I repeat this information enough, I am posting it into a blog to link to as response when needed or for anyone to reference and link to. All of this is just a reiteration of what others have posted in the past as well as I myself, I am not an expert with any degrees of any sort, nor a major background in electricity or electronics of any sort, just my experience since beginning to vape in 2012, though I do have some background with RC controlled vehicles we use a lot of information and equipment as batteries they also use so there is another avenue of searching for this information as well. Using this blog as well as others being linked to should reduce your risk and increase your safety if you use the information wisely and responsibly. With that said, I will first link to the blogs of 2 members many long time members consider resident experts as follows
First blog is by @Baditude
Baditude's blog | E-Cigarette Forum
This blog has a lot of information to look through with a lot of safety and basics, including "Ohm's Law" and detailed information regarding battery safety, it is all well worth reading as a starter point for a beginner up to the advanced vaper.
Second blog is by @Mooch
Mooch's blog | E-Cigarette Forum
What Mooch brings to the table is quite a few expert years of testing batteries for various businesses and some government projects, he mainly tests the batteries for max temperature thresholds, many know that heat is the enemy for a Lithium based battery, get a battery to hot, bad things happen, using a battery towards its max current output makes batteries get hot, damaging them and lowering their output and life cycle, his lists of tests can help you find the right battery for your application.
I will stress and voice what most say, there are no batteries made by the direct source manufacturers produce that are over 30amp Continuous Discharge Rating (CDR) on the market, the big 4 that produce batteries we use are Panasonic (mainly lower end), Sony, LG, and Samsung, the only re-wrap name on the market I personally trust is AW (AW IMR) which buy A Bin batteries from manufacturers like Panasonic, Sony, LG, and Samsung, going through a second quality control method, then labelled and sold. Efest, Sub-ohm Cell, AWT, MXJO, IMRen, Basen, Eizfan, Vamped, Vappower are all re-wrap resellers that buy B and C Bin discards, re-wrap these cells, print the battery short pulse rating on the label as their CDR and charge double what the authentic is worth. Unless you know what you are getting, stay away from these brands as best you can, never know if under the wrapper is a Panasonic NCR18650B (6amp CDR, 12amp PDR) or an LG HE2 (20amp CDR, 35 to 40amp PDR) under that pretty bling bling wrapper, never trust a battery at its Pulse Rated Discharge. PDR is a dangerous rating to use, you don't know if that Pulse is 500milli-seconds or 30 Seconds, best to use the Continuous Discharge Rate (CDR) for all your calculations, this is the output the battery can hold and maintain most times the entire charge of the battery. This puts inexperienced vapers at risk with a false sense of safety, "Yeah man, battery says on the label it good up to 35amps, I'm at 32amps, good to go bro...", so not true in all honesty, you are out on a limb, the very furthest and narrow part of a brittle limb, one mishap its game over, that battery will vent on you and unpleasant things will happen. The best tool in a vaper's arsenal is above their shoulders, second best tool in our arsenal is the computer you now sit at reading this, Google, Yahoo, DuckDuckgo, ECF, and several Youtube reviewers that stress safety and being safe, are your best friends and best sources of information.
All that being said, here is another thing to take into consideration, buying from reputable, authorized re-sellers is also another safety mechanism you have to consider, Amazon, Ebay, several others are good for finding a decent deal on some hardware, a lot of wick and wire, but batteries, *cringes*, no, just don't do it, price of an Efest Purple 35amp battery, a lot of times at Illumination Supply you can find a pair of Sony VTC4's that come in a battery case for the same price as the pretty looking Efest.
With all that, I will say I will try to keep these below lists up to date as best I can.
***Follow-up post***
Battery Configurations especially in box mods
Box Mods, What's the deal of these different configs? | E-Cigarette Forum
Reputable Online Vendors for batteries, these operate and ship mainly within the US where I reside, does not hurt to send them an email and ask if they ship to your region, if not does not hurt asking if they know a re-seller in your region that does, all else fails, use the below Manufacturer and Model numbers listed below to guide your search, any UK, EU, Asian, Australian, Middle East, African, Japanese, Russian, or other region members with lists of reputable vendors, don't hesitate message me so I can add the vendor to the first list by region.
US Online
Illumination Supply - Illumn.com - Flashlights, Batteries, Carry Gear, Intelligent LED Lighting, and More!
RTDVapor - Authentic AW Batteries - RTD Vapor
Liion Wholesale - Liion Wholesale Batteries | Li-ion battery distributor
IMRBatteries - Earth's #1 source for IMR Batteries, Chargers, Cases & Wraps | IMRbatteries.com
Orbtronics - 18650 Batteries | Rechargeable Li-ion | Battery Chargers
UK/Europe Region
Fogstar (Fogstar - The UK's #1 trusted source of 18650 Batteries) UK
Batteries plus (http://batteriesplus.co.uk/) UK
Nkon (NKON | eu.nkon.nl) Netherlands
Asia Online
Fasttech - FastTech - Gadgets and Electronics (Be cautious here, Fasttech is worldwide distribution, yet if the battery listed does not say authentic or something to that affect, do not purchase that battery)
****(Above list will be updated when I get new vendors as often as I can)****
Battery Models by Usage Applications (This breakdown list is a lot of my own opinion based on all the information I have learned and collected and based on my own comfort level of safety)
Mech Mods (This includes single battery and dual battery box mods)
****In My Opinion, you are running a mech, you need a 30amp CDR battery at all times****
****Using Ohm's Law Forumla 4.2v/Resistance (ohms)=Amps , 30amp CDR battery single lowest safe resistance 0.28ohm (50% of max CDR of 15amps) maximum lowest resistance 0.14ohms (that's full 30amps). 25amp CDR single battery lowest safe resistance 0.34ohms (that's 12.5amps 50% of the total CDR) maximum lowest resistance 0.17ohm (that's full 25amps). 20amp CDR battery single lowest safe resistance 0.42ohms (that's 10amps 50% of the total CDR) maximum lowest resistance 0.21ohms (that's full 20amps). Parallel Dual Battery safest resistance with 30amp batteries is 0.14ohms (that's 30amps, 15amps per battery) maximum lowest that is advisable 0.10ohms (40amps CDR, 20amps per battery, this is pushing safety, suggest stay above 0.14ohms), Parallel Dual Battery safest resistance with 25amp batteries is 0.17ohms (25amps CDR, 12.5amps per battery), maximum lowest that is advisable 0.14ohm (30amps, 15amps per battery). Parallel Dual Battery safest resistance with 20amp batteries is 0.21ohm (20amps CDR, 10amps per battery), maximum lowest that is advisable is 0.17ohms (25amps CDR, 12.5amps per battery). Series Dual Battery safest resistance with 30amp batteries is 0.56ohms (thats 15amps both batteries must support as if a single battery), maximum lowest that is advisable 0.42ohms (that's 20amps CDR both batteries have to support as if a single battery 66% max capacity).****
LG HB2 - True 30amp CDR, 1500mah, powder blue in color. By specs these appear to be much like the HB6.
