This is an incredibly simple two cell 18650 Battery Holder. When someone thinks of 18650 Cells they tend to think of flashlights first, which is fair since that is what they have been primarily used for. However, with this battery holder you will gain the ability to incorporate 18650 cells into applications like robotics or prototyping by simply dropping one into this device and attaching the leads, that’s it.
Hi Elliott
Looks like in series from the pic (7.4V)
If it was parallel (3.7V) the springs and nipple contacts would be at the same end I think.
and the cells would be positioned in the same direction.
Be a bit careful here as some 18650 cells with built in protection are almost 70mm long and will be an extremely tight and almost impossible to fit without breaking or damaging something.
I have been told (by Core) in the past that all cells Core stock are 65mm long and will fir all the holders they sell.
Cheers Bob
That holder looks to put them in series, so the voltage should be 7.4V.
I hope that was before February last year, as we started to stock Protected 18650’s at that time and they will not fit holders made for 65mm length 18650’s. For the 65mm length batteries, you would be looking for These Flat Top Ones.
The PRT-12900 is wired in series. This means you’ll be getting a nominal 7.4V (up to 8.4V fully charged) at the leads, not 3.7V. If your project specifically needs more capacity (parallel) rather than more voltage, you’d need to modify the tabs or look for a different version.
Many protected 18650 cells have an extra 2-3mm of length due to the protection circuit. This holder has pretty stiff springs, so protected cells can be a real struggle to get in or might not fit at all. If you’re using cells with built-in protection, definitely double-check your cell length against the holder’s specs before buying.
Not much use if the dimensions are the outside ones when the cell fits inside.
Actually one of the dimensions includes the wire length. Duh. That is extremely useful.
Cheers Bob
That bit did not register in my little brain at my last reply to you.
As a point of interest does anyone actually manufacture any holders that accept the longer cells, be they 18650, AA or AAA. The same problem exists.
Cheers Bob
I am sure they are manufactured as some of our Products (The Acebott series) do require them. Though I have tested a few units off the shelf as far as holders, none seem to be able to work with the protected battery.
As far as AA and AAA, I believe that size stays the same, even with their Lipo and NIMH versions. Most should fit into standard holders if they have spring contacts, as there is as little as 1mm size difference between variants.
Might have to have a chat with the product team here and get some things in as they would be great for certain projects and are that little bit safer when Lipos come into play.
That’s curious because I just purchased a couple of the 4 x AA Switched Battery Box and I haven’t had any trouble fitting either Alkaline of Nimh AAs in them.
