Who has the cheapest good 18650 batteries?
- Thread starter Gr3
- Start date
SirJonathan
Active Member
I think "cheapest good" might be a problem.
D
Deleted member 4210
Guest
There are no 'good ' Chinese battery mfg's if you are talking about cells. Choose Samsung, Panasonic, or LG and you'll be fine. There are Chinese firms that package those cells into casings. Buying from your oem, who made the ebike is the safest route. Here is why: many firms on aliexpress or dhgate or Alibaba who offer you battery packs that may say Samsung or Panasonic or LG, and their price is low (i.e. too good to be true) are sending packs with fake labels on the cells. Even if you open the pack, you have no idea if it's a true Samsung cell or Panasonic unless you know what you are looking for. The problem is very widespread. You are just not going to get quality grade A cells at a much cheaper price than the ebike OEM is offering. Some like pedego charge much higher prices than the norm.
What happens with cells that are fake labeled ? You might be lucky to get 300 to 500 charge cycles out of them. Or something worse, such as faulty cells, which can cause all sorts of unwanted problems.
What happens with cells that are fake labeled ? You might be lucky to get 300 to 500 charge cycles out of them. Or something worse, such as faulty cells, which can cause all sorts of unwanted problems.
Mesquite Hugger
Member
I don't know about cheapest, but I've found good deals on cells and good customer service at IMR Batteries.
By definition, Oxymoron is a combination of contradictory or incongruous words. This is not a person and can't "know" anything.
What Mike said - there are no good packs among "the cheapest" Chinese packs. Fake labels are common. Goes to ancient history of this country, deceit being the means to survive and perfected to the form of art.
For reasonable prices at reasonable quality check em3ev.com, bmsbattery.com, lunacycle.com.
Last edited:
erider_61
Well-Known Member
Lead acid batteries are cheap GOOD. And the extra weight is a good workout.
https://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&sour...aw2HnBlgU1nJIwUcVpxEqc8f&ust=1552156897066092
https://www.google.ca/url?sa=i&sour...aw2HnBlgU1nJIwUcVpxEqc8f&ust=1552156897066092
Deep cycle lead acid and AGM batteries also follow the rule "you get what you pay for".
Better brands like Trojan, Deka, Full River, Optima - cost more. No-name black box from Walmart costs less.
Though in the led aicd domain there is a lot of re-branding goes on, sometimes a reputable factory like Johnson Controls makes a big batch to be sold in Sams Club, labeled "Sams Club" at lower price. Deka aka East Penn are sold under a few different labels, too. These things are easy to find out as those are all well known companies, with factories mostly in the US and Mexico. With unknown Chinese suppliers there is no transparency, it's a Wild West out there, going through reputable channels is your only protection. Well, this is your money...
Better brands like Trojan, Deka, Full River, Optima - cost more. No-name black box from Walmart costs less.
Though in the led aicd domain there is a lot of re-branding goes on, sometimes a reputable factory like Johnson Controls makes a big batch to be sold in Sams Club, labeled "Sams Club" at lower price. Deka aka East Penn are sold under a few different labels, too. These things are easy to find out as those are all well known companies, with factories mostly in the US and Mexico. With unknown Chinese suppliers there is no transparency, it's a Wild West out there, going through reputable channels is your only protection. Well, this is your money...
Last edited:
harryS
Well-Known Member
A year ago, this vendor sold batteries that had both generic cells (chinese made) and premium cells (Samsung, Panasonic, LG). Today, all of his hard case batteries use premium cells.
https://california-ebike.com/product-category/batteries/
There's like 52 cells in a 48V 12AH battery and 65 ina 48V 14AH battery. If the difference in price between cheap and good cells is like a hundred bucks, It's worth it in the long run.
https://california-ebike.com/product-category/batteries/
There's like 52 cells in a 48V 12AH battery and 65 ina 48V 14AH battery. If the difference in price between cheap and good cells is like a hundred bucks, It's worth it in the long run.
Bruce Arnold
Well-Known Member
Aw c'mon folks. Just because he used the word "Cheap" doesn't mean you don't know what he intended to ask. "What are the least expensive, reliable batteries?"
Cheap doesn't always mean lousy. It also means lower in price. From the OED: "1. Low in price, especially in relation to similar items or services. ‘Local buses were reliable and cheap.’ 2. Charging low prices. ‘A cheap restaurant.’ 3. Inexpensive because of inferior quality. ‘cheap, shoddy goods’
Notice that inferior quality is the 3rd definition, not the first.
Among even the best of batteries, some cost less than others. Which ones?
All you smarty-pants need to lighten up and help someone with a simple question.
Cheap doesn't always mean lousy. It also means lower in price. From the OED: "1. Low in price, especially in relation to similar items or services. ‘Local buses were reliable and cheap.’ 2. Charging low prices. ‘A cheap restaurant.’ 3. Inexpensive because of inferior quality. ‘cheap, shoddy goods’
Notice that inferior quality is the 3rd definition, not the first.
Among even the best of batteries, some cost less than others. Which ones?
All you smarty-pants need to lighten up and help someone with a simple question.
Bruce Arnold
Well-Known Member
But cheapest doesn't always mean low quality. Sheesh. Did you really read the preceding post, Feliz?
The OP is asking for help, not to have his choice of words picked over.
tomjasz
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Minnesnowta
Beware of lowball prices on brand name batteries. They may be “C” grade. First quality rejects. Look goog, correct weight and the real deal, just rejects and dumped on the market. There are good Cuna batteries, generic, but sorting those out is even more fraught with pit falls. Stay with known resellers with references from other battery builders. Pay now or pay later. There’s a a good seller on eBay. Alarm is in the name...search the vendors there for a link. EDIT https://www.ebay.com/str/Alarm-Hookup-The-battery-guy
tomjasz
Well-Known Member
- Region
- USA
- City
- Minnesnowta
There were very low warranty claims for the generic. Good for lower powered bikes, 15-20A in my opinion. Another reseller sold generic exclusively. The builder got lazy and didn’t support warranties, but California eBike did cover any claims.
The newest batts are Reention cases with Bluetooth BMS built by the smallish highly respected and famous among DIY fellas, EM3ev.
(Reention made the Dolphin and they are tougher than Hailong, shark cases.)
