bryroth

So I bought a Dinotte tail light recently. (Worth every penny, but don't get me started on that.) The problem with this light is that 1 ride literally eats 4 AA batteries. No exaggeration. It's bright, but it is a power-hog.

So I have a sleeve of Duracells, and I either need to buy stock in the company or get a rechargeable battery system. The ones that I see at the store seem kind of inconvenient or cheap or something.

Does anyone out there have a AA battery recharging solution that they are happy with? I'm looking for a specific model number or product name, not general advice.

Anyway, just let me know if you do. Thanks in advance.

ColorChange

https://www.thomasdistributing.com/

This one is great.

https://www.thomasdistributing.com/sh...77bonp78maub94

mmmdonuts

+1 for Maha chargers. Get one with independent circuits for each cell, like the one posted above.

StupidlyBrave 

I have this smart charger from La Crosse. I like it very much.

Also, Sanyo AA rechargeable batteries are very good. For relatively infrequent use, I would suggest these eneloops. For daily use, you might want something with a bit more capacity, like these.

guadzilla

Use Eneloop or similar rechargeables, instead of NiMH. NiMHs nominally store more power, but the Eneloops dont lose their charge (NiMH discharge by about 1% per day and so are best charged just before use). You can charge up a block of batteries and then use them as needed.

And +1 to the smart chargers

WhyFi

I go through a lot of AAs with camera flashes. I've heard good things about the Mahas, but I have a LaCrosse BC-900. My batteries of choice are Sanyo Eneloops - lots of charge cycles and unlike many rechargables, they hold a charge when not in use, ie you can charge them to 100%, let them sit unused for a year, and still have an 80% charge when you come back to 'em. If you REALLY want too much info, here's a thread from my photography addiction forum - https://photography-on-the.net/forum/...d.php?t=677074

datlas 

+1 on the LaCrosse smart charger, that's what I use with good results.

If you want to learn tons more about batteries head over to the electronics forum.

2manybikes

Another vote for Eneloops and a LaCrosse charger. I have the LaCrosse BC-700, it's great.

z90

+1

Homebrew01

Eneloops made all the difference for my son's camera that uses AA, they hold a charge much better than regular rechargeables.

I have some Duracell 15 minute charger for the Eneloops and regular rechargeables

kayakdiver

Another vote for Eneloops.. finally a rechargeable that's worth buying.

yes

Maha 9000 ( hear la crosse version is good too).

That thing will revolutionize your experience with rechargables, expecially with things like the Dinotte that use 4 cells at once. With the Maha you will periodically measure the capacity of the cells, throw bad ones out, and match cells (put them in groups with similar capacity). If you are not matching your battery cells you will constantly be getting crappy performance due to single bad cells. Also, a low capacity cell will drain first and get ruined fast. With any battery, charge slow and get longer battery life. The maha defaults to 1000mA. I charge at AAs at 500mA.

vredstein

I bought a Maha C9000 Wizard One recharger at the same time I bought my Dinotte headlight 4 years ago. Both have worked perfectly, with no problems.
The charger lets me condition new batteries so they perform best from the very first use. The charger lets me determine how well older batteries are holding a charge. It also lets me determine how much of a charge a batter is capable of holding so I can group them together. I can compare how different brands stack up to each other. The combo has been one of my best cycling investments.

bryroth

Thanks for these suggestions. Strange how the banner ad at the top is now for rechargeable batteries.

Eneloops are not NiMH?? What are they?

achoo

Something like this works just fine for me:

https://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=230456932330

If you don't need fast recharging, and NiMH batteries are good enough, that'll work.

Seagull01

I really think you are best off going with rechargable alkaline, or NiZN batteries. You want a smart charger too, or one that will not overcharge your batteries.

The reason for the rechargable alkalines are that they output 1.5 volts at 100% charge. If you have 4 AA size batteries, wired in pairs series (positive terminal is in contact with a negative terminal) and then each pair wired again in parallel (positive to positive) then you have a 3 volt pack. This is a very common configuration by the way.

Now of you yank the alkalines out and put in nimh or nicad, each cell is only 1.2 volts, so instead of 3 volts for a fully charged pack you are down to 2.4 volts.

Lithium ion AA size cells are 3.something volts, so you will be over the 3 volts with 4 of them. For delicate stuff, the over voltage could be a problem - but probably not as stuff is designed to operate in a voltage range. But running over voltage will increase heat.

The zinc rechargables are 1.6 volt cells, that .1 volts is no big deal.

To really compare options, you also need to know capacity. More ma means more capacity. So a single AA size cell with a capacity of 1500ma is better than another AA size cell with a capacity of 800ma, assuming voltage of each is the same or very close to the same. Rechargable batteries give you capacity ratings, alkalines don't. So without knowing the capacity of a standard AA non rechargable cell, I can not say if a given rechargable will last longer or not.

All I can say is you save money in the long run, as you do not throw so much away. You also reduce waste in the landfill.