I purchased a box of the Costco (Kirkland) AA batteries a little while (?6 months?) ago. We just opened them recently.....I've now opened the third package and have found that they won't even power my mini mag <img src="/images/graemlins/shocked.gif" alt="" /> (with the LED !) <img src="/images/graemlins/confused.gif" alt="" />:. I will be returning them to the store for replacement.

I should mention to you that this is the FIRST and hopefully only time that I've had a problem with the Kirkland batteries. It will definetly not stop me from buying them. I just wanted to let people know in case they run across the same problem.

I try and rotate everything* on 6 month cycles and buy in different lots to avoid thses surprises...

TRO

* water, food, batteries, etc.

Thanks for the information. Could you provide the date code? Bottom of box, looks like it was done with a dot matrix printer.
I am sure Costco will happily replace the batteries. Kirkland Brand cells generally appear to be a Duracell product. House brands are made by the big manufacturers, but receive a house brand label and packaging. The Kirklands are not the latest Duracell alkaline design, but they give you 90+% of the energy of the latest design for less than half the price.
The mini mag is a high rate application, discharge in two hours. This should not be a problem for most AA cells, but high temperature storage (above 30 degC) can cause a problem, as well as use at low temepratures (below 0 degC).
If you want to know the real problem, check the cell voltage, and then try the same cells in a low rate application like a radio. If they don't work there, I would suspect high temperature storage somewhere in the cell's life.
Please keep me posted.

Spud

Please permit a correction to my earlier post. You are using LED's in your mini mag, which is a low rate application. Please check the cells in another device just to be sure it is not the light that is the problem. If they don't work with LED's, and the cells haven't leaked, then the cells saw high temperature for some time in their life.

Spud

You should also check the dia. of the AA batts. The ones I had would not fit my mini mag. I could get them in but it was a real chore to remove them.
<><