LG HB4 - True 30amp CDR, 1500mah, milk chocolate brown (old version), mustard yellow (new version). By specs these appear to be much like the HB6 and HB2
LG HB6 - True 30amp CDR, 1500mah, a cream white in color (old version), pink (new version), this is the coolest running battery on the market when under heavy load, making much safer than the VTC3 by far, get some of these you will really like them
Sony VTC3 - True 28amp CDR, 1600mah, a matte pine green color
Sony VTC4 - This is a long time standing King and Jack of all trades, 20 to 25amp CDR battery capable of holding and sustaining, but not suggested to do so all the time 28amp CDR, 2100mah, a matte pine green color like the VTC3, try to stay below 25amps
****Ohm's Law Formulas Used For the Following Regulated Mods- Triple Battery Series (Watts/9.6volts/90% Mod Chipset Efficiency=Maximum Amps), Dual Battery Series (Watts/6.4volts/90% Mod Chipset Efficiency=Max Amps), Dual Battery Parallel (Watts/3.2volts/90%=Maximum Amps), Single Battery Mod (Watts/3.2volts/90% Mod Chipset Efficiency=Maximum Amps).
150 watts to 200watts Dual Battery Series Regulated Mod
****In My Opinion, just like a mech of any sort, these guys need 30amp batteries at all times****
LG HB2
LG HB4
LG HB6
Sony VTC3 (note, being safely 28amps, max 180 watts)
Sony VTC4 (note, being safe but not advisable, max 170 to 180watts)
120watts to 160watts Dual Battery Mod(Sigelei 150watt, IPV3,etc)
****In My Opinion, these bad boys need at least 25amp CDR batteries if you are going to run at this level regularly****
Sony VTC3
LG HB2
LG HB4
LG HB6
LG HD2 (purple) - 25amp CDR, 2000mah / LG HD2C (salmon or skin color) 25amp CDR, 2200mah- these have been around a while, nice battery, rated 25amp CDR, personally I'd trust it at 20amps like most of LG's line excluding the HB Series
LG HD4 (salmon or skin pink) (no manufacturer specs at the moment), independent tested 25amp CDR, 2100mah. By Mooch (a professional battery tester) these batteries rated right in between the HD2 and HD2C for Mah, same CDR, but was stronger than the HD2 Series, haven't tried these myself, but those are strong results
Sony VTC4
Sony VTC5A - (matte pine green), 25amp CDR, 2500mah. Sony has come out swinging at LG with this re-vamp of the VTC5. Sacrificed 100mah and boosted the CDR by 5amps, this bad boy gives the LG HD Series some serious competition, another rock solid battery Sony adds into their line up of 5 models now.
75watts to 120watts Dual Battery Mod
AW IMR 18650 2200mah - 20amp CDR, re-wrap yes but AW is a longest time trusted battery out of all other brands on the market
AW IMR 18650 3000mah - 20amp CDR (by specs alone, this quite possibly be an A Bin LG HG2 or Samsung 30Q under the wrapper), still a re-wrap yes, but AW does not over spec their batteries
LG HB2
LG HB4
LG HB6
LG HD2 / LG HD2C
LG HD4
LG HE2 (wine red color) and the LG HE4 (yellow) - 20amp CDR, 2500mah - both of these models are solid batteries, and are great contenders to the Samsung 25R and Sony VTC4, balance of run time and decent CDR in this application
LG HG2 - 20amp CDR, 3000mah, chocolate brown - LG has 4 highly impressive batteries on the market, the HB Series, and here the HG2. The HG2 is a great battery, with 3000mah and can do 20amp CDR this battery is like the VTC4 in the 20amp and below category, great run time and great CDR, best of both worlds.
MNKE 18650 - 20amp CDR, 2000mah, orange - Before the Sony VTC3 hit the market, MNKE was the King of High Drains, only available cells left are the US Spec 20amp 2000mah, great battery, but becoming hard to get, its bigger 26650 brother is also a great King in the 26650 market
Samsung 25R - Here is another workhorse like the VTC4, they can be used up toward 120watts with no issue, but highly not suggested - 20amp CDR, 2500mah, Rev2 and Rev3 (light blue), New Rev 5 (light green)
Samsung 30Q - 15amp to 20amp CDR, 3000mah, pinkish purple or lavender in color - next to the LG HG2, or a 26650, 3000mah is nothing to shake a stick at, this like the HG2 gives great charge time and a decent CDR, rated at 15amp CDR, can wiggle it from time to time up to 20amp CDR, not suggested all the time, for the median wattage and below tier this battery really shines
Sony VTC3
Sony VTC4
Sony VTC5A
Sony VTC6 - (matte pine green) Factory Rated 15amps like the Samsung 30Q, independent tested 19amps CDR, 3000mah - this was released about the same time as the newer VTC5A, and Sony made a great answer to the LG HG2 and Samsung 30Q. Run time all three are about equal, but by tests the 30Q tops this chart followed by the HG2 and trailing in the back is the VTC6 due to its CDR, still a great battery and answer to compete with the LG and Samsung entries, max watts 54.7watts for this battery by iteself, 109.4watts in a dual battery.
