Battery Bro is Grade-A Legit

Joined
Dec 2, 2016
Messages
216
Location
Land of the Florida Man
A quick E-S search for battery bro yields : https://endless-sphere.com/forums/search.php?keywords=battery+bro

Not much business done through them from people on this forum. So, I guess I tested them for you.


Copied from my previous post somewhere else :

I recently got 500 ct. panasonic GA cells from batterybro.com. They were $3.91 per cell, at the time. Shipping to orlando was $210 air/ground in ~7 days. Payment processing was $65.

Also, there was a $68 COD from UPS

So, all in all, $2300. That's USD$4.60 a cell, after all is said and done.

We've tested about 5 random cells (1a and 2.5a so far) out of the 3 boxes. From 4.2 to 2.5v, they showed 3550 mAh. Also, they shipped at 3.5v.

My battery builder has also had a good experience with them.

Based on some email exchanges, I can tell you Michael Hogan (@ batterybro) is a good guy to deal with. Feel free to give him your business.
 
they were really rude to me about not shipping to Australia.
Despite it saying worldwide shipping on the site.... I get it but you cant really blame me for asking when they sprook about how good they are about shipping things worldwide beh
 
Placed order Oct 3 2017


Update
Order was finally received 11-2-2017
 
I am always scared off by a website that wants me to log in before showing the prices.

Good luck and report back.

-methods
 
I placed an order with them recently and had no problem. The batteries arrived earlier than expected and all the test indicated they were grade A batteries
 
I am still running some busted-puffies, hand-me-down Hobby Packs

I want to pickity pick apart a Tesla Pack :twisted:

Trying to focus on the future
Which will be all about up-cycling

New cells are rad - especially for those who can afford them.
Used cells will dominate over a longer time period

Working around their quirks will be super important.

The guy who founded Zero has a nice patent (and hardware that he provided) which facilitates upcycle of 18650's. Simply a case held together with screws containing PCB boards with built in foam-springs.

Plop in old 18650's
Have a pack
Swap them out as needed

...

I suspect that most tinkering folks will have a "cell analyzer" in their garage (multi-bank... 10 or 30 at a time...) just as frequently as you may find a socket set in a garage.

...

Lets get some more feedback on Battery Bro
I may end up repurposing his packs one day.

I am interested in METHODS AND WAYS FOR ASSEMBLING 18650 PACKS WHICH DOES NOT INHIBIT NEXT ASSEMBLY

Glue on the plastics is fine... as we can re-sleeve them very easily
Tack welds should not be a problem as we can have a cheap machine (similar to a reload press) to "clean them up"


-methods
 
methods said:
...

Lets get some more feedback on Battery Bro
I may end up repurposing his packs one day.

I am interested in METHODS AND WAYS FOR ASSEMBLING 18650 PACKS WHICH DOES NOT INHIBIT NEXT ASSEMBLY

Glue on the plastics is fine... as we can re-sleeve them very easily
Tack welds should not be a problem as we can have a cheap machine (similar to a reload press) to "clean them up"


-methods

I will probably purchase a few hundred new cells from Battery Bro in the coming months. Good experience so far. As far as repurposed battery packs are concerned, I use the snap on plastic holders (50pcs 18650 Lithium Battery Double... https://www.amazon.com/dp/B011HFLFEG?ref=yo_pop_ma_swf) and I spot weld the fuses CB338314-89C0-4C00-83B3-097E3B00A907.jpeg

If a fuse wire pops, I can break off the “dog eared plastic thingies” on the cell holder with the bad cell, slide it out and replace it with a new cell. At least.... that is my plan. I have not had to do it yet so we will see how it works. :idea:
 
that is so stroke'able. . . :)

Thanks for spoon feeding the link. I am about 10 years behind over here... (got off on a bad "pouch" trip) but finding myself drawn again to the cylindrical form factor.

Yesterday I built up a 6P Fast Charger rig for 18650's out of wood
TOTAL WASTE OF TIME... sigh... it works - but it sucks

>....

As I re-assimilate into the land of "not totally broke" I am feeling great excitement about up-cycling opportunities!
We have waited a loooong tiiiime for this stuff to flood the market!

-methods
 
I think we are in similar situations. I am new to the 18 650 world as well. I started learning about the process from books and YouTube videos a couple years ago. This forum has also been an excellent source of information. Many times I do not understand everything that the experts are saying but I appreciate the fact that people take the time to share their expertise. Attached is a photo of an 18650 pack I created in the last few days using solid copper and bus bars, individually fused cells, and a 300 W inverter (not shown) that I’m using to power a small load (a couple of lightbulbs). It is basically just a small scale experiment to help me understand the basics. I too have created many projects it seemed like a waste of time but inevitably I learned something in the process.
 
So this is what you build from Battery Bro?

Ok...
I will consider rolling the dice on Battery Bro.

... let me go shop some prices...

-methods
 
Oh kay... feedback on Battery Bro shopping experience:

eh - OMFG - does he actually have full time, real time, access to 34 different flavors of 18650?

I like the layout - tells you all you need to know
Rate
Capacity
Real simple

I very much so do not like the 24hr quoting deal
I understand.... but... it implies hand to mouth.
Which I suppose is actually better - than cells which have sat on a pallet for a year...

hmmmm

My inclination (these days) is to pay a touch more for the cells - get them from someone on the mainland - pay a bit more to have a local POC.

