On Thu, 22 Dec 2022, Cedric Amand via cctalk wrote:
Hey everyone, No - I won't ask if this is on topic or not :) I'm
currently reparing an ALPS plotter ( a Tandy "ce 150" equivalent ) and
it's not the first time I face the same problem ; how to replace NiCD
batteries. In the past what I did is actually order new NiCd ( you can
still find them here in Europe, well actually out of europe but in
eastern countries close to europe ) However they are at best NOS
nowadays, that does "work" enough for moderate use (I've done that on
vintage laptops) This time I'd like to go a bit beyond that and replace
the NiCd with modern NiMH (the plotter coils and motors will benefit the
extra power) However the trickle chagre of NiCd applied to NiMH will
either kill my batteries or kill me in a house fire. I see small $1 NiMH
5S charging boards on Aliexpress, I thought I might use that, try to
shove it it the CE150 (or other devcies with the same problem) TL-DR :
Before I re invent the wheel here ; Has anyone developed a proper way to
replace NiCd with N
iMH in vintage (mostly portable) equipment ? And I mean not simply
swapping the batteries, I don't want that, I want a proper charge
process.
There are a few interesting videos on the BigClive YouTube channel about
this - smart vs. dumb chargers and the 2nd one where he makes his own
somewhat dumb charger. Might be worth a watch, but the tl;dr seems to be
that trickle charging is just fine and probably better for them -
according to BigClive.
The issue might be the charging mechanism in that vintage kit more than
anything else though.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5yFwhWeqyq4
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wVnAH17f4jg
Gordon