XTar High Drain XVTC4 - VTC4 clone, 20 to 25amp CDR, 2100mah, black and yellow - this is an authorized clone of the VTC4, Xtar bought the specs for the VTC4 from Sony, I'd trust them up to 25amps no higher though rated by Xtar for 30amps.
65watts to 80watts Single Battery Mod (This is a dangerous category on a single 18650, as most of the easiest available batteries out there are 20amp CDR, this category needs 25amps up to 30amps CDR so the list narrow)
LG HB2 (Up to 90watts)
LG HB4 (Up to 90watts)
LG HB6 (Up to 90watts)
LG HD2/LG HD2C/LG HD4 (Up to 72watts Max)
Sony VTC4 (Up to 72watts max)
Sony VTC5A (Up to 72watts max)
65watts and below Single Battery- Here the field is fully open
****All the batteries listed above****
AW IMR 18650 2200mah and 3000mah 20amp
LG HB2/HB4/HB6/HD2/HD2C/HE2/HE4/HG2
MNKE 18650 2000mah 20amp
Samsung 25R/30Q
Sony VTC3/VTC4/VTC5/VTC5A/VTC6
150watt Plus Triple Battery Series Regulated Mod
**215 to 250watts**
LG HB2/HB4/HB6
Sony VTC3
**175watts to 215watts**
LG HB2/HB4/HB6
LG HD2/HD2C/HD4
Sony VTC4/VTC5A
**175watts and Below***
AW IMR 20amp 2200 and 3000mah
LG HB2/HB4/HB6/HD2/HD2C/HD4/HE2/HE4/HG2
MNKE 2000mah 20amp CDR
Samsung 25R/30Q
Sony VTC3/VTC4/VTC5/VTC5A/VTC6
****I will update these lists on battery models as newer models and information become available****
Battery Chargers - Always, always, always buy the best charger you can, when charging a battery is at its most dangerous state, take the analogy of you are putting pressure into a sealed can through a pin hole when charging a battery, this builds up heat, but any rechargeable battery resists having power pushed into it, so this state makes them a bit grumpy and unstable, never leave a charging battery unattended, have your charge on a fire resistance surface in case of trouble. When it comes to chargers, there are 3 main manufacturers you should only consider for the price range most are willing to pay, there are higher chargers in the RC world and such that out do these brands listed like Pila, but these listed brands work well and are reliable.
Nitecore - the 4 models always suggested are the "i2" "D2" "i4" and "D4", the D2 and D4 are newer designs with digital displays over the i2 and i4, their charging algorithms are not much different from each other. Nitecore chargers can be found relatively cheaply, for instance an i2 2bay can be found in the 10 to 15USD price range, the D4 around the 35USD range upper scale. Great chargers, intelligent chargers, they detect battery type, charge level, and condition batteries in a trickle charge method, thus they charge slower than most, this is real gentle on batteries, thus why they are so reliable.
Efest LUC - this includes the LUC2 and LUC4. These are bit more pricey than a Nitecore, but they are great chargers, better than the batteries they sell IMO. They have digital read outs to display charging state, battery charge level on each bay, they also have flexibility, some even come with car cigarette lighter plugs you can use them in an RV or your car while on the road, as well as you can change their charge mode from 0.5amp per channel, 1amp per channel, or 2amp per channel 2 center channels only (excellent for 26650 batteries in 2amp mode), but I highly suggest for 18650s 0.5amp most times, need a rapid charge 1amp mode max, 26650 batteries 1amp trickle charge mode and 2amp rapid charge when or if needed desperately, make sure you have plenty of batteries in rotation so you are not needing to rapid charge all that often, rapid charge decreases battery life, be kind to your batteries.
Blu6 OLED - This is the LUC4 with 2 extra battery slots, an OLED screen, simple control buttons, a nitetime lights off feature, and bluetooth 4.0 support to communicate with an Android 4.4 or higher/ Apple iOS (iPhone/iPad/iPod) device app. Max current it can handle is 4 amps total load, bay 1 and 6 support 0.5/1/2 amp output, all bays support 0.5/1amp load, info is displayed on the OLED screen which scrolls between each bay 1 at a time or via the bluetooth app, with simple blinking LED lights for each bay when charging. These lights function as buttons along with another button right next to the OLED screen that controls lights on/off, and charge mod with the combination of bay # button/control button. All functions can be controlled more user friendly via the bluetooth app. The bluetooth app itself is very informative and higher detail, front screen all bays showing status (occupied bay/non-occupied bay, charge level of each bays, charging current, charging percentage, turn OLED on/off), selecting a certain bay allows adjusting charging current for that bay, also a graph of how the battery has charged thus far). Very nice charger like the LUC4, just a little pricier with 2 extra bays and bluetooth support.
New LUC6 - This is the Blu6 without the Bluetooth support, mainly operates functionality similar to the LUC4. 6bays, with the following options Bays 1 and 6 (0.5, 1.0, or 2.0amps charge modes), Bays 2 through 5 (0.5 and 1.0amp charge modes)
New LUC Blu4 - This is the LUC4 with added bluetooth like the Blu6 above, battery orientation is set at about a 45 degree angle instead of straight verticle or horizontal
Xtar - This is the king of vaping charger brands. Great quality, great functions, rarely see any problem arise with an Xtar, and they have the largest selection of chargers on the market. Like the Efest LUC, they offer 3 power settings, 0.25amp, 0.5amp, and 1amp, range in models from single bays up to 6 and 8 bay chargers, they are pricier than any other manufacturer for a reason, quality, great warranty, intelligent charging, just a great brand, I could fill a paragraph of praise on them. You get what you pay for in the end.
****This list will be updated if any new manufacturers worth using become available****
Any questions, comments, or additions, don't hesitate to post a reply here or PM me a message, any and everyone is welcome to use this blog post to link to as an answer to a new member, an I highly hope you do, knowledge is a very powerful tool.
