Stampede Battery Tray Mod for a 12v Battery

This is a simple chop and cut to make a 12v Sealed Lead Acid battery fit perfectly into your Stampede's battery tray.

The spring i use can be found on eBay at: Stampede Spring

To do this mod, all you need to have is:
the 2.2Amp 12volt battery found at Jaycar, they have stores throughout Australia.
A pair of Female Blades (s simple crimp for wires) i got mine from Mitre10
Electrical wire, black and red is best for this.
Soldering Iron and solder.
Philips head screw driver (a must for all mods)
Small Flat head screw driver.
A rotary tool, or any way you can find to cut plastic.

First Step is to take apart your battery tray. Sounds easy and is until you find the 2 odd screws in the outer handle part. It has a pair of triangle security screws in it, take your small flat head screw driver and slowly remove them (replace them with normal screws).

Step 2, cut out the bottom part of the tray where the D cells go. Use your 12v battery for the guide, if done properly it will just slide through the frame and sit perfectly on the lower part of the tray.

Step 3, remove the metal battery ends, there are three of them in total, you need to keep the pair that connects battery to gun, the other side is useless. Also cut off the spring as well.

Step 4, Measure wires out, from plate to terminals, then strip the wires ends and remember to tin them. For those that haven't heard of this before, this means you melt solder on to the wire ends, so that the is no bare non tinned wire.

Step 5, solder the wires to the metal battery ends, remembering polarities (one that had the spring on it is negative, so put the black wire on that one) the other is positive.

Step 6, crimp the female blades to the other ends of the wires.

Step 7, put the meal ends back into the battery pack.

Step 8, put tray back together, and some Electrical Tape around the other end will hold that end together.

And now you have your tray. See Photos Below.

How it looks when finished:


The battery and pack:


The wire connections:

Nice work there mate. I'll definitely try this one out, there happens to be a Jaycar store in the city.

Very clean mod. Hows the weight now compared to 6 D cells?

Psykka wrote:Nice work there mate. I'll definitely try this one out, there happens to be a Jaycar store in the city.

Very clean mod. Hows the weight now compared to 6 D cells?

The weight difference is that the 12v battery is 10 grams heavier than the 6 D-cell batteries.

This is quite good, one question from me, would this sort of mod also work with the vulcan battery tray?

It should, because Servulus only cut into the area where the D batteries went in. The Stampede Tray is also more shallower in depth than the Vulcan, so it should fit very nicely in the Vulcan tray. If he started to cut into the area behind the 'stock' then it wouldn't have worked for the Vulcan.

Moonsword wrote:This is quite good, one question from me, would this sort of mod also work with the vulcan battery tray?

Yes this mod does work with the vulcan tray as well.

I performed this ghetto mod as soon as I got my gun home and my pack was charged, far too impatient to wire it up properly.

Using an Intellect IB1400 6cell stick pack. They charge to about 8.5V, so not a huge jump over stock, but enough to try things out since I didn't have any D cells. I'll solder up some Deans to the terminals and rig up some kind of secure battery tray when I get around to it.



EDIT: Just noticed the guys over on Modworks suggest 16-17V as optimum so 2 of these packs would work nicely. How's do I do that again, parallel or serial? Need to go learn some basic electronics...to the Google Mobile!

Servulus - Good writeup!

cray - If you want double the voltage, do it in series, if you want double the capacity (Running time) you want it in parallel.

Also my choice of batteries for this task would be cheap LiPos - well built to deal with extremely high current and available insanely cheaply from Hobbyking.com (who now have a NSW warehouse). Try a 3S or 4S (or even a 5S) battery, and LiPos are also the lightest battery technology around so you won't be lugging a huge lead acid battery (also, most cheap lead acid batteries, like used in this post, are not well suited to vibrations and being shaken around, my electric scooter MK I destroyed its Lead Acid packs repeatedly )

Anyone that wants any battery tips, PM me!

cray- wrote:Using an Intellect IB1400 6cell stick pack. They charge to about 8.5V, so not a huge jump over stock, but enough to try things out since I didn't have any D cells.[/b]

I think your maths is a bit off since 6 D cells put together in series makes 9 volts, so you are running your Stampede with a bit less than that, personally, I think it would be best to stick to about 15-16 volts and a stronger spring, but beware, that with all motors running on to high a voltage, it quickly reduces their life span, so it might be an idea to do some research into a new, stronger motor, and maybe some metal gears.

