Life of a standard 4 aaa battery holder?

[MasterClayton]

Does anybody have an idea on how long the battery will last for a standard saber using a 4 aaa battery holder? Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

[jbkuma]

Not all batteries are created equally. Depending on the age, type and quality of the batteries your life will vary dramatically. Quality batteries will tell you their capacity in mah (milliamp hours) which can give you a rough idea based on your build. If you are pulling 1 amp and your batteries have a 800mah rating, you'll probably get less than an hour of on time.

[MasterClayton]

So even if I have four batteries all at say 1000 mah does that mean I only get one hour of time with a one amp draw?

[FenixFire]

In that configuration yes.

[MasterClayton]

Is it possible to use a standard battery holder to hook up the battery's so the mah rating is multiplied and not the voltage or do you need a special battery pack?

[jbkuma]

Parallel will add capacity, most battery holders go in series. Depending on your design you may be able to accommodate the extra cells. You are probably better off investing in a lipo battery from the shop. It'll take up less space and be cheaper in the long run even if you just buy two cells, a holder, and an external charger.

[MasterClayton]

What do think about using the two aa battery holder and two 14500 rechargeable batteries? My only concern is they only have a 900mah rating.

[FenixFire]

Why are you wanting removable batteries? Spring holders can dislodge batteries loosing power. Wired cells and recharge ports are more reliable, but it's personal preference and design.

[MasterClayton]

I really don't have a preference but this is my first build and I am trying to keep it under 150. I have about ten extra dollars right now so I was think the removable. I don't see a way to get the single cell batteries with charger, holder, battery Etc. for less than 30.

[Sevinzol]

What do you plan on doing with your saber?
Is it going to be displayed on a shelf a lot? are you going trooping? are you taking it to SF Cons? Halloween? How many hours a week do you think you will really be running around with your saber turned on? You don't need to burn batteries when doing katas

the general consensus here is that AAA batteries are too small. Is there enough room to put a 4xAA holder?

Not all batteries are created equally. Depending on the age, type and quality of the batteries your life will vary dramaticallyI disagree. Underwriter Labs has done enormous amounts of research on Alkaline battery life. They have stored them in refrigerators, freezers, compared all brands and tested them over a period of ten years in storage and concluded that there was no discernible difference between brands nor storage technique they all performed the same.

so with that in mind I say you can buy a lot of cheap no-name alkaline batteries and if it really isn't working for you save up for a Lithium upgrade or save that for your second saber (you know your going to make more than one)

[FenixFire]

UL does not certify the mAh ratingis only the fire ratings and safety of the battery. There is no standardized testing method dictated by the US Gov. for determining mAh, only 4 common methods that can very significantly. Thats how Alibaba can sell china direct 18650 claiming 4000mAh or even 5000mAh. I do not believe the post was concerning storage but rather battery manufacturer, battery composition, and how many charge cycles it has undergone.

For reference I had an Ezra build with 3aaa running a purple blade mixed from a tri-rebel. Using dollar store aaa my son got 15-20 minutes of use. With Energizer Max he got 30-40 minutes. Now with the 18500 (connected via JSTs for external charging) he gets over an hour.

[jbkuma]

I was speaking more to the broader sense: disposable vs rechargeable, charge cycles, etc. I can tell you with 100% certainty that the quality of alkaline cells matters for capacity. The study refers to shelf life, not capacity. Once again quality does matter. Certain rechargeables are designed to hold a charge over time while others dissipate very quickly.

That aside, the use of disposables is something that really gets my blood up. Even if only cost is a consideration, then almost any rechargeable will pay back the investment after the second use. Decent quality rechargeables also have a very high capacity compared to anything but the more expensive disposables. The reason they sell D and C sleeves to use with AA rechargeables is because a quality AA rechargeable has a higher capacity than the typical disposable C cell. I have been using the same 12 AA Eneloops for a decade and haven't purchased a battery since.

If you go with AAA or AA, do yourself a favor and find a sale on a 4 pack of Eneloops with a charger for something like $10.

[MasterClayton]

So I am planning on using the saber for almost an hour everyday but like you said a lot of it will not need the saber lit. I think I will end up using the four aa battery holder and rechargeable batteries from Amazon. My plan is to use the saber as a stunt saber for a while and then put a hasbro sound board in there.