The WP6 II Battery Charger from XTar

We got through a lot of batteries here. Between testing out new PVs, trying out different configurations, and vaping like madmen most of the time, at any given moment we’re likely to have a few dead ones lying around. When the casualties start piling up, sometimes having a way to charge a handful at a time is a good thing to have around. That’s where out XTar WP6 II comes in.

The XTar WP6 II

When it comes to makers of battery chargers, XTar is very much second-tier, overshadowed by Pila.  Pila has an excellent reputation when it comes to battery chargers, and for good reason.  Their equipment is built to exacting standards, is dependable, and works extremely well.  However, as a result, Pila chargers can be a bit pricy.  XTar aims at a slightly lower point in the pricing spectrum, while still cranking out a quality, if not quite Pila-grade, product.

Introduced in 2009, then updated to the “II” model in 2011, the WP6 is a large beast. Capable of charging up to six 18650 batteries at once, it’ll definitely eat up more shelf space than your average single or dual-battery charger.  While it does take considerably longer to charge that many cells at once, it still manages to do it relatively quickly.  Even with the tray completely full of 18650s, the WP6 still managed to charge all of them to full capacity faster than a cheap no-name dual-battery wall charger could fill one of them.

One drawback of the WP6, however, is that it requires a special spacer for shorter batteries.  Essentially, batteries ending in “650″ or “670″ will fit the charger with no spacers, but anything smaller, like an 18500, will require them.  It takes two spacers to fit an 18490 or 18500, and four for an 18350.  Our WP6 came packaged with six spacers; if you will need to charge more than three 18500s, or one 18350, you’re going to want to pick up additional spacers. Finding these spacers is easy enough on places like eBay, where we found them for around $2.00 each, but better deals can be found elsewhere.  For example, we found spacers for $.49 each at Discount Vapers, who also sent a nice little drawstring carrying bag along with them.

The XTar WP6 retails for approximately $35-$40 from a multitude of vendors. It can often be found on eBay bundled with batteries, though specifics on the type of batteries generally seems to be lacking, and we wouldn’t really recommend that type of package.  A cigarette lighter adapter is available for on-the-go charging as well.

All in all, we’ve been quite happy with ours.  Even after spilling half a can of Coke Zero into one, it just keeps charging, and doing a quick, efficient job of it. We happily recommend the WP6 to anyone who, like us, has more PVs then sense.

The WP6 II Battery Charger from XTar