Which battery charger to prurchase ?

[JulesXsmokr]

Just bought a SID..
I will be buying probably the aw imr 18650 or the Panasonic 18650B batteries to use with it..
Since selection of chargers is important to battery health and life, not to mention safety.. Which one ('s) should I be looking at??
I think a 2 bay "smart" model should be sufficient. budget wise, say 50 dollars max. I see a lot of chargers for around the 25 dollar mark.
Thanks

 

[State O' Flux]

One of the best purveyors of chargers (and batteries) I've found is RTD Vapor. They carry a broad selection, and have most Xtars on sale until the 20th. Their top of the line Pila is under $50... but I'm quite happy with the xtar VP1.

 

[cocacola31173]

I have the xtar and have had no problems with it. You do have to use spacers for 18350 but they come with 2 and you can buy extras for like a dollar.

 

[wutarush]

I use an efest bio. Very nice charger, has automatic shut off when the bats reach just under 4.2v. I think I paid around $30 for it but I don't really remember.

 

[Thin]

Intellicharge Nitecore I2 (2 bays) or I4 (4 bays on two charging circuits) get a good name. Beware some two bay chargers (incl the I2) split the charge into the two bays so it charges one battery at full speed, but two batteries at half speed. The I4 can charge two batteries at full speed if you put them in the correct bays.

edit...no need for spacers for different size batt's, and it has overcharge protection

 

[JulesXsmokr]

Thanks for the suggestions, I will be checking these out.
Thanks

 

[Newportlocal]

One of the best purveyors of chargers (and batteries) I've found is RTD Vapor. They carry a broad selection, and have most Xtars on sale until the 20th. Their top of the line Pila is under $50... but I'm quite happy with the Xtar VP1.

Ditto the Xtar VP1 charger and RTD for the vendor. I am very happy with mine.

 

[Big Orange Country]

I have the Nitecore I4 and it works just fine.

 

[HDVaper]

Intellicharge Nitecore I2 (2 bays) or I4 (4 bays on two charging circuits) get a good name. Beware some two bay chargers (incl the I2) split the charge into the two bays so it charges one battery at full speed, but two batteries at half speed. The I4 can charge two batteries at full speed if you put them in the correct bays.

edit...no need for spacers for different size batt's, and it has overcharge protection

I didn't know that! I have one of each (I2 & I4). Which two bays on the I4 do I need to use for two batteries at the same time. Thanks in advance!!

Now I know why it took FOREVER to charge two batteries at the same time in the I2!! I thought maybe it was geed up.

 

[Jazzi Mike]

With the i4, you need to charge a battery in the 1st and 3rd bays to use it at full charge.

In any event, I have the Trustfire T-001 and a Nitecore i4. The Trustfire is a solid charger. It gets a lot of flack because it is cheap, but it charges batteries and doesn't light them on fire. Nitecore is a decent charger. The one that I had at first was bad and I had to send it back. After around 2 weeks of use, it started getting really hot and smelling like burning. Thankfully, it did not mess up my batteries and I caught it in time before something really bad happened. In any case, I had to send it back.

Luckily, I had the Trustfire...

 

[Rickajho]

RTD Vapor - all xtar chargers are 20% off through 08/20. Code ECF5 gets you an additional 5% off beyond that.

You can get all the performance of a Pila in the Xtar VP1 right now for only $39.99 - that's over $15.00 less than a Pila. That, and a lot of features the Pila doesn't offer.

Or go "cheap" and get an Xtar WPII 2 for only $15.96

They all come with a 2 year warranty.

 

[Windz1]

I use the Nitecore i4 v2...got it thorugh FastTech for my e-pipe and mech. For the price, it was more than worth it.

 

[JulesXsmokr]

RTD Vapor - all xtar chargers are 20% off through 08/20. Code ECF5 gets you an additional 5% off beyond that.

You can get all the performance of a Pila in the Xtar VP1 right now for only $39.99 - that's over $15.00 less than a Pila. That, and a lot of features the Pila doesn't offer.

Or go "cheap" and get an Xtar WPII 2 for only $15.96

They all come with a 2 year warranty.

This is the one I will order, Thanks for the code too.

 

[JulesXsmokr]

ordered with 2 batteries, Thanks everyone for helping out.

 

[Thin]

Which two bays on the I4 do I need to use for two batteries at the same time.

There is a a circuit for bays 1+2, and a circuit for bays 3+4, and you need to have a battery on each circuit. So charging in bays 1+3, or 1+4, or 2+3, or 2+4 should charge at full rate.

 

[Ryedan]

RTD Vapor - all xtar chargers are 20% off through 08/20. Code ECF5 gets you an additional 5% off beyond that.

You can get all the performance of a Pila in the Xtar VP1 right now for only $39.99 - that's over $15.00 less than a Pila. That, and a lot of features the Pila doesn't offer.

Or go "cheap" and get an Xtar WPII 2 for only $15.96

They all come with a 2 year warranty.

Had my WP2 for about a year now. Think I paid $20 for it. No regrets.

 

[Izan]

The I4 will also recharge "regular" 1.2v Ni-mh rechargeable cells.
It's nice to have only one charger for everything,almost.

Congrats on your new toys J!

I

 

[John Alexander]

Intellicharge Nitecore I2 (2 bays) or I4 (4 bays on two charging circuits) get a good name. Beware some two bay chargers (incl the I2) split the charge into the two bays so it charges one battery at full speed, but two batteries at half speed. The I4 can charge two batteries at full speed if you put them in the correct bays.

edit...no need for spacers for different size batt's, and it has overcharge protection

I had an I2 for a couple of months and one day lots of smoke started coming out of the unit. If I hadn't been nearby I don't know what would have happened. Contacted the vendor and Nitecore directly, but neither ever replied. I have read a few other, similar issues with Nitecore chargers.

Would not recommend this unit.

 

[s1mp3]

Mine I4 still works as new. It's a 4 months old.

Sent from my thumb

 

[Spydro]

Efest LUC 2 Bay LCD Smart Charger here... no complaints yet.