June 06, 2016 Follow-up (Battery Lists Above Are Still Applicable, given newer types of mods, I am listing according to type of Mod, note that I forgot to add when first made this post, Excluding AW IMR and the Xtar XVTC4, no other re-wrap brands are listed in this post)
My personal battery brand trust levels aka how I rate a battery by its brand first
#1 - LG (Given in just the past couple years LG has put some majorly impressive batteries on the market, it is also the number of batteries they have released that pass muster with me, their whole line is rock solid depending on the application they are used, the HG2 one of the most suggested batteries, the HE and HD series are the oldest models on the market LG produces, and their highly powerful HB series knocks the long time reigning champ Sony down a peg in my book)
#2 - Sony (Sony only has 5 in the line up, but the VTC series if you use them right are still some of the best batteries on the market, the VTC5 was the reigning long mah decent CDR battery on the market for 20amps CDR and below, the VTC4 is still one of the most flexible batteries on the market, only LG's HD2 and HD2C give it any competition depending on the application but still the VTC4 is still one of the best batteries in the mech/unregulated/dual battery arena, then with their VTC3, in a mech or other 30amp CDR application, only the LG HB series outshines the VTC3), though as of Summer 2016 Sony has added their re-vamped VTC5A out to compete with LG's HD Series, and the VTC6 to compete with LG's HG2 and Samsung's 30Q, Sony is holding on with tooth and claw against LG as to their line up is between LG (9 models) and Samsung (2 Models) with number of models on the market (5 models now on the market by Sony).
#3 - Samsung (There is no denying the Samsung 25R has been strong competition to the LG HE series, and Sony VTC4, it gives a lot of competition to the Sony VTC4 in the flexibility department, able to equal the LG HD2/HD2C in CDR output, it out shines the VTC4 and HD2/HD2C in the mah department, then the 30Q is LG's only competition to the HG2, but still a solid manufacturer)
#4 - AW IMR (AW has been around a long long time, longer than Sony has been in the vaping scene, just read the mah and CDR of the battery to choose the right one. In a Provari 2.5 or earlier, Reo Squonk box, or other mod that needs button top batteries, here AW really shines, especially in the 18490/18500, and 18350 arena which pulls them up the list)
#5 - MNKE (MNKE is another set of batteries been around on the market a lot longer than Sony and were the reigning champs before the VTC3 hit the market, in the 26650 market, MNKE in my opinion is still the king in that arena)
#6 - Xtar's XVTC4 (This lone battery entry from Xtar is only applied as Xtar has approval to legitimately clone the Sony VTC4 and licensed from Sony the actual design/production sheets of the VTC4)
#7 - Subohm Cell (You still have to use caution here, but Subohm Cell is just a re-wrapped LG HE2/HE4, and they mostly use A Bin from LG, not B or C Bin, but still be cautious)
#8 - MXJO (I have used these myself, earlier 2500mah yellows, they appear to use A Bin HE2/HE4 and 25R's as well as HG2's, save yourself some money and go with the LG's and Samsungs instead)
#9 - IMRen (I've used some of these for testing purposes, but like MXJO, better off saving money and go with authentics)
#10 - AWT, Basen, Eizfan and the rest (They rate just two up from Efest Batteries IMO)
#11 - Vamped (One of the first re-wraps after Efest tried flooding the market, if used right they were good, but just the slightest abuse they will go off like a roman candle, leave them be)
#12 - Efest (Not even going to go into detail, Efest is the worst offender, more Efest re-wraps have gone boom than any other manufacturer on this list, I wouldn't even pay 10 cents for a single Efest, I'd pay 16 Dollars more on an LG at a brick and mortar before I'd waste my cash on an Efest battery)
Mod Type to Battery List
Single Battery Mech (tube or box)
LG HB2, HB4, HB6, Sony VTC3, Sony VTC4, LG HD2/HD2C - Lowest Build 0.25ohms
4.2volts/0.25ohm= 16.8amps
Multi Battery Parallel Mech/Unregulated (Box Mod unregulated, with Potentiometer and PWM Chip, with Mosfet)
LG HB2, HB4, HB6, Sony VTC3, Sony VTC4, LG HD2/HD2C, Samsung 25R, LG HE2/HE4 - Lowest build 0.14ohms
4.2volts/0.14ohms=30amps/2 batteries=15amps per battery
Multi Batter Series Mech/Unregulated (Stacked Tube Mod, with Potentiometer and PWM Chip, With Mosfet, or unregulated (example Noisey Cricket))
LG HB2, HB4, HB6, Sony VTC3, Sony VTC4, LG HD2/HD2C - Lowest Build 0.56ohms
8.4volts/0.56ohms=15amps both batteries have to supply
Single Battery Regulated - 60 to 65watts Maximum
Any Listed battery above, (above 65watts LG HB2, HB4, HB6, HD2, HD2C, HD4, Sony VTC3/VTC4/VTC5A)
60watts/3.4v=17.65/90% Mod Efficiency=19.61amps
Dual Battery Parallel Regulated (Eleaf iStick100w) - 100watts Max
Any battery in the lists above will work
100watts/3.4volts=29.41amps/90%=32.68amps/2 batteries=16.34amps each battery has to supply
Dual Battery Series Regulated - 200watts Max
120watts - 120w/6.4v=18.75/.9=20.8333amps, any 20amp CDR battery
150watts - 150w/6.4v=23.4375/.9=26.04amps, Sony VTC3, VTC4, VTC5A LG HD2/HD2C, LG HB2, HB4, HB6
200watts - 200w/7.1v (3.55v per battery)=28.17/0.9=31.30amps, LG HB2/HB4/HB6 (Sony VTC3 upto 180watts Max)
Triple Battery Series Regulated - 200watts Max
Almost any 20amp CDR battery, Samsung 30Q being manufacturer rated at 15amp CDR though they were tested independently to rate 20amp CDR, be careful.
