…they CAN and DO leak. I have a ruined Maglite flashlight as proof of that. If you have Alkaline batteries in any of your rolling stock, locos, or control systems, I suggest you remove them before sending them into storage. It would be a real bummer to unpack that stuff next Christmas and have a leak that ruined an expensive item. [:(]
Dep
[#ditto]I know they leak (and not only in flash lights but in metal detector control boxes) Very “sound” advice. Thanks for reminding us.
On your Maglite, if it is a major brand battery, Maglite has a reciprocal agreement w/ the big brands that they will repair or replace the flashlight at no charge. I’ve done this, check your warranty card or the Maglite website for details.
On the Cab-1 Batteries, I just packed up the Christmas one last night and took out the Duracells.
Rob
Thanks for the info Rob. Unfortuantely, I tossed it already. It was my wifes from a previous marriage so I didn’t mind (hehe) and had no receipt for it. My new Maglite has Nmh batteries in it. I know they aren’t all that good at long term storage use, but no chance of leakage makes them worth it. I also did the LED upgrade for the bulb…which is REALLY cool!
Dep
I’ve bought battery damaged camera equipment on several occasions.
More often than not, it cleans up fine with some vinegar and sandpaper, and the equipment is fine.
With that said, though, NiMHs are not a good choice for a flashlight battery because they don’t hold charge very well. If you insist on using rechargeables, you’re much better off with Ni-Cds. Despite their other problems, Ni-Cds tend to hold charge fairly well when not under load.
Also, the lower voltage of Ni-Cd and NiMH batteries will make the bulb not as bright.
Carbon-Zinc batteries actually tend to work very well in flashlights because the current requirements aren’t very high and they have a good shelf life.
Of course, the amount of damage depends on the quantity of leaking. For example, the only way I was able to open my wife’s Maglite was to get two pipe wrenches and twist the cap off while holding the body. Even then, the batteries were literally WELDED into the body to the point where they couldn’t be removed. Vinegar and sandpaper were out of the question. NiCads are all but gone from the shelves of stores. Only way to get them is special order them. And they have the memory drawback. Which means you need a special battery charger to draw down the memory and then recharge it. The LED light compensates for the lower voltage by being much brighter. And Carbon Zinc…leaks. That’s the whole reason for my post…to prevent leak damage. [:)]
Dep
Although Ni-Cd technology is considered obsolete by most, it has actually continued to improve over the last several years.
Modern Ni-Cd designs have pretty much all but elimanted the memory problem. They’ll still go bad if they don’t get charged up every couple of months, but you really don’t have to worry about memory like you used to.
I use Ni-Cds in all of my camera flashes because they have a shorter recycle time than any other type of power source you can get short of the sealed lead-acid batteries you wear on your belt(Quantum Battery is the brand name) and AC power. They don’t have the capacity of NiMHs, but the flash can completely recycle in four seconds from a full dump. The other night, I ran out of Ni-Cds and had to switch to alkalines. I had to wait 10 seconds on a brand new set, and as long as 30 seconds on a set at the end of its life.
Of course, NiMHs do have a lot more capacity. I recently recelled an old Ni-Cd pack for one of my cameras with NiMHs. The Ni-Cd pack was rated for 50 rolls of film, while I’m sure I could get 100 rolls out of the newly recelled pack.
I’m not sure you would need a receipt to get a replacement/reimbursement if your device is damaged by one of the main brand batteries. I once had a Walkman (He He…remember those things) ruined by a set of batteries. I called up the company, and the had me send the Walkman to them. A few weeks later a had a check in hand.[tup]
Also…I’ve had the same set of D-Cell alkaline batteries in my Maglite 5 cell flash light for the past 5 years. No problems so far (Knock on Wood).
Maglites are made out of Aluminum and are pretty durable. Short of setting it on fire, how could a leaky battery ruin it. Those must have been cheap batteries. Next time try moving up to rechargable. That way when they need a recharge you will remember to remove the batteries.
