New calb cells came without screw holes!

[22bull]

Hello , I am new here, and just received 8 cells from Hunan AUK New Energy Co. They got to Florida quickly and according to the seller they are brand new design 163 AH calb cells. They are grade A cells. Checked the voltage , identical on all cells. But they did not come with screw holes, so I cannot connect them! They sent the 6 mm screws and bars and washers.
So I am arguing with them about this. They propose I solder terminals to them Then they proposed sending some predrilled terminals so I solder them. How in the heck can I solder these terminals and is this a normal thing?? The QR codes are there. The first comment they sent was that I can drill the holes. I asked how deep and then the manufacturer says they are concerned about drilling , that I should solder the terminals. I wonder if Will would be interested in testing these cells since they are brand new to market. I love the fact they are so tiny , as I plan to make a system for my sailboat. Any help or comments would be appreciated.

 

[BoloMKXXVIII]

Do not drill them! If you do, you won't be able to return them. The only good news is you can be reasonably sure they weren't previously used.

 

[Alkaline]

HAHA yes they weren't previously used, and nor will they be able to in the future

 

[MrNatural22]

I could be mistaken but, aren't CALB cells plastic encased cells?

 

[upnorthandpersonal]

You can't solder to them since it's aluminium.

 

[DJSmiley]

Terminals look more like CATL to me

And CATL is known to be provided without any studs or threads, it's up to the seller if they offer any of those. Some vendors do.

Unfortunately, this is one of the disadvantages of buying 'grey' cells. You have to do your research properly and read the datasheets. Many sellers are just sellers, and not all of them do provide additional services and knowledge. That comes at a price.

You can weld aluminium, so you can weld aluminium studs to it but you do need to have the proper equipment. Usually this is done by laserwelding, and some vendors offer this as a service or for a small additional fee.
soldering aluminium isn't possible.

You can drill holes and make threads yourself, but that is risky. Its unknown how deep you can drill. I've heard 6mm as EVE has should work with CATL as well, but its almost impossible to get these figures confirmed, so basicly you have to try, or willing to sacrifice a cell for testing purposes.


Did you peel off the labels yourself or are they so badly done by the seller?

 

[Factory400]

Yeah-----this is quite a challenge. If they suggested to solder onto aluminum, they definitely don't know what they are talking about.

I am going to guess that they had defective assemblies in inventory and hoping the complexity of the return would allow them to sell first and ask forgiveness later. Maybe? Who knows.

I do, have the machinery to drill and tap the terminals if they do not take them back. If you know of a brave machine shop, they can do a helical mill for the hole and then thread mill it. Not sure you could do it for less than the value of the batteries though.

If the vendor does not take them back - I will pay to have them shipped to my location

 

[Ampster]

Terminals look more like CATL to me

CALB does make a shrink wrapped aluminum cell but I would also investigate the heritage from the code.

 

[DJSmiley]

CALB does make a shrink wrapped aluminum cell but I would also investigate the heritage from the code.

I know, but I haven't seen any CALB cell with those terminals. The one's I've seen have all fully round terminals, which is slightly higher than the square base they are on, or without a square base:


(Also seen some ones with a rectangular shaped terminal, but usually studs are welded on it)

The ones from TS do look more like CATL. And from CATL I know they are factory-delivered without any threads/studs, just as he received them.
I haven't seen CALB cells 'in the wild' without any of those.

 

[HRTKD]

The danger with drilling holes in the terminals is that if the drill bit binds, it could rotate the terminal and rip it away from the internal media. Whatever drill bits are used, they better be very sharp and used only in a drill press. I would use the step method. Start with a small drill bit, and work up to the size needed by the fastener. But before I did any of that, I would try to get the vendor to replace the batteries.

I've never drilled new holes for tapping a new thread into. If a 6mm fastener is to be used, is that a 5mm drill bit?

 

[Factory400]

The danger with drilling holes in the terminals is that if the drill bit binds, it could rotate the terminal and rip it away from the internal media. Whatever drill bits are used, they better be very sharp and used only in a drill press. I would use the step method. Start with a small drill bit, and work up to the size needed by the fastener. But before I did any of that, I would try to get the vendor to replace the batteries.

I've never drilled new holes for tapping a new thread into. If a 6mm fastener is to be used, is that a 5mm drill bit?

Look for a drill-tap chart. They will guide you.

