I have this drill SKIL 1003 18V, most of the time I can’t use it because the batteries are dead and they didn’t keep the charge. Before to throw it, I will try to make it work without batteries, linking the charger to the device by a 3d printed ‘bridge’.
I will print it tomorrow and try.
Do you think it can work?
Good idea, turning a cordless back into a corded drill!
Have you tested the electrical design? I think you will be disappointed. While the voltage will be within tolerance, the current most likely won’t be. I’m suspecting that under load the drill will demand more current than the charger will be able to deliver and it will stall.
@Alex_Wiebe Yes :), sound crazy but usefull for me and it’s a way to recycle…
I did that for an old Black & Decker cordless screwdriver with old batteries that wouldn’t charge, and new batteries were too expensive considering I used the tool infrequently. The batteries were never charged when I needed it. So, faced with a job that required a few hundred screws, I made a printed battery with a barrel jack and the proper connections.
Cool - wouldn’t have thought chargers could deliver the power needed, but my last cordless was an old NiMH setup (I’ve upgraded to a R/C 3 cell LiPo pack I had that fit)
Oh, I used a power adapter that I knew was capable of the job, not the charger.
@kongorilla So the original charger can’t deliver enough power?
I doubt it. Before you fire up the printer, test it electrically with jumpers/patch wires. Like @kongorilla said, you may have to source a different power supply to make the drill viable.
@Alex_Wiebe Thank you for your help I will try.
A better idea:
3D print an adapter between that drill and a more common and more reliable battery, like the Makita 18V series (which I own).
But don’t connect the charger direct to the drill - battery chargers are usually quite complex and are designed to send current pulses to the battery depending on the level of charge it senses. The charger’s output current waveform will not be suitable for powering the drill directly.
To connect that drill to the mains power you will need an 18V regulated DC supply, which is totally different to a battery charger.
Very interested in this. I have the same drill with the same problem.
Interstate batteries will rebuild old battery packs. I just had a 12V skill battery pack rebuilt for $30.
Thanks everyone for your opinion, my aim is not to get back my full power drill but to have a working device without to spend a penny. I will buy a cordless power tool later. SKIL will drill only some soft material (plastic and maybe wood…). So today I try to wire and to drill some PLA with the standard charger, it works slow but it works. I felt a bit stupid when I read on the charger 400mA and on the battery 1.2 Ah. I have a lot of charger (but still have to find them…) and maybe I will find something better. I have some powersuply for notebook but it’s arround 4.74A (maybe SKIL can fly). My initial project was to use the charger dock to bridge it with the drill but, but it’s not work. Inside have have a electronic board so I will cut it and link it directly to the F switch so I will never can use it again to charge baterries. (sorry for my english)
I just got an other freaky idea, why to cut the board? Maybe I just have to 3d print a new bottom caps enclosure to connect to the drill and charge the battery in the same time…“c’est n’importe quoi” but I will do it.
I just try to wire it and it’s working.
You could check youtube on rebuilding the batteries.
And the answer is:
https://plus.google.com/115671562824621394958/posts/Vw59BDnKRA7
Thanks again 