Sorry to revive an older thread, but (1) do these packs have a constant output? I read that the type I'm interested in uses 'Panasonic' batteries, so (2) what does that mean?
(They're Li-ions.) The type I'm interested it has LED status lights, so I'm looking to drill a square window in the hilt about 1" x 1" so I can see them. (3) What size bit should I use? Again, sorry for reviving an older thread, and for my very scattered questions.
No worries dragon two, that's the whole point of the forum
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1) constant current... As opposed to intermittent lol? Hmmm, now that wouldn't make for a very good power source would it lol?
. That's probably some distinction I don't know about cause I'm new to the theory of these small electronics, but Yep, your all good on that one.
2) Panasonic batteries just refers to a specific brand/ type of Li ion- pretty much all of the bank's I've seen that use cells use 18650's, so I'm sure you'd be fine using any brand of 18650, but when it comes to batteries some of the cheapy ones are just crap- really terrible peroformance and really exaggerated stats, so i'd stick with a reputable brand personally, you get what you pay for for sure- easy piece of mind would be to google Panasonic 18650 info/ specs, take a quick look at their stats (guessing 3.7V, 3400mA) and then you could just make sure whatever batteries you scoop have the same as those, Panasonic might put out a little higher current than more generic brands (2400-3000mA'ish) but otherwise the same - I seriously doubt it's referring to any kind of wired pack (multiple 18650's heat shrunk together) because just too bulky to fit in bank for one, and also redundant- your protection circuit is already in the bank- who knows though, maybe panasonics 18650's are a diff shape/ dimension than most? Might be worth it to pay the extra for those either way, you know they'd be aweome quality batteries.
3) to make the window it all depends what you want- a square window, any shape with right angles really, would be more labour intensive than circular, unless you know someone who can mill it for you, since you're gonna have to start with a circular hole- but totally doable though, with a bunch of little files, a dremel and some burrs, grinding stones, etc.- the best way to go about it isn't to start with a particular bit size, but by actually drawing out the exact window on the hilt (or tape it off or whatever but just mark off the exact area you want removed), then start trying bits until you've found the absolute biggest bit that will fit, the biggest bit you can use to drill out as much of the middle of your square as you can without exceeding that area/ going outside the lines of your drawn window. So you'll end up with, say, a 3/4" hole removed from the middle of your 1" square, then you use the files and dremel to achieve the rest of the shape/ remove the rest from the corners. cutting disks on the dremel are an easier way to get the right angles involved in square shapes, but you need a gigantic amount of space in your cutout area to allow you to get the disk down in there and cut... 1" oughta be doable actually, I bet that's right about what the diameter of most small heavy duty cut off wheels are, you might be able to sink a fresh one right through the hilt body completely to form each of the four sides... Won't that be a little big though? I'd draw it out and see how it looks on the body first.
The status lights are likely 5mm diodes- 5mm's wil fit through a 13/64" hole (tiny), so even a small hole will completely show your led's- to put it in perspective, my bank is rectangular, with the biggest side being slightly less than 1", so a 1" window would actually show the entire bank. I always kinda prefer the look of elongated windows with curved lines, so I started with two 1/4" drilled holes and removed the rest of the shape like I described above:
Surprising how big even a small cutout looks on these hilts- this one's 1/4" by almost 1", and I still had enough viewing area to dress my bank all up like an exposed circuit board and illuminate it.
Hope that helps- if you're looking to do this you might might wanna take a quick look through my current build log, "my main dueling saber...etc." Should be just on second page somewhere- there's some stuff you might find helpful in there, cause you'll be getting into a lot of the same stuff- like making an adapter to go from the bank to your wiring etc. Hope that helps, MTFBWY
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