200w/10.2v (3.4v per battery)=19.61/.9=21.79amps
/edit
Dec 27, 2015 - Added the LG HD2 and the Xtar XVTC4 to the battery list
Jan 25, 2016 - Added follow-up post, Efest Blu6 Charger to Charger Listing, added the LG HB2 to the listings
May 03, 2016 - Added LG HB4 to listings
June 06, 2016 - Updated Blog, added LG HD2C with LG HD2, added listing by mod type
Sep 08, 2016 - Updated Blog, Added More Granular Categories, Additional Information, Added LG HD4, Sony VTC5A, Sony VTC6 to batteries, Added Efest LUC Blu4 to Chargers
July 5, 2017 - Added UK/EU Vendor to the Vendors List
First blog is by @Baditude
Baditude's blog | E-Cigarette Forum
This blog has a lot of information to look through with a lot of safety and basics, including "Ohm's Law" and detailed information regarding battery safety, it is all well worth reading as a starter point for a beginner up to the advanced vaper.
Second blog is by @Mooch
Mooch's blog | E-Cigarette Forum
What Mooch brings to the table is quite a few expert years of testing batteries for various businesses and some government projects, he mainly tests the batteries for max temperature thresholds, many know that heat is the enemy for a Lithium based battery, get a battery to hot, bad things happen, using a battery towards its max current output makes batteries get hot, damaging them and lowering their output and life cycle, his lists of tests can help you find the right battery for your application.
I will stress and voice what most say, there are no batteries made by the direct source manufacturers produce that are over 30amp Continuous Discharge Rating (CDR) on the market, the big 4 that produce batteries we use are Panasonic (mainly lower end), Sony, LG, and Samsung, the only re-wrap name on the market I personally trust is AW (AW IMR) which buy A Bin batteries from manufacturers like Panasonic, Sony, LG, and Samsung, going through a second quality control method, then labelled and sold. Efest, Sub-ohm Cell, AWT, MXJO, IMRen, Basen, Eizfan, Vamped, Vappower are all re-wrap resellers that buy B and C Bin discards, re-wrap these cells, print the battery short pulse rating on the label as their CDR and charge double what the authentic is worth. Unless you know what you are getting, stay away from these brands as best you can, never know if under the wrapper is a Panasonic NCR18650B (6amp CDR, 12amp PDR) or an LG HE2 (20amp CDR, 35 to 40amp PDR) under that pretty bling bling wrapper, never trust a battery at its Pulse Rated Discharge. PDR is a dangerous rating to use, you don't know if that Pulse is 500milli-seconds or 30 Seconds, best to use the Continuous Discharge Rate (CDR) for all your calculations, this is the output the battery can hold and maintain most times the entire charge of the battery. This puts inexperienced vapers at risk with a false sense of safety, "Yeah man, battery says on the label it good up to 35amps, I'm at 32amps, good to go bro...", so not true in all honesty, you are out on a limb, the very furthest and narrow part of a brittle limb, one mishap its game over, that battery will vent on you and unpleasant things will happen. The best tool in a vaper's arsenal is above their shoulders, second best tool in our arsenal is the computer you now sit at reading this, Google, Yahoo, DuckDuckgo, ECF, and several Youtube reviewers that stress safety and being safe, are your best friends and best sources of information.
All that being said, here is another thing to take into consideration, buying from reputable, authorized re-sellers is also another safety mechanism you have to consider, Amazon, Ebay, several others are good for finding a decent deal on some hardware, a lot of wick and wire, but batteries, *cringes*, no, just don't do it, price of an Efest Purple 35amp battery, a lot of times at Illumination Supply you can find a pair of Sony VTC4's that come in a battery case for the same price as the pretty looking Efest.
With all that, I will say I will try to keep these below lists up to date as best I can.
***Follow-up post***
Battery Configurations especially in box mods
Box Mods, What's the deal of these different configs? | E-Cigarette Forum
Reputable Online Vendors for batteries, these operate and ship mainly within the US where I reside, does not hurt to send them an email and ask if they ship to your region, if not does not hurt asking if they know a re-seller in your region that does, all else fails, use the below Manufacturer and Model numbers listed below to guide your search, any UK, EU, Asian, Australian, Middle East, African, Japanese, Russian, or other region members with lists of reputable vendors, don't hesitate message me so I can add the vendor to the first list by region.
US Online
Illumination Supply - Illumn.com - Flashlights, Batteries, Carry Gear, Intelligent LED Lighting, and More!
RTDVapor - Authentic AW Batteries - RTD Vapor
Liion Wholesale - Liion Wholesale Batteries | Li-ion battery distributor
IMRBatteries - Earth's #1 source for IMR Batteries, Chargers, Cases & Wraps | IMRbatteries.com
Orbtronics - 18650 Batteries | Rechargeable Li-ion | Battery Chargers
UK/Europe Region
Fogstar (Fogstar - The UK's #1 trusted source of 18650 Batteries) UK
Batteries plus (http://batteriesplus.co.uk/) UK
Nkon (NKON | eu.nkon.nl) Netherlands
Asia Online
Fasttech - FastTech - Gadgets and Electronics (Be cautious here, Fasttech is worldwide distribution, yet if the battery listed does not say authentic or something to that affect, do not purchase that battery)
****(Above list will be updated when I get new vendors as often as I can)****
Battery Models by Usage Applications (This breakdown list is a lot of my own opinion based on all the information I have learned and collected and based on my own comfort level of safety)
Mech Mods (This includes single battery and dual battery box mods)
****In My Opinion, you are running a mech, you need a 30amp CDR battery at all times****
****Using Ohm's Law Forumla 4.2v/Resistance (ohms)=Amps , 30amp CDR battery single lowest safe resistance 0.28ohm (50% of max CDR of 15amps) maximum lowest resistance 0.14ohms (that's full 30amps). 25amp CDR single battery lowest safe resistance 0.34ohms (that's 12.5amps 50% of the total CDR) maximum lowest resistance 0.17ohm (that's full 25amps). 20amp CDR battery single lowest safe resistance 0.42ohms (that's 10amps 50% of the total CDR) maximum lowest resistance 0.21ohms (that's full 20amps). Parallel Dual Battery safest resistance with 30amp batteries is 0.14ohms (that's 30amps, 15amps per battery) maximum lowest that is advisable 0.10ohms (40amps CDR, 20amps per battery, this is pushing safety, suggest stay above 0.14ohms), Parallel Dual Battery safest resistance with 25amp batteries is 0.17ohms (25amps CDR, 12.5amps per battery), maximum lowest that is advisable 0.14ohm (30amps, 15amps per battery). Parallel Dual Battery safest resistance with 20amp batteries is 0.21ohm (20amps CDR, 10amps per battery), maximum lowest that is advisable is 0.17ohms (25amps CDR, 12.5amps per battery). Series Dual Battery safest resistance with 30amp batteries is 0.56ohms (thats 15amps both batteries must support as if a single battery), maximum lowest that is advisable 0.42ohms (that's 20amps CDR both batteries have to support as if a single battery 66% max capacity).****
LG HB2 - True 30amp CDR, 1500mah, powder blue in color. By specs these appear to be much like the HB6.
