beware when buying this ikelite lamp

[Hatul]

Ikelite PCM LED eBay - New & used electronics, cars, apparel, collectibles, sporting goods & more at low prices (not talking bout the retailer)

Something I didn't know, that AA rechargeable batteries are thicker than the non AA rechargeable ones. So only the non rech will fit in. Never knew there was two kind of AA batteries, not talking bout the AAA ones.
Is it the same problems with other ikelite lamps or other brands or is it only with this model that only non rech are working with ?
I tried with the rech ones I bought in Asia, don't fit, same with the ones bought from europe. So in the conclusion you are stuck with non rech batteries that you will need to change everytime they die.

I have the same light so I know the problem. Most rechargeables do fit, but there are some that are little wider and will wedge into the light and then are hard to remove. From my collection of NiMH batteries only the La Crosse brand are too wide. The others including Eneloop and Rayovac fit fine. In fact in my battery box I have a note to avoid La Crosse batteries in this light. Can I ask you which brand of batteries you're using?

You also have to be careful if you're using C adapters in some lights. Some C adapters are wider than the standard C cell.

Adam

 

[JahJahwarrior]

I wonder if removing the plastic wrap on the rechargeable battery would make enough difference to help them fit?

 

[beautybelow]

I have a few of these. I don't like them because in my experience when the batteries get to a certain level the light simply dies. I am not sure why...it just dies, not really going very dim first.

 

[Hatul]

I have a few of these. I don't like them because in my experience when the batteries get to a certain level the light simply dies. I am not sure why...it just dies, not really going very dim first.

Yes that's true, it's a characteristic of the NiMH batteries, that at the tail the voltage just drops abruptly. However the way to manage this is to always start with a fully charged battery before diving. The alkaline user has a different problem as it's not practical to throw out batteries after each dive, so he starts with a partly discharged battery and has to predict if it will last through the dive.

 

[funscuba]

Hatul, those r the rech ones that got stuck : toriyama (2600mAh), sony (2700 mAh), sony (2500 mAh)

 

[Hatul]

Hatul, those r the rech ones that got stuck : toriyama (2600mAh), sony (2700 mAh), sony (2500 mAh)

Try the Rayovac Hybrid or the Sanyo Eneloop and you'll find they fit. They have less energy than the ones you list (2000-2100 mAh) which may explain the size difference.

 

[nimoh]

I find that rechargeable batterie are less dependable than non-rechargeable, so don't trust them in a dive light.

Thanks for the post though, didn't know they were different sizes

 

[funscuba]

A little update as I finally found the correct size for this lamp, the ones that fit correctly in this lamp were :

sanyo aa HR - 3UTGA 1.2V 1900MaH

and also these ones that I actually bought : maxell AA HR6 1.2V (surprisingly) 2500 MaH nickel metal hybride
the others didn't fit, the difference was actually half a mm.

 

[thirdcoastdiver]

Specs say the light accepts alkaline/NiMh. Therefore, the problem is quite likely with the light, not the batteries. I would contact the manufacturer for assistance.

 

[funscuba]

a few other brands do fit, but u need to know which ones as mentioned earlier, size differe.
I did contact the retailer selling this lamp on ebay and he replied that there is in fact a very slight difference of size :

"As you have noticed the rechargeable batteries tend to be slightly larger in diameter. I have noticed that the Sanyo brand of rechargeable batteries fit well in the Pcm light body"