A123 20AHr Pouch Cell Battery Build & Info Thread

Those pics show the OSN type connectors which are light years ahead of the Victpower connectors. Those are not a bad deal if the cells are pre-tested.
otherDoc
Oh yeah Nancy works for OSN! Duh!
 
[12:07:53 AM] sellbatt: these cells can be easily replaced because of the connection way we use. We mactch all the cells before assembly, including voltage,capacity etc.And the test of the battery pack shows about 19.3-19.5AH for the whole pack.
This a message from Nancy.
It's sounds better than victpower throwing random cells togethere.
I have to wait till I get my garage finished.
 
why OSN charges Canadian customer more than US for shipping the same battery ??
Victpower also swears that their A123 batteries are well buld and of course tested.
Only way to find out quality is to try one.
 
I finally picked up the OSN new pack assembly kit and am glad to see that it's fairly well made. The kit is made of linked plastic pieces with embedded threaded sockets for the brass screws. The blocks fit together via dovetails that lock them together very well.

There are spaces in the linked pieces that when linked (very firmly, btw) create the openings for the tabs from the A123 prismatics to protrude through.

The metal plates that clamp down the A123 battery tabs are very thick and look like stainless steel. The end ones are two thinner plates sandwiched together. Included are sense wire connectors for JST connectors for your Cell-Log or balancer. Here are some pix.

image.jpg

image.jpg
 
Spacey said:
I've been trying to find that yellow fiberglass type material everywhere? Any ideas where to get it and what it's called?

Any help appreciated.

evb said:
It's my last battery build with cotter pin connections (first here)


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Hi Spacey,
About the "yellow fiberglass type material", do you mean the out-wrapped material of the battery pack?
If yes, we usually call it "resin board" or "epoxy board".
About where to buy, if you like, we can provide it for you. :D
 
It may be garolite g10/fr4. A good choice with battery boxes, it's very strong and an insulator.

You can find it here: http://www.mcmaster.com/#grade-g-10/fr4-garolite/=kwtxtb


Spacey said:
I've been trying to find that yellow fiberglass type material everywhere? Any ideas where to get it and what it's called?
Click to expand...
 
That looks like really good prices from OSN for their battery packs. I'm assuming all their current packs are using the new build kit shown by ambroseliao and in the pictures in the 999zip999's post. I'm still waiting to get some feedback from other members on this forum about the quality of the OSN packs. They seem to be a definite improvement over the Victpower packs.

I'm in the process of building my own 12S 36v 20Ah pack and the cost of my build is just over $500 versus the OSN price of $546 with 5A charger. There are some differences in the builds. I am using the Victpower short tabbed cells, no BMS, 2 Celllog-8M, a Thunder 1220 balance charger and wire, connectors and miscellaneous hardware obtained locally and from HobbyKing. Plus, I still have to do all the assembly myself. So not a bad price for a quality pre-assembled battery pack.

So if I had to do it over, I might seriously consider this new modular kit or the entire pack. I like the way the pack can be taken apart mechanically in the event of repair being required. Plus no holes need to be drilled into the tabs. In my last conversation with Nancy at OSN, she stated that the cells in their packs are matched and tested. Load tests of 100 amps have also been run through their packs. I wonder if you can get the pack without a BMS and then add your own "BMS" system?

One item to be aware of if you plan on just buying the OSN build kit. I see that OSN is now selling the cells with short tabs. Nancy said the short tab cells would work with this new build kit but would require "careful" cutting into the base of the tabs to fit properly with the modular pieces. I think you need about 12mm in tab length with this kit.
 
Nice photos Ambro,
The clamps look like copper from afar.
With the under side of the plastic is the thread insert larger at the base like a rivet?
 
Here is the assembly steps of the NEW kit, any interest, pls check it :)
 

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I'm looking for info on the assembly kit on the site and I haven't seen anything. Can you link me to it, or send over some info?
 
megacycle said:
Nice photos Ambro,
The clamps look like copper from afar.
With the under side of the plastic is the thread insert larger at the base like a rivet?
Click to expand...

The insert looks to be a bit bigger on the back side than the top. The inserts have teeth that grip the plastic.

image.jpg

 
Megacycle you need to get your hands on a peice of the buss bar and find out how many in. lbs. it takes to break it and then take pics of the inset. Caution this insects can break like the screw tops on headways. I want to see the termanations of the victpower packs with the tab connections.
 
Thanks Ambro, looks very well embed in there, they about M4 screw.
If it was phenol instead of what looks like a basic thermoplastic, wouldn't have reservations about pulling through a bit and the consequences, it probably works well though.
Has there been issues with it? need to do a search.

Yet Zip I'm a heavy handed butcher of things. I would end up chewing the heads of the set screws :roll:
I'd have to set the torque on the bat drill.
This is I think a partially done Victpower Zip, what you reckon, scary with those 2nd hand C grades.
A123 72161227 4S4P-2.jpg
 
I just remember seeing victpower soldering the tabs togethere and soldering the end termenations like the alumiun to coopper wire. As that would stick. I just can't find the photo. I don't know of a solder that would work with alumiun and copper so it worry me. Do I remember as I can't find the photo ?
 
The cells aren't scary its connection method how would you get full width of tab?
Soldering that close to the cell dodgy.
 
999zip999 said:
Izeman they have different tab material then with A123 tabs are made of.
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I've soldered a bunch of different types of cells including, HK LiPo, Ping and the tabs on Bosch Fatpacks and in the old days hundreds of NiCd and NiMh tabbed cells. They are either made of nickel or nickel plated copper and really solder easily. A123 have one alloy tab and one copper tab, I believe, and the alloy tab cannot be soldered by this mortal. I tried every trick I know to solder aluminum and none worked. Thats why they either need to be welded or clamped. Not sure why they did this?
otherDoc
 
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