PowerBook 2400c & button cells for backup battery

[beachycove]

A little Googling has turned up V150H button cells as replacements for the V110H cells originally in 2400c backup batteries. The V150Hs appear to be simply higher capacity successors to the V110Hs. The numbers appear to refer to mA ratings.

The cells are relatively cheap, readily available since still widely used, and - wonder of wonders - they are commonly sold with welding tabs.

What would be the best way to join three of these together for 3.6v and so avoid the $40 price (plus shipping) that is asked on the market for pre-assembled 2400c battery packs? Conductive epoxy? A staple and heat shrink tubing? Or could such tabs be soldered without damaging cells or self?

 

[wally]

Soldering should work. Those tabs are welded to the cells, but intended for you to solder them at the far end either to each other or into a PC board. The batteries will see the least heat if you get the tabs very clean and use a hot tinned iron quickly, like several seconds of actual heating. No thermal runaway problem with NiMH, but too much heat can cause them to leak corrosive electrolyte gradually later or just dry out sooner than they should. If you have the space leave the tabs full length and just solder pairs of them together at the very end then insulate. Only problem with tabs that I know is when they are very short from salvaged batteries, the soldering too prolonged, and the particular batteries have lithium inside, which your V150H NiMH cells will not.