Official word on CR1/3n batteries?

i will explain my thought process at the time, as i am the first that suggested use of cr13n, and why i wouldn't do it again :)

when the first problems appeared, i thought it's the temporary separation of two lr44 batteries that caused problems. that is, i'm almost positive, not the problem. the only problem that cr13n solves is fretting between batteries, but that is easily remedied by a drop of oil. also, maybe it helps if your negative contact is really badly squashed, so two batteries move more freely and lose their contact, but this is near impossible, as t_smit flattened contacts on purpose, and everything worked perfectly.

so, there's no point in buying expensive and rare batteries, baby oil is cheap and available in every store.

so, why do some people say that cr13n solve their problems? well, they probably didn't, it's the process of changing batteries that helped. they aligned little black foil, they raised contacts and cleaned the residue. if they put 2xlr44 everything would probably work also :)

i'm going to play devil's advocate here and say listen to garmin (and not some unknown guy on forum :)), if cr13n are some kind of miracle cure, garmin would already suggest people use them.

From my point of view they are the same as 2batteries but avoid the fretting issue, so better. They won’t fix squashed contacts, missing or misaligned tape etc. I found a source for £2.79 each so not too bad.

Where I live the CR1/3n batteries are very common and less than $10 for two...a drop in the bucket if you are spending $1000 for pedals.

Still, it seems to work and is being recommended by Garmin in this forum and by others. It does eliminate the funky tape issue.


I am looking for an official stance from Garmin as it pertains to warranty and use of these batteries.

Thank you,

Dale

I installed my CR1/3N batteries today, very carefully! All seemed to go well and a 1K sprint on the trainer appear to show no issues.

Read post #29 I am pretty sure if it was an issue t_smit would not be recommending how to install.

https://forums.garmin.com/forum/into-sports/cycling/vector-3/1337492-another-pair-of-vectors-with-battery-problems/page2

Read post #29 I am pretty sure if it was an issue t_smit would not be recommending how to install.

We are aware that users are installing the CR1/3N batteries to replace the 2xLR44 or 2xSR44 configuration. The installation is mechanically compatible (the 2x LR44 stack is the same nominal size as the CR1/3N) and electrically compatible (the maximum voltage of the three battery configurations are within the allowable range, and the capacities are similar enough to give acceptable performance from any of these configurations). So, if you do everything right, there is no problem.

However, the behaviour of all these batteries is not all the same, out on the fringe. Specifically, the short circuit behaviour of the batteries is not the same, and the things that make lithium batteries good as a power source, also make them more of a risk when they are not installed correctly. We have not tested all possible failure scenarios with the CR1/3N and this is why we are currently not making a statement on the suitability of the CR1/3N, other than what is in the manual (which is that you should use LR44's and only replace with like cells).

So it sounds like you (Garmin) are endorsing the use of the CR1/3n batteries, but if it comes down to a warranty issue, you don’t.

Correct? A simple yes/no would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you,

Dale

Sounds to me that he is not endorsing the batteries due to the un tested possible failure scenarios possibly from user error.

Sounds to me that he is not endorsing the batteries due to the un tested possible failure scenarios possibly from user error.

“So, if you do everything right, there is no problem.”

I would disagree. This sounds like endorsement to me.

A simple yes/no would be greatly appreciated.

From an engineering perspective, things are generally more nuanced, and I try to present that perspective when it is possible.

In this case, when we reduce it down to yes or no, the answer is "No. Garmin's recommendation is that you should only install LR44 batteries according to the provided instructions at this link."