# DIY batteries for MagicShine



## newnan3 (Sep 30, 2010)

Anyone care to share where you got the batteries, how much you paid and how long a charge youre getting on your DIY MagicShine battery packs. Also, what charger youre using......


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## odtexas (Oct 2, 2008)

Batteryspace.com  or  All-battery.com  any 7.4 volt lithium ion 18650 pack would work and you could use the magicshine charger.

You could also pick up a 6xAA holder and run it with rechargeable batteries NiMH and an appropriate charger from either site.

The best thing about the magic shine was the ease of setting up your own aftermarket battery. Too many companies use proprietary connectors or drives in the battery pack. The MS lights will be happy with any 7.2 or 7.4 volt battery set up.

Run times will depend upon the mAh of the pack. The original pack is rated at around 4400 mAh.

The 6xAA would be around 2500 mAh depending upon what cells you buy.

You could also use 6x C cell or D cell holder as well.

Lot's of options.


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## odtexas (Oct 2, 2008)

Yet another way to go is a battery rack with individual 18650 cells.

 Two cell battery holder

 Four cell battery holder

 Any 18650 cell and charger from this page ought to work


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## nick d (May 25, 2007)

http://forums.mtbr.com/showthread.php?t=664558

i like this setup...


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## linger (Nov 10, 2010)

I prefer flat lithium polymer over 18650 cells. I'm currently using my other hobby (racing RC cars) as power for my lights and I put all my RC chargers to good use.

My 2S battery packs can range from 2700 mAh to over 6000 mAh with battery weights ranging from a little over 200 g to about 320 grams.

Unlike the 18650's the current draw of the light doesn't even come close to stressing the battery. Cycle life is greatly increase. A good lithium polymer can exceed 1000 complete charge/discharge cycles where more of 18650 don't surpass 300.


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## dmalovic (Oct 28, 2005)

The only question I have about LiPo cells is how dangerous they are on a bike. They have been known to explode, and all kinds of things can happen to them while riding?


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## nick d (May 25, 2007)

dmalovic said:


> The only question I have about LiPo cells is how dangerous they are on a bike. They have been known to explode, and all kinds of things can happen to them while riding?


ive heard the same th ing about charging them, they have to be laid flat or something?


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## Jim311 (Feb 7, 2006)

I am thinking that if someone made an idiot proof 4 cell holder that was a plug and play for the Magicshine it would sell like hotcakes. It would be awesome to be able to just replace the dead cells, and the cells are so cheap at DX you could have a dozen battery packs if you wanted.


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## newnan3 (Sep 30, 2010)

So does a higher mAh automatically equal longer run times? 

Also, is the MS connector a propietary design or is it a commonly available one? If commonly available whats it called?


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## Rakuman (Oct 30, 2004)

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.32751
here the connector just splice and solder the cord to the battery pack
here is the battery Ive been pondering as a replacement
http://www.all-battery.com/squareli...dulewith20awgbareleadsandhitecconnectors.aspx
should give you a longer burn time than the stock MS battery


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## boomn (Jul 6, 2007)

Jim311 said:


> I am thinking that if someone made an idiot proof 4 cell holder that was a plug and play for the Magicshine it would sell like hotcakes. It would be awesome to be able to just replace the dead cells, and the cells are so cheap at DX you could have a dozen battery packs if you wanted.


this one is the closest I know of so far. Pre-wired in the right 2S2P configuration and with a protection circuit. You still need to splice in the connectors and find a way to cover and attach it though


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## newnan3 (Sep 30, 2010)

So with any of these batteries it would be safe to use to MS charger right?


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## odtexas (Oct 2, 2008)

newnan3 said:


> So with any of these batteries it would be safe to use to MS charger right?


No...



odtexas said:


> Batteryspace.com  or  All-battery.com  any 7.4 volt lithium ion 18650 pack would work and you could use the magicshine charger.


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## Rakuman (Oct 30, 2004)

ODtexas would the pack I posted work with the MS charger otherwise I will just get a new charger


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## odtexas (Oct 2, 2008)

Rakuman said:


> ODtexas would the pack I posted work with the MS charger


That should work just fine.

