The bad battery thread

channelmaniac

Mr Neo Fix-it
15 Year Member
Joined
Nov 29, 2005
Posts
4,275
Time for a reminder that everyone should check their NiCd batteries for leakage!

The solder joint should look nice and shiny and the end of the battery should look clean, like this:

Battery1pos.jpg


HOWEVER...

BOTH ends of the battery must be checked. If the Negative side looks like this:

Battery1neg.jpg


Then the battery MUST be replaced. Notice the fuzzy growth on the end of the battery? Is it dust? NO! The battery is leaking.

How can you tell it's not dust?

Easy. Look at the solder joint on the board. See all that crystalline fuzzy growth on it? THAT is from the leaking battery and is not dust. Compare that picture to the first one. Those are 2 pics from the same battery. BOTH solder joints should be clean and shiny.

This battery must be replaced. (and in this case was... this was a board fixed for a forum member)

If your board looks like this, then it may be too late to save:

Neo6SlotBattDamage.jpg


If you have pictures of leaking batteries on your game board, post them up for everyone to see. Sometimes the only clue of a leaking battery is a discoloration on traces near it, such as when a battery just starts to leak on a 4 slot board.

RJ
 
Last edited:
Joined
Oct 6, 2000
Posts
3,221
Great post Kernow's dead DDP DOJ board saved my 4 slot MVS.

I hadn't thought of it in forever but got me to take it apart and look. I thought it was fine at first but once I got the battery out I could see some residue. I neutralized it with baking soda and cleaned it all up.

I left it out though because that is the extend of my skills. What would you charge me to do a proper battery mod on the board? I'd like one that doesn't hang out... and doesn't need to be charged or anything.

Thanks!
 

Xian Xi

JammaNationX,
15 Year Member
Joined
Dec 1, 2005
Posts
27,748
This is the one that was on a CMVS I bought, no wonder it was cheap. It still has RAM problems so I need to swap the RAM, too.

mvsbat.jpg
 

Blur2040

Crossed Swords Squire
Joined
Dec 4, 2003
Posts
183
Aww, rats.

You were just a few hours late on this thread. About two weeks ago, I purchased a pinball machine. I'm busy so it took until yesterday to get to the battery.

The battery looked OK from the front and still saved information. Flipped the board over...and fuzzy corrosion on the solder points for the battery. No other corrosion anywhere else as far as I could see. Close one.
 

pixeljunkie

Whilst Drunk., I Found God., Booze = Bad.,
20 Year Member
Joined
Dec 12, 2003
Posts
7,097
i need to order some varta batteries....this thread is like a defensive driving video with gruesome deaths....but MORE horrifying.
 
Joined
Oct 6, 2000
Posts
3,221
I think some other beneficial information would be around care and feeding of these batteries. I can't say I really know enough about them.

-I know they are rechargeable so they rely on being powered up from time to time. How much is enough?

-If they sit in storage for months at a time do the batteries die faster than if they are used more frequently?

-Aside from seeing signs of failure, is there some testing we can do to make sure they are good? I recently got a board with a varta 3.6 and I have no idea how old it is. If I measure, it's putting out 3.6V. Am I good?

There's probably some other stuff, but I'm thinking there has to be some recommended care and feeding, and some troubleshooting other than "hey look it started leaking all over".
 

channelmaniac

Mr Neo Fix-it
15 Year Member
Joined
Nov 29, 2005
Posts
4,275
The boards should be powered up for a day each month if you want to keep the batteries charged. They can keep the charge longer... it just depends on the current draw and the internal resistance (which slowly drains the battery even when not connected to anything) of the NiCd cell.

Once the solder joint starts looking fuzzy you are already on the path to doom. The solder joint will look fuzzy before the end of the battery does.

RJ
 

Syn

There can be only one.
10 Year Member
Joined
Jan 21, 2009
Posts
9,076
+1 on the STICKY for this extremely useful information.

Thank you for the heads up:buttrock:

RJ & Xian's photo's are perfect examples of neglect/forgetfulness
 
Last edited:

grandmascrack

Krauser's Shoe Shiner
Joined
Feb 8, 2003
Posts
243
+1 for sticky as well. I'm checking more board tonight when i get home from work. As someone who hasn't soldered a thing in his life, is installing a new battery a difficult task? I know soldering pros and can take it them, but I'd rather try and get my feet wet and some point.
 

KaPH33n

Sieger's Squire
Joined
Jan 28, 2010
Posts
819
Does it matter what brand of battery you use or is it all about the mAh? I recently replaced a few cps-2 boards with XenoEnergy XL-050FAX, all of which had maxells (original?)
 

Hewitson

Metal Slug Mechanic
Joined
Mar 6, 2008
Posts
2,198
Of course the brand doesnt matter. The voltage is what you need to look at.

mAh == milliamp-hours.. The higher this number is, the longer the battery will last without needing a recharge. However, I don't recommend you install a rechargable.

Use a lithium in series with a diode to stop the current from the board reaching the battery. It'll last for years and you won't need to worry about firing up your board every so often to charge it.
 
Last edited:

IronGiant

Armored Scrum Object
Joined
Jan 10, 2004
Posts
263
Mouser
Newark
Jameco
Batteries Plus

And a number of other places.

RJ

How about in the UK? Can't seem to see anything suitable on the Farnell or RS sites where I usually buy my components from.

Edit: Scrub that, Maplin.co.uk have the Varta 3/V80H - product code: BN22Y
 
Last edited:

KaPH33n

Sieger's Squire
Joined
Jan 28, 2010
Posts
819
So I went to change the batteries out on my Darkstalkers and Vampire Savior cps2 boards and Darkstalkers now boots to a green screen :blow_top:

I didn't time myself, but I'm reasonably sure there's no way it took me over an hour. Visual inspection of the board doesn't give me anything... Is there anything else for me to check? I know other B boards work on that A board. I don't think the problem is the battery, the test points read 3.66 on the voltmeter.
 

Xian Xi

JammaNationX,
15 Year Member
Joined
Dec 1, 2005
Posts
27,748
So I went to change the batteries out on my Darkstalkers and Vampire Savior cps2 boards and Darkstalkers now boots to a green screen :blow_top:

I didn't time myself, but I'm reasonably sure there's no way it took me over an hour. Visual inspection of the board doesn't give me anything... Is there anything else for me to check? I know other B boards work on that A board. I don't think the problem is the battery, the test points read 3.66 on the voltmeter.

You could have shorted a connection to drain the residual charge in the chips. Was the old battery still pushing good voltage?
 

KaPH33n

Sieger's Squire
Joined
Jan 28, 2010
Posts
819
You could have shorted a connection to drain the residual charge in the chips. Was the old battery still pushing good voltage?

Yes, it still had a charge over 3.6, but it looked like an original maxell so I figured I might as well change it out. If I did drain the charge in the chips does that mean the board is bricked?
 

Xian Xi

JammaNationX,
15 Year Member
Joined
Dec 1, 2005
Posts
27,748
It could but CPS2 B boards sometimes get weird boot colors when the connection to the A board isn't good. Try reseating the board again.
 

slugger_dan

Crazed MVS Addict
10 Year Member
Joined
Jul 15, 2008
Posts
134


The negative terminal of a 1F board I recently recieved. I cleaned as much of the stuff I could from the PCB and put a cell phone battery in place and the board seems to work OK (for now?).
 
Top