looking for decent 18650...I'm in Canada....

herbeapuce

Newly Enlightened
Joined
Sep 8, 2008
Messages
44
Hi. I would need a couple of good 18650 for my flashlights. I know there are plenty of cheap knockoff, fake, poor capacity, or dangerous brand out there. Can someone recommend a decent brand and website to get them to my door in Canada ? it is mostly for flashlight and laser use thanks for your time
also if the flashlight takes only one battery, do I need the battery to be protected ?
stef, Montreal.
 

WalkIntoTheLight

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Jun 18, 2014
Messages
3,967
Location
Canada
The 18650 models I like are Samsung 30Q, Sony VTC6, and Sanyo GA. I usually order from Illum.com. It's about $15 shipping to Canada (from the US), so I buy at least 8 cells at a time to make the shipping a bit easier to take. Other than that, the cells are a very good price. You don't have to worry about fakes from that site.

You can also buy locally from vape shops, or order from Canada from vape sites like The Vaporist. IIRC, it not really worth it, since the cells are much more expensive and shipping was still about $10. But if you only want 1 cell, it might be a good option. Not sure about fakes with sites like that, but probably unlikely.

Finally, there's China. Much greater chance of fakes, but I've had luck from Banggood and The Sunway Store on Ali. When they will ship, however, which is usually not the case.

You don't need protected cells, especially if your flashlight has a feature such as low-voltage-protection. Most good lights do. Otherwise, just watch for when it starts to dim, and stop using it before you drain the battery too much.
 

WalkIntoTheLight

Flashlight Enthusiast
Joined
Jun 18, 2014
Messages
3,967
Location
Canada
For more info, check out the budgetlightforum site and look for a thread titled, "Massive post on where to get lithium-ion batteries everywhere in the world!"

It has links to various sites that will ship to Canada.
 
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