# AA batteries for SureFire 9N?



## deejayen (Oct 27, 2010)

I’ve had a 9N for years, and I’m thinking about using the lamp head/bezel assembly as a bike light, wired to a battery pack. Would 3 x AA NiMh batteries do the trick? From what I’ve read the B90 or B92 NiCad batteries for the 9N are 3.6V and around 1500mAh. My AA batteries are 1.4V each and over 2500mAh, so three of them in series would give 4.2V. What I’d like to know is if the extra 0.6V would damage the light (I’m fine with a slightly shorter lamp life) and if I would get longer runtime than the standard 40 minutes or so, or would the AA’s struggle to power the light?

I’ve not messed around with batteries before, so thought I’d better ask!


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## PCC (Oct 27, 2010)

I wouldn't use an incan light for a bicycling headlight. One good bump and 

I'm pretty sure that you can power that lamp assembly with three AA NiMH cells with no problems. The B90 is nothing more than three Sub-C NiCad cells wired in series. You get about the same voltage and more run time using the 2500 mAH AA batteries. Better yet, run 6 AA batteries in a 3S2P configuration for even longer run times.


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## Cascade Range (Oct 27, 2010)

Does the 9n need to feed power from pos/neg terminals from the top of the light only, or can it get negative feed from the bottom as in the 9an?
The reason I ask is that have you seen these batts? They do draw negative from the bottom only though and be forwarned if outside the US they are expensive to have shipped at least to Canada.

sorry I forgot to throw in the link 

http://www.batteryspace.com/flashlightbattery36v3300mahnimhsticksurefire9b8axandl7lights.aspx


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## PCC (Oct 27, 2010)

It gets the negative through the tailcap and the flashlight body.


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## yellow (Oct 27, 2010)

Sub-c are 2500 mA for original cells, 4000-4500 for actual cells.
AA Ni-mhs wont be able to stand the current for too often and waste space.

My advise were to build Your own battery stick(s) from actual Sub-C cells and put the 9N on the bars,
makes 1 h 30 mins of full output.

That setup is how I started biking at night and it worked well
but now I use a 1*18650 single-die led lamp instead, a modded 6P, what else? Is "better" than the outdated 9N in every respect
Would not bother any more with building what You think of, the finished light does everything better, easier, lighter, smaller, more rugged, ...


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## Cascade Range (Oct 27, 2010)

sorry I edited my last post but just in case you don't see it these are the batteries that I will be using in my 9an when it arrives. I need my lights to last at least an hour on rechargeables as I walk an hour each day for health reasons. I'm looking forward to seeing the runtimes I get from these?

http://www.batteryspace.com/flashlightbattery36v3300mahnimhsticksurefire9b8axandl7lights.aspx


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## ampdude (Oct 27, 2010)

PCC said:


> I wouldn't use an incan light for a bicycling headlight. One good bump and



You'll have to explain that to all those guys running off road rigs with big bright halogens. And all the people with cars and trucks running halogen headlights.


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## PCC (Oct 28, 2010)

ampdude said:


> You'll have to explain that to all those guys running off road rigs with big bright halogens. And all the people with cars and trucks running halogen headlights.


Cars have suspensions. Suspensions dampen shocks coming from the road, no matter how severe. Road bikes have less than an inch of rubber between the rim and the road. The side wall of a bike tire and what little give you get from the wheels and frame are the only suspension you have. Oh, and whatever body english you throw into it.


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## deejayen (Oct 28, 2010)

Thanks for all the info. The alternative batteries look interesting. However, I’ve just ordered a 3-AA battery holder and will try hooking that up to the light first of all – I’m just curious about what it will do in terms of runtime etc. 

Most bike lights were incandescent until a few years ago, and I can’t remember having one conk out as the result of riding over a bump, although they do fade with age, and eventually burn out. 

I’ve got a few LED bike lights, but the colour temperature isn’t great, and as I have the 9N I thought I’d experiment with it to see how it compares. I’ve also got a G2 somewhere, although I can’t find it at the minute. I seem to remember the 9N as being brighter and wider than the G2. I’ve also got a MR16 over-volted bike light which is amazing, but the runtime isn’t sufficient for my rides. The LEDs have a lot of advantages, but it’s fabulous to sit behind a great wall of warm halogen light.


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## ampdude (Oct 30, 2010)

PCC said:


> Cars have suspensions. Suspensions dampen shocks coming from the road, no matter how severe. Road bikes have less than an inch of rubber between the rim and the road. The side wall of a bike tire and what little give you get from the wheels and frame are the only suspension you have. Oh, and whatever body english you throw into it.



Many bikes have suspension now. I guess you're not into dirt biking, but off road rigs and dirtbikes take a lot harder and more frequent jars than the typical bike does.