TheKhakinator wrote:Servulus - Good writeup!

cray - If you want double the voltage, do it in series, if you want double the capacity (Running time) you want it in parallel.

Also my choice of batteries for this task would be cheap LiPos - well built to deal with extremely high current and available insanely cheaply from Hobbyking.com (who now have a NSW warehouse). Try a 3S or 4S (or even a 5S) battery, and LiPos are also the lightest battery technology around so you won't be lugging a huge lead acid battery (also, most cheap lead acid batteries, like used in this post, are not well suited to vibrations and being shaken around, my electric scooter MK I destroyed its Lead Acid packs repeatedly )

Anyone that wants any battery tips, PM me!

I have had some serious problems with LiPo batteries, number one of these is when they explode and catch on fire. Fire in a stampede will be very messy. LiPos always have needed good ventilation when under high stress (use), now inside the stampede they wouldt have any ventilation, and i am too scared that they will fail in that environment.

As for not working with vibrations, or failure from vibrations, i used o have a off road buggy RC that i was running a pair of this type of battery to run and i never suffered any problems at all. However in my current RC buggy i have had 2 LiPo packs explode in it.

So i feel from my personal experiences this type of sealed lead acid is the right direction.

Could i use two 9 volt recharable batteries and how would i set up the wiring.

longstrikeguy wrote:Could i use two 9 volt recharable batteries and how would i set up the wiring.

There's no point using the little 9v batteries, because the capacity or life of the battery wouldn't last you a war (8hours). The wireing would be +(sled) to -(1st Battery), +(1st Battery) to -(2nd Battery)and +(2nd Battery) to -(sled).

Servulus wrote:I have had some serious problems with LiPo batteries, number one of these is when they explode and catch on fire. Fire in a stampede will be very messy. LiPos always have needed good ventilation when under high stress (use), now inside the stampede they wouldt have any ventilation, and i am too scared that they will fail in that environment.

As for not working with vibrations, or failure from vibrations, i used o have a off road buggy RC that i was running a pair of this type of battery to run and i never suffered any problems at all. However in my current RC buggy i have had 2 LiPo packs explode in it.

So i feel from my personal experiences this type of sealed lead acid is the right direction.

Tht's quite unlucky, but I don't think LiPos need that much ventilation - they're most often used in RC planes which often have incredibly confined spaces. They do need to be properly balanced charged though and with a cheap charger explosions are all too common

However I doubt the Stampede would be high stress for LiPos - based on what I've heard and seen the Stampede couldn't draw more then around 5A, and even a 1000mah LiPo plane/heli pack would be rated at 15-20A discharge, at the low end. My electric scooter LiPos put out over 14V, 5000mah capacity, and can deliver up to 100A. Delish

TheKhakinator wrote:

Servulus wrote:I have had some serious problems with LiPo batteries, number one of these is when they explode and catch on fire. Fire in a stampede will be very messy. LiPos always have needed good ventilation when under high stress (use), now inside the stampede they wouldt have any ventilation, and i am too scared that they will fail in that environment.

As for not working with vibrations, or failure from vibrations, i used o have a off road buggy RC that i was running a pair of this type of battery to run and i never suffered any problems at all. However in my current RC buggy i have had 2 LiPo packs explode in it.

So i feel from my personal experiences this type of sealed lead acid is the right direction.

Tht's quite unlucky, but I don't think LiPos need that much ventilation - they're most often used in RC planes which often have incredibly confined spaces. They do need to be properly balanced charged though and with a cheap charger explosions are all too common

However I doubt the Stampede would be high stress for LiPos - based on what I've heard and seen the Stampede couldn't draw more then around 5A, and even a 1000mah LiPo plane/heli pack would be rated at 15-20A discharge, at the low end. My electric scooter LiPos put out over 14V, 5000mah capacity, and can deliver up to 100A. Delish

In RC planes and helicopters, the battery packs are kept extremely cool by the rotation of the blades, which circulates air aound the batteries. I have RC helicopters and had a plane. RC buggies dont get enough airflow through the battery storage areas, and they also get very hot too.

LiPos are best suited to planes and helis. Not just because of the weight, but because they are well ventilated as well.

sorry, just a noob question, cause this is a lead acid battery, can u use a 12/24v car battery charger to charge it?

lockie wrote:sorry, just a noob question, cause this is a lead acid battery, can u use a 12/24v car battery charger to charge it?

