CR123 Battery Spacers

I suppose the title of this thread could also be: "I don't have a handyman gene in my body!".

It's a good thing I can laugh at myself, cause this thing is the ugliest creation I've tried to make so far. It's only saving grace is that it works out pretty well.

A member here has been making me some lasers that take various different battery combination. Once of those includes a single CR123a battery with a spacer. While I was waiting on him to make me a spacer, I thought I would take a stab at it myself.

This ugly thing is made from a piece of 5/8"" threaded rod stock from Home Depot. The top has been beveled with the help of a Dremel with a grinding wheel. Then it was cut to (nearly) the correct length with a hacksaw and covered with a small piece of 39/64" heat shrink tubing from harbor freight. Total cost in parts was under $3.00 and I could make at least 10 more of them from the leftovers. (Not that I'm planning on it)

It's bottom isn't totally flat and the top could use a lot more work. It's also just a tad smaller then a real CR123 battery, but it's close enough that it actually works.

Behold it's ugliness. :bowdown:

jcranmer said:

Behold it's ugliness.
:bowdown:

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I beholded it, and made the proper observances. But I don't think it's ugly at all.

question... would a spring in shrink wrap (even homemade... say from heavy copper wire) be better / less weight?

Actually what you did is GREAT once it matches a CR123A, once it is the right size. I guess you can throw that "ugly" thing in a drawer, it can rattle around next to nutz and boltz and thingz all the time but it will be no worse for the wear... but it is your "standard sized and standardized CR123A spacer".

Nobody sees the spacer in the laser

Excellent use of inexpensive components to overcome your challenge

+1

Peace,
dave

If it works who cares how it looks! Use it until something better comes your way.

+1

You guys are too generous. I was posting this more for what I thought would be the cringe effect, not for rep.

I really didn't think about it being on the inside where it can't be seen.

JBTexas said:

question... would a spring in shrink wrap (even homemade... say from heavy copper wire) be better / less weight?

Click to expand...

You know that is an excellent idea. I might have to play around with some other options. I actually like the weight this adds though.

Looks perfectly fine. Personally I'm lazy so I use magnets. Your approach seems much more practical.

+1

jcranmer said:

You guys are too generous. I was posting this more for what I thought would be the cringe effect, not for rep.

I really didn't think about it being on the inside where it can't be seen.



You know that is an excellent idea. I might have to play around with some other options. I actually like the weight this adds though.

Click to expand...

There are too many people here using their wallets and too few using their heads.

I was changing a low powered 405nm to a high powered 445nm. It was in an MXDL host that used a 3@AAA carriage. We discovered that three AAA's would not give enough current for the 445nm.

I took a wooden handle from a putty knife, cut it to length, drilled it out almost to the end with a 15mm drill, and screwed a wood screw in the end.

It worked perfectly as a 14500 battery adapter for the MXDL :tinfoil:

Was it pretty? -- No
Did it work? -- Like a charm :beer:

Peace,
dave

I use a green 2xAAA pen with a single protected 10440 cell. For a spacer, I cut a piece of a computer power cable to a few mm less than the 44mm of a AAA. Then I just screwed in 2 wood screws into either end.