DIY: iStick 20w 3400mah

[DoubleD]

How long did the original last?

I've had it for 10mths, 5 of those months were every day use, then I got a Reo which made the istick a juice tasting/back up device, so on a full charge it would last 2 days.




On a side note : I checked the voltage of the cell I took out with a multi meter, came in on 3.28v

 

[DoubleD]

So just an update.

On a side note : I checked the voltage of the cell I took out with a multi meter, came in on 3.28v

I thought there was something fishy about that voltage reading of 3.28v. I finally had to put it on charge and alas......it isnt charging

Must be something wrong on the charging board, hopefully its a easy fix or I'll start my sqounk ah-la iStick box mod project sooner....sheeesh what a mouthful

 

[BumbleBee]

So just an update.



I thought there was something fishy about that voltage reading of 3.28v. I finally had to put it on charge and alas......it isnt charging

Must be something wrong on the charging board, hopefully its a easy fix or I'll start my sqounk ah-la iStick box mod project sooner....sheeesh what a mouthful

Well that sucks, so it was the charging port and not the battery at fault all along?

 

[DoubleD]

Well that sucks, so it was the charging port and not the battery at fault all along?

Yeah man, I think the cell I took out is fine.
Its weird though, when I plug it in, to charge, it shows on the LCD that its charging as it should but once you remove the plug it shows up empty, so somewhere there's a dry solder point or something. I'm just hoping I can fix it, I love the form factor of the istick, it makes for a handy little back up device to carry alongside my Reo.

 

[johan]

@DoubleD to confirm the battery is OK or not, connect with croc-clips (or even washing pegs will do as long as it makes contact) to a standard 18650 battery charger and see if it charges up to 4.2V. For dry joint repair, take a soldering iron and some thin solder; 0.7mm (max). Touch each component solder joint while applying very little solder - when the solder melts and start to shine, take away the solder iron tip. There are only a few components around a typical charger control ic (integrated circuit).

 

[DoubleD]

@DoubleD to confirm the battery is OK or not, connect with croc-clips (or even washing pegs will do as long as it makes contact) to a standard 18650 battery charger and see if it charges up to 4.2V. For dry joint repair, take a soldering iron and some thin solder; 0.7mm (max). Touch each component solder joint while applying very little solder - when the solder melts and start to shine, take away the solder iron tip. There are only a few components around a typical charger control ic (integrated circuit).

Thank you for that, I'll give it a bash. So far I've connected the 'old' cell to the charger as per your advice and it looks as if it is charging but I'll report back when its done. Now I just need to get my soldering skills up to scratch

 

[DoubleD]

@johan , so the 'old' cell charged up perfectly, reading at 4.2v. Guess my soldering skills will be put to the test this weekend