Beware! Trustfire Flame Jacket (14500)

[ericdjobs]

AltSmoke has removed all of these from stock, and offered a full refund. Great job! This is what a vendor SHOULD do! AltSmoke has earned my repeat business and respect. Thank you AltSmoke!

Okay... so I watched this video a month ago..
‪Beware of Fake Mod Batteries!!!!‬‏ - YouTube
Didn't think much of it

I recently purchased 4x trustfire flame jackets from Clouds of Vapor.. upon peeling them back, this is what I found



I just discovered the same exact thing with the same batteries from AltSmoke. The Trustfire Flame Jackets 14500 sold by altsmoke are two totally different batteries, sold shrinkwrapped together! Underneath the Trustfire jacket is a Blue B&K 750mAh and a green 800mAh.. with a protection circuit slapped on! (on the wrong end of the battery!)

So, I will be notifying altsmoke now, but I wanted anyone who purchased any of these batteries to know that THEY ARE COUNTERFEIT

DO NOT RUN THESE BATTERIES IN A SERIES. THEY HAVE DIFFERENT CAPACITIES AND DIFFERENT INTERNAL RESISTANCES.

 

[cddz]

They are not fake, they are indeed trustfire batteries, at least the shrink wrap is. Every brand battery does not actually manufacture there own. Most come from the same battery manufacture. If the main manufacture has a lot left over from a specific order, they may re-wrap the battery for the next customer(Trustfire, Ultrafire). As far as the PCB being on the wrong side, not all protection circuits work on same common polarity. It is not the fault of the Vendor you purchased them from, they did not make the battery. Altsmoke was aware of it a little while ago and went through the stock and eliminated the suspected re-wraped batteries. They are human, I am sure a few got by.

As far a stacking these batteries, and as for stacking in all e-cig, it would be very risky. The battery with the lower internal resistance would take most of the load, causing high stress on the one cell. Would be certain for a much higher failure rate.

 

[Thundercats]

Okay... so I watched this video a month ago..
‪Beware of Fake Mod Batteries!!!!‬‏ - YouTube
Didn't think much of it

Obviously you did think alot of it. You bought batteries from two different vendors just to cut the wrappers off and look for the counterfeits. Just so you could post you found counterfeits and post cool videos on the forum.

Also if you do what ECF says then you don't ever stack batteries. So if you are following safety guidelines and NOT stacking batteries then it is a non-issue.

 

[ericdjobs]

Obviously you did think alot of it. You bought batteries from two different vendors just to cut the wrappers off and look for the counterfeits. Just so you could post you found counterfeits and post cool videos on the forum.

Also if you do what ECF says then you don't ever stack batteries. So if you are following safety guidelines and NOT stacking batteries then it is a non-issue.

What is your problem? I bought the batteries because I'm trying to power a mod... you think I like getting batteries I can't use for a given application?

Then again, you're saying we shouldn't be stacking batteries; all 5v and VV mods in existence that do not use a boost regulator.

It's a safety issue, they are not safe to use.

That's okay, you only have 14 posts so I'm sure you don't understand.. but every variable voltage and 5v boxmod uses 14500 or 18650 batteries in a series to achieve voltage that is then downregulated.

And @cddz how are they not fake? They are labled as Trusfire 900mAh batteries, when in reality they are one B&K 750mAh and one Unknown 800mAh. This is definitely fake.

Someone took surplus, ultra-cheap batteries and threw a protection circuit and trustfire jackets on them, not cool.

And if anyone thinks i'm spending my money on batteries just to post they are counterfeit... really?????? I've been using a SINGLE SET of batteries for my variable voltage mod because I keep getting screwed with counterfeit batteries.


If B&K does indeed make batteries for trustfire, what is with the practice of combining two totally different batteries into one shrinkwrapped package?

 

[rocks82]

Post count does not necessarily speak to someones knowledge of e-cigs. Numerous people read and very selectively post. Others post non-stop and have limited knowledge. Best not to jump to conclusions about someone.