LG HB4 - True 30amp CDR, 1500mah, milk chocolate brown (old version), mustard yellow (new version). By specs these appear to be much like the HB6 and HB2
LG HB6 - True 30amp CDR, 1500mah, a cream white in color (old version), pink (new version), this is the coolest running battery on the market when under heavy load, making much safer than the VTC3 by far, get some of these you will really like them
Sony VTC3 - True 28amp CDR, 1600mah, a matte pine green color
Sony VTC4 - This is a long time standing King and Jack of all trades, 20 to 25amp CDR battery capable of holding and sustaining, but not suggested to do so all the time 28amp CDR, 2100mah, a matte pine green color like the VTC3, try to stay below 25amps
****Ohm's Law Formulas Used For the Following Regulated Mods- Triple Battery Series (Watts/9.6volts/90% Mod Chipset Efficiency=Maximum Amps), Dual Battery Series (Watts/6.4volts/90% Mod Chipset Efficiency=Max Amps), Dual Battery Parallel (Watts/3.2volts/90%=Maximum Amps), Single Battery Mod (Watts/3.2volts/90% Mod Chipset Efficiency=Maximum Amps).
150 watts to 200watts Dual Battery Series Regulated Mod
****In My Opinion, just like a mech of any sort, these guys need 30amp batteries at all times****
LG HB2
LG HB4
LG HB6
Sony VTC3 (note, being safely 28amps, max 180 watts)
Sony VTC4 (note, being safe but not advisable, max 170 to 180watts)
120watts to 160watts Dual Battery Mod(Sigelei 150watt, IPV3,etc)
****In My Opinion, these bad boys need at least 25amp CDR batteries if you are going to run at this level regularly****
Sony VTC3
LG HB2
LG HB4
LG HB6
LG HD2 (purple) - 25amp CDR, 2000mah / LG HD2C (salmon or skin color) 25amp CDR, 2200mah- these have been around a while, nice battery, rated 25amp CDR, personally I'd trust it at 20amps like most of LG's line excluding the HB Series
LG HD4 (salmon or skin pink) (no manufacturer specs at the moment), independent tested 25amp CDR, 2100mah. By Mooch (a professional battery tester) these batteries rated right in between the HD2 and HD2C for Mah, same CDR, but was stronger than the HD2 Series, haven't tried these myself, but those are strong results
Sony VTC4
Sony VTC5A - (matte pine green), 25amp CDR, 2500mah. Sony has come out swinging at LG with this re-vamp of the VTC5. Sacrificed 100mah and boosted the CDR by 5amps, this bad boy gives the LG HD Series some serious competition, another rock solid battery Sony adds into their line up of 5 models now.
75watts to 120watts Dual Battery Mod
AW IMR 18650 2200mah - 20amp CDR, re-wrap yes but AW is a longest time trusted battery out of all other brands on the market
AW IMR 18650 3000mah - 20amp CDR (by specs alone, this quite possibly be an A Bin LG HG2 or Samsung 30Q under the wrapper), still a re-wrap yes, but AW does not over spec their batteries
LG HB2
LG HB4
LG HB6
LG HD2 / LG HD2C
LG HD4
LG HE2 (wine red color) and the LG HE4 (yellow) - 20amp CDR, 2500mah - both of these models are solid batteries, and are great contenders to the Samsung 25R and Sony VTC4, balance of run time and decent CDR in this application
LG HG2 - 20amp CDR, 3000mah, chocolate brown - LG has 4 highly impressive batteries on the market, the HB Series, and here the HG2. The HG2 is a great battery, with 3000mah and can do 20amp CDR this battery is like the VTC4 in the 20amp and below category, great run time and great CDR, best of both worlds.
MNKE 18650 - 20amp CDR, 2000mah, orange - Before the Sony VTC3 hit the market, MNKE was the King of High Drains, only available cells left are the US Spec 20amp 2000mah, great battery, but becoming hard to get, its bigger 26650 brother is also a great King in the 26650 market
Samsung 25R - Here is another workhorse like the VTC4, they can be used up toward 120watts with no issue, but highly not suggested - 20amp CDR, 2500mah, Rev2 and Rev3 (light blue), New Rev 5 (light green)
Samsung 30Q - 15amp to 20amp CDR, 3000mah, pinkish purple or lavender in color - next to the LG HG2, or a 26650, 3000mah is nothing to shake a stick at, this like the HG2 gives great charge time and a decent CDR, rated at 15amp CDR, can wiggle it from time to time up to 20amp CDR, not suggested all the time, for the median wattage and below tier this battery really shines
Sony VTC3
Sony VTC4
Sony VTC5A
Sony VTC6 - (matte pine green) Factory Rated 15amps like the Samsung 30Q, independent tested 19amps CDR, 3000mah - this was released about the same time as the newer VTC5A, and Sony made a great answer to the LG HG2 and Samsung 30Q. Run time all three are about equal, but by tests the 30Q tops this chart followed by the HG2 and trailing in the back is the VTC6 due to its CDR, still a great battery and answer to compete with the LG and Samsung entries, max watts 54.7watts for this battery by iteself, 109.4watts in a dual battery.
XTar High Drain XVTC4 - VTC4 clone, 20 to 25amp CDR, 2100mah, black and yellow - this is an authorized clone of the VTC4, Xtar bought the specs for the VTC4 from Sony, I'd trust them up to 25amps no higher though rated by Xtar for 30amps.
