Nicd battery tester

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Caribou

Caribou

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I want to rebuild a battery pack for my cordless. It holds 16 Sub C 1.2V Nicd batteries. I'd like recommendations for a brand of battery. Having read a few reviews I'd like to test each battery before I solder them into the pack. I want to avoid the work of removing a bad cell and the warranty tends to be voided after soldering. I want to be able to discharge, charge, and test capacity. Are there any American made Nicd batteries?
 
I don't know of a commercial tester, but have you checke on yt for videos? or just build a tester with a load and a voltmeter.
 
Very dated input, but so are nicads :( . Sanyo was the brand back in the day, Likely no "RC hobby shops " around there local, but if you want i will look for one of my old chargers that does charge/discharge nicad cycles with capacity readouts. If I find it, it can be yours for postage. small "flat rate" box is big enough, but it will take a 12V DC power source.
 
I've run across some NI-MH batteries that are the same size and say they can be used in place of my current batteries. Any upside or downside?

I'm looking into small tack welders. Recommendations welcome. I've already ordered a 5MM nickel strip for making my connections.
 
Caribou said:
I've run across some NI-MH batteries that are the same size and say they can be used in place of my current batteries. Any upside or downside?

I'm looking into small tack welders. Recommendations welcome. I've already ordered a 5MM nickel strip for making my connections.
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Ben
 
NiMH can replace NiCD. BUT...

The way these two battery types are charged is different. They both use constant current, but how the charging is terminated differs. NiCDs are more tolerant of overcharge than NiMH. I believe NiCDs can stand a trickle charge for a long time, but NiMHs are less tolerant of that. Therefore, turning off the charging soon after the battery is completely charged is more important for NiMHs than for NiCDs. A NiCD charger will probably overcharge NiMHs, which degrades their lifespan. I'm betting your replacement NiMHs will not last as long as they normally would if they are thrown into a NiCD environment. Also, the NiCDs in your existing power pack are probably optimized for high discharge currents whereas typical NiMHs are optimized for capacity from what I have read in the past. So by working the NiMHs at higher discharge rates than they are optimized for, they won't last as long.

I would expect that given the charging differences, and the discharge differences, replacing your NiCDs with NiMHs will most likely result in a poor lifespan of those replacement NiMHs. But I am not a battery engineer. I actually know relatively little about them. Maybe a little more than a non-EE would know, but I'm far from an expert. You can easily learn more than I know with some research and Google searching I'll bet. I would recommend doing that before going down this path you are considering.

There are pluses for NiMH over NiCD. They have higher capacity and do not have the memory effect that NiCDs do. I believe they hold their charge longer (while sitting on a shelf) too. But be aware that they are not generally considered a drop in replacement for NiCDs in an older device designed around NiCDs. You can do that, but I'm not sure you would want to.
 
NiMH pretty much replaced Nicds. Charge parameters are different, and Sanyo "Enerloop" are what you want to source. My replacements were "hobby", not mission critical, so make sure they will do the job.
 
dademoss said:
Very dated input, but so are nicads :( . Sanyo was the brand back in the day, Likely no "RC hobby shops " around there local, but if you want i will look for one of my old chargers that does charge/discharge nicad cycles with capacity readouts. If I find it, it can be yours for postage. small "flat rate" box is big enough, but it will take a 12V DC power source.
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I've been getting NiMH batteries from Batteries+Bulbs, the first ones I used are "C" my favorite flashlight uses four of them and the charge lasts a full month, about as long as DuraCell batteries last. I just took the battery pacts out of our GXT1000P transceivers and installed 4 Nuon "AA" NiMH batteries, the original battery pacts were 700 mAh, the Nuon "AA" batteries are 2,500 mAh. The Nuon batteries come charged but I would certainly check them with a voltmeter to make sure.
 
viking said:
I've been getting NiMH batteries from Batteries+Bulbs, the first ones I used are "C" my favorite flashlight uses four of them and the charge lasts a full month, about as long as DuraCell batteries last. I just took the battery pacts out of our GXT1000P transceivers and installed 4 Nuon "AA" NiMH batteries, the original battery pacts were 700 mAh, the Nuon "AA" batteries are 2,500 mAh. The Nuon batteries come charged but I would certainly check them with a voltmeter to make sure.
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Thanks! I bought the best battery that B+B had for my truck. Less than six months later I tried to replace it under warranty. They told me to take a flying leap. I'll never darken their doorstep again.

I'd prefer the NiMH batteries but I'd need to replace the charger also and that is more than I want to figure out. This time around I'll stick with the gal who brung me.

If I only do this one battery bank it would be cheaper to toss the drill out but I rather like the challenge of learning something new.

Edit: Viking, I'm serious, I do appreciate your information and going to the effort to post it for me.
 
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Caribou said:
Thanks! I bought the best battery that B+B had for my truck. Less than six months later I tried to replace it under warranty. They told me to take a flying leap. I'll never darken their doorstep again.

I'd prefer the NiMH batteries but I'd need to replace the charger also and that is more than I want to figure out. This time around I'll stick with the gal who brung me.

If I only do this one battery bank it would be cheaper to toss the drill out but I rather like the challenge of learning something new.

Edit: Viking, I'm serious, I do appreciate your information and going to the effort to post it for me.
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Sorry you had the warranty problem with B+B, I'd rather buy vehicle batteries from either Costco, very good prices and warranty and my next choice for batteries would be Interstate Batteries, they tend to be more expensive but I've had excellent warranty experiences with them. Costco batteries are Interstate branded.
 
viking said:
Sorry you had the warranty problem with B+B, I'd rather buy vehicle batteries from either Costco, very good prices and warranty and my next choice for batteries would be Interstate Batteries, they tend to be more expensive but I've had excellent warranty experiences with them. Costco batteries are Interstate branded.
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😎 I left B+B and went to Costco. All my batteries come from there now.
 
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