Hey guys,
Has anyone used something like this for connecting batteries together before? I need a way to connect 18650 cells that I got from Enertion as part of a space cell battery (Shipping regulations limit the ability to ship larger batteries to NZ so I need to build the thing at my end).
I’ve tried soldering but it doesn’t seem to stick and I’m concerned that holding solder to the battery for longer will begin to warm up the battery as well and possibly damage it. I don’t really have access to a spot welder either so I’m looking for other solutions…
@michaelcpg a handful of us just did a group-buy to get some 18650 cells (the same kind that is in the Spacecell. The plan for most is to solder the cells together. Check out this thread for some discussion and videos about soldering the cells.
You can certainly solder them. The general process is to gently scuff (with a 3M pad or sandpaper) and clean (acetone) each end of the battery before soldering. Apply flux, tin the battery lead, tin your nickel bar, then solder each contact point with a high-watt iron with a wide tip. Use high heat but very short (1-2 seconds) time in contact with the cell. Good luck!
Or… Don’t solder and make a compression pack or spot weld. If u want the best connection without risking damaging the cells from the heat of soldering a compression pack with copper tabs seems the easiest and will give you the least resistance you can get.
Electrical adhesive isn’t conductive enough. But I have heard of using j and b weld in combination with copper tabs. It’s conductive but more so useful in holding the copper tabs in place
Thanks for the input guys. After a lot of trial and error and buying some better equipment I managed to get the solder to stick and now have all the cells connected
This may go without saying, but good for you with sticking with it-
A lot of people would get very discouraged after having one thing after another not go their way when they intended to buy a complete battery and got stuck with making one!
