DIY lights question

In article <[email hidden]>,

Dukester said:

Is it possible to use a 12V or 14.4V cordless power tool
battery as the power supply for a homebrew light system?
How would one make the connection to the metal tabs on the
battery while still allowing the unit to be plugged back
into a charger? Has anyone done anything like this? Links,
tips appreciated.

Brian deSousa's BikeCurrent page leads to scads of info on
homebrew lights, etc:
briandesousa.combikecurrentOpen ↗

cheers, Tom

--
-- Powered by FreeBSD Above address is just a spam midden.
I'm really at: tkeats [curlicue] vcn [point] bc [point] ca

"Dukester" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Is it possible to use a 12V or 14.4V cordless power tool
battery as the power supply for a homebrew light system?
How would one make the

connection

Quoted message said:

to the metal tabs on the battery while still allowing the
unit to be

plugged

Quoted message said:

back into a charger? Has anyone done anything like this?
Links, tips appreciated.

It would be a pain to use a power-tool battery for the exact
reason you state. The power tool usually has spring loaded
contacts inside the tool to press against the contacts.

With 2000mAH NiMH AA cells selling for around $1.25, it
probably isn't worth spending a lot of money creating a way
to use a power tool battery. OTOH, if you're using 12 NiMH
cells (14.4V), using the power tool battery charger might be
a way to save some money.

The best place to learn about DIY lighting is over at:
bicyclelighting.combicyclelighting.comOpen ↗ This site is a treasure trove of
good ideas and great advice. And I'd say that even it it
wasn't my site!

Steve bicyclelighting.combicyclelighting.comOpen ↗

"Steven M. Scharf" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Dukester" <[email hidden]> wrote in
message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Is it possible to use a 12V or 14.4V cordless power tool
battery as the power supply for a homebrew light system?
How would one make the

connection

Quoted message said:

to the metal tabs on the battery while still allowing
the unit to be

plugged

Quoted message said:

back into a charger? Has anyone done anything like this?
Links, tips appreciated.

It would be a pain to use a power-tool battery for the
exact reason you state. The power tool usually has spring
loaded contacts inside the tool

to

Quoted message said:

press against the contacts.

If you can get the connection made then they can be a very
good source of power. I've seen a lot of other projects use
the batteries. I've read that
14.4 volts will give a much brighter light than from a
12 volt source at the cost of a shorter lifespan for
the filament. The efficiency is greatly increased
because lights throw out a lot more light when the
filament is hotter.

Quoted message said:

With 2000mAH NiMH AA cells selling for around $1.25, it
probably isn't

worth

Quoted message said:

spending a lot of money creating a way to use a power tool
battery. OTOH,

if

Quoted message said:

you're using 12 NiMH cells (14.4V), using the power tool
battery charger might be a way to save some money.

Some of the better battery tools have very good chargers.
Some batteries have an extra pin on them to give info to the
charger. (Maybe temperature measurement).

The best website for batteries is here.
batteryuniversity.comindex.htmOpen ↗

Quoted message said:

The best place to learn about DIY lighting is over at:
bicyclelighting.combicyclelighting.comOpen ↗ This site is a treasure trove
of good ideas and great advice. And I'd say that even it
it wasn't my site!

Steve bicyclelighting.combicyclelighting.comOpen ↗

Marty

"Marty Wallace" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
"]news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

"Steven M. Scharf" <[email hidden]> wrote in
message -"]news:[email hidden]-
link.net...

Quoted message said:

"Dukester" <[email hidden]> wrote in
message news:<[email hidden]>...

Quoted message said:

Is it possible to use a 12V or 14.4V cordless power
tool battery as

the

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

power supply for a homebrew light system? How would
one make the

connection

Quoted message said:

to the metal tabs on the battery while still allowing
the unit to be

plugged

Quoted message said:

back into a charger? Has anyone done anything like
this? Links, tips appreciated.

It would be a pain to use a power-tool battery for the
exact reason you state. The power tool usually has
spring loaded contacts inside the tool

to

Quoted message said:

press against the contacts.

If you can get the connection made then they can be a very
good source of power. I've seen a lot of other projects
use the batteries. I've read that
14.4 volts will give a much brighter light than from a 12
volt source at

the

Quoted message said:

cost of a shorter lifespan for the filament. The
efficiency is greatly increased because lights throw out a
lot more light when the filament is hotter.

This is true, but the same effect can be achieved with 12
NiMH cells, versus
10.

Quoted message said:

Some of the better battery tools have very good chargers.
Some batteries have an extra pin on them to give info to
the charger. (Maybe temperature measurement).

Many chargers have a temperature sensor for NiMH cells, i.e.
the high end Maha chargers. But using a power tool charger
is fine (if it's for NiMH), and a good way to save money.
But it's easier to use two 6AA battery holders and some NiMH
cells than a power tool battery.