Stop getting ripped off!!!

[Rocketman]

I've dealt with DX many times, but not for batteries.

They sometimes will have several skew numbers for the same cell, at different prices.
Why? DX doesn't HAVE, they FIND. If they FIND cells from several places and pay different prices they will charge different prices. Each lot could be different. That worries me. The same product sourced from different Chinese suppliers, bought through a clearing house like DX, also in China.

 

[Rocketman]

Nobody tried my shopping exercise I posted yet?

So far I have found an AW IC Protected 2600mah cell for $16.40, shipped.
($14.69 + $1.71)

Also the same cell for $22.50 shipped.

and

The Ultrafire BigRed 3000mah Protected cell for $16.19, shipped.
(13.99 + $2.20)

and the same cell (maybe the same cell ) for $ 9.45 shipped (from a U.S. source)

Verified counterfeit, unprotected fake for $2.45 with free shipping.

 

[Ace5High]

With all this talk about mods and how careful one needs to be if one should decide to use a mod, it makes me glad that I'm using just a standard cigarette-size e-cig with only a single battery. I mean, I know more than the average person does about electronics, but some of the veterans that posted on this thread got me kinda lost with all of the talk about how many mA the battery/batteries is/are, the resistance of the circuit, and even the fact that most people who use mods (at least judging by this whole forum) absolutely NEED to use a multimeter just to make sure that their mod is safe to use in the first place. All I'm really trying to say is that mods sound WAY too complicated for me to ever consider using one and that I feel safer using a U.S.-made e-cig that just has the basic two parts (battery or "white part" and cartomizer or "filter-thingy"). Also, according to that post about how to tell if your battery is safe, my battery is just fine and perfectly safe to use. Phew! (sigh of relief) I think I'm gonna have another e-cig and then go play some guitar now. Happy vaping to all and to all a good afternoon!

 

[dearme]

Mods, if used responsibly are very safe. Buy good quality batteries, use a good charger with good techniques, check your batteries periodically either with a visual inspection or a multimeter, don't stack batteries, make sure you mod is able to vent, and use the battery the manufacturer recommends. This will make the odds of something going wrong much lower than crossing the street.

As far as I am aware, all slim ecigs are made in China. Most mods are made in the US with some of the insides made in China.

 

[Rocketman]

One of the problems a noob mod vaper has had in the past is the
manufacturer's recommended batteries and charger.
That is changing fast.
Less reliable combinations of components are showing up as

'out of stock'

or pulled from websites all together.

 

[dearme]

I stick with AW IMR 18650 1300mah based on performance and reliability, and I only buy them from Super T........cause you have to trust someone.....LOL

 

[WillyB]

Calling me a liar?

That's exactly what I'm seeing, by checking the voltage on my Provari while using it throughout the day. I'm normally running at 3.8-4 volts with Smocktech 1.7 cartos in a Chibi tank. The AW IMR's and the Panasonic rebranded last all day and maintain over 3.8 volts.

I guess not. I just assumed we we talking about what we vape at, voltage drop under load, something meaningful. I could care less about unloaded voltages.

How a cell's voltage reacts under load. Like this comparison.

That's a fairly stiff 3A, but it's pretty obvious that the fancy AW2900 is getting pwned (as the kids would say), on both voltage drop and actual vaping mAH. If we use 3.3V (loaded volts) as our cut-off the AW results are almost sad compared to the Sanyo which should still be providing a decent vape at ~3.5V and still has some legs, about ~500mAh more... sweet.

That is an unprotected Sanyo, maybe the comparison is unfair. How about we flip it.

This time the Panasonic is naked and the Sanyo (top pic black trace) is protected.

I put a read dot at 3.5 and 3.25V on both. It's only a 1A test, but it's obvious that the nature of curve is identical to the previous test.

For a basic single cell 18650 PV the Sanyo/Xtar seem like a better choice, maybe even much better. And Xtar is a real company, with manufacturing plants, employees, corporate offices and an actual web site.

They are at tad long at ~69.3mm though.