Try rechargable batteries in the CAB-1.
Andrew
Hey Mike, that is a very big reason why I dont buy MTH, and why I stick with lower end models. If I wanted battery trains, I would have stayed with New Bright. LOL
ROFL Eric…you are BAD!!! [(-D] Interesting enough, MTH doesn’t have to worry about leaky batteries in their locos because they don’t use acid batteries…they use Nicad. That’s the only place where I have batteries in MTH products. Oh yeah…the DCS controller has Nmh now too. I can’t comment on “that other maker” of O-Gauge stuff because people on here are hyper sensitive about any criticism of them, but check out their instruction manuals. Virtually all of them recommend installing Alkaline batteries wherever a battery is needed.
If you guys want to leave Alkalines in your trains…that’s your choice. I’m just trying to save folks the horrors of battery leakage next year. It may happen, it may not. If you like to gamble, feel free.
How could a leaky battery ruin a Maglite??..VERY EASILY. Note I had to use TWO PIPE WRENCHES to take it apart. That shows the level of leakage. The batteries in it were Energizer Alaklines. I recognized the label at the bottom of one of them. They could NOT be removed. They had “welded” themselves to the inside of the flashlight. As far as I’m concerned, Energizer alkaline=Duracell=Mallory alkaline, etc. I already replaced the batteries in my Maglite and other flashlights with Nmh.
Dep
Like Dep I use all Nmh batteries now . Plus they have no recharge memory factor . I never noticed a severe drop in charge holding ability as stated by the one fellow ?? And yes Dep the acid will eat up aluminum in quick order as you stated ! You’re right … on all counts .
That’s certainly true, but alkaline batteries don’t have acid in them. They’re called alkaline for a reason.
Also, I still stand by what I said that you’re better off using Ni-Cds in a flashlight as NiMHs can lose their charge in as little as two weeks whether they’re used or not. I don’t know about you, but I’d hate to have the power go out only to find that I’d forgotten to charge the batteries in my flashlight in the past week. Alkalines can last for several years when not in use, and lithiums even longer.
Hmmmm…the choice is Alkaline and Lithium batteries, and either one can leak, or Nmh batteries that CAN’T leak. Well I’m gonna do a test of my Nmh batteries in my Maglite. After two weeks I will see just how bright they are. Then I will check again in a month. So far, they are nice and brite. At least if the Nmh batteries lose their charge, they don’t also destroy what they are installed in. Remember, the initial post was about batteries left in trains…not flashlights. A Maglite only cost $22 to replace for a a 2 D-Cell model. Compare that with the cost of a new high end Lionel locomotive. BTW…anyone REALLY think Duracell or Energizer is gonna replace a Lionel S2 turbine loco that had a battery leak with ANOTHER S2 Turbine??? Anyone want to TEST that theory??? Not me!!!
Dep
GOOD TO SEEYA DEP ! ------------- [#welcome]
Hi JAH!!! [:D]
I wonder who put that weird battery advertisement under my first post??? And I wonder why the mods haven’t removed it? BTW…my Nmh batteries in my flashlight are still going strong. [tup]
Dep
Dep–you seem a bit paranoid about the battery advertisements? I think it’s just ironic that it appeared. Similar to the one about drilling through concrete block walls. Thank goodness someone in the CTT office has a sense of humor. Lighten up buddy, it’s OK.
Jon
Jon: If you only knew what’s been going on behind the scenes the past few weeks, you’d understand my paranoia.
Ironic…maybe. CTT with a sense of humor…I doubt it. [tdn]
Dep…looks to the skies for black helicopters
You know, I’m still trying to figure out just what exactly an Nmh battery is.
I know about Nickel Metal Hyrdride batteries, abreviated NiMH, but I’ve never heard of Nmh. Is it some new kind of technology?
I think I prefer Nmh. Nimh always stood for National Institure of Mental Health from what I remember. [(-D]
Dep