Chad simply passed on his extensive information on batteries. I've found that he's rarely wrong and tend to take his word for things.

If you believe you received counterfeit batteries (the fault of the manufacturer, not the supplier) open a ticket and I'm sure AltSmoke will investigate and handle it in the same professional manner they handle everything.

Nothing is gained from flexing your temper on a forum. In fact, it just does a massive disservice to you in the future.

 

[ericdjobs]

Post count does not necessarily speak to someones knowledge of e-cigs. Numerous people read and very selectively post. Others post non-stop and have limited knowledge. Best not to jump to conclusions about someone.

Chad simply passed on his extensive information on batteries. I've found that he's rarely wrong and tend to take his word for things.

If you believe you received counterfeit batteries (the fault of the manufacturer, not the supplier) open a ticket and I'm sure AltSmoke will investigate and handle it in the same professional manner they handle everything.

Nothing is gained from flexing your temper on a forum. In fact, it just does a massive disservice to you in the future.

I'm not flexing my temper, I'm not upset. The person I was talking to was Thundercats.. who said, and I quote, "You bought batteries from two different vendors just to cut the wrappers off and look for the counterfeits." Really? I bought the batteries to use in my mod... Turns out they didn't fit (Like all counterfeit trustfires).

I'm warning others who might have purchased these batteries because it's unsafe to use them. This is my only intention.

If this wasn't a major safety issue I would've notified altsmoke and that's it. I want people who purchased these batteries to be aware of what they really are.

I have no doubt cddz has a lot of knowledge about batteries. It still doesn't change the fact that batteries with two completely different internal resistances are being sold shrinkwrapped together, that's NOT OKAY..and it's obviously not a simple little mix-up... every single shrinkwrapped pack of counterfeit 14500s is the same... One blue 800mAH B&K battery, and one green unknown manufacturer 750mAh battery.. this was obviously intentional... it's unsafe to whoever is using them!

I don't understand why the response on altsmoke's forum is a bunch of people lashing out at me when all I'm doing is trying to look out for the safety of others. On another supplier's forum, who had this same exact issue, people were thanking me and appreciated I took the time out to try and inform others of a glaring safety issue.

When something like this happens, it shouldn't be handled quietly. There are other people besides me who purchased these batteries.. what you are advocating, rocks82, is that this should all be kept hush hush and others should just wait until one of the batteries explode and someone is hurt. This is a dangerous precedent. People should be informed, and I can't for the life of me understand why anyone would think otherwise...save for being a fanboy.

They are not fake, they are indeed trustfire batteries, at least the shrink wrap is.

I really don't understand this statement... if the actual batteries are made by someone else, but the shrinkwrap is trustfire.. how in the world does it make them trustfire batteries? What battery manufacturer in their right mind would shrinkwrap two completely different batteries together and sell them as a matched pair?

Please understand that I'm just trying to inform others who might have purchased these batteries and who may still be using them! Why would you rather this stay quiet? To save face for the vendor? As long as the right actions are taken (And they were) the vendor is not at fault... but people still have the right to know.

 

[malyden]

Let altsmoke know they may have missed some and I'm sure it will be taken care of. Yes people do need to be careful with batteries and they should be informed of the possible issue. That being said make sure you also let people know how Altsmoke resolved the issue for you. Good vendors do try hard to make sure there are no issues with their merchandise but we are all human and mistakes can happen. Best of luck!

They are not fake, they are indeed trustfire batteries, at least the shrink wrap is. Every brand battery does not actually manufacture there own. Most come from the same battery manufacture. If the main manufacture has a lot left over from a specific order, they may re-wrap the battery for the next customer(Trustfire, Ultrafire). As far as the PCB being on the wrong side, not all protection circuits work on same common polarity. It is not the fault of the Vendor you purchased them from, they did not make the battery. Altsmoke was aware of it a little while ago and went through the stock and eliminated the suspected re-wraped batteries. They are human, I am sure a few got by.