You can also order the split Y cable from Geomangear still it looks like. Then use it on the new battery packs. You could build two with the Y cable.
That way you are not "voiding" whatever warranty replacement that may be worked out in the future on the original MS batteries.

The connector is a normal size available at various online sites. I just can't remember the exact size anymore. It is in a thread somewhere here..............


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## Homebrew (Jan 2, 2004)

odtexas said:


> The connector is a normal size available at various online sites. I just can't remember the exact size anymore. It is in a thread somewhere here..............


It's a standard 5.5mm od x 2.1mm id DC power connector. You can get the Y cables for $3.53 EA shipped if you're not in a hurry. Each one is enough for two packs and an extra light cable.

http://www.dealextreme.com/details.dx/sku.32752


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## newnan3 (Sep 30, 2010)

Is there a particular charger you guys would recommend? How can I tell if I can use the MS charger? 

The batt pack that Rakuman posted looks promising..........


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## Homebrew (Jan 2, 2004)

newnan3 said:


> Is there a particular charger you guys would recommend? How can I tell if I can use the MS charger?
> 
> The batt pack that Rakuman posted looks promising..........


I have a Thunder AC6 charger. Works great with lots of features and a relatively low price.

http://www.hobbypartz.com/thac6smbachw.html


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## Vancemac (Apr 29, 2006)

Jim311 said:


> I am thinking that if someone made an idiot proof 4 cell holder that was a plug and play for the Magicshine it would sell like hotcakes. It would be awesome to be able to just replace the dead cells, and the cells are so cheap at DX you could have a dozen battery packs if you wanted.


+1. At ~$50 each (?) I'd buy two. I'm new to this game, but I'm surprised there aren't several plug-and-play alternatives already.


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## rockhop (Mar 22, 2006)

Just the other day I figured if GeoMan doesn't come around selling the MS light kits anytime soon, I'll just buy the 900 & 1400 lights (and cables) and diy the battery and charger. I've never owned a MS so I don't even know what the batteries were rated at. 

Thnx all for the posts and keep em coming.


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## Vancemac (Apr 29, 2006)

Vancemac said:


> +1. At ~$50 each (?) I'd buy two. I'm new to this game, but I'm surprised there aren't several plug-and-play alternatives already.


Is my only option really DIY? Are you people going to force me to finally learn basic electronics? :smallviolin: 

I'm actually not too worried about the OEM Magic Shine battery. But I am interested in a spare, a) just in case something does go awry, and b) in case I end up doing a 24hr race this year.


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## norcom (Feb 22, 2007)

My original MS battery pack barely lasts 45min after about a year. I didn't use it that much and charged it after every ride. I bought a "new" one on fleabay but it's bunk. I think it might last 15min longer that my old one.

I first started with DX torches and bought quite a few protected cells on DX over a year ago. They're still going strong. Once I saw the digikey packs I picked some up and made this.










It's a 2x3 holder and it works great with protected cells. I like that if one cell dies I don't have to replace the whole pack and I can monitor each cell individually with a volt meter. I can run it with 2, 4 or 6 cells. I have a few of the 4 cell holders and plan on making more packs for myself.

The holders are attached with 2 zip ties on each side. I soldered a wire at the top and soldered the connectors at the bottom. Then wrapped an old tube around the pack. So far so good.










The cost of the project was something like this:
digikey holders from $2.11 to $2.78
Receptacle for MS light $2.28
+$5 s/h
Batteries, soldering iron, wire, tube I had.


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## random walk (Jan 12, 2010)

^^^norcom, what kind of run times are you seeing on the 2x3?


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## Vancemac (Apr 29, 2006)

Does anyone know if the battery packs that _Light and Go _are selling will work with Magic Shine? Are the *connectors *compatible? The site has no specs that I could find. I'd love one of these six-packs for longer rides:


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## boomn (Jul 6, 2007)

Vancemac said:


> Does anyone know if the battery packs that _Light and Go _are selling will work with Magic Shine? Are the *connectors *compatible? The site has no specs that I could find. I'd love one of these six-packs for longer rides:


Light and Go is a MagicShine dealer. The battery isn't necessarily any different or less prone to the same problems. They are also a dealer for another manufacturer (WonderBike) so maybe the batteries come from them but that's not garuanteed


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## norcom (Feb 22, 2007)

random walk said:


> ^^^norcom, what kind of run times are you seeing on the 2x3?