65watts to 80watts Single Battery Mod (This is a dangerous category on a single 18650, as most of the easiest available batteries out there are 20amp CDR, this category needs 25amps up to 30amps CDR so the list narrow)
LG HB2 (Up to 90watts)
LG HB4 (Up to 90watts)
LG HB6 (Up to 90watts)
LG HD2/LG HD2C/LG HD4 (Up to 72watts Max)
Sony VTC4 (Up to 72watts max)
Sony VTC5A (Up to 72watts max)
65watts and below Single Battery- Here the field is fully open
****All the batteries listed above****
AW IMR 18650 2200mah and 3000mah 20amp
LG HB2/HB4/HB6/HD2/HD2C/HE2/HE4/HG2
MNKE 18650 2000mah 20amp
Samsung 25R/30Q
Sony VTC3/VTC4/VTC5/VTC5A/VTC6
150watt Plus Triple Battery Series Regulated Mod
**215 to 250watts**
LG HB2/HB4/HB6
Sony VTC3
**175watts to 215watts**
LG HB2/HB4/HB6
LG HD2/HD2C/HD4
Sony VTC4/VTC5A
**175watts and Below***
AW IMR 20amp 2200 and 3000mah
LG HB2/HB4/HB6/HD2/HD2C/HD4/HE2/HE4/HG2
MNKE 2000mah 20amp CDR
Samsung 25R/30Q
Sony VTC3/VTC4/VTC5/VTC5A/VTC6
****I will update these lists on battery models as newer models and information become available****
Battery Chargers - Always, always, always buy the best charger you can, when charging a battery is at its most dangerous state, take the analogy of you are putting pressure into a sealed can through a pin hole when charging a battery, this builds up heat, but any rechargeable battery resists having power pushed into it, so this state makes them a bit grumpy and unstable, never leave a charging battery unattended, have your charge on a fire resistance surface in case of trouble. When it comes to chargers, there are 3 main manufacturers you should only consider for the price range most are willing to pay, there are higher chargers in the RC world and such that out do these brands listed like Pila, but these listed brands work well and are reliable.
Nitecore - the 4 models always suggested are the "i2" "D2" "i4" and "D4", the D2 and D4 are newer designs with digital displays over the i2 and i4, their charging algorithms are not much different from each other. Nitecore chargers can be found relatively cheaply, for instance an i2 2bay can be found in the 10 to 15USD price range, the D4 around the 35USD range upper scale. Great chargers, intelligent chargers, they detect battery type, charge level, and condition batteries in a trickle charge method, thus they charge slower than most, this is real gentle on batteries, thus why they are so reliable.
Efest LUC - this includes the LUC2 and LUC4. These are bit more pricey than a Nitecore, but they are great chargers, better than the batteries they sell IMO. They have digital read outs to display charging state, battery charge level on each bay, they also have flexibility, some even come with car cigarette lighter plugs you can use them in an RV or your car while on the road, as well as you can change their charge mode from 0.5amp per channel, 1amp per channel, or 2amp per channel 2 center channels only (excellent for 26650 batteries in 2amp mode), but I highly suggest for 18650s 0.5amp most times, need a rapid charge 1amp mode max, 26650 batteries 1amp trickle charge mode and 2amp rapid charge when or if needed desperately, make sure you have plenty of batteries in rotation so you are not needing to rapid charge all that often, rapid charge decreases battery life, be kind to your batteries.
Blu6 OLED - This is the LUC4 with 2 extra battery slots, an OLED screen, simple control buttons, a nitetime lights off feature, and bluetooth 4.0 support to communicate with an Android 4.4 or higher/ Apple iOS (iPhone/iPad/iPod) device app. Max current it can handle is 4 amps total load, bay 1 and 6 support 0.5/1/2 amp output, all bays support 0.5/1amp load, info is displayed on the OLED screen which scrolls between each bay 1 at a time or via the bluetooth app, with simple blinking LED lights for each bay when charging. These lights function as buttons along with another button right next to the OLED screen that controls lights on/off, and charge mod with the combination of bay # button/control button. All functions can be controlled more user friendly via the bluetooth app. The bluetooth app itself is very informative and higher detail, front screen all bays showing status (occupied bay/non-occupied bay, charge level of each bays, charging current, charging percentage, turn OLED on/off), selecting a certain bay allows adjusting charging current for that bay, also a graph of how the battery has charged thus far). Very nice charger like the LUC4, just a little pricier with 2 extra bays and bluetooth support.
New LUC6 - This is the Blu6 without the Bluetooth support, mainly operates functionality similar to the LUC4. 6bays, with the following options Bays 1 and 6 (0.5, 1.0, or 2.0amps charge modes), Bays 2 through 5 (0.5 and 1.0amp charge modes)
New LUC Blu4 - This is the LUC4 with added bluetooth like the Blu6 above, battery orientation is set at about a 45 degree angle instead of straight verticle or horizontal
Xtar - This is the king of vaping charger brands. Great quality, great functions, rarely see any problem arise with an Xtar, and they have the largest selection of chargers on the market. Like the Efest LUC, they offer 3 power settings, 0.25amp, 0.5amp, and 1amp, range in models from single bays up to 6 and 8 bay chargers, they are pricier than any other manufacturer for a reason, quality, great warranty, intelligent charging, just a great brand, I could fill a paragraph of praise on them. You get what you pay for in the end.
****This list will be updated if any new manufacturers worth using become available****
Any questions, comments, or additions, don't hesitate to post a reply here or PM me a message, any and everyone is welcome to use this blog post to link to as an answer to a new member, an I highly hope you do, knowledge is a very powerful tool.
