Opened up a ruixu battery. Not impressed...

[Lotso]

Yeah check it out:

YIKES. Good cells though. Everything else was low quality.

Awesome vid, thanks for taking the time to completely rip it apart! Did you ever tear apart a Battle Born and if not, would you?

 

[Bob B]

@Bob B looking through that link it appears they only offer lead acid. I didn’t see anything LiFePo listed.

The battery I bought from them is a 100AH LiFePo4 battery with Bluetooth BMS. I will see if I can find the original link I used to contact them.

 

[Bob B]

I do not see any listings for lifepo4 under the "lifepo4" section. Am I missing something here?

I will try to get the original link ... They will custom make pretty much any battery you want. I bought the 100 AH LiFePo4 with Bluetooth BMS. It was $439 including shipping. I tested it thru 2 discharge cycles at .25 C discharge. I stopped discharging at a little over 100AH and there was still capacity left .... so I didn't see any need to completely discharge it since it tested better that spec already.
I'm sure if you email Alice at the email address I provided she will send the full info on the BMS

 

[Bob B]

I think thing this link I started from when I initially contacted them. Sendon Bluetooth LiFePo4

I got a follow up message on Alibaba today from Alice making sure I am happy with the battery I bought.

P.S, They sent me an invoice thru PayPal and allowed me to pay that way. There was a small extra charge for that but I think they also charge a % on Alibaba for using a credit card.

They are a Gold provider on Alibaba.

 

[Cajunwolf]

Dang, what about the Sinopoly LiFePO Prismatic battery kits? I see Ruixu as the only supplier of the 300ah kits, and there were 400ah kits available, which I would like, but they're sold out. One would think the cells, okay, and I doubt Ruixu manufacturers them, but any thoughts out there on this? I want to use them (16) to make a 600ah battery bank at 24 volts using my own high-quality BMS.

 

[eddie1261]

Well if it turns out that the sent you a ringer to get a good review I am going to tell them that I want half of my money back or just see about returning it. That is as deceptive a business practice as you will ever see, sending a better battery and misrepresenting it as the production 12v product. Everybody who bought one based on Will's review should consider taking action. If need be we can look into a class action suit and see what they will do about it. This kind of false advertising is just wrong.

 

[CheezWiz]

Thing is, does it perform to specification? Regardless of the inside bits? If so, there's nothing deceptive here. (Devil's advocate here)

We really need Will to wire it all back up as shipped and run it through the ringer.

It's pretty standard practice for manufacturers to change stuff up on the fly. So long as it performs to spec and lasts for the warranty period, then there's no real legal deception occurring.

 

[Will Prowse]

Just got done talking to ruixu. Here is the update video:

 

[Will Prowse]

Well if it turns out that the sent you a ringer to get a good review I am going to tell them that I want half of my money back or just see about returning it. That is as deceptive a business practice as you will ever see, sending a better battery and misrepresenting it as the production 12v product. Everybody who bought one based on Will's review should consider taking action. If need be we can look into a class action suit and see what they will do about it. This kind of false advertising is just wrong.

No they did not. They had a new design and bms and they did not tell me or anyone else. They did not give me a special unit. But they are changing back to the old one. You should email them and see if you have the older or newer design. All batteries in the future will be the older design. And if you have the older design, you should be fine. There was nothing really wrong with it, and it worked great in my tests. But I cannot believe they would do that. So I have taken down my recommendation. All I can really do at this point.

I also showed ruixu all of the videos and they are going to send me yet another "new design". So we will see what happens.

 

[Bob B]

I think thing this link I started from when I initially contacted them. Sendon Bluetooth LiFePo4

I got a follow up message on Alibaba today from Alice making sure I am happy with the battery I bought.

P.S, They sent me an invoice thru PayPal and allowed me to pay that way. There was a small extra charge for that but I think they also charge a % on Alibaba for using a credit card.

They are a Gold provider on Alibaba.