Don't really know, I haven't ran it dry yet. It's still light enough after work to not need lights and the few times I went riding at night, the rides weren't that long. All I know is that it lasted longer than my OEM MS pack which and the ride was around 1.5hrs or so.


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## fightnut (Jul 5, 2007)

norcom said:


> The holders are attached with 2 zip ties on each side. I soldered a wire at the top and soldered the connectors at the bottom. Then wrapped an old tube around the pack. So far so good.


Can you go into a little more detail about this part? Maybe a pic or two of the process?


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## BlownCivic (Sep 12, 2006)

I'm now putting together my packs using the Samsung 18650 3,000 mah cells that I got from ebay. I'm charging them in the DSD Smart Chargers that I have to start with fully charged cells to try and ensure they're as close to being balanced as possible. These cells are not protected. I do have some protection circuits from All Battery:

http://www.all-battery.com/pcbfor74vli-ion186501850072vbatterypacks35alimit-pcb74v32004.aspx

My questions concerns using these circuits for a 2S2P pack. Does anyone see a problem using 2 of these circuits on my pack, and then paring up the outputs for the 2P part of the pack? I'd essentially have 2 seperate packs which are glued together into one assembly, and terminated with only 1 connector for output to the lights. The only issue I'm not fully comprehending is when it comes time for charging: will it behave as 2 seperate packs, and when the protection circuit detects that 1/2 the pack is fully charged, it simply shuts down that side, and when the other side is done, then it stops entirely? I'll be using the MagicShine charger to charge the completed packs.


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## linger (Nov 10, 2010)

BlownCivic said:


> I'm now putting together my packs using the Samsung 18650 3,000 mah cells that I got from ebay. I'm charging them in the DSD Smart Chargers that I have to start with fully charged cells to try and ensure they're as close to being balanced as possible. These cells are not protected. I do have some protection circuits from All Battery:
> 
> http://www.all-battery.com/pcbfor74vli-ion186501850072vbatterypacks35alimit-pcb74v32004.aspx
> 
> My questions concerns using these circuits for a 2S2P pack. Does anyone see a problem using 2 of these circuits on my pack, and then paring up the outputs for the 2P part of the pack? I'd essentially have 2 seperate packs which are glued together into one assembly, and terminated with only 1 connector for output to the lights. The only issue I'm not fully comprehending is when it comes time for charging: will it behave as 2 seperate packs, and when the protection circuit detects that 1/2 the pack is fully charged, it simply shuts down that side, and when the other side is done, then it stops entirely? I'll be using the MagicShine charger to charge the completed packs.


For a 2S2P pack, you only need one circuit. Put two cells in parallel first and then do the series connection. The cells in parallel will self balance and they act as a single cell (with 2x the capacity of 1 cell). By using 1 circuit you also reduce the residual current drain. The protection circuitry does NOT balance the cells or ensure that the cells are the same state of charge. It's just a band aid to prevent gross overcharging or discharging. During charging, you want your charger to shut off well before you hit the cutoff limit of the protection circuitry.


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## norcom (Feb 22, 2007)

fightnut said:


> Can you go into a little more detail about this part? Maybe a pic or two of the process?


There are two holes/slits on the sides of the holders. You can see them here, when you place the holders back to back, you can ziptie them together through these holes.

There are metal clips on the top and bottom of the holders. The metal clips stick out a little past the plastic. When you put the holders back to back, the clips align over each other. The bottom ones I keep aligned over each other and put a little solder to hold them together. The top ones I bend up so they don't touch. At the top I solder a wire across the 3 clips on each side for + and -. Just have to make sure to put the batteries in correctly.

Sorry, I know this isn't very detailed without pictures but I just don't have any. I'll try to take some shots of the process when I build my 2x4 holder.


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