The issue depends on how deep you plan on discharging them and how you maintain the charge. The 6v units are "batteries" of three cells presumably very well matched. Whether the four 6v batteries are matched is questionable as is the matching of individual 2v cells. If you discharge the complete battery very deep, you could cause individual cells with less capacity or charge to be damaged by too deep of discharge or even a reverse voltage. If a maintainence charge is not done prior to a discharge after a long idle, then the self-discharge of individual cells at various rates could cause individual cells to have less charge than their counterparts. This could lead to cell damage during discharge. It is best not to plan on discharging more than 50% of rated capacity for wet cells to prolong life. Other chemistries are not effected as much by deep discharge. In many situations, individual cells are selected instead of batteries so that they can be tested and matched in groups for best battery performance. In your comparison, you indicate that your choice is between cells with 295 AH or batteries with 340 AH capacity. If you don't plan on matching cells and the price is comparable, it is clear that the 6v batteries are the better choice. You don't mention what kind of discharge rate you expect as that has an impact on the cell design. The best unsolicited advise for wet cells is to KEEP THEM CHARGED. Self discharge for any type of type of rechargable battery is higher than most people expect and increases with temperature.
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