Has anyone repaired cordless tool batteries

[George]

Has anyone repaired cordless tool batteries? I heard it is possible to open then and replace bad cells. Has anyone done it? Where did you get the cells? Any other tips?

George

[Charles]

I tried it once and won't bother again. You can get the cells at many electronic supply stores or on EBAY. The cells are soldered together very closely with thin metal strips that leave little room for error. I do a lot of soldering at work but this was too much trouble for me. It was worth paying a little extra for a new battery.

[m Ransley]

Hobby shops that have Radio Controlled cars stock the best brands of batteries, much better brand and grade than original equipment compared to Ryobi, B&D, grade batteries. Sanyo and Panasonic are tops. RC car magazines should help. The problem is figuring how to open the pack without ruining it, You cant get a Nicad hot while soldering it or it is degraded. There are companies that rebuild packs.

[Richard Blaine]

Most of them aren't designed to be opened-- so be real careful when you do and use tools, not your fingers!

I tried to pull open a Sonicare toothbrush by putting my fingers in the top hole and ended up really messing up ligaments and connective tissue in my finger. It took a trip to my family doctor, a referral to an orthopedic guy, weeks in brace device and about a year's time till all was good again-- and I still can feel some weakness there!

So hey, be careful out there...

Mr. Rick

[Edwin Pawlowski]

I've read of it being done but have not tried it. You can also get them rebuilt at places like

Electronics supply houses carry cells if you want to try it yourself.

[spudnuty]

Actually I used to do this as a pro using 4.0 AH Sanyos, etc. Now I still do it using batteries from the recycle pile. Check with your local recycler. I have gotten brand new Bosch batteries from them that looked like they had been run over or dropped. Opening them can be a pain.Mine are 9.6 V Makitas and depending on the manufacturing date the bottom just pops off or it has to be driven off with a chisel.When I salvage the battery I leave as long a tab as possible on it. that way you're just resoldering the tab part. Even if you're on the battery all that I've seen are double walled so if you're fast with the iron the battery never gets that hot. For soldering I use a gun with the tip cut off and use it like a mini "cold tip". A big iron would work too. My trick is to not solder the bottom union until the battery is slid almost all the way into the sleeve. This has save me from many shorting out disasters. I have 6 Makita tools and 15 batteries 10 more in the "to be recycled pile". Richard

[Bubba]

A real Einstein you are, eh Rick? Oh, by the way, Thanks for increasing the premiums we all pay for health care because you had some brainstorm of trying to save a couple bucks on a battery. You ever wonder why those things dont have screws or anything on them to take them apart? Have you ever heard of the word, Disposable? Do you know what it means? Bubba

[m Ransley]

right bubba, Raise health care costs, jeese, and what will happen, exactly nothing. Disposable, yes look at the price charged, where do you think the high profit items are when a battery costs more than the tool. Sealed, yes, so HR people have to have special tools or pay the ripoff charged. Another example, did you ever stop to think for one moment why a pennies worth of ink in a printer costs 40$, its called Profit, and thats what batteries are, pure profit.

[DS]

Here in MN we have outlets called "Batteries Plus". All they sell are batteries for everything. They also rebuild batteries that are no longer available for recharchable items. If you have them in your area, try them.

[SQLit]

I send mine to Batteries Plus, 6 month warranty and 2/3 the price of new. Offices all over the country.

[mm]

I hope you are complete healed eventually.

I figured you didn't need a cliche like this, especially when I saw that someone had already replied.

But then I saw it was Bubba, and sure enough, it was insults.

Bubba, admit it, if someone threw something away because he thought it couldn't be fixed when it could**, you'd be insulting him for throwing it away. Yet you insult Rick for trying to fix something. **Like the cigarette lighter plug on a B&D tire inflator. It says "No user serviceable parts inside" but all I had to do was drill out a rivet and replace the blown fuse, and it works fine.

Half the time or more, your advice is based less on what is good advice and based more on insulting or disagreeing with the person you're replying to. Don't you get tired of that?

Remove NOPSAM to email me. Please let me know if you have posted also.

[Jeff Wisnia]

Yes, and it's hardly a new idea. When King Gilette brought out the safety razor he gave them away so people would then buy the blades.

But I do change out the nicad batteries in our Dust Busters when they "wear out". Those little vacs disassemble with threaded fasteners, and it's a no brainer to solder in a few tabbed cells from Rat Shack.

Jeff

[Jim Yanik]

Jeff Wisnia wrote in news:3qadnRiy9Z_j3pbZRVn- [e-mail]:

Did you know the original Dustbuster cells were of a type designed for continuous charging? Check out Digi-Key,they list the continuous charge NiCds.

BTW,a DeWalt service center replaced the cells in my DB for less than what it would cost to buy new cells.

[mm]

Hmmmm. Didn't my mother 15 years ago have a Dust Buster with easily replaceable rechargeable batteries? I think so. No they have to be soldered... they're trying to get people to buy a whole new Buster??

Remove NOPSAM to email me. Please let me know if you have posted also.

[No]

I have used Primecell and can vouch for them. Their website/order process was a pit of a pain but you shouldn't have any trouble. They may also be able to upgrade your battery depending what you have. I have longer run time with my rebuilt battery than I did when it was new.

[Bubba]

NOPE

[I.dont.read.email]

Yeah, and no one mentioned all the toxic chemicals that are dumped and eventually work their way into our water wells, our air, and whereever else. THAT is what really increases the cost of health care because we are all being poisoned by all this trash.

There is no reason taht these batteries could not have screws and batteries that are just installed in slots the same way the AA batteries go in my remote control, and not require soldering.

The same is true for these ink cartridges for printers. I solved that one. I gave my inkjet printer to a charity store, and I dug out my old dot matrix printer and pay $10 every 2 years for a ribbon. I simply refuse to pay for that ink.

[Jeff Wisnia]

You probably know this already, but you can purchase ink for reinking those ribbons.

I used to do it that way for years, but now just refill my inkjet cartridges as well as the laser rinter ones at our small business.

Takes but a few moments and saves lots of $$$ every year.

Jeff

[Chris Lewis]

According to :

Look in the yellow pages under batteries, and find the companies that say they do custom battery packs, or make it clear that they do more than car batteries and ordinary dry cells.

I've resurrected a few tools by cannibalizing batteries from other tools, but it's probably best to have them professionally rebuilt/ matched.

[noemail]

Yes, I know that, but from what I have heard, you can only do that 5 to 7 times and then you have to buy a new cartridge, which really means buying a new printer because the cost of the cartridges are often more than the cost of a printer that is on sale. I understand this is particularly true with Lexmark.