Tough love for the industry's lithium addiction

[KevinNM]

You apparently can also get secondary fires some feet away from the initial battery, initiated by the burning electrolyte in a runaway cell squirting out.

 

[NAM001]

Show me a USCG inspected vessel that has any of these things in any passenger compartment and we'll continue the conversation.

Is the location really important?

 

[Popgun Pete]

Are there ANY flashlights using rechargeable alkalines that are even capable of being charged without removing the batteries? I know of only lithium batteries in closed, charge-in-the-flashlight, lights.

Yes, there are a number of 18650 lithium ion rechargeable flashlights with a charging jack in them that pushes in from the side. I have three near identical ones with different brand names, same factory or clones of clones with different name labels etched into them. They all came with no name chargers and "burn your house down" Ultrafire unprotected batteries or clones thereof. Once I figured that the batteries were crap I threw them out along with the chargers and have since bought and am in the process of buying Nitecore 18650 chargers that don't just ram the juice in. Even so the batteries now go in the charger as the thrown out chargers had jacks that fitted into the flashlights which on looking just now seem to have been dropped from inventory. They have lotus heads that telescope out for breaking glass in an emergency and were a hot item about a year ago, in fact leave them switched on and they get hot around the flashlight head! Very bright light and 5 lighting modes and around 12 bucks each.

 

[JohnnyC]

Yes, there are a number of 18650 lithium ion rechargeable flashlights with a charging jack in them that pushes in from the side. I have three near identical ones with different brand names, same factory or clones of clones with different name labels etched into them. They all came with no name chargers and "burn your house down" Ultrafire unprotected batteries or clones thereof. Once I figured that the batteries were crap I threw them out along with the chargers and have since bought and am in the process of buying Nitecore 18650 chargers that don't just ram the juice in. Even so the batteries now go in the charger as the thrown out chargers had jacks that fitted into the flashlights which on looking just now seem to have been dropped from inventory. They have lotus heads that telescope out for breaking glass in an emergency and were a hot item about a year ago, in fact leave them switched on and they get hot around the flashlight head! Very bright light and 5 lighting modes and around 12 bucks each.

Re-read the post you’re responding to. @tursiops is asking for alkaline rechargeable flashlights with built in charging. Not 18650-based Li-Ion flashlights.

@tursiops i remember in the late 90’s, early 2000’s MagLite and Stinger both had lights that would recharge in cradles, primarily designed for cops and mall cop types. However, I don’t remember what battery types they used. This was definitely before lithium, but they may have been NiCads.... I’m not sure rechargeable alkaline flashlights exist. I certainly can’t think of any with any certainty.

 

[tursiops]

@tursiops i remember in the late 90’s, early 2000’s MagLite and Stinger both had lights that would recharge in cradles, primarily designed for cops and mall cop types. However, I don’t remember what battery types they used. This was definitely before lithium, but they may have been NiCads.... I’m not sure rechargeable alkaline flashlights exist. I certainly can’t think of any with any certainty.

Exactly. I can't think of ANY in-light recharging done with alkaline or NiMH batteries. NiCad, Yes. I know the battery packs for Ikelite 125/160-series strobes used to be NiCad, then became NiMH, and they sort of charge internally...at least the pack is removed to charge separately from the strobe. Yes, lots of NiCad recharging done in-unit, and of course lots of lithium recharging done in-unit.

 

[JohnnyC]

Exactly. I can't think of ANY in-light recharging done with alkaline or NiMH batteries. NiCad, Yes. I know the battery packs for Ikelite 125/160-series strobes used to be NiCad, then became NiMH, and they sort of charge internally...at least the pack is removed to charge separately from the strobe. Yes, lots of NiCad recharging done in-unit, and of course lots of lithium recharging done in-unit.

Really it should just be a form factor and charging issue to swap them. Most can lights, as long as the voltage is close enough, will readily accept a NiMH swap in the can. A sealed can would need to be unsealed, but it's definitely possible to do a more permanent swap. I have a NiMH pack I use for travel to Mexico because I don't want my UWLD tall can to be confiscated by Mexican TSA. It will run an 18/21W HID or a 32wVF no problem, just means I'm recharging it every night.

Handhelds are gonna be a different animal though. You could either use 4/3A NiMH's, or build up a pack with them, but they're 1.2v so you'd have to do some enginerding. Swapping an in-light charging 18650 with a single 4/3A isn't going to cut it. Building a series/parallel pack to replace say, a BigBlue-style of pack will work, but your usable life is gonna suck comparatively. And on top of that you'd need to make sure the charger was capable of charging NiMH's correctly. I still don't know if there's an alkaline solution in a usable form factor.

 

[martincohn]

i remember in the late 90’s, early 2000’s MagLite and Stinger both had lights that would recharge in cradles, primarily designed for cops and mall cop types. However, I don’t remember what battery types they used. This was definitely before lithium, but they may have been NiCads....

Yup nicads

 

[NAM001]

Lithium battery charging hasn’t been allowed in any passenger compartment of any liveaboard I have been on..just as an FYI.

how does any one know what you have? especially when it comes to lights.
I use Li Fe batteries because they can replace the 1.5v alkaline battereies. the NiMh are only what 1.2 or so and they show half used when put in new.

 

[Ministryofgiraffes]

*shrugs*...dunno, the captain basically says "no charging of lithium batteries in the cabins please"...and then i just follow the rules i suppose...

 

[Storker]

I use Li Fe batteries because they can replace the 1.5v alkaline battereies. the NiMh are only what 1.2 or so and they show half used when put in new.

Most of my electronic thingies which take AAs or AAAs are able to adjust. Either automatically, or by me telling them whether they're fed alkalines or NiMHs.