Interesting tho - if you are into bulk

I asked for a quote
Lets see how it goes - 200 pcs

(12S 10Ah - eh... 12*4=48, so a hundred for a 24S pack good for maybe 80A, 88V @88A works pretty good for an ebike)

-methods
 
update:

well...
I created an account and contacted them for a price at 6AM PDT
They got back to me with a price and the right questions within 5 minutes

...

So far - Battery bro is indeed legit.

-methods
 
update:

yea - still responsive
They certainly seem to be serious

After I see a few more sales I am going to grab 1,000 cells

I am trying to determine what the best value is
I do not want the newest, hottest, cells
I do not want the highest capacity

I want good C-Rate cells (say... 20A minimum)

... Probably wait until someone gets stuck with some stock that has fallen out of favor ... buy that.

If they are about 10wh each and I buy a thousand I should be able to build up 10 bikes and a few stationary storage blocks.

-methods
 
I ordered 50 of the Samsung INR18650-32A from BatteryBro ....
(Max. continuous discharge current: 6.4A
Nominal capacity: 3200 mAh)

The shipping cost is high but the cells are coming from Hong Kong. So far I have been pleased. I weighed the cells, checked the shrink wrapping on each cell, and looked for any indication of counterfeits. It all checked out ok. I will buy from them again.

These were not the same cells I used for the 4S10P build in my pictures. Those were Samsung INR25 from VRUZEND (which is an excellent vendor in my view).
 
I requested a quote for 48 Samsung 25R cells through the battery bro website.
I received an email from "Margie from Support" at a support-79a409ba2b1b.intercom-mail.com address saying they were waiting on shipping costs from their shipper
Today I get an email saying she sent a quote and to click on some sketchy goo.gl shortcut link if I didn't get it. It's not in spam email or my inbox and I really don't want to click on that link to who knows what.
Sent a reply asking for an actual quote.
 
Thats not many cells.
No idea what you are building - but buy extra is my advice. :p

...
Maggie gave me a verbal over email then offered to prepare a proper quote.
I suspect the quote is the link. Just click it.

What do you think is going to happen???

I click on all sorts of garbage.
Real viruses usually require a second step*

-methods
 
Just requested a quote for 500 Samsung INR’s rated at 20 amps continuous. I really like those cells so hopefully the price will be right. :)
 
Since someone brought up shipping... It would be good to map the shipping spread against quantity.

Please let us know what the Shipped cost was on those.

NOTE: If anyone is trying to stay on the cutting edge and they lose excitement for a batch they collected.. I will take them from you in odd-ball numbers. (Gotta give me a good deal tho :mrgreen: )

-methods
 
Shipping with fed ex was $103 and there was a $8 processing fee for the 50 cells. I am hoping shipping for the lager order (500 cells) results in a lower “per cell” shipping costs. I will keep posted my friend. :)
 
Look, sorry guys, but I had a thoroughly horrible experience with Battery Bro, and will never order from them ever again. I switched to LiIonWholesale (https://liionwholesale.com/?refer1=adw&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIs4ir84a73AIVj4lpCh04vAZAEAAYASAAEgIdhPD_BwE), they ship in 2 days from VA to NC. We use them for LG MJ1 cells for LEVA training as well as custom pack builds.

Battery Bro took about 10 months to ship my order, which was a measly QTY of 24x 18650 cells. They took so long to even respond, stock, and ship the batteries that they actually offered me a full refund. Funny though, because they never actually refunded me the money, they just put them in the mail anyways. And you know what? They shipped from China, to Denmark, to UK, THEN to USA. like cmon, that = WTF! They offered me a refund about 6mos after I made the battery order, then instead of responding with my $$$, they never responded to email ever again. I just got an honestly really badly packed box of the LG MJ1 cells that I had ordered. For a customer. Who is now pissed at me.

Thanks bro. How on earth did you guys get a contract with NASA?
 
Wow. Very sorry to hear about your experience but thanks for letting us know. Feedback is always welcome even when the news is not good. I will check your your suggested vendor as well.
 
Methods - I'm building a 12S x 8P pack using the Agnisium modules. I already had a 12S x 4P pack that I have barely used so I just need another 48 cells. The 4P pack worked fine but was a bit saggy and not enough capacity to do my hilly 15 mile commute in style, so I'm hoping 8P will be zippier. My ride usually consumes 1Ah/mile so that should give me plenty of capacity.

Maggie at BatteryBro replied yesterday. Apparently they had an internet issue. They have good prices and the shipping seems reasonable. She said 8-10 day delivery. I'll be ordering the cells soon.
 
the e wind said:
Look, sorry guys, but I had a thoroughly horrible experience with Battery Bro,

Never apologize for sharing your honest experiences. :)

What we want to do here is figure out the truth
Help the supplier improve the quality of their product or customer experience... and of course... protect ourselves.

FILTER

I am sometimes weary of any review which points at next supplier - ...
So I looked you up real quick.

...

Saw a flagged post around building mobile charge stations - then saw this post :D
https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=95452&p=1398013#p1398013

Looks legit to me :lol:

Dude asked where the weed was at... and looked like he was building a Calfee Bamboo Bike.

-methods
 
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