Battery adapters

[snakebite]

linear regulator=programmable resistor.
bolt that to a heatsink and it will probably be fine.
the advice to verify protection in the pack is spot on.
some rely on the tool to shut down at low voltage.
i know a guy that messed up 2 ego packs by overdischarging.

 

[Lynx_Arc]

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Lynx_Arc, I'v noticed in several threads (really all of your posts) you go above & beyond on thorough explanations.
Gold Star to you!!

(looking for blush emoticon) Thanks!. I'm just glad to be of use as my current profession makes little use of my limited electronics and flashaholic information I've gleaned over the years and years...... and years.

 

[Poppy]

Yes, a voltage regulator can be used that would allow you to use a wider range of input voltages without noticing output voltage drop that a resistor would have. Beware that unless your battery pack has built in voltage protection (I think most do but some may have the protection built into the tools itself I'm not totally sure) you could drain it below safe levels.
You may need to add a heat sink as you will have the regulator essentially burning off the excess voltage at the 0.4A rate or about 8v times 0.4A making 3.2W of power wasted off a 20v (max 18v nominal) battery pack. A buck regulator would be a lot more efficient wasting a small fraction of that. They use buck regulators and linear (voltage regulators) in lights for similar reasons.

@Lynx_Arc,
Thanks again. I hadn't considered over discharge problems. The regulator I got will allow voltage down to 14V which could cause a problem with the battery. Fortunately, people in a couple of different sites mention that the Ryobi 18+ battery packs have over discharge protection built in.

jake says:
June 7, 2021 at 10:55 am
Sorry I misspoke. My brand of choice (Ryobi) does indeed have the over discharge protection in the battery, but other brands, like Dewalt, put that control in the tool.

I also hadn't considered that I may need a heat sink.

Experimentation comes later today, I hope

Do you have a recommendation for a buck regulator?

 

[bykfixer]

All I have are store bought C/D adapters that hold AA batteries. But they are very handy for incan lights converted to LED. The LED "bulb" replacement gives lots of fuel mileage and ensures a fridge mount light is not plagued by leaking batteries and works when it gets the call of duty.

 

[Poppy]

Here is an adapter I made to use an 18650 in a three C cell light.
It is a one inch diameter dowel, that I drilled out to accept a bolt cut to length.
I cut up a plastic water bottle, and wrapped it around an 18650 cell to increase the diameter of the cell.
Not as fancy as 3D printed adapters, but it works.

 

[xxo]

Looks better than the adapters I used to make before I started 3D printing them.

 

[orbital]

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Poppy, noticed the battery adapter you have in the OP I can get for my 40V lawn mower battery.
..connect two in series for 80V DC

Wonder what kind of airport or military LED I could run at about 300 Watts, or more..

 

[Poppy]

I bought this eneloop kit at costco a few years ago. It has two AA adapters to C, and two adapters to D sized cells. A charger, 2- AAA cells, and 8 AA cells.

The adapters are still brand new, still in the box, never been used.

 

[Lynx_Arc]

It is pretty easy to make AA to C adapters using pipe insulation if you find the right size. You may need to cut the gap a little wider to fit if the AA is too loose in it and it is too tight for the light. You can also use another size for D cells but will need to either stretch the spring or use a spacer as D cells are longer than AAs.

 

[Lynx_Arc]

Oops a double post. I'm editing it to tell how I made a 3 or 4AA to D parallel adapter out of 2 large washers, a rubber band and a nylon bolt and metal nut on the top end. The only problem is insulating the top washer from shorting out on the sides of the tube of a metal tube light and 4AAs tend to be larger in diameter than a normal D cell.

 

[Chickensfloat]

Looks better than the adapters I used to make before I started 3D printing them.

I started printing them too. News paper, pvc pipe, and electrical tape wasnt cutting it.

 

[Poppy]

Guys, thanks for all your help in making this project become a reality.
I decided to not use a cooler, but rather this electric steam table.
Now my son will have the option of using it indoors, or out, with electricity, OR run it off of his propane heated hot water chafing dish in his cart.

The pump will do a complete change of water in 3-4 minutes.

The brass fitting in the middle is the drain/overflow, that will feed water back to the propane heated tank.

The black tubes to go the pump. One will pull water out of the propane heated tank, and the other will feed hot water into the additional chafing dish.

Here is another picture... I was surprised that I needed to use such a large heat sink, but it runs nice and cool now.

Yeah, I know... sloppy soldering, but for some reason my gun wasn't heating up too well.


So here we have a Ryobi 18V to 12V adapter

 

[orbital]

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Nice job Poppy!

It always makes me smile when someone is willing to make something themselves
& try things different.
There's always 2~10 different ways of doing things, but you gave it a go and hopefully it works for ya.

We live in a world where if the 'app' on their phone can't fix it,,, many are absolutely lost.

----- personally need to try things different or possibly make stuff myself, if I don't have that creative outlet,. someone gets grumpy lol

 

[Poppy]

+

Nice job Poppy!

It always makes me smile when someone is willing to make something themselves
& try things different.
There's always 2~10 different ways of doing things, but you gave it a go and hopefully it works for ya.

We live in a world where if the 'app' on their phone can't fix it,,, many are absolutely lost.

----- personally need to try things different or possibly make stuff myself, if I don't have that creative outlet,. someone gets grumpy lol

I was very fortunate growing up.
My Dad would always try to fix something before calling in a tech. He'd have me hold the flashlight, and admonish me if the light drifted off what he needed to see, because I stopped watching. Also I had to pay attention, because you know..."a Good Helper, has the next tool in hand that the mechanic is going to need" SO, not only did I have to watch, I had to think!

Again, I was fortunate because we had two small houses on a 25' x 125' lot, and each had a basement. One was for my grandparents, the other a work-shop for my Dad and Uncle. They each had a workbench, and a vice. A grinder and buffer, or sanding disk, compressors, and all kinds of nuts and bolts. If you wanted to MacGyver something, it could be done there. I never learned to weld or braise, but darn, I could have/should have. I saw my uncle do it, either with a torch, or a few lead acid car batteries tied together in series (I think).

My uncle dug a hole in the back yard in the shape of a boat, and made a concrete mold. I can't imagine the effort that must have taken. He made three fiberglass boats out of that mold. LOL good thing he put Styrofoam floatation in them because he flipped one or two of them, playing around.

In 8th grade we took aptitude tests, and I scored in the 97 percentile for mechanical ability. I credit my Dad for that. I successfully passed that on to my daughter, and my son, and now I'm trying with my grandkids. I hear... "Poppy, is this a learning thing?"
No... I really need you to hold that light so I can see. OR... whatever excuse I can come up with. But as they watch, they learn and gain confidence.

Kids, would rather watch a YouTube video, than come to Poppy, that hurts a little, but on the other hand, I am glad that they are resourceful. One grandson was putting together a bicycle, and I told him that when putting the pedals on, one would be left handed and the other right handed. He didn't listen, and with the help of youtube, he got it all done. BUT he couldn't get the pedals on.

I got to teach him about the occasional left handed thread. Yea for me!

 

[Poppy]

My grandson is in High School and has become the best in his class of CAD design. I gave him the design on a napkin, and he created this 3D model and printed it.

It is an adapter/spacer to allow the use of an 18650 in a 3C cell flashlight. But not only that, it is a spare 18650 carrier.

 

[tech25]

Really cool!