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REPLACEMENT BATTERIES FOR DRILLS

Discussion in 'Tilted Gear' started by DAKA, Jan 10, 2016.

  1. DAKA

    DAKA DOING VERY NICELY, THANK YOU

    I am PO'ed about the cost of batteries for power drills...the damn batteries cost as much as a NEW F'ing drill...
    There are 100's of different ones and NONE are interchangeable.
    MAJOR ripoff...I am surprised that some Chinese company has not come up with an adapter...something that could be made cheap to fit a standard battery to different drills...
    As an aside, I now only buy drills that use Li-on technology....these seem to last a long longer on the charge/discharge cycling....BUT true to form, you can't fit LI-on batteries as replacements for Ni-Cad on older drills
    There may be a small fortune to be made here.....
     
    • Like Like x 1
  2. fflowley

    fflowley Don't just do something, stand there!

    This sort of shit drives me crazy.
    They all purposely make chargers and batteries slightly different, so nothing is compatible.
    The resultant amount of waste generated is sickening.
     
  3. Plan9

    Plan9 Rock 'n Roll

    Location:
    Earth
    As a rule, I do not buy cordless tools. I buy extension cords.

    A: More power. B: Consistent power. C: No longevity issues.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  4. Stan

    Stan Resident Dumbass

    Location:
    Colorado
    Same.

    Fwiw, NiCad are intended to be fully charged and discharged every cycle. Anything else causes a charging memory. NiMh are better about this; but still have some memory issue, where Li Ion are about as good as present tech allows.

    Cordless drills and such are cool as hell; but if you're not a contractor and using them constantly, the battery life and replacement gets painful.
     
    • Like Like x 2
  5. Chris Noyb

    Chris Noyb Get in, buckle up, hang on, & be quiet.

    Location:
    Large City, TX
    Yes!! The cost of replacement batteries is ridiculous (intentionally so), and a universal adapter would be great.



    That always pisses me off with cell phones, and I'm not even one of the people who gets a new phone every other month.
     
  6. Plan9

    Plan9 Rock 'n Roll

    Location:
    Earth
    Generally speaking, the industry has standardized into the micro-USB-into-USB system for both charging and data transfer.

    So much so that most newer vehicles feature dedicated USB ports for charging / accessing the car's hard drive / GPS / etc.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  7. Chris Noyb

    Chris Noyb Get in, buckle up, hang on, & be quiet.

    Location:
    Large City, TX

    A standardized charging system was long overdue. My wife told me that her Samsung charger and my HTC charger are interchangeable; I'll need to see it before I'll believe it :D.

    Newer vehicles starting when, roughly? Our two vehicles were made in 2004, first belonged to my F&MIL, and to my knowledge do not have any special ports, except for the engine diagnostic computers.
     
  8. omega

    omega Very Tilted

    Well that is an 11 year old vehicle. No one really had much going in then. Bluetooth was just becoming widespread at that point.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  9. Lindy

    Lindy Moderator Staff Member

    Location:
    Nebraska
    Black & Decker used to make just that, a whole line of tools called VersaPak. They used one or two, depending on the tool, 3.6 volt interchangeable rechargeable batteries. They're no longer manufactured, but we used to sell a lot of them at my family's hardware store, and still stock and sell the batteries. They made drills, sanders, sabre saw, hedge clippers, flashlights, probably some things I forgot, all using the same 3.6V interchangeable batteries, just what @DAKA is looking for. They're reasonably priced on ebay. Chargers and new batteries are still readily available, at $10-15 each. No, they're not heavy duty, but work reliably in a household situation.
    View attachment 5816 mpRk0Ew3XayoRXFjjvv4sTQ.jpg
     

    Attached Files:

    • Like Like x 1
  10. DAKA

    DAKA DOING VERY NICELY, THANK YOU

    Well, 12 to 18 volt seems to be the way to go now...I am switching over to RYOBI 18 volt Li On there are a lot of interchange tools in that line...
    I hope the batteries last....
     
    • Like Like x 1
  11. DAKA

    DAKA DOING VERY NICELY, THANK YOU

    Thinking I'd open up one of the battery packs and replace the Ni Cads with Li on cells, I did open one,.....looks like it would be a huge PIA...
     
  12. Chris Noyb

    Chris Noyb Get in, buckle up, hang on, & be quiet.

    Location:
    Large City, TX
    If you're using the tools enough to drain the battery before you've finished whatever you're doing, keeping a charged battery and one on the charger would be a good idea (if your cordless tools allow the battery to be charged separated from the tool). Also if you're using them that much, and have a power source, you might as well go with corded tools (as Plan9 previously posted).
     
  13. MSD

    MSD Very Tilted

    Location:
    CT
    It's doable. They're mostly C-cells soldered together in series, so buy the appropriate replacement and solder them together. Pro tip: the batteries themselves are massive heat sinks, so if the connectors between them are soldered rather than spot welded to the caps you need to have your iron at least hot enough to desolder the old ones. Just reuse the old jumper strips, the manufacturer sized them appropriately for the job so all you have to do is clean them and be a bit generous with the flux.
     
  14. Vrersand New Member

    My wife bought me an 18 volt multi-tool set several years ago for Christmas. Now it is a new battery each Christmas. The ever-costing gift.
     
  15. Chris Noyb

    Chris Noyb Get in, buckle up, hang on, & be quiet.

    Location:
    Large City, TX
    I have three cordless tools that I sort of use.

    One is Craftsman two-pack, a screwdriver & a flashlight. They charge on the plastic "tray" that holds them. I don't use either enough to know how well the batteries hold up.

    The other is a basic Black & Decker 9.6V drill that I "inherited" when my In-Laws downsized. It's fine for the usual homeowner stuff and maybe for hobby use.
     
  16. Kung Fu Kid

    Kung Fu Kid Vertical

    I tried making my own Ni-Cad battery packs for my rechargeable drills. I find it also expensive and a huge pain in the arse when soldering the packs and it doesn't work very well.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  17. Astrocloud

    Astrocloud New Member

    You can try discharging your NiCad battery entirely and then putting it in the freezer and then recharging it. Sometimes that helps remove the "memory" that sets.
     
    • Like Like x 1
  18. POPEYE

    POPEYE Very Tilted

    Location:
    Tulsa
    Of course not, what were you thinking? We're you dropping acid at the time? You could easily burn your shop to the ground. No no let me guess you were sitting at your dining room table watching some expert on YouTube. LOL
     
  19. DAKA

    DAKA DOING VERY NICELY, THANK YOU

    If you are buying new tools I would only buy Lithium powered. These batteries seem to "work" longer and can be recharged with out loosing capacity.
    Only one problem, they don't slow down when they are getting low....they just quit.
     
  20. Kung Fu Kid

    Kung Fu Kid Vertical

    @ POPEYE.........Eloquent, insightful and brilliant.
     
    • Like Like x 1