Adding extra leads to Revo lipo's

[dmitry100]

Any of you guys know if it's possible to solder on or attach extra 10g leads to Revo's?
It's too bad Revo only makes them with 10g wire from the factory... where as even Turnigy heavyduty lipos come with 8gauge or so.

I've read that most lipo's are actually using some sort of special aluminum solder for their leads. Which is weird because I always thought aluminum isn't very conductive :/ hmm.

I was actually thinking about going and just attaching the extra leads using a wire clamp that bolts onto the tabs.

What do you guys think? Are extra leads worth it for high amp use to minimize resistance? Most heavy duty ESC's always come with dual leads.

[TRUCKPULL]

Dual leads on a ESC are usually used when you use a 2P setup for batteries.

Don't even try to add extra leads to the tabs on a battery unless you know exactly what you are doing.

Larry

[dmitry100]

Yes, but they also are used for packs in series to minimize resistance especially for high current SAW setups. :) I've seen it being done on fast SAW boats...

Have you ever tried doing this before? I think soldering is definitely out of the question but perhaps a bolt-on solution may be an easier option... with minimal work and no risk of heating things up like with soldering.

[TRUCKPULL]

I have tried the bolt on. It does not work, not enough surface area, and not a good enough contact for high AMP.

Larry

[kfxguy]

I repair, and modify battery packs when the need arises. I have a couple revo batts apart right now that I need to make different packs out of. I can tell you this:

Yes they are soldered.
Some tabs may be spot welded. But the wires are definitely soldered. It's not aluminum solder that I can tell. I can add regular solder to it just fine.

The electrodes are semi fragile. They can come out or tear easily if your not careful.

You could put bigger wires on if your really good at soldering and your extremely careful. Plan on safety glasses and or a face shield and some tig welding gloves for safety.

If you knock the solder off the tab then you will have a hard time adding solder back. The reason is the tabs are aluminum. What does aluminum do when you sand it or make it bare? It oxidizes. Quickly. It forms a thin protective coating almost instantly. If you are careful you can scratch an area with a exacto knife in liquefied solder (this is tricky to do) and get it to stick. You also what to do this as quickly as possible and adding the least amount of heat.

Side note. I was looking for a video for you and came across this flux. Haven't seen this before. I'm gonna order some....maybe it etches the aluminum and allows for a easier bond. Hmmmm

https://youtu.be/9iwawTk9gXI

[MarkF]

The tab on a cell is aluminum. Then they (spot weld) a very thin nickel plated copper tab to the cells aluminum tab. They use nickel plated copper because it's easy to solder the wires too. If you rip this thin tab off your screwed. Soldering to the aluminum tab with aluminum solder is not advised and will not tolerate high discharge.

Mark

[dmitry100]

Why aluminum and so fragile? Can't any of them make it a bit more ... heavy duty?

[srislash]

Why aluminum and so fragile? Can't any of them make it a bit more ... heavy duty?

Well as many things these days, we are not supposed to mess with them. That being said I do agree with 'Why Aluminum? Kind of a crappy conductor.
Mind you if there is a coating of copper then I imagine it is good as DC electricity travels over the surface of said media