[Icom] Nicads

Tue, 22 Jan 2002 15:51:54 -0800

My experience with NiCads goes back to 1972, when I worked in the
Consumer Electronics business.  In those days, GE advertised "1,000
charges of more" (they later changed it to "up to 500").

We used six "AA"-size cells banded together in our first hand-held
calculators.  After about a year, we started getting returns stating that
it won't hold a charge.  Upon checking, we found that one or two of the
cells were dead or in reverse polarity.  One of our service techs
suggested we switch to standard "AA" cells ...this dropped our service
cost from about $9 for parts and labor to $1 to $2 for parts, as we only
had to replace one or two cells and they didn't need to be soldered in.

The battery pack on my Icom T-22a lasted a year and a half and crapped
out ...quess what?  Two of the six cells were dead!

At any rate, out of about 100 asst'd "AA", "C" and "D" cells I obtained
in the mid '70's about half of them lasted till the late '80's. I still
have 12 "C" and "D" (both are sub-"C" cells in standard "C" and "D"
casings) that are still taking charges.

I think that the life of the cells depends on weeding out the bad ones
before they "infect" the others.

73, Jack KF6IFF

On Tue, 22 Jan 2002 07:13:54 -0500 "Jerry W. O'Dell"
<[email protected]> writes:
> Me head swims. QST recently seemed to say that NiCads have
> memory only in certain rare situations. The GE battery manual
> for years said that there is simply no such thing, unless you
> try very hard to induce it.
> 
> Yet, scanning the web, I find post after post about memory.
> 
> If anyone really knows whether this is the case, please email
> me at [email protected]. I don't want to clutter up the list
> with something that is an emotional issue for so many people.
> 
> Personally, I think that the confounded things just die after 3 
> years,
> and that is that.
> 
> 73 jerry w8gnd
> 
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