions and a pair of fresh CR123As.

Thanks for the opportunity to lapse into flashlight geek lingo...I'm in the middle of a 2 year break before replacing my current stuff.
Keeping up with the latest in emitter and battery technology was getting impractical...if it ever was practical:rolleyes:

Unless runtime is an issue, I'd stick with those Tenergy cells until they go bad. If you have 16, might as well get your use from them. They'll have to be replaced after a few years of regular use, anyway. Several of my 3.7V Li-ions are on the verge of kicking the bucket due to heavy use, but I'm going to kill them all before buying a new batch-by then, newer lights might completely change my battery setups, and I don't want to be left with a bunch of rechargeable cells that are just sitting there.
 
OwenM said:
Why? There's not much difference in voltage, and all of these 2x123 lights are operating with a battery voltage higher than the forward voltage of the emitter, and using a buck circuit. Some of them do have a high limit on voltage, and low levels can be brighter with Li-ions because some achieve those levels by using resistors that make current output dependant on input voltage, but all you have to do is measure the wattage at each level with primaries and rechargeables(and see if it changes significantly) to know if your light is regulating with whatever batteries you're trying. There is no reason using Li-ions will lessen emitter life unless they are overpowering and/or bypassing the circuit, so that the light goes into direct drive. This is usually an issue with single cell lights that use a boost circuit. It's possible for them to damage the circuit by exceeding its voltage limit in a multiple cell light, but this really shouldn't be a problem with your Tenergy cells. Something to beware of when trying 3.7V Li-ions, though.

There has always been controversy over using the E2DL with 2x3.7V cells, but I've used AW's protected 3.7V nominal R123s for a couple of years with the E2DL for ~1hr. per night with no ill effects. I do use 17670s with my E2L because the low level was affected with the AW cells at full charge, though.

I don't see why you would have any issues with the 3.0V Li-ions in either of your lights. We're talking <1V of difference between a pair of fully charged 3.0V Li-ions and a pair of fresh CR123As.

Thanks for the opportunity to lapse into flashlight geek lingo...I'm in the middle of a 2 year break before replacing my current stuff.
Keeping up with the latest in emitter and battery technology was getting impractical...if it ever was practical:rolleyes:

Unless runtime is an issue, I'd stick with those Tenergy cells until they go bad. If you have 16, might as well get your use from them. They'll have to be replaced after a few years of regular use, anyway. Several of my 3.7V Li-ions are on the verge of kicking the bucket due to heavy use, but I'm going to kill them all before buying a new batch-by then, newer lights might completely change my battery setups, and I don't want to be left with a bunch of rechargeable cells that are just sitting there.
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Thanks, I think that clears up about all my questions


Hung Solo: I've tried to post on there, but because I have less than 2 posts there, it will say my post is "pending approval" and I will wait for days and it won't show up. And no, I'm not trying to post spam.
 
res1cue said:
Thanks, I think that clears up about all my questions


Hung Solo: I've tried to post on there, but because I have less than 2 posts there, it will say my post is "pending approval" and I will wait for days and it won't show up. And no, I'm not trying to post spam.
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once you get past the 3 approved posts its back to normal posting for you. not a big deal and there is a crap ton of info to sort through there as well.
 
hung-solo said:
once you get past the 3 approved posts its back to normal posting for you. not a big deal and there is a crap ton of info to sort through there as well.
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Yeah, but if my post isn't going through, then it doesn't count as an "approved" post though right? I'm not really sure why they aren't going through and I am not gettin any feedback back from the mods..
 
Go over to their THE CAFÉ forum and post about four or five replies to the various general threads like "pet peeves".

That should do ya.
 
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