Vamo V3 Stopped Recognizing 18650 Battery

[Ren79]

So the battery I bought with my Vamo V3 was a 3000mah Flat Top 18650 battery from MVS. I've been using this battery alone for a few weeks, with no problem, worked great, and lasted forever.

I then decided to buy backup batteries, and found a good deal on amazon for two 18650 Button Top 3000mah batteries + charger.So when that got to my home I started charging and swapping out batteries as I needed them. Worked fine for a week. Then all of a sudden I take out my original flat top battery, put it in, and the unit wouldn't fire up. I thought I'd try the other batteries to make sure it wasn't the unit, and the unit fired up with both newer button top batteries.

I thought maybe the battery was dead, maybe it was misaligned in the charger when I had charged it, i thought. Put it in the charger, and after a few seconds it turned green, which indicates full charge.

What causes batteries to stop working like this? (it's only a few weeks old and ran through a handful of cycles). Is it maybe the new button tops pushed the contact in a little, where the flat top isn't making contact? That's the only thing I can think of.

EDIT:

also, another battery related issue. For some reason, my 2250 mah flat top battery (when it was working) would WAY outlast my newer 3000mah button top batteries. The flat top would chug along for days, whereas the 3000mah seemed to drain a lot faster. What gives?

 

[ElConquistador]

Try cleaning all the contacts, even rubbing a pencil eraser on them to "rough the up" a little, along with slightly expanding the spring on your battery cap a little bit.

 

[Ren79]

cleaning the contacts was the first thing I did, still didn't work.

 

[remmy00]

Havent played around with a Vamo, but since you already cleaned the contacts, I would bet you are correct in your idea that the button tops nudged up the connection a bit.

Not sure though about your issue with the flats lasting longer, I havent noticed any significant differences between my flat and button tops.

 

[dripdaze]

I am not familiar with the Vamo but a multimeter might provide some clues. If you had access to the wiring coming from the batt. contacts, that would be good place to check for voltage with the non-functional battery installed.

 

[patrao_n]

Can you give us the name brand of the batteries or perhaps a pic

Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk

 

[Nu2Dis]

Havent played around with a Vamo, but since you already cleaned the contacts, I would bet you are correct in your idea that the button tops nudged up the connection a bit.

Not sure though about your issue with the flats lasting longer, I havent noticed any significant differences between my flat and button tops.

Yes, the VAMO works with button tops, or flat tops; however once you use the button tops for awhile, the pin gets pushed up a little bit, and causes the flat tops to stop working. I don't know of any fixes to this, but the button tops should still work.

If the button tops, and the flat tops have the same maH rating, they should give the dsame mount of vape time, if nothing else changes; atty resistance, length of pulls, etc...

Check out the VAMO thread; lots of good info there.

 

[catalinaflyer]

I have 3000mah batteries that test out to less than 1500 and I have an 1800mah that tests out to 2100 so unless you either have a computerized charger/conditioner or want to buy one the numbers advertised are often waaay off. It sounds like your newest batteries might be from a less reputable manufacturer who isn't rating them properly.

I happen to be very deep into radio controlled aircraft and as such have a bank of computerized chargers so when I buy a new battery I code it to track it then run it on the conditioner to get the true mah rating. Only the most expensive batteries have been correct.

 

[SonHouse]

I've had VAMOs that went back and forth between the flats and buttons many times without issues. I also have ones that did exactly what yours did when I used buttons a time or two in them. They vary because there are a lot of folks making them and all those companies use slightly different parts.

 

[WarHawk-AVG]

More than likely you got a "false" capacity battery...the unscrupulous will mark em way up to oversell em, it usually means that not only are they fibbing about the capacity...but the quality too

Here is an example of using inferior batteries...look at this review of a power bank (and the follow up) guy tested em..claimed was 30,000mAh, but found out that batteries were WAY sub par...put in KNOWN good quality and capacity batteries...

Review: Unbranded 30000mAh 2 Port USB Power Bank | Gough's Tech Zone
Follow-up: USB Power Bank Tested and Repacked (5000mAh, 30000mAh) | Gough's Tech Zone

Batteries are the "engine" that drive the whole vaping experience...it's never really good to scrimp on the one thing that does the work

I rock Efest IMR's 2000mAh flattops in my Vamo, they aren't exactly the most inexpensive batteries but they are KNOWN performers and from a trusted source...these batteries give me 2x days of vaping at 6.5 watts, with two of em in 24hr rotation and not draining them completely, I hope to get a good long time out of them

 

[Matthew Greenarch]

has any of the plastic wrapping on the battery been torn or melted off? Is it a protected or unprotected battery, its possible that if its a protected battery that it short circuited and is no longer able to be used. When you try to charge the battery does it charge up or have issues charging?

 

[JQside]

Same thing happened to me with my Zigelei V3. Same batteries that were working before are no longer working. Searched the web with the same issues and found none. It's still working with the other batteries. There must be something we don't know.

 

[Baditude]

You never mentioned the brand names of the batteries, nor were they protected ICR (Li-Ion) chemistry batteries or IMR/hybrid (Li-Mn).

I strongly suspect the 3000 mAh batteries are protected ICR batteries. If a lesser brand name like Trustfire, Ultrafire, or Surefire then these are a lower quality battery which are notorious for over-stating their specifications. If they are generic batteries, then they are likely re-wrapped used batteries or the rejects of the better battery manufacturers.

Although they may "work" in regulated mods, ICR batteries are not the ideal battery chemistry for VV/VW mods. They require the high drain capabilities of IMR or hybrid batteries. The majority of ICR batteries will not have the amp reserve for the buck boost circuitry necessary for voltage/wattage regulation. High drain batteries will.

TECHNICAL - WHY HIGH DRAIN BATTERIES?

A list of IMR and hybrid "high drain" batteries can be found in this blog:

BATTERY BASICS FOR MODS: IMR OR PROTECTED ICR?

DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF MOD BATTERIES

 

[SupplyDaddy]

You might also check your spring in the bottom cap.. Could have been depressed a bit.. give it a slight stretch.

 

[Rickajho]

You got a "really good deal" on Amazon for two batteries and a charger. Most likely translates "cheapest thing I could find on Amazon". Now one of your batteries is dead and the two "high capacity" batteries don't perform half as well as your original. Sigh...

First, we need a link to see what you actually bought.

Second, you need a test meter to see what the heck is going on with those batteries and the charger. One very likely possibility is a "deal of the century" charger is putting the batteries over voltage when charging and killing them off. Get a meter and see what the voltage of those batteries is reading coming off the charger. And what the no load voltage is coming off that charger without a battery installed.