Lightweight battery build.

[lechef]

This is what i have been up to all weekend, im really happy with the result.

Ordered brand new a123 cells, shrink tubing for building various packs, balancing tabs, soldering bars, soldering iron etc.

Some people that build these batteries say you dont need balancing tabs and from what i have noticed you really need them to assure a long life from your packs.
After a deep discharge and som serius abuse(winter testing) the cells where way out of balance but after charging with a balancing charger they picked right up to normal and started my bike on first try.
The thing is when we start our bikes we only use a little of the capacity of the battery and therefore dont notice if the cells are out of balance. But for the RC airplain guys it can be disaster if the cells are out of balance and they loose 1 minute of flight time and the plain comes crashing down.
But if you have the balacing tabs on the packs you can prolong the life of you battery and keeping it in tip top shape. Its a cheap insurance to me.

The cables a 10mm2 tinned copper so they wont oxidize. The area where the soldering and wires are is padded to soften a hit.
Im still waiting for the cable "shoes" to connect to the battery wires on the bike.
Quite amazing that a 4,6Ah battery will start a race prepped 1036cc Ducati 999 with hc pistons and that is only at 640grams of weight.

I thought it would take 20 minutes to finish a pack but it took me almost 2 hours, but it was all fun.

Some pics:

Cells.



My battery building jig.



This is my first pack i built its a 4,6 Ah special built flat pack for the sport classics that is made to fit under the saddle of my bike. This one is a test and is padded and slightly flexible to deal with the sabble moving. the padding makes it look a bit bulky and uneven which i dont really like so next pack will be without the padding.



6,9 Ah battery for a guy in the Danish ducati club. it will spend its life in a race prepped Ducati 1098.



Im gonna build a 4,6 Ah brick pack as soon as i have the time.

[mrgrn]

i will take one

[drthompson65]

+1 for a Ducati 999S.

[998R]

Very, very nice! Superb job.

[rjjablo]

Are those Nickel Cadmiun? If they are I would worry about memory building up. But in a pure race bike it is just another expense.

When I used to race RC Cars we had 6 cell packs that drew approx 10 amps for 4 minutes. Of course when they were done they were to hot to touch.

I used to use a little scooter battery in my YZF 750 race bike. On a cold morning it would crank about three times and die. It was a mandatory jump start first thing in the morning and then the rest of the day it was fine, even when we were racing at 42 degree F.

[Ducman851]

Those particular ones are Lithium Ion.

I just ordered some to do pretty much the same thing.

[rjjablo]

What are you doing to take care of charging. It was my impression that Lithium Ion were picky about how they were charged. Hence all the electronics in modern hybrid vehicles.

Or are these for Race only bikes.

[lechef]

Charging theese isnt a problem, they charge fine with just like the normal battery.
But i recommend balancing them a couple of times during the season so they last as long as possible.

About building for other people im looking in to it right now, the cells are quite hard to get buy if you want to buy them new and a an ok price.
As soon as i get some more cells ill post.

Thanks for the good responce.

[TrickLidz]

I may be interested- 999R- if the price is right.

[DucMarauder]

Quick question.....

How does the resistance of these batteries compare to the OEM battery.
The battery in our bikes is basically acts as a large resistor of the charging circuit. Extra current is dumped into the battery.

This was tried ten years ago and many had toasted regulators from the different load the newer batteries imparted on the OEM system. Also another issue was charging, as the newer batteries took a different charging system/rate that wasn't (at that time) compatible with the bikes charging system.

Not trying to bust your nutz...just curious as to the technologies of current battery development.

[lechef]

Originally Posted by DucMarauder

Quick question.....

How does the resistance of these batteries compare to the OEM battery.
The battery in our bikes is basically acts as a large resistor of the charging circuit. Extra current is dumped into the battery.

This was tried ten years ago and many had toasted regulators from the different load the newer batteries imparted on the OEM system. Also another issue was charging, as the newer batteries took a different charging system/rate that wasn't (at that time) compatible with the bikes charging system.

Not trying to bust your nutz...just curious as to the technologies of current battery development.

The only thing i know is that many people are running these batteries and that i havent heard of any regulators failing etc.
I ran these all last season and thet worked great.
If you want to know more about the a123 batteries then just go to their website and youll get all info you need, not relly sure what numbers you are after.

[been-jammin]

Nice work!

That really is all it takes to make a lightweight battery pack. I've had some experimental ones as well as a few Speedcell packs. All using A123 cells. Good stuff.

The more people who make these, the cheaper they will get! I think all race bikes should have them. Never liked having the risk of acid spills.

[Multitard]

anyone using these for a street setup?

[TrickLidz]

anyone using these for race bike with OEM charging system??

[lechef]

I run these on street and on track aswell will half of the swedish ducati club be doing this summer.

[selfinfliction]

Originally Posted by mrgrn

i will take one

will you really? so you're not going to bash him for building a battery like speedcell? you're not going to call him a thief?

[lechef]

So i finally did another pack. Its a 4,6ah brick pack.

Must say the result is quite nice, sometimes i surprise my self.

result:



The other batteries aswell.

4,6ah flatpack (sportclassic) that i am gonna use fitted under my sadle on my bike.



And a 6,9ah brickpack that is mounted in the stock battery box of my sport classic.

[mrgrn]

This message is hidden because selfinfliction is on your ignore list.

don't know what you said but i am sure it is drivel as it always is

OP, you have done a great job on that i applaud you for your efforts

[selfinfliction]

Originally Posted by mrgrn

This message is hidden because selfinfliction is on your ignore list.

don't know what you said but i am sure it is drivel as it always is

OP, you have done a great job on that i applaud you for your efforts

doesn't matter if you can read it or not, i was just referencing your response to me building my own batteries from the a123 cells and you accusing me of stealing someone else's idea, then you applaud another individual for being creative and doing the same.

just shows you're a boob.

[kaos]

looking up the 123 batts on ebay they seem dirt cheap.am i missing something or is there huge profit in the assembly of these for m/c purposes.