I need HELP choosing rechargeable batteries for the AT gold and AT PRO series. RECOMMENDATIONS?

[unluckylester]

What are the absolure best and longest lasting rechargeable AA batteries i can buy? Are they ones from Kellyco? Or are there better options out there?
Thanks for any help,
Les

 

[jbr13]

I have been using rechargeable AA batteries for years with my DSLR camera flashes. I have used several brands and researched what others like and work best. I would suggest going to B&H Photo and look for Eneloop or Pearstone rechargeable. The big advantage to these is the high number of charge cycles, and reliability.

 

[John-Edmonton]

If you hunt often, the higher numbered mA/hr would be my choice. If you hunt weekly, get the brand which will hold a charge the longest and will probably have a lower mA/hr rating. If you hunt at or below freezing temperatures, the lithium non-rechargeables are my preferred type. The Eneloop brand boasts a low temperature operating temperature, with a decent highmA/ hr.

Bottom line......stick with any popular brand and you should be fine. If you purchase some of those very high mA/hr batteries from China, chances are you will get lots of issues with them, as others have discovered ordering them for their metal detectors.

http://ca.answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20110221073443AAGYZOp

 

[mudslingers8]

Check Amazon for eneloop w/charger get 2 sets of 4!

 

[rwalling2000]

I was told that rechargeable only give 1.2 volts. Where as regular batteries give 1.5 volts. The higher the volts the better the detector will perform. I'm a newbie so don't take my word. I was told that by a forum member. Is this a valid statement. I would like to know.

 

[:Left4Dead]

I was told that rechargeable only give 1.2 volts. Where as regular batteries give 1.5 volts. The higher the volts the better the detector will perform. I'm a newbie so don't take my word. I was told that by a forum member. Is this a valid statement. I would like to know.

Yes it is valid, well the votage part anyway. The detector should perform the same until it reaches it low voltage battery point. But yes you will start out at a lower voltage to begin with.

 

[William-NM]

I've been using the Eneloops and Sony CycleEnergy batteries for about a year. They have (both) performed flawlessly. The Eneloops are marked HR-3UTGA 1.2v min. 1900mAh. I just charged a set of four, and they all test at 1.43 - 1.44 volts. They will get me through about 3 6-8 hour hunts. I always carry a charged set, so when I get down to one (or maybe two) bars, I just switch them out. I got the Sony's with their charger, which an engineer had recommended over the one that Sanyo was bundling with the Eneloops. The Sony charger has 4 discrete circuits and can charge any combo of AAs and AAAs. I bought mine at Amazon. The charger is model BCG-34HLD.

I bought additional sets of Eneloops on eBay, as one seller had 4 packs with a free case, which is nice, keeps them in good shape and organized. I know that they also make higher mAh batteries, the trade off being a shorter lifespan. I opted for the 1500 recharge ones. If they got charged every other week (which they don't), that would be 57 years of lifespan. That means I'll have to budget for a new set when I hit age 112. I do think that the charge "bell curve" is a bit 'flatter' than alkalines - the meter drops down to 3 bars pretty quickly, but stays there for a long time. Garrett says that the ATs maintain full sensitivity down to one bar. I do switch at two bars if I'm hunting an area where I want to be certain I'm getting max. depth.

I also bought a 4 pack of Tenergy (Chinese) 9 v rechargeables bundled with their charger. I use them in my ProPointers. Same deal, the last a LONG time, I carry a charged up spare, and I whistle past the battery displays. Besides only costing around 4 cents a charge, it's just a great feeling to not have to worry or even think about batteries anymore.

 

[unluckylester]

Thanks for all the great information, Guys!
Les

 

[Roscue2]

n/t

 

[32duce]

Thomasdistributing has some great batteries and chargers.check them out.

 

[fongu]

I wish I could recharge my battery...lol

 

[Tony_in_Socal]

I second Thomas Distributing. They carry Powerex 2700 Mah batteries. They also have the 8 cell Maha charger.
I've used these batteries in my Nikon flashes for over a decade with great results. I use them in my ATPro and so far so good.
NIMH like NICads drop off quickly at the end of charge so make sure you get at least 2 sets and always take a spare set with you.

 

[MikeLab]

I got Tenergy 2600 mah from ebay. Had them for another project but decided to try them on the ATG and they work fine.