Real and fake A123 26650 cells

[Byte]

Hi Endless-Sphere members,

I've been searching for a few real A123 26650 cells for some time now. I've seen so much different cells and almost all sellers list them as "Genuine or Real A123". Prices vary from $0.50 to $20 per cell (Ok, the ones for $0.50 can't be real A123... I'm not that stupid lol). Could anybody tell me how to identify real A123 cells?

Like I said, I've seen lots of different "real" A123 cells. A few examples:

This is probably the real one as it is on A123's site itself, am I right?

How about this one? Fake or real? It's stated to be real by Hobbyking: http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=6444


Some others I've seen:

These got the green color but there's no A123 logo or something on it.

These look very fake imo but these are also stated to be real A123 cells...


Could somebody tell me which cells are real and which are fake? And what are good shops to buy REAL A123 cells?


Thanks,

Patrick

 

[The Mighty Volt]

Okay for openers the heat-shrink or covering is not the main thing. If you get a battery and take a scalpel and peel off the covering down to the bare aluminium, look for an engraved section of the battery with a code/serial and the actual "a123" nomenklature.

As a general rule, if it looks too good to be true, it probably is.

 

[texaspyro]

The top two are real. The bottom blue ones are fake (A123 are 2300 mAh, not 4000).

Can't tell about the third ones. Probably real A123 cells, but manufacturing rejects.

 

[The Mighty Volt]

The top two are real. The bottom blue ones are fake (A123 are 2300 mAh, not 4000).

Can't tell about the third ones. Probably real A123 cells, but manufacturing rejects.

Hi Texas.

On what grounds would A123 reject a battery?

*Cosmetic/Appearance?

*Total failure in terms of life-cycles {how would they know that anyways}

*Slight/non-fatal issues with internal impedance/ resistance and/or discharge rates

Also, could you please prescribe, if possible, a home-made test for batteries viz. their C rate. Nothing fancy, just a sort of a yes-or-no test.

Thanks!

 

[adrian_sm]

Also, could you please prescribe, if possible, a home-made test for batteries viz. their C rate. Nothing fancy, just a sort of a yes-or-no test.

Thanks!

1) Apply a known load=> known current flow. eg. light bulb
2) Measure Voltage Drop, eg. with a DMM (digitial multi-meter)
3) Calculate, V=I.R => R = V/I

 

[adrian_sm]

Or check out what the pros are doing...

http://www.endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=14&t=20939&view=unread#p310324

 

[The Mighty Volt]

Also, could you please prescribe, if possible, a home-made test for batteries viz. their C rate. Nothing fancy, just a sort of a yes-or-no test.

Thanks!

1) Apply a known load=> known current flow. eg. light bulb
2) Measure Voltage Drop, eg. with a DMM (digitial multi-meter)
3) Calculate, V=I.R => R = V/I

Cheers Adrian_sm

I will be following the advice of yourself and others and trying a few tests soon.

TMV.

 

[Medevilmetal]

Hey Byte an excellent place to buy real A123 batteries is www.tanicpacks.com. They are a professional ISO certified LiFePO4 pack assembler and also willl sell you brand new A123 cells individually if you want to assemble them yourself.

 

[docnjoj]

Check out Cell_man's website. He is considered a trusted seller and can make up packs for you. He is in the "For Sale, new" section
otherDoc