Daystate Better Battery Pack For The Air Wolf?

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There is more than one battery "repair" franchise out there, try batteries and bulbs. It is not rocket surgery to put packs together yourself. Main thing needed is a battery welder and a heat gun. NEVER try to solder connections on batteries, that goes double for 18650 Li-ion. Cheap battery spot welders are available, I use an old car battery to power my battery welder. Quality 18650's are pricey.
 
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Check out other franchises or even sending it off. I just HATE spendy batteries. Mainly because I know how easy it is to put a pack together. No reason for huge pricing on specialized Li-ion battery packs. My commercial fish boat was required to have an EPIRB device emergency position indicating radio beacon. The manufacturer gets 150 bucks for the "special" battery pack. It is a 20 dollar Li-ion pack and easily and cheaply replaced. Batteries superior to the 150 dollar part for about 35 dollars for the pack from batteries and bulbs.
 
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Ricklin said:
Battery welders are cheap and available. 30 bucks or so. Temu Amazon Ebay all has multiple types and models. Search battery spot welder. Nickel strip material and heat shrink also readily available. Tape and solder make unreliable battery packs IMO.
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Battery terminal Pre-Scuff, dot of solder applied using flux on all cells as a pre-prep (y)
Lay out the cells in the shape wanted with terminal polarity to match the pack your duplicating is the first step.
That done a rubber band to hold them in place. A few dots of thick CA glue where the sides of each cell touch each other locks there position.
Now start with the power lead making sure both polarity and which cell they attach too.
Next using the old cell pack ( Unwrapped ) follow cell to cell sequence placing jumpers between cells in the same sequence, which is easy peezy as cells already are tinned and minimal heat required to attach small gauge wire or flat ribbon.

As too Ricklin saying unreliable .... If you are not experienced in soldering using PC board / electronics soldering stations :rolleyes: I would agree that ones results may very well be sub standard :cry:
 
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Ricklin said:
For 30 bucks I shall do it right. You do you. You will not find a battery manufacturer that recommends soldering on their batteries. I've got over 40 years with an iron. The only recommendations I've seen are not to do so.
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Only stating how one can do there own packs ... This is not a peeing match on not to or doing so.
 
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Soldering on Lithium Ion cells could get people hurt, how many homes have burned with the primary cause being Lithium Ion batteries? Take ZERO chances, esp. with the larger packs, A GI Ammo can makes a great fireproof charging box for charging unattended. Amazon and Ebay will both have vendors for quality 18650 cells, that's the common one. Use the feedback ratings and vendor history to make your choice, they can be difficult and costly to source a popular item.
The older I get, the more cautious I become. Experience is a tough teacher.
 
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Ricklin said:
Soldering on Lithium Ion cells could get people hurt, how many homes have burned with the primary cause being Lithium Ion batteries? Take ZERO chances, esp. with the larger packs, A GI Ammo can makes a great fireproof charging box for charging unattended. Amazon and Ebay will both have vendors for quality 18650 cells, that's the common one. Use the feedback ratings and vendor history to make your choice, they can be difficult and costly to source a popular item.
The older I get, the more cautious I become. Experience is a tough teacher.
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Mk3 / Mk4 / Airwolf use NiMh cells ;)
 
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I am going to agree mostly with Ricklin here and say that unless you have an electronics background and KNOW how to solder then this is something best left to people with experience and the tools. Batteries should be connected using spot welders - not solder.

Can you use solder and will it work - yes and no. Thing is you really need a 40-45 watt minimum iron cranking out a good 850 degrees so that you can get the solder down and melted FAST and enough of the surface metal heated to adhere the solder quickly. This will give okay results - but they will be lumpy.

The bigger concern is those with a wimpy and slow Radioshack (or I guess I should say Harbor Freight nowadays) solder iron. This can potentially heat the battery too much before the solder is melted.

The next safety issue comes with properly wired connector and the right size heat shrink tubing to make a safe wrap. And - no - black electrical tape wrapped around it is not safe.

Really - if you don't have a clue spend the money for a battery pack. They are not expensive - I get all my LiPo packs from Hobby King for 1/4 the price the airguns stores ask for these batteries.
 
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