I personally wouldnt think so, as the charge amps for this battery should not exceed 0.66A, where for car batteries they can handle much greater than that. Be best to ask Jaycar staff for that information.

Moonsword wrote:

cray- wrote:Using an Intellect IB1400 6cell stick pack. They charge to about 8.5V, so not a huge jump over stock, but enough to try things out since I didn't have any D cells.[/b]

I think your maths is a bit off since 6 D cells put together in series makes 9 volts, so you are running your Stampede with a bit less than that...

Ah yes, well spotted, slight miscalculation there.

As far as the battery type discussion goes, I'm just using what I have on hand from my RC "phase" a few years ago. Lipo were just starting to get popular in the RC car world and required quite extensive cash outlays to upgrade gear. I stuck with tried and tested NiMH since I wasn't racing competitively and was wasting enough money on the cars themselves.

I realise lipos are quite cheap now, but I too have heard my share of horror stories. It's one thing for a breach to happen on a moving vehicle some distance away, it's quite another for it to happen inside a plastic gun you're carrying on your person. I'd prefer not to risk it.

I know it's sort of implied with the mod forums, but younglings, please do take care when messing with this stuff.

Just back from Jaycar, with me now is one 12v SLA batt charger. Soon to be in one of my Stampede's, pics will be soon.

Edit: I know this kind of thing is looked down apon, but OMFG, my pants need a kleenex, I've never seen a drum get emptyed so fast.

Cant find me cam at the moment , will post pic's when i find it.

Edit: Pics up. I am thinking of making a voltage regulator to see just what I need to move the spring. And my Li-ion's are on their way. So a 14.8V pack with voltage regulator might be going in there. adjustable RoF for the win.

lockie wrote:sorry, just a noob question, cause this is a lead acid battery, can u use a 12/24v car battery charger to charge it?

I have used the smaller 12v battery that cost $28, from Battery World.
The charger that needs to use is a small 350mA type charger, this cost about $30 as well.

The battery takes up about half of the tray (with surgery) and leaves room for another 6v, if you want to go to 18v.
In the days since Christmas, the kids have fired off dozens of clips and the battery has shown no signs of discharge.

lefty wrote:

lockie wrote:sorry, just a noob question, cause this is a lead acid battery, can u use a 12/24v car battery charger to charge it?

I have used the smaller 12v battery that cost $28, from Battery World.
The charger that needs to use is a small 350mA type charger, this cost about $30 as well.

The battery takes up about half of the tray (with surgery) and leaves room for another 6v, if you want to go to 18v.
In the days since Christmas, the kids have fired off dozens of clips and the battery has shown no signs of discharge.

May I ask , what is the amps of the smaller SLA?

The ones Serv and myself use are 2.2 amps if I remember correctly. I haven't had to recharge the first battery, it is still going strong from the date of the first posts I made in this thread.

Gooni.

Hey Gooni,

My battery is a 1.2Ah. Since I have no idea of the draw of the Stampede motor, I really don't know how long the battery will run between charges.

lefty wrote:

lockie wrote:sorry, just a noob question, cause this is a lead acid battery, can u use a 12/24v car battery charger to charge it?

I have used the smaller 12v battery that cost $28, from Battery World.
The charger that needs to use is a small 350mA type charger, this cost about $30 as well.

The battery takes up about half of the tray (with surgery) and leaves room for another 6v, if you want to go to 18v.

From my experience, you can't go mixing different voltage batteries like that, when I did it, I had major problems with the batteries afterwards and they ended up leaking, I would not recommend it at all.

This is the charger and this is the battery I use (haven't had to use the charger yet).

I do know mixing different battery chemistry is a bad idea, and most likely the same chemistry but different voltage could cause some problems.

Gooni

Here's what I did with mine, I used a different battery. Its A 2.3Ah SLA Battery (well, its the same type of battery from a difference place) I got this one from Battery World for $30. I highly recommend them. Anyway here's some pics.



- Brad

Brad, stop making the other 12-year-olds looks so incompetent.

Pretty much the only difference in the 12v battery I have used is that it's half the size of the battery both Brad and Gooni are using.
This is reflected in the Ah capacity of my battery being half that ofBrad and Gooni's. The advantage of this is it's half the weight.

