Recycled cordless battery

[cnc-me]

After four years, my cordless batteries are shot,so I decided to get some
extra life out of one of them.
I'm going to get two new batteries but hated to sheet-can the old ones.
Had a cord grip, and some battery clips,
salvaged from an old timing light laying around.

A thin piece of aluminum is on the inside of the pack, to "beef" up the area around the cord grip. That's a 3/8" fender washer drilled out to 7/8",on the outside. The cord is 12' of 16-4 , split into two pairs, to handle the current.

This should save some wear and tear on the new batteries,
especially if you have a cordless circular saw,or do lots of hole sawing in one
location with out a generator. Not nearly as handy as a true cordless, just
another option to use.

Hyster powered Milwaukee

 

[Norcal]

There are vendors who rebuild batteries, & they are cheaper then OEM batteries.

 

[cnc-me]

There are vendors who rebuild batteries, & they are cheaper then OEM batteries.

That's what I am buying.
This mod, in no way replaces a cordless tool, it simply augments it.

 

[DanCo]

There are vendors who rebuild batteries, & they are cheaper then OEM batteries.

and would you have a name for these said vendors? I need to replace some batteries for my Ridgid & Makita drills

 

[Red Green]

and would you have a name for these said vendors? I need to replace some batteries for my Ridgid & Makita drills

Batteries Plus. I have never used them but my buddy says they can rebuild you old batteries.

If you are good at soldering it isn't that big of a progect to swap out the cells in the battery pack.

 

[DanCo]

Batteries Plus. I have never used them but my buddy says they can rebuild you old batteries.

If you are good at soldering it isn't that big of a progect to swap out the cells in the battery pack.

Thank you, I'll have to check them out. and that's another good suggestion

 

[banzaitoyota]

I have used BAtteries Plus. They cant do lithium batteries though ( as of 2 montha ago)

 

[truckdriver]

and would you have a name for these said vendors? I need to replace some batteries for my Ridgid & Makita drills

http://www.voltmanbatteries.com/servlet/StoreFront

 

[premierplayer]

creative retrofit

thanks for the tip on the replacements

 

[chadster1]

How well does that 14.4 drill run off of a 12 volt battery?

Cool retrofit by the way.

 

[csp]

www.primecell.com is another rebuilder of cordless batteries.

 

[mrholeshot]

Damn!!! A drill with a cord!! Who would have thunk it??? lol

Cool idea really. Could hook it to your truck battery to finish up a job.

 

[cnc-me]

How well does that 14.4 drill run off of a 12 volt battery?

Cool retrofit by the way.

Can barely tell any difference when not running, and when a vehicle is running, its about 14.4V , then its more powerful than the proper battery.

 

[cnc-me]

and would you have a name for these said vendors? I need to replace some batteries for my Ridgid & Makita drills

Ridgid has lifetime warranty on their batteries, and will probably be, my
next drill because of it. You should turn yours in, if you signed up for the
lifetime warranty.

 

[ShadowMan]

I sent four 18 volt batteries to MTO Battery. A couple of the release buttons were damaged in shipping to them and they fixed that at no charge. We had the batteries back in about a week and a half.

http://www.mtobattery.com/store/

 

[Jeeper]

I have used battery plus to rebuild a 14.4 porter cable battery. They did a good job and IIRC it was $40 or $45. Need to send another battery over to them soon.

 

[Auzivision]

or you can fix your old batteries using a big battery cahrger or small welder. Sure the repair won't last for ever, but it will limp along a few more years.

http://www.instructables.com/id/Revive-Nicad-Batteries-by-Zapping-with-a-Welder/

 

[csp]

A few more years? I just did this to two 18v DeWalt XRP batteries with my welder. They went one more charge cycle and were dead again.

Yes I verified that the polarity was correct and that the voltage was within limits.

 

[cnc-me]

A few more years? I just did this to two 18v DeWalt XRP batteries with my welder. They went one more charge cycle and were dead again.
Yes I verified that the polarity was correct and that the voltage was within limits.

I had similar results with this.
Replacing only the bad cells, does not work for long, either.

 

[DanCo]

Ridgid has lifetime warranty on their batteries, and will probably be, my
next drill because of it. You should turn yours in, if you signed up for the
lifetime warranty.

*lifetime really! I remember filling out the card or think I did it online. I gotta double check, I still have the paper work...Many Thanks!!

 

[Danglerb]

If you have a hamfest (amateur radio guys swap meet) there are usually some battery repair people. Its simple basic work, but they should have things like ultrasonic welders that do a lower heat welding on tabs and jumpers on batteries.

I say just look around and use people who get plenty of business.

OTOH I 100% plan of turning some of my old batteries into connectors for generic battery packs, starting with VersaPak as soon as my last pair of Gold batteries dies (unless I find some more working ones in a yardsale).