I was thinking about buying a wurkkos fc11 as my first flashlight but it said they recommend untwisting it in a review to avoid making a connection so it doesn’t discharge while not in use. Do I need to worry about that with all flashlights? I was planning on keeping it in my backpack so I have it whenever.
Mechanical switch lights like the Convoy S2+ do not have any parasitic drain. But be aware that the batteries themselves have some self-discharge, Li-Ions are the worst at something like 5 percent in the first 24 hours and then loses 1–2 percent per month. Protected Li-Ions are even worse at 4-5% per month.
If you need to keep them stored for long periods, get an AA-compatible or dual-fuel flashlight and use Eneloop batteries for rechargeables, or Lithium primaries if you don’t need/want to recharge.
I still remember dealing NiCad’s 10-20% per month, li-ion was some space-aged future tech dream back then
Oh man, don’t even get me started on the NiCads. My beloved old Ti58C calculator used a pack of them and it was actually what killed her :-(
To add to this, if you are going to store your Li-ion batteries for any period of time then you should charge them to 3.7v instead of a full charge. This will extend the life of the battery
Worth mentioning that some chargers offer a storage option, charging to exactly 3.7V.
On a charger that doesnt have this, it can be difficult to monitor it closely enough to get that exact voltage.
Good tip, but the OP should be aware that when at 3.7V they have only ~50% charge in them, so remember to also pack a spare or two (at the same voltage) to have the same total runtime.
Should be closer to 60% but still, it’s not in a long term ready state. Long stored batteries should be recharged before use.