Here is a better link .... https://sendonups.en.alibaba.com/?spm=a2700.12243863.0.0.38403e5fONbPJk

 

[Rider]

No they did not. They had a new design and bms and they did not tell me or anyone else. They did not give me a special unit. But they are changing back to the old one. You should email them and see if you have the older or newer design. All batteries in the future will be the older design. And if you have the older design, you should be fine. There was nothing really wrong with it, and it worked great in my tests. But I cannot believe they would do that. So I have taken down my recommendation. All I can really do at this point.

I also showed ruixu all of the videos and they are going to send me yet another "new design". So we will see what happens.

Dang. Sorry this all went sideways, Will. But thank you. If you didn't do this, no one would know.

 

[CheezWiz]

Will, I'm not so sure that the new one is really that bad from an electrical and mechanical standpoint. Other than the fact the solder joints needed a proper physical connection as pointed out earlier in the thread. That gauge wire at 8 inches can carry a lot of current at 12 volts. If the BMS kicks in at 100A, then each wire is only taking 25 amps. There's 4, right?

I would really like to see an off the shelf to a nobody BattleBorn opened up for comparison. Until then, the guts are like that physics cat, only janky and perfect at the same time rather than dead and alive.

 

[eddie1261]

Now to figure out when old became old and new became now..... I ordered mine July 29th.

 

[MrNatural22]

Now to figure out when old became old and new became now..... I ordered mine July 29th.

@eddie1261 I also bought one in September this year. I emailed Rachel expressing my concerns and need to know if the one they shipped me was from an older better build and design or the new poorly constructed $700 infamous BMS unplugger foam stuffed and glue worry model.
I’m awaiting a response on details.

 

[eddie1261]

@eddie1261 I also bought one in September this year. I emailed Rachel expressing my concerns and need to know if the one they shipped me was from an older better build and design or the new poorly constructed $700 infamous BMS unplugger foam stuffed and glue worry model.
I’m awaiting a response on details.

Can you share her email address with me in a PM?

 

[gnubie]

Just watched the final in the series of YT clips on the battery debacle and IMO the only way to see what they really do is to purchase one anonymously. Anything sent specifically to say 'look what we are doing now' would have to be treated with suspicion.

 

[Cajunwolf]

Okay, and well-handled @Will Prowse. I have respect for your integrity because, like me, you've walked the valley of the shadow of death a time or two, kudos. Our word and principles are all we own, right? As you know, I have to go to a small class A because of my disabled daughter, and also need at the very least 600ah, but in reality, 800-1000ah would be best long term. This will be our home, and I'm not boondocking with a 16-year-old disable child. That being said, and as mentioned above, I wanted to go with the Sinopoly LiFePO Prismatic battery kits, but since the only ones available are sold by Ruixu, what is one to do?

I'm in no hurry, living cheap and saving money, and perhaps this is a new challenge. One never knows. One thing is for sure; you can put a lot of cheap solar panels on top of a 35 to 40-foot class A motor home with room to spare.

 

[Geriakt]

I watched this. I am glad you are doing year downs to show product quality. This will make everyone better. Worked for Lion Energy and BB had BMS issues in the beginning too.

 

[MrNatural22]

@willprowse Your latest teardown on the Valence Battery was so cool! Now we know why its so $$$ Tearing down of many of the popular lifepo's so consumers can be confident in that big $$ investment. ?

 

[Steve_S]

Just watched the Valence tear down and commented on YT about that. Will may need a playlist for the teardowns. Given what & where they are market at, it's no surprise that they do it right... To much risk if they mess up and cost a life.

BTW: Black & Decker. DeWalt, Porter Cable, tools are all owned by the same International LLC. All made in China most likely in the same factory but B&D = crap, PC is mid grade consumer, DeWalt is high end consumer & their pro series is high end pro. Same engineers & designers but different specs and quality and the price points & profit margins reflect such.

 

[electric]

Yes, I will get a expensive, or possibly UL listed battery to teardown soon. That would be awesome!

