Replacing 3.6V Nihm 650 mAh with 3.7V Li-Ion protected

[Superlight]

The NiMH battery pack ((3 cells X 1.2V) 3.6V 650mAh) in my emergency radio (Crane CC Solar Observer) performed poorly during a recent blackout. I would like to replace it with a 3.7V 14500 Li-Ion; plan to cut and reuse the female JST XH 2-pin connector from original NiMH battery pack. I have no soldering experience, so I plan to use electrical tape to attach the 2 leads to the battery terminals.

The radio has a solar and hand crank option to charge the original NiMH battery pack; would these charging methods still be compatible with the Li-Ion? I plan to use a protected Sanyo 14500, do you guys see any problems with this? Thanks.

 

[hkeyplay16]

The NiMH battery pack ((3 cells X 1.2V) 3.6V 650mAh) in my emergency radio (Crane CC Solar Observer) performed poorly during a recent blackout. I would like to replace it with a 3.7V 14500 Li-Ion; plan to cut and reuse the female JST XH 2-pin connector from original NiMH battery pack. I have no soldering experience, so I plan to use electrical tape to attach the 2 leads to the battery terminals.

The radio has a solar and hand crank option to charge the original NiMH battery pack; would these charging methods still be compatible with the Li-Ion? I plan to use a protected Sanyo 14500, do you guys see any problems with this? Thanks.

With the voltage being close to what is needed for the radio, I don't doubt that it will work when connecting the single 3.7 volt li-ion cell, but I would use extreme caution in trying this out. If Lithium batteries overheat they can start on fire or explode. The extra heat may occur if they either charge or discharge too quickly. Even if they do not start a fire, they may be damaged.

If you give it a try, I would suggest checking the charge voltage/current when you are charging it. I would also not try it without a protection circuit directly on the battery. (these are used to keep the battery from improperly charging/discharging in a way that could damage it or cause it to explode.)

Here is a link to adafruit's information on li-poly/li-ion cells:

https://learn.adafruit.com/li-ion-and-lipoly-batteries/protection-circuitry