As far a stacking these batteries, and as for stacking in all e-cig, it would be very risky. The battery with the lower internal resistance would take most of the load, causing high stress on the one cell. Would be certain for a much higher failure rate.

 

[ericdjobs]

Let altsmoke know they may have missed some and I'm sure it will be taken care of. Yes people do need to be careful with batteries and they should be informed of the possible issue. That being said make sure you also let people know how Altsmoke resolved the issue for you. Good vendors do try hard to make sure there are no issues with their merchandise but we are all human and mistakes can happen. Best of luck!

I agree completely! AltSmoke was amazingly easy to deal with, they have offered a full refund (I've edited the first post of this thread to reflect what was done, as well) and they have removed any other suspect batteries from their stock.

These kind of incidents earn you respect and repeat business with the community, because it shows that a vendor is willing to take a substantial loss to ensure customer safety.

Thank you, Altsmoke, for your quick and effective action.

 

[vocr]

I don't know anything, but this thread about negative reviews: http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/general-e-smoking-discussion/205552-negative-reviews.html seems relevant.

He seems to be reporting an issue he discovered. While inflammatory and he could definitely be wrong, there's no need to jump on him for reporting it, unless he is another vendor trying to FUD of course.

 

[cddz]

I'm not flexing my temper, I'm not upset. The person I was talking to was Thundercats.. who said, and I quote, "You bought batteries from two different vendors just to cut the wrappers off and look for the counterfeits." Really? I bought the batteries to use in my mod... Turns out they didn't fit (Like all counterfeit trustfires).

I'm warning others who might have purchased these batteries because it's unsafe to use them. This is my only intention.

If this wasn't a major safety issue I would've notified altsmoke and that's it. I want people who purchased these batteries to be aware of what they really are.

I have no doubt cddz has a lot of knowledge about batteries. It still doesn't change the fact that batteries with two completely different internal resistances are being sold shrinkwrapped together, that's NOT OKAY..and it's obviously not a simple little mix-up... every single shrinkwrapped pack of counterfeit 14500s is the same... One blue 800mAH B&K battery, and one green unknown manufacturer 750mAh battery.. this was obviously intentional... it's unsafe to whoever is using them!
That is a good question, I have no clue. I am sure it was not intentional, I am also sure the battery maker did not intend for thier batteries to be stacked
I don't understand why the response on altsmoke's forum is a bunch of people lashing out at me when all I'm doing is trying to look out for the safety of others. On another supplier's forum, who had this same exact issue, people were thanking me and appreciated I took the time out to try and inform others of a glaring safety issue.

When something like this happens, it shouldn't be handled quietly. There are other people besides me who purchased these batteries.. what you are advocating, rocks82, is that this should all be kept hush hush and others should just wait until one of the batteries explode and someone is hurt. This is a dangerous precedent. People should be informed, and I can't for the life of me understand why anyone would think otherwise...save for being a fanboy.


I really don't understand this statement... if the actual batteries are made by someone else, but the shrinkwrap is trustfire.. how in the world does it make them trustfire batteries? What battery manufacturer in their right mind would shrinkwrap two completely different batteries together and sell them as a matched pair?


Please understand that I'm just trying to inform others who might have purchased these batteries and who may still be using them! Why would you rather this stay quiet? To save face for the vendor? As long as the right actions are taken (And they were) the vendor is not at fault... but people still have the right to know.

You are right that folks have the right to know. People just responded to your demeaner is all. It seemed you were giving an ultimatum. Altsmoke is well known for thier customer service. Many of thier customers do not like to see what they feel is an attack.

 

[ericdjobs]

I don't know anything, but this thread about negative reviews: http://www.e-cigarette-forum.com/forum/general-e-smoking-discussion/205552-negative-reviews.html seems relevant.

He seems to be reporting an issue he discovered. While inflammatory and he could definitely be wrong, there's no need to jump on him for reporting it, unless he is another vendor trying to FUD of course.

