Flashlight question...

[HeadlessChicken]

Got a handguard with rail mounts finally coming in and as planned, a light will go in 1 spot so I did a bit of searching then I noticed something that is causing me to ask "Why the fuck do they use CR123A batteries?" even from many local sources. I got a few leads on AA/AAA battery operated lights but when looking at airsoft specific websites, they're all either build in rechargeable or CR123A dependent. Why is this? Aren't CR123A batteries more expensive and harder to find then, what is to me the standard, AA/AAA?

While on the subject, what flashlight does everyone here have mounted on their AEGs?

[The Saint]

CR123As are quite powerful yet compact. The assumption is that if you're running a tactical light, convienence of replacement batteries is not an issue.

I would recommend some sort of LED-based light, then pick up some cheap Chinese rechargeable CR123As. The LED-bulbs are self-regulated, so the cheaper Chinese cells can't fry them the way they tend to with Xenon bulbs.

[coach]

CR123A's are easy to find. Albeit a bit more money but the flashlights that use them typically have better output with them. There was one torch that I was looking up a while back that was able to use one CR123A's or 2 AA's but the lumen's was significantly lower with AA's.

Another thing of note is that they are lithium. What's the price of a pair of lithium AA's? (Pair since each are only 1.5v and CR123A's are 3v) Without a deal for decent, branded lithium AA's, you're looking at about $10-12. A single CR123A is about the same. You can get them cheaper through people like Illusion when he has them in stock.

[TokyoSeven]

CR123A's are not terribly hard to find. The last one I bought I purchased from Sobeys from a random energiser battery display. It was about 7-8 dollars. Not to price at all.

For their size they are quite powerful, think of a CR123A as a cup of coffee. Small but robust.

[ex]

Surefire M962 here.....don't use crap CR123's from China..they suck ass...Pick up decent quality batts from Surefire or similar...I put Energizer Lithiums in the M962 and they last forever. You can also get rechargeable ones so that might be a nice cost effective alternative as well.

[coach]

Originally Posted by ex-royal

Surefire M962 here.....don't use crap CR123's from China..they suck ass...Pick up decent quality batts from Surefire or similar...I put Energizer Lithiums in the M962 and they last forever. You can also get rechargeable ones so that might be a nice cost effective alternative as well.

unnecessary to use surefire branded batteries in non surefire lights, but whatever floats your boat.

[ex]

Of course it's unnecessary....It's not even necessary to use surefire branded batteries in a surefire light, it's a question of quality..nothing more. You get what you pay for.

[Qlong]

Flashlights running on lithium batteries are not recommended to be run unregulated, you can easily destroy either your emitter, batteries or the entire light when your cells decide to explode. There are booster regulators which allow you to run AA's, however you don't see much of a runtime.

[Azuki]

They use those for alot of cameras. If you know any Shoppers Drugmarts or camera supply stores, they should have em. I picked up energizers for my camera, I think its about 5-6 dollars each plus tax, but they come in two packs that let you save a buck or two.

[Kos-Mos]

805 of all CR123A have a built-in regulator board (usually on the "-" end).

Only super cheap crap like you can find on ebay (10$ for 20 batteries anyone) are not regulated and present a minimal risk.

They are so cheap that they usually just run out of just in a few hours (some time minutes). They put the same kind of cheap batteries in child's toys... never had any explose on me...