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## yellow (Oct 30, 2010)

> The LEDs have a lot of advantages, but it’s fabulous to sit behind a great wall of warm halogen light.


what kind of led-lights do You know?
Cuz I started with 8X or 9N clamped to bars, quite soooome years ago, 
now riding - for a few years already - with single 18650.
Compared to a led, halos of that output class simply look as if their cells are already depleted, and the size and weight and runtime difference is big... 
... now just switched to the even-brighter-than-my-old-XR-E light-inserts and am completely satisfied








PS: do You mod Your 2ndary lamp somehow to have it last longer?
I am used to put s "small" resistor into the wire


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## PCC (Oct 31, 2010)

ampdude said:


> Many bikes have suspension now. I guess you're not into dirt biking, but off road rigs and dirtbikes take a lot harder and more frequent jars than the typical bike does.


I'm sorry, I'm more roadie than mountain biker. We're not allowed on the trails after dark around here, so, when I think "bicycle" and "headlight" I automatically think "road bike" and "LED". I really need to ride my FS mountain bike more. Seeing as how I'm more of a roadie than a dirt eater I also automatically think "light weight" and "long run times" so power hungry incandescents with their large batteries to power them don't compute to me. I have only one or two incans left in my collection but I have a ton of bad memories of dropping my old 2D MagLite and blowing bulbs because of it, hence my reference to blowing bulbs from a good hit.


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## deejayen (Oct 31, 2010)

I suppose it’s getting away from the initial post, but I want the light for road riding. I do long distance rides (some of which can go through the night) so it’s a trade-off between performance and battery life. Until now I’d used a Schmidt dynohub as my main source of power, but I can’t have a dynohub with the recumbent trike I’ve recently started riding. I haven’t used many LEDs, and not any of the super bright ones. I have an upgraded Solidlights (works off dynohub or battery), and a Dinotte 400L. I’ve also messed around with a few Fenix torches. My latest purchase is a Philips LED battery light with cut-off road beam. It’s quite good in many ways, but I currently have issues with poor runtime. 

All the LEDs I’ve tried make me feel a bit ‘queezy’! It’s hard to explain, but the colour temperature makes everything a bit strange looking, and when riding with the lights it’s sometimes difficult to make out the verge etc – everything has a washed-out feel to it. Again, the LEDS I’ve used seem to put out a pool of diffused light which is fine on familiar roads, but I find I just can’t see on some nights, especially on unfamiliar roads. I find myself straining to see up the road for clues about corners, but sometimes don’t see them until I’m getting into them.

I’ve dug out the 9N, and I don’t think it’s an ideal beam for road riding either. I’ll still experiment with hooking it up to some AA’s.

The best lights I’ve used have been the MR16 halogens, but the runtime is limited.

I’m wondering if I ought to splash out on a brighter LED – I’m looking at a Dinotte 1200L Plus (I have a few Dinotte chargers and batteries), a Lumicycle System 3 or System 4, or a Lupine Betty. The other option which is always in the back of my mind is the Busch & Muller Big Bang HID.


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## PCC (Oct 31, 2010)

I have this idea in my head to build a Mini-MagLED using the newest Rebel Mini-MagLED and an XP-G driven by a Sandwich Shop BB Nexgen 750. That should be good for a little bit more than 200 lumens for about two hours on a pair of Eneloops. It would be a thrower. This little light would be strapped to my helmet and used to spot things in the road, the apex of corners, etc. It would also be used offensively to get the attention of drivers who are not paying attention. With a BB Nexgen 500 instead of the 750 output should drop to about 150 lumens but run times should increase to about 2.5 hours or so.


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## yellow (Nov 1, 2010)

I dont use higher powered led (= quads and such), because I totally appreciate my single-dies for their pro's.
But riding on road means much higher speed and that all the time.
Maybe an aspheric could be a solution?
Positive side effect is, that such a focusing does not produce much sidespill, so the other traffic is not much affected by Your light.

A cheap version to get info on that, where: 
http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.14450

... but I agree, that any single-die will not be powerful enough
(remember Your 9N runs on three times the power of a normal lamp. To really exchange it with something of same, or greater, output You have to use MC-E/P7, ...)


PS: for use as You type, I think a dynohub (+ _homemade_ MC-E light, as there is nothing good to be purchased) is not only the optimum, but the only solution.
Why cant a hub be used with a trike?


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## HotWire (Mar 30, 2011)

Bumps in the road? What about Surefire weapon lights? They are designed for heavy, repeated recoil.


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## PCC (Mar 30, 2011)

Yes, and they have suspension systems in their incandescent lights to absorb those shocks. Have you noticed that their LED weapon lights don't have the shock absorbing systems?


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## Chrontius (Mar 31, 2011)

Heavy repeated recoil, along the axis of the light. The shock mounts are _good_, but for off-axis shocks like you'd run into repeatedly with a road bike, they're only getting there with the M3 style head and mounting.

For AAs, remember to go with something high-current like Eneloop.


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