Thank you, I do appreciate that.

I'm honestly not trying to be inflammatory... if the original post comes off that way, I'm sorry... Not once did I single out altsmoke, claim this was altsmoke's fault, or place any blame whatsoever on the vendor. I understand that it's completely impossible for a vendor to know these kind of things most of the time.

AltSmoke has been great. They dealt with the issue without problem. My post was meant to inform people.. and that's it. If anything, AltSmoke will come out of this thing ahead of the game PR wise.

I still have two totally fresh batteries that i haven't removed the outer jacket and they are still shrinkwrapped together, I could do another video and show you guys exactly what is going on.. I didn't want to do that because I was trying to limit everything to this specific forum, as a youtube video has a way of spreading sometimes, and I didn't want to tarnish the vendor at ALL, because it's not their fault.

I simply do not want people who purchased these batteries to run them in a series and have one fail/vent. A good majority of people purchasing 2-packs of 14500 are going to use them in a series for a VV or 5v mod. This is my sole intention.

 

[cddz]

Compare the length of the two batteries. The re-wrapped batteries will be 1-1.5mm longer.

 

[ericdjobs]

You are right that folks have the right to know. People just responded to your demeaner is all. It seemed you were giving an ultimatum. Altsmoke is well known for thier customer service. Many of thier customers do not like to see what they feel is an attack.

I'm sorry. I didn't mean for it to come off this way if it did.. I'm looking at my original post and I really don't understand how it seems like an ultimatum. The only part I said anything close is the "DO NOT RUN THESE BATTERIES IN A SERIES". I have all the respect in the world for altsmoke, I have no reason not to!

This wasn't an attack, I never once said it was the vendors fault, or claimed anything of the sort. I simply stated that they are (were) selling counterfeit batteries.. it was just the truth and I wanted people to know.

That is a good question, I have no clue. I am sure it was not intentional, I am also sure the battery maker did not intend for thier batteries to be stacked

People are going to use these batteries in series applications. People always have, and people always will. No where on the battery is it stated you should not use them in series applications. Flashlight guys have been using Lithium Ions in series applications forever. Is it as safe as running a single battery? No, not at all.. Should you be checking voltages and keeping track of battery health? Of course. The danger can be mitigated with knowledge.

The majority of 14500s sold are going to be stacked or wired in a series. Every single 5v boxmod or VV box uses batteries in series configurations, unless using a boost regulator. If the manufacturer did not intend for these cells to be used in a series, you'd think it would be printed on the battery itself, as that is a common thing to do with batteries.

 

[ericdjobs]

Compare the length of the two batteries. The re-wrapped batteries will be 1-1.5mm longer.

Yeah. They don't fit (without an insane amount of force) into the AA boxes used for the mods I have. It's how I know right off the bat even though I have no others to compare them to.

 

[cddz]

I'm sorry. I didn't mean for it to come off this way if it did.. I'm looking at my original post and I really don't understand how it seems like an ultimatum. The only part I said anything close is the "DO NOT RUN THESE BATTERIES IN A SERIES". I have all the respect in the world for altsmoke, I have no reason not to!

This wasn't an attack, I never once said it was the vendors fault, or claimed anything of the sort. I simply stated that they are (were) selling counterfeit batteries.. it was just the truth and I wanted people to know.



People are going to use these batteries in series applications. People always have, and people always will. No where on the battery is it stated you should not use them in series applications. Flashlight guys have been using Lithium Ions in series applications forever. Is it as safe as running a single battery? No, not at all.. Should you be checking voltages and keeping track of battery health? Of course. The danger can be mitigated with knowledge.

The majority of 14500s sold are going to be stacked or wired in a series. Every single 5v boxmod or VV box uses batteries in series configurations, unless using a boost regulator. If the manufacturer did not intend for these cells to be used in a series, you'd think it would be printed on the battery itself, as that is a common thing to do with batteries.