Amazon.com: 2 pcs Xtar OEM new 18700 Rechargable Protected Batteries(Sanyo Lithium Cell inside)3.7V 2600mAh: Electronics

XTAR 18700 3.7v 2600mAh Sanyo Protected Batteries x 2 | eBay

2x XTAR 18700 2600mAh 3.7v SANYO Protected Battery Batteries - 18650/18500/17670 - Flashlights, Batteries and more - Quality China Goods

A decent price price for such a good performing cell. It's time to quit getting ripped off by AW.

 

[stephpd]

WillyB,
Got any of those pretty pictures (graphs) of an Ultrafire 3600 mAh battery?
Since that is what this thread is about.

 

[stephpd]

Don't put an Ultrafire cell in a Provari, or in any boost mod.

Don't try 1.7 ohm cartos with an Ultrafire battery.

You try and vape an Ultrafire boosted and with low resistance and the load on the battery is excessive.

stephpd, You are not a liar. But do you know what you are doing?

You are trying to draw the absolute maximum current a cell like that can provide (2.5 amps). That is asking for a problem. There are 'medium performance' cells at 'medium prices' but the Ultrafire is not for 'high performance' applications.


If you paid more than $5 (give the vendor a little profit) then your reputable vendor ripped your off. He was trying to guide you to a slightly higher priced cell, and you took the low road. If you paid $3 to $4 for the Ultrafire, then you took the low road by choice.

I've been poking at vendors selling Ultrafire Big Red cells sometimes for over $10 EACH. Am I stepping on toes here? Some folks may be upset about paying that much.
Sorry if that makes you feel bad (not really )

I'm using the IMR's for vaping. Got 4 of then with the Provari.
The Ultrafires and Trustfires were just a load test and watching how a couple I had, since disposed of, wouldn't even charge fully or drop off quickly on just the voltage test. Tried using them in an Ego 18650 mod and thought there was something wrong with them, but my inline volt meter just flashes on the regulated mod. They just seemed real weak and lacking in run time too.

I don't even use the panasonic 3100's in it. Keep waiting for the AW IMR 2000 to come back in stock at Super T.

 

[bewsii]

Welcome to ECF!

 

[KeithB]

With all this talk about mods and how careful one needs to be if one should decide to use a mod, it makes me glad that I'm using just a standard cigarette-size e-cig with only a single battery. I mean, I know more than the average person does about electronics, but some of the veterans that posted on this thread got me kinda lost with all of the talk about how many mA the battery/batteries is/are, the resistance of the circuit, and even the fact that most people who use mods (at least judging by this whole forum) absolutely NEED to use a multimeter just to make sure that their mod is safe to use in the first place. All I'm really trying to say is that mods sound WAY too complicated for me to ever consider using one and that I feel safer using a U.S.-made e-cig that just has the basic two parts (battery or "white part" and cartomizer or "filter-thingy"). Also, according to that post about how to tell if your battery is safe, my battery is just fine and perfectly safe to use. Phew! (sigh of relief) I think I'm gonna have another e-cig and then go play some guitar now. Happy vaping to all and to all a good afternoon!

You make a lot of good points. The mAh rating of a battery is important because ir directly effects the amount of current a battery can safely supply. The resistance is important because it directly effects the amount of current you are trying to draw from the battery. The amount of current your are trying to draw from a battery determines how much you are stressing the battery; too much stress can lead to battery failure, perhaps catastrophic. A multimeter helps you keep an eye on the state of your batteries; overcharging them and over-discharging them can also lead to catastrophic battery failure.

I was on the fence for a long time about stacking batteries to achieve higher voltage and I did a LOT of reading up on batteries and battery safety before I made the decision to do so. I made this decision for me based on what I felt comfortable with. Anyone who doesn't want to go through that effort probably shouldn't be using a mod and maybe vendors need to be more clear about that. It needs to be made clear that not all batteries are suitable for vaping and that just because it fits does not mean that it is safe to use.

When it comes to your white part/filter part e-cig, it was almost certainly made in China.

 

[Toronnah]

Even if you buy the most expensive battery in the world, from the most expensive supplier in the world, and put it in the most expensive mod you can find, you are saving a ton of money over smoking analogs, in the long run. Why risk an accident?
It's like buying a $5000 bicycle, and securing it with a $2 lock.

Or driving a car at 70 mph on $10 tires