For hand drilled or loose drill-press drilled holes - expect the resulting size to be larger than expected. This is also a situation where the depth is very important so you do not get past the aluminum (which you have no way to know how deep it goes)

Typical hand taps have a serious taper which means that they cannot get threads to the bottom of the drilled hole (not even close)
A bottoming tap can be found at any commercial tool house - but they are hard to use by hand - intended for CNC use. You may be able to start with a typical taper tap and then use a bottoming tap to finish. Use a cutting fluid like tap-magic-aluminum or it will gall and mess up the threads.

In production, I think most of these are thread milled all the way to the bottom or at least bottom tapped.

Be sure to do a really good job of covering the opposite terminal. Go overboard on that.

 

[HRTKD]

Good call on the bottoming tap. Very few of mine are that, but I have a couple. I probably ended up with them accidentally.

If I had to buy special tools to use my new cells, I would be pissed.

 

[Bob Steel]

they are brand new design 163 AH calb cells. They are grade A cells. Checked the voltage , identical on all cells.

Unlikely . They will be factory rejects . They didn't pass some requirement so were sold off as rejects .Thats why they have not been completed . The laser welding they refer to is more likely to be the connection of the alloy and copper tabs inside the cell to the bottom of the alloy terminal. Maybe not but that's my guess.

Underneath the terminals generally looks like this so I would guess 7mm might be a good depth but start with a very small drill on one terminal only and if it goes through (unlikely) then use an alloy rivet or plug or even glue to block it again immediately.
Then drill less deep next time . You need around that depth to torque the bolts reasonably.

Measuring my 100Ah alloy cells the holes are drilled 7.6 mm deep.Both terminals the same.
Bolts supplied are 6mm thread with 8mm bolt length of thread.

If you go here and join there are lots of other inside pictures (47) https://www.facebook.com/groups/271980786862023

 

[22bull]

Terminals look more like CATL to me

And CATL is known to be provided without any studs or threads, it's up to the seller if they offer any of those. Some vendors do.

Unfortunately, this is one of the disadvantages of buying 'grey' cells. You have to do your research properly and read the datasheets. Many sellers are just sellers, and not all of them do provide additional services and knowledge. That comes at a price.

You can weld aluminium, so you can weld aluminium studs to it but you do need to have the proper equipment. Usually this is done by laserwelding, and some vendors offer this as a service or for a small additional fee.
soldering aluminium isn't possible.

You can drill holes and make threads yourself, but that is risky. Its unknown how deep you can drill. I've heard 6mm as EVE has should work with CATL as well, but its almost impossible to get these figures confirmed, so basicly you have to try, or willing to sacrifice a cell for testing purposes.


Did you peel off the labels yourself or are they so badly done by the seller?

DJSmiley, attached the spec sheet of the calb batteries. It says CALB . I did read carefully the spec sheets but never in a million years would have expected cells without holes drilled in them .

 

[JoeHam]

Consider having terminals welded on like the Fortune cells ?

 

[22bull]

Look for a drill-tap chart. They will guide you.

For hand drilled or loose drill-press drilled holes - expect the resulting size to be larger than expected. This is also a situation where the depth is very important so you do not get past the aluminum (which you have no way to know how deep it goes)

Typical hand taps have a serious taper which means that they cannot get threads to the bottom of the drilled hole (not even close)
A bottoming tap can be found at any commercial tool house - but they are hard to use by hand - intended for CNC use. You may be able to start with a typical taper tap and then use a bottoming tap to finish. Use a cutting fluid like tap-magic-aluminum or it will gall and mess up the threads.

In production, I think most of these are thread milled all the way to the bottom or at least bottom tapped.

Be sure to do a really good job of covering the opposite terminal. Go overboard on that.

Thanks for the helpful tips. If I end up stuck with my $1000 in cells, I may do that. Yes I have done that type of work, using a bottoming tap.

 

[Bob Steel]

Terminals look more like CATL to me

And CATL is known to be provided without any studs or threads, it's up to the seller if they offer any of those. Some vendors do.

Yeh I don't agree with that either. Got any supporting material for that statement.

 

[22bull]

Consider having terminals welded on like the Fortune cells ?

I thought about the Idea of welding male studs on the terminals but wouldn't the heat damage the cells?

 

[JoeHam]

Beyond my expertise but studs are routinely laser welded on by companies like on the Fortune cells.

It is an idea and I wish I could be of more help.

 

[ArthurEld]

You can do it if you have a drill press. You need a tap drill for M6.
And you need a flat bottom drill the same size.
You need to set the stop accurately so you don't drill too deep.
You need to use a flat bottom tap. Put the tap in the drill press and push the tap in the hole and turn the chuck with the chuck key to get the tap started straight.
Loosen the chuck to let go of the tap and finish the threads with a tap handle.