I make 2 14500 devices for Altsmoke, both have spare headroom for longer batteries. I think most that buy these 2 packs are for my devices .
I also stack batteries in my flashlights and lasers. I feel much much more comfortable stacking in a flashlight or laser because there is much less chance of a short. No adapters, no juice filled atties, no screwing and unscrewing of the load.

 

[Thundercats]

I make 2 14500 devices for Altsmoke, both have spare headroom for longer batteries. I think most that buy these 2 packs are for my devices .
I also stack batteries in my flashlights and lasers. I feel much much more comfortable stacking in a flashlight or laser because there is much less chance of a short. No adapters, no juice filled atties, no screwing and unscrewing of the load.

@CDDZ So your saying the best thing to do is NEVER stack batteries in a mod??? I do believe that is what I said in the first reply. I guess that is why I only vape at 3.7V in either a Silver Bullet or a Omega. I see by your avatar you also use the Omega, the guy who makes this thing is a true master of design!! I would like to meet him some day and shake his hand!!
@ericdjobs Don't let the post count fool ya. I have been around a looonnngggg time. I just don't like posting on forums.

 

[cddz]

@CDDZ So your saying the best thing to do is NEVER stack batteries in a mod??? I do believe that is what I said in the first reply. I guess that is why I only vape at 3.7V in either a Silver Bullet or a Omega. I see by your avatar you also use the Omega, the guy who makes this thing is a true master of design!! I would like to meet him some day and shake his hand!!
@ericdjobs Don't let the post count fool ya. I have been around a looonnngggg time. I just don't like posting on forums.

If you are every around Ohio I would gladly shake your hand

 

[malyden]

cddz is the person that makes the SB, BB, Omega and Alpha

@CDDZ So your saying the best thing to do is NEVER stack batteries in a mod??? I do believe that is what I said in the first reply. I guess that is why I only vape at 3.7V in either a Silver Bullet or a Omega. I see by your avatar you also use the Omega, the guy who makes this thing is a true master of design!! I would like to meet him some day and shake his hand!!
@ericdjobs Don't let the post count fool ya. I have been around a looonnngggg time. I just don't like posting on forums.

 

[Thundercats]

cddz is the person that makes the SB, BB, Omega and Alpha

That is WAY cool!!! The man is a master of the PV!!! I own all of them except the Alpha. The battery is a bit small for me. Can't design all winners I guess.

So when is the next big design coming out?? I love my altsmoke PV's but I'm looking for something new!

Possibly something that uses stacked batteries!! I love living on the edge, taking a chance of dying with each vape!!

 

[Dougers]

What is your problem? I bought the batteries because I'm trying to power a mod... you think I like getting batteries I can't use for a given application?

Then again, you're saying we shouldn't be stacking batteries; all 5v and VV mods in existence that do not use a boost regulator.

It's a safety issue, they are not safe to use.

That's okay, you only have 14 posts so I'm sure you don't understand.. but every variable voltage and 5v boxmod uses 14500 or 18650 batteries in a series to achieve voltage that is then downregulated.

And @cddz how are they not fake? They are labled as Trusfire 900mAh batteries, when in reality they are one B&K 750mAh and one Unknown 800mAh. This is definitely fake.

Someone took surplus, ultra-cheap batteries and threw a protection circuit and trustfire jackets on them, not cool.

And if anyone thinks i'm spending my money on batteries just to post they are counterfeit... really?????? I've been using a SINGLE SET of batteries for my variable voltage mod because I keep getting screwed with counterfeit batteries.


If B&K does indeed make batteries for trustfire, what is with the practice of combining two totally different batteries into one shrinkwrapped package?

Really? "That's okay, you only have 14 posts so I'm sure you don't understand.. " Wow...that's an interesting statement, to put it nicely. Actually, I think a higher number of posts could possibly indicate a lack of a life, or perhaps
an overwhelming obsession. Or maybe it's just narcissism.