I have been researching for years about building my own EV and was about to start the conversion on my 99 ranger but the economy went down and my new job is 35miles each way so a commuter is out. Just a background I am a ME and have ready Convert It! by Michael Brown and Build Your Own Electric Vehicle by Bob Brant. The real reason for my post is that I have access to a quite a few 24V lead acid concord batteries. The batteries in question are RG24-11M.
These are not deep cycle but they are brand new and I might be able to get them for practically nothing. Obviously they don’t have the amp hours for a commuter EV but they do stand the potential to be a drag EV battery. With the 24V I could put 6 or so of them into a small car or bike with very little weight but still run 144V. My question is for all those battery gurus out there is; are these even worth bothering with? I know that they wouldn’t last long but for a drag bike or car could I get a couple dozen runs out of them? My main worry looking at the specs is that I would burn them out during the first attempt but I figured this could be a cheap way to dip my toe in the water of the EV world.
If they are cheap/free and you’re willing to put in the hours, I’d say it’s not too bad of a deal. You won’t be able to build an ideal “long distance” EV, but at least you can get something going that you can play around with.
I think with this new administration there will be more funding thrown at “green” projects one being battery technology. I expect to see a price drop on current battery technologies so if you already have your EV built, ideally you’d be able to get a good deal on current battery technology in the near future.
Thx. I am going to go ahead and given it a shot. I have been on the fence about doing a conversion for 3 years now. This gives me a good excuse to dive in, “I already have the batteries…” I got some of them today and I going to order a small charger since the 3 I have are 6/12V. The selection is limited but I did find a few:
One worrying thing is several ones I found say “not for aviation batteries” even though the do list them as compatible with AGM. I think I will try to trickle charge (they have been on a shelf for 2 years) and drain one battery and see how the respond before I go too far.
I have also got to go back a do a bunch more research. In the past I always had in mind a simple commuter with a 15 mile range. A drag racer is at the other end of the spectrum. I am either think of a really light 2 seater, or just playing with two of them on a 48V bike. Hmmm…
Don’t waste your time with aircraft batteries, you would not make it a mile or 2. I have been and aircraft mechanic for almost 30 years and have tried batteries in everything from go carts, golf carts and for testing radios. Even at a low draw they just don’t last. You are better off with old deep cycle marine.