June 06, 2016 Follow-up (Battery Lists Above Are Still Applicable, given newer types of mods, I am listing according to type of Mod, note that I forgot to add when first made this post, Excluding AW IMR and the Xtar XVTC4, no other re-wrap brands are listed in this post)
My personal battery brand trust levels aka how I rate a battery by its brand first
#1 - LG (Given in just the past couple years LG has put some majorly impressive batteries on the market, it is also the number of batteries they have released that pass muster with me, their whole line is rock solid depending on the application they are used, the HG2 one of the most suggested batteries, the HE and HD series are the oldest models on the market LG produces, and their highly powerful HB series knocks the long time reigning champ Sony down a peg in my book)
#2 - Sony (Sony only has 5 in the line up, but the VTC series if you use them right are still some of the best batteries on the market, the VTC5 was the reigning long mah decent CDR battery on the market for 20amps CDR and below, the VTC4 is still one of the most flexible batteries on the market, only LG's HD2 and HD2C give it any competition depending on the application but still the VTC4 is still one of the best batteries in the mech/unregulated/dual battery arena, then with their VTC3, in a mech or other 30amp CDR application, only the LG HB series outshines the VTC3), though as of Summer 2016 Sony has added their re-vamped VTC5A out to compete with LG's HD Series, and the VTC6 to compete with LG's HG2 and Samsung's 30Q, Sony is holding on with tooth and claw against LG as to their line up is between LG (9 models) and Samsung (2 Models) with number of models on the market (5 models now on the market by Sony).
#3 - Samsung (There is no denying the Samsung 25R has been strong competition to the LG HE series, and Sony VTC4, it gives a lot of competition to the Sony VTC4 in the flexibility department, able to equal the LG HD2/HD2C in CDR output, it out shines the VTC4 and HD2/HD2C in the mah department, then the 30Q is LG's only competition to the HG2, but still a solid manufacturer)
#4 - AW IMR (AW has been around a long long time, longer than Sony has been in the vaping scene, just read the mah and CDR of the battery to choose the right one. In a Provari 2.5 or earlier, Reo Squonk box, or other mod that needs button top batteries, here AW really shines, especially in the 18490/18500, and 18350 arena which pulls them up the list)
#5 - MNKE (MNKE is another set of batteries been around on the market a lot longer than Sony and were the reigning champs before the VTC3 hit the market, in the 26650 market, MNKE in my opinion is still the king in that arena)
#6 - Xtar's XVTC4 (This lone battery entry from Xtar is only applied as Xtar has approval to legitimately clone the Sony VTC4 and licensed from Sony the actual design/production sheets of the VTC4)
#7 - Subohm Cell (You still have to use caution here, but Subohm Cell is just a re-wrapped LG HE2/HE4, and they mostly use A Bin from LG, not B or C Bin, but still be cautious)
#8 - MXJO (I have used these myself, earlier 2500mah yellows, they appear to use A Bin HE2/HE4 and 25R's as well as HG2's, save yourself some money and go with the LG's and Samsungs instead)
#9 - IMRen (I've used some of these for testing purposes, but like MXJO, better off saving money and go with authentics)
#10 - AWT, Basen, Eizfan and the rest (They rate just two up from Efest Batteries IMO)
#11 - Vamped (One of the first re-wraps after Efest tried flooding the market, if used right they were good, but just the slightest abuse they will go off like a roman candle, leave them be)
#12 - Efest (Not even going to go into detail, Efest is the worst offender, more Efest re-wraps have gone boom than any other manufacturer on this list, I wouldn't even pay 10 cents for a single Efest, I'd pay 16 Dollars more on an LG at a brick and mortar before I'd waste my cash on an Efest battery)
Mod Type to Battery List
Single Battery Mech (tube or box)
LG HB2, HB4, HB6, Sony VTC3, Sony VTC4, LG HD2/HD2C - Lowest Build 0.25ohms
4.2volts/0.25ohm= 16.8amps
Multi Battery Parallel Mech/Unregulated (Box Mod unregulated, with Potentiometer and PWM Chip, with Mosfet)
LG HB2, HB4, HB6, Sony VTC3, Sony VTC4, LG HD2/HD2C, Samsung 25R, LG HE2/HE4 - Lowest build 0.14ohms
4.2volts/0.14ohms=30amps/2 batteries=15amps per battery
Multi Batter Series Mech/Unregulated (Stacked Tube Mod, with Potentiometer and PWM Chip, With Mosfet, or unregulated (example Noisey Cricket))
LG HB2, HB4, HB6, Sony VTC3, Sony VTC4, LG HD2/HD2C - Lowest Build 0.56ohms
8.4volts/0.56ohms=15amps both batteries have to supply
Single Battery Regulated - 60 to 65watts Maximum
Any Listed battery above, (above 65watts LG HB2, HB4, HB6, HD2, HD2C, HD4, Sony VTC3/VTC4/VTC5A)
60watts/3.4v=17.65/90% Mod Efficiency=19.61amps
Dual Battery Parallel Regulated (Eleaf iStick100w) - 100watts Max
Any battery in the lists above will work
100watts/3.4volts=29.41amps/90%=32.68amps/2 batteries=16.34amps each battery has to supply
Dual Battery Series Regulated - 200watts Max
120watts - 120w/6.4v=18.75/.9=20.8333amps, any 20amp CDR battery
150watts - 150w/6.4v=23.4375/.9=26.04amps, Sony VTC3, VTC4, VTC5A LG HD2/HD2C, LG HB2, HB4, HB6
200watts - 200w/7.1v (3.55v per battery)=28.17/0.9=31.30amps, LG HB2/HB4/HB6 (Sony VTC3 upto 180watts Max)
Triple Battery Series Regulated - 200watts Max
Almost any 20amp CDR battery, Samsung 30Q being manufacturer rated at 15amp CDR though they were tested independently to rate 20amp CDR, be careful.
200w/10.2v (3.4v per battery)=19.61/.9=21.79amps
/edit
Dec 27, 2015 - Added the LG HD2 and the Xtar XVTC4 to the battery list
Jan 25, 2016 - Added follow-up post, Efest Blu6 Charger to Charger Listing, added the LG HB2 to the listings
May 03, 2016 - Added LG HB4 to listings
June 06, 2016 - Updated Blog, added LG HD2C with LG HD2, added listing by mod type
Sep 08, 2016 - Updated Blog, Added More Granular Categories, Additional Information, Added LG HD4, Sony VTC5A, Sony VTC6 to batteries, Added Efest LUC Blu4 to Chargers
July 5, 2017 - Added UK/EU Vendor to the Vendors List