Will, please look into different UL standards for batteries and the difference between UL Listed and UL Recognized labels. There are lots of shady statements made by some battery makers when they mention UL. For example, UL1642 deals with individual cells while UL2054 is for small rechargeable battery, like cordless drills, etc. This is not applicable to 100AH+ batteries, where UL1973 is a better choice, but incredibly difficult to achieve. Also, UL has a searchable online database, where you can verify anyone's claims, here it is https://www.ul.com/apps/product-iq
Basically, any decent battery should have cells tested to UL1642, that would be a starting point.
Some US battery makers boast about UL2054, but it's deceptive because it's meant for small power tool packs, not a large storage battery.
UL1973 is the right standard for energy storage, but very difficult to pass and usually requires battery coupled with inverter for additional safety, or have a BMS with redundant protective devices, which is very expensive for an average customer.
UL Listed means the product is fully safety compliant as is, while UL Recognized means there are some components which have UL certifications, but the product as a whole is not tested to UL standard. For example, if cells inside the battery are UL1642, then a company can claim the battery is UL recognized, but it doesn't mean much if their BMS fails to protect the cells from external abuse, etc.

 

[chrisblessing]

Will, thanks for the tear-down. As I've noted elsewhere, I also received the battery with a "shut down" BMS. I dissembled mine and thankfully found the same batteries and BMS as your originally reviewed Ruixu. In my case the connector could not stayed plugged in due to the binding tape being too tight.

 

[BoloMKXXVIII]

Will, I'm not so sure that the new one is really that bad from an electrical and mechanical standpoint. Other than the fact the solder joints needed a proper physical connection as pointed out earlier in the thread. That gauge wire at 8 inches can carry a lot of current at 12 volts. If the BMS kicks in at 100A, then each wire is only taking 25 amps. There's 4, right?

I would really like to see an off the shelf to a nobody BattleBorn opened up for comparison. Until then, the guts are like that physics cat, only janky and perfect at the same time rather than dead and alive.

That may be, but mounting the BMS directly on the cells is still not cool (literally).

 

[Mac6792]

Having watched all three of Wills videos on this and the responses from RUIXI I have to call BS . They said they were "sorry" about this that and the other thing? What company does that? They're going revert back to their old BMS and manufacturing methods because a DIY Youtuber called Will Prowse called them out on what they did? Really? While I certainly appreciate Will chasing these guys down for a response I'm not buying it.

This is just shady Chinese business practices and manufacturing standards. While the Chinese are able to make lots of things to very high quality specs there's a wide range of quality in manufacturing processes, standards and oversight. This is not at all surprising. It doesn't mean they have a bad product and you shouldn't buy it. It may perform per the specs and Rachel may be a great contact who will address any warranty concerns. Feel free to buy it, but like anything else, buyer beware.

 

[electric]

It doesn't mean they have a bad product and you shouldn't buy it. It may perform per the specs and Rachel may be a great contact who will address any warranty concerns. Feel free to buy it, but like anything else, buyer beware.

The way I see it, as long as "you get what you pay for" rule is not broken, then it's a fair game. When you buy a cheap battery from Alibaba, you get what you pay for. However, when some smart-ass in the US imports those same cheap batteries and slaps a "made in USA" label on them or promises 10 years warranty, while multiplying the price x3 or x4, then it's a different story.
I have nothing against honest importers who make money by adding value of importing/warehousing/support/etc. They take the risk and you pay for their efforts. But don't pretend your battery is a better quality than the same exact one on Alibaba, because it isn't.
I see people drool over warranty statements, which is very funny and amusing. Does anyone even read warranty statement? It is 100% stacked against you. Seller can claim product abuse and you have to prove otherwise, which is impossible. Those "Made in USA" batteries are typically just a one person LLC with a rented warehouse. When they inevitably start seeing warranty claims, they'd just close shop and open a new LLC with a new name.