A123 1100mAh batteries in the Black&Decker VPX packs!

[Doctorbass]

Availlable at: http://www.amazon.com/Black-Decker-...14-1634867?ie=UTF8&s=hi&qid=1194398114&sr=8-2

They appear to be able to handle at least 30A each for a 18650 size.


Actual times for a single cell discharges ,graph not yet posted.

@6A 9:43
@9A 6:38
@12A 4:59

DeWalt A123 cells 2300 mAh 10 for $100.= 10$ ea.
vs
B&D A123 1100 mAh $20 for 2 cells - $10 ea.-

2300 2 1/2 oz. each.
1100 1 4/10 oz each.

Source:http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=768455




Doc

 

[steveo]

i still say dewalts all the way; those wouldn't be bad maybe in rc car/plane.. ebikes ..nah..

 

[xyster]

Yah, it'd take a ridiculous number of those cells to make a useable ebike pack. Who'd want to spend all the time it takes to solder together hundreds of them? :wink:

Now if they we're a lot cheaper per amp-hour....but unfortunately, they're not.

 

[Ypedal]

Heck.. you could run a 4ah ( 66v ) pack of these with a 40 amp controller, and still get good range...

 

[TylerDurden]

Who'd want to spend all the time it takes to solder together hundreds of them?

Some deranged type with a... LiFe-wish?

 

[xyster]

18650 cell for Laptop battery these small battery maybe OK, but for E-bike/scooter maybe hard work to have a larger capacity.

No sh*t?!

 

[rf]

18650 cell for Laptop battery these small battery maybe OK, but for E-bike/scooter maybe hard work to have a larger capacity.

These might be okay to shore up a sagging cell in a larger pack. Easier than disassembling and rebuild the whole pack -- just solder one of these on the side.


Richard

 

[vanilla ice]

Even in a laptop is there any benefit? I mean compared with a cheaper regular 18650 cell? There's not much of a peak draw I wouldn't imagine.

 

[GGoodrum]

Yep, this is going the wrong direction, size-wise. What we need is to get ahold of the larger 32138 and 32156 series cells that a123 is doing for the Volt and for plug-in hybrids. Not much chance of that unless B&D/DeWalt decide to do some new mega-power tools.

-- Gary

 

[gogo]

I can get these for $14.50 each after tax from my local B&D outlet store. They come with a two year warranty.

Anyone want to speculate if the warranted factory package will allow high discharge rates? If it does, am I crazy for thinking about wiring up a rack for a few dozen of them?

I wonder how quickly the factory chargers take to top them off?

 

[CGameProgrammer]

That's $4 per watt-hour! That's ridiculously expensive.

 

[gogo]

How does one figure watt hours?

I get $14.5/(1.1Ah)(6V)= $2.20/watt hour. Dewalt 123 cells are $11/(2.3Ah)(3V)=$1.60/watt hour.

 

[Link]

You've got it right, but A123's are 3.3V nominal.

 

[CGameProgrammer]

Oh, you meant for two. I thought you meant $14.50 per cell. Still expensive though... on e-bay you can sometimes find the DeWalt packs for $100-120 each which is $10-12 per cell, or $1.32 - $1.58 per watt-hour. Those cells (the 26650) are 3.3V 2.3Ah which is 7.6 watt-hours. These smaller ones are 3.3V 1.1 Ah which is 3.6 watt-hours.

 

[rf]

... am I crazy for thinking about wiring up a rack for a few dozen of them?

Yes.

 

[gogo]

^Yes, you're right. The only way these would be useful is in a high voltage short range situation such as a dragster. I could make a 120 volt pack for $290 vs $440 for the larger A123 cells. As soon as you need more than the 1.1A per cell, you may as well use the 2.3A cells instead.