This thread for discussion about using Lithium Ion rechargeables in WMLs that aren't designed for them.
I have been experimenting with a 16340 rechargeable in a Streamlight TLR-7. It's noticeably brighter, and so far I haven't destroyed the light. However, the manual specifies a CR-123a only.
Thoughts? Anyone else tried this?
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Many lights can handle it. I ASSume since Streamlight sells their own rechargeable cells which are themselves variants of 16650s - that's probably not a problem.
Surefire now offers a rechargeable CR123A. Though I suspect it is a 16340 from the same OEM that Streamlight uses.
Using 16340 in a light which was designed for a single CR123 is likely to shorten the life of the LED.
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Out of my lane but I'm interested to read the answers. I did some googling a while ago and noted that there seem to be primaries that have the same voltage (range? no, just nominal) as secondaries (3.7V, typically 4.2 to 2.4). I also found primaries that do not have the same voltage, e.g. 3V nominal. I don't know what that does in circuit.
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So far, the (2) CR123 handheld lights I've tried, a 16650 Li-ion worked fine. But that's a drop in voltage from 6 to 4.2.Originally Posted by Clusterfrack
In something that takes two CR123s side-by-side, going from 6 volts to 8.4 with two 16340 Li-ion cells might be a different story, though I haven't tried it.
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I'm seeing nominal voltage on a lot of current production 16340s at 3.6-3.7v so that would be about 7-7.5v. Seems like the 4.2v 16340/RCR123s are a thing of the past (probably a good thing).
Surefire's RC 123 is a Lithium-Iron Phosphate instead of Li-Ion, but Surefire reports 3.2v nominal voltage, but that off their charger you can expect 3.65v. The biggest difference is Surefire is a 450mah instead of 650-700mah for most Li-Ions. I bet there is a pretty rapid voltage drop for the Surefires, might help prevent overheating.
Every Li-Ion cell has a nominal voltage of 3.7 v., but the actual voltage is anywhere from 2.5 to 4.2 volts depending on how fully it is charged.
The Surefire Li-Ion Phosphate should be safe to use, since the voltage is much closer to that of CR123.
3.7ish is the nominal for NMC. LFP is 3.2, and it has a very flat voltage curve.
I don’t know enough about the circuit design of flashlights to know what to expect wjll happen. Is the LED expecting a certain amount of voltage, and if you’re low will it make up for it in current? That would suck.
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I had an older Surefire Scout light that ran their first gen LED head. It ran on 2 CR123. I tried running 2 rechargeable RCR123, and killed the head.
As far as I remember, SF now offers rechargeable RCR123s and can be run in their CR123 light because they have less power then most other RCR123s. I think SF only recommends them for training purposes because they off less run time and less brightness.
Surprisingly the TWM-30 from Nightstick does not support 16340 batteries. If this was an older product that would make some sense. But it is a fairly new light; having been introduced about a year ago?
I have found the light works fine on the Surefire brand Lifepo4 batteries. Run time at good brightness is probably about 45 minutes. Maybe a little less. After that the brightness decrease is dramatic.
Anyway, just another option that might work for someone concerned about the extra juice from the 16340 vs 123.
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