Help with battery pack

[inotec]

Hey sclakediver! We're practically neighbors. I live over in Seneca and have dived Jocassee several times too. I've just started building a can light myself, based on:Dive Light - Diy underwater canister scuba torch.. I bought the batteries already put together from: Rechargeable Battery Pack Li-ion NIMH NICd Li-Po Battery Charger. I didn't solder these batteries, they came premade, however, I have soldered to many batteries before. You can put a nice well flowed spot of solder on the end of a battery in less than a second and (probably) not cause any damage. Here's how: You need a good iron, with a good quality plated tip, the one I'm using right now is an old Weller WCC100 with a small chisel tip and works fine. Use a healthy amount of rosin paste flux. Hold the battery in a small vise so that the end you are soldering is facing you, but lower than the end you are not soldering. Tin your iron first and wipe it on a damp sponge. Dip the solder in the flux, hit the spot where you want the solder with the iron and feed a healthy spot of solder. Don't hold the iron on more than a couple of seconds tops. You should get a well flowed solder spot. If it doesn't stick, you better stop here because something isn't working, but it should work. Next, strip and tin the end of the wire that you want to attach. You should then be able to solder the pretinned wire to the pretinned spot, again in a second or so. Hold the tinned wire onto the solder spot and press the iron tip to it briefly. Good luck!

 

[sclakediver]

Thanks inotec. I already have a dab of solder on each end of every battery. I can easily attach a wire, but a I want to simultaniously melt the solder on two batteries and attach them end to end before it hardens. I'm using a 80W weller. I don't think it's hot enough for what I'm trying to do. I think I'll try a 120-140W. If that doesn't work, I guess I'll try batteries plus. I spent about $80 on the batteries I have, and am determined to make them work.

Thanks for the help. Good luck with your light. Maybee we'll meet at the lake someday.

 

[inotec]

Now I get it. That's going to be tough to get a good solder joint - and risky for the batt's. I'm not saying that you couldn't pull it off, though. Try the flux. Good luck with it. By the way, why is it that you can't use a short piece of wire?