Ideal internal diameters of battery tubes?

[LLCoolBeans]

Dear CPF machinists,

What is the ideal internal diameter of a battery tube for the following common battery sizes? To put it another way, what dia. would be large enough to fit all manufacturer's batteries, protected or otherwise, without being too large?

AA - (37/64?)
AAA - (27/64?)
CR2 / RCR2 - (41/64?)
CR123A / RCR123 - (45/64?)
17670 - (45/64?)
18650 - (47/64?)

Are there chucking reamers available with this purpose in mind? I don't think standard reamer sizes are going to be right, at least not for all battery types.

 

[Anglepoise]

Dear CPF machinists,

Are there chucking reamers available with this purpose in mind? I don't think standard reamer sizes are going to be right, at least not for all battery types.

Having a lathe does not necessarily allow you to easily increase the bore size.
The lathe would have to be large enough that the OD of the 'body' would fit inside the spindle so that the light was firmly gripped.

Reamers will NOT work for our application because there is too much pressure involved and the problem becomes," How do I hold the flashlight firmly so it does not revolve and damage the OD surface".

For the odd light that need bore increase, get a flex hone used to re surface brake cylinders. This fits in an electric drill and using lots of lube, will safely get the job done. Not fast, not pretty but if used corectly will NOT damage the light.

 

[LLCoolBeans]

Having a lathe does not necessarily allow you to easily increase the bore size.
The lathe would have to be large enough that the OD of the 'body' would fit inside the spindle so that the light was firmly gripped.

Reamers will NOT work for our application because there is too much pressure involved and the problem becomes," How do I hold the flashlight firmly so it does not revolve and damage the OD surface".

For the odd light that need bore increase, get a flex hone used to re surface brake cylinders. This fits in an electric drill and using lots of lube, will safely get the job done. Not fast, not pretty but if used corectly will NOT damage the light.

Not concerned with damage, I'm machining new parts, not modding existing lights.

Even if I was modding existing lights, I'm sure I could figure a way to hold and ream in a lathe or mill without damaging the light body.

EDIT: Just to be clear, the intent of this thread is to discuss the ideal internal diameters of battery tubes to fit specific battery sizes. This thread is not intended to be a debate over battery tube boring/reaming/drilling methods.

 

[KC2IXE]

...snip....
The lathe would have to be large enough that the OD of the 'body' would fit inside the spindle so that the light was firmly gripped.

...snip....

Not necessarly - you can work with a steady rest, - one end in the chuck, the other in the steady, and work from there

 

[Anglepoise]

Not necessarly - you can work with a steady rest, - one end in the chuck, the other in the steady, and work from there

In theory yes....However in practice its a pain. Anyone who is going to seriously make flashlights, and I have made my fair share, needs a spindle bore /chuck bore that will accommodate the workpiece.

 

[gadget_lover]

There are standards for each battery type that SHOULD give you the maximum possible diameters. I use the dimensions from the duracell site.

Daniel

 

[KC2IXE]

In theory yes....However in practice its a pain. Anyone who is going to seriously make flashlights, and I have made my fair share, needs a spindle bore /chuck bore that will accommodate the workpiece.

Yes, if you are going to be doing a certain class of work regularly, make sure you get the right sized lathe, but if you are doing 1 off flashlight work, or even say 5 or 10...

Spindle bore is one of the things that bugs me the most on my Atlas 12x36 - it's only 3/4", and 1/2" max collet diameter, and of course I have a regular production jobe (say 40 parts/order, 3-4 times/year) that uses 5/8" stock