Someone asked me some months back if I could build them an 18650 battery They offered to pay me for building but knowing how time consuming it is I declined. I also knew all the issues of sourcing the cells.
I know some may have found 18650 cells for cheap but that is not always available, especially if you need a battery right away. Most likely you will be spending around $5 an 18650 cell and good chance you will have to order the cells internationally. I know some will say you can order them from some forum member, but many times he doesn't have individual cells available, like right now.
Then the complexity or difficulty,. I know it isn't rocket science, but it isn't all that easy to plan and construct a pack. You will have spend lots of hours in research and planning. You will have to acquire a welder and nickel. Lots of times it is hard to buy 100% nickel. You will have to figure out what type of cell to use for the size and amp draw you want and the proper size nickel to use.
Where it even gets more complex is when you have a frame that isn't square and the pack will not be rectangular, this adds a lot more to the complexity.
This makes me believe that most ebikers are not going to be building their own pack, and if they decide to get someone to make a custom pack it will be too expensive. This means that only the people really into the ebike hobby will take the time to learn how to build a pack. I had a lot of fun building my 1st 18650 pack and learned a lot, but I don't even want to mention how long it took me with the research, building, welder breaking, etc.
When I declined to build the pack I was searching on the forum for people who actually build packs and there isn't really anyone building custom 18650 packs. Maybe 1 guy in Australia. I think the reason for this is nobody is going to pay a proper price for the labor involved in building a custom pack. Prebuilt packs or if building multiple of the same pack may be worth it.
These are just my thoughts after building my own pack and considering building a pack for someone else. Building is really only for those more advanced ebike enthusiasts. Not something you want to build for your first ebike. This was the case for the guy who wanted me to build him a pack, it was his first ebike and he was going all high end without realizing how difficult it is to build a high end ebike.
I know some may have found 18650 cells for cheap but that is not always available, especially if you need a battery right away. Most likely you will be spending around $5 an 18650 cell and good chance you will have to order the cells internationally. I know some will say you can order them from some forum member, but many times he doesn't have individual cells available, like right now.
Then the complexity or difficulty,. I know it isn't rocket science, but it isn't all that easy to plan and construct a pack. You will have spend lots of hours in research and planning. You will have to acquire a welder and nickel. Lots of times it is hard to buy 100% nickel. You will have to figure out what type of cell to use for the size and amp draw you want and the proper size nickel to use.
Where it even gets more complex is when you have a frame that isn't square and the pack will not be rectangular, this adds a lot more to the complexity.
This makes me believe that most ebikers are not going to be building their own pack, and if they decide to get someone to make a custom pack it will be too expensive. This means that only the people really into the ebike hobby will take the time to learn how to build a pack. I had a lot of fun building my 1st 18650 pack and learned a lot, but I don't even want to mention how long it took me with the research, building, welder breaking, etc.
When I declined to build the pack I was searching on the forum for people who actually build packs and there isn't really anyone building custom 18650 packs. Maybe 1 guy in Australia. I think the reason for this is nobody is going to pay a proper price for the labor involved in building a custom pack. Prebuilt packs or if building multiple of the same pack may be worth it.
These are just my thoughts after building my own pack and considering building a pack for someone else. Building is really only for those more advanced ebike enthusiasts. Not something you want to build for your first ebike. This was the case for the guy who wanted me to build him a pack, it was his first ebike and he was going all high end without realizing how difficult it is to build a high end ebike.