The battery is also a Century brand and can be purchased in 6v which is 1/4 the size, three of these can be fitted into the sled (with minor surgery) to achive 18v if desired.

I am no electrical engineer so may have made and error in matching a 12v and 6v battery together, however I'll check the facts and post the results.

Would also recommend not putting a 12V in series with a 6V. Most likely one will run down quicker than the other, and possibly go into reverse polarity if you don't notice it in time.

If both batteries have the same Ah then you might be able to get away with it, but also keep in mind that an older battery will have a lower capacity than a new one, so don't completely trust what's written on the label. Also, even though they're all lead acid cells, different companies or even different types of batteries within the same company may have different discharge curves. Maybe they'll be the same, but I still wouldn't try it.

If you're sure that you'll never over-discharge the smaller one to the point where it's damaged then feel free to do it, but bear in mind that what happened to Moonsword is a definite consequence if you do forget or not notice, maybe after over-discharging it several times, or maybe only once.

so how much do these batteries last between charges? or from first use?

I've played 2 wars with my Stampede on a 3800mAh battery. Mind you, it could still comfortably fire after the 2nd war.

I have a few questions, since my Dad is an electrical engineer he, can help me. But he's got a few questions. WHat rating does the motor have, will it be able to handle 12v? if so for how long? Oh and how do i recharge this battery? (how much is the charger and how long you need to charge it for)

He can get solder and iron and all those things from work.


Thanks.

Hi,

Not sure if this is the correct place to ask, but it does seem relevant.I've tried using 4 x 14500 Li-ion batteries in both my vulcan and stampede. The batteries have been tested on a multi, and output is around 15.6v. But the motor in both guns only just wind over, definitely not enough to throw
a dart. I've tried 2 batteries in 2 different barricades, with the same result. It's not a connection issue, as when I swap out the 14500's for 10 AA's, it works fine (obviously only 3 x AA's in the Barricades). I have approx 12 of the 14500's, and have tried all of them. Does anyone think maybe I've just got a dud batch of batteries?

By the way, nice mod Servulus. This may be an alternative for me to trial, probably a lot more economical than having 20 x AA batteries, plus another 10 for spares!!

clunk07 wrote:Hi,

Not sure if this is the correct place to ask, but it does seem relevant.I've tried using 4 x 14500 Li-ion batteries in both my vulcan and stampede. The batteries have been tested on a multi, and output is around 15.6v. But the motor in both guns only just wind over, definitely not enough to throw
a dart. I've tried 2 batteries in 2 different barricades, with the same result. It's not a connection issue, as when I swap out the 14500's for 10 AA's, it works fine (obviously only 3 x AA's in the Barricades). I have approx 12 of the 14500's, and have tried all of them. Does anyone think maybe I've just got a dud batch of batteries?

Do you mean those 14500 Li-ion batteries did not work in Vulcan and Stampede, but work in Barricade? If so, then make sure those batteries are unprotected version. Protected 14500 Li-ion batteries have extra circuit to prevent excess discharge, thus protected versions don't work in Stampede.

If you mean those didn't work in Vulcan, Stampede AND Barricade, then I'm not sure why. Could be true you have dud batteries. Are they charged fully just in case?

Did you solder in the wires in the terminals. It might be an issue with electrical current flow.

Xoenz wrote:I have a few questions, since my Dad is an electrical engineer he, can help me. But he's got a few questions. WHat rating does the motor have, will it be able to handle 12v? if so for how long? Oh and how do i recharge this battery? (how much is the charger and how long you need to charge it for)

He can get solder and iron and all those things from work.


Thanks.

Xoenz: the motor rating doesnt matter this mod does put extra stress on the motor, but i havent yet burnt one out. As for recharging when you buy the battery you can buy a charger for the battery at the same time.

Akimbo Assassin,

The 14500's are protected, which explains why they won't function. They won't work in any of the 3 Nerf blasters. I'll have to source some unprotected versions. Thanks for your input, it's had me stumped for a couple of days now.

Littlebro,

I have only used croc clips on the spring terminals inside the stampede and vulcan. I haven't opened up either blaster yet, but will try soldering connections when I get some days off. When I replace the 4 x 14500 battery pack with a 10 x AA pack, the blaster's function fine. I'd be surprised if it was a connection issue, but I will certainly test it out. Thanks for the help.