Kindle Battery Surgery [Success!]

[geekmaster]

And here is a guy who did this the HARD way (perhaps expensive in money, but certainly in time). He used custom hardware AND custom firmware (to replace a dead battery with a power supply):

https://www.tablix.org/~avian/blog/a..._power_supply/

Using the circuit board in the battery, there is no need for custom firmware, and any power source in the right voltage range (with enough current for 3G power "spikes") should work in place of the LiPo battery that I used.

[NullNix]

Has anyone ever told you that you are a wonderful daredevil maniac?

I mean, seriously, this sort of thing has explosions and fire and serious burns at the end of it, but you did it anyway! And it worked!

[knc1]

Originally Posted by NullNix

Has anyone ever told you that you are a wonderful daredevil maniac?

I mean, seriously, this sort of thing has explosions and fire and serious burns at the end of it, but you did it anyway! And it worked!

GM found a deal on surplus, Level A, Hazmat suits.

Plus, unlike the author of that one You-tube video, he knows enough to stand upwind.

= = = =

The real danger is from atmospheric oxygen.
If you do everything submerged in a bowl of oil (baby oil, mineral oil) -
there will be far fewer surprises (until you take things out of the oil).

- - - -

Note: Li-Ion and Li-Po do not have metallic Lithium in them.
Li-Iron Disulfide (such as: Energizer Ultimate Lithium) does.

And don't think that a simple nitrogen atmosphere work box is 'good enough' -
Lithium reacts with nitrogen.

[geekmaster]

Originally Posted by NullNix

Has anyone ever told you that you are a wonderful daredevil maniac?

I mean, seriously, this sort of thing has explosions and fire and serious burns at the end of it, but you did it anyway! And it worked!

I have done LOTS of things others wouldn't even dream to dare. My life has been full, to say the least, but I am smart, and I am careful, and I am still here to tell the tales of daring do (and to do much, much more of the same). The meek and timid do not tread where others fear to follow, but then they discover very little on their own as well...

And besides, if you want a REALLY HOT lithium fire, lithium fusion generally requires a plutonium core to get the real ignition going off with a bang (and the plutonium needs its own tritium "spark plug" too).

But yeah, if you pack a large enough energy into a small enough device, and lithium battery technology is rather good at that, where do you draw the line between "fast discharge" and "slow explosion"? That heavy foil pack that all LiPos are sealed inside is generally an adequate "firewall", by design (with LiPo fires usually caused by damage to that foil package).

I have LiPo charging bags, I use for my big LiPo batteries, but apparently even they are inadequate at times.

The key here is that I am aware of the POTENTIAL danger (and I posted those videos above to make you aware too). HOWEVER, these are really small batteries, and unless you want to risk having a lithium battery fire in your purse or pocket, just be careful and try not to poke holes in it. And like me, it is good to keep a fire extinguisher (rated for electrical fires) handy near your workspace.

In reality, lithium fires are pretty rare -- to the point that (American) rules about shipping lithium batteries on commercial airlines have been greatly relaxed in recent years, and LiPo fires are quite rare (except some special cases like cheap Chinese "hoverboard" knock-offs) especially with them being used in devices carried in pockets every day by millions of people.

EDIT: And for safety, a mostly-discharged lithium battery does not contain stored energy needed to start a fire. That is one reason LiPo batteries have a "shipping mode" that keeps them discharged to 40-percent capacity. Most LiPo fires are caused from INAPPROPRIATE overcharging, overheating, or physical damage (such as after an R/C vehicle crash). Kindle diagnostics even have a "shipping mode" you can select, but beware that it also does a factory reset. LiPo batteries are also supposed to have a longer shelf-life when stored at 40-percent charge, besides being much safer than when stored with a full charge. Just remember, when doing "dangerous stuff" (like getting out of bed in the morning), be knowledgeable, be safe, be sane, and be consensual when dealing with the lives and the rights of others...

EDIT2: Also, FYI, when I noticed that I had punctured the swollen metal foil jacket of that PW3 LiPo battery while using a knife to try to pry up the corners of the plastic wrapper, I IMMEDIATELY pressed all the foil down, intentionally releasing the gas inside (careful to not inhale it). Why did I do that? My concern was that with that large air pocket inside, oxygen would leak in and react with any exposed reactive materials inside. Pressing it as empty as I could would eliminate most of the room for oxygen to enter, also protecting surface exposure and unwanted chemical reactions. Because it was discharged, it might not have been necessary, but better safe than sorry. You know, playing it safe by playing it smart, which is why I am still alive after all these years of doing the "unthinkable" just for "fun" (well, actually, for SCIENCE!).

[geekmaster]

Originally Posted by knc1

[...]The real danger is from atmospheric oxygen.
If you do everything submerged in a bowl of oil (baby oil, mineral oil) -
there will be far fewer surprises (until you take things out of the oil). [...]

But it is always such a hassle to clean all that mineral oil off your SCUBA gear when you are done.

And before you ask, yes, I *am* a certified SCUBA diver (and certified in many other things as well, part of what keeps me alive, besides my thirst for knowledge, novelty, discovery, recognition, and mobileread karma points). And my software runs inside machines all over the world, handling things you touch almost every day, and I had an "Industry-Wide Reputation", and my (real) name is recorded inside two Mars rovers -- but one of them got stuck and is now of severly limited utility...

[Cinisajoy]

On batteries, did you hear about the girl that put the wrong battery in her cell phone then put it under her pillow to charge?
Even though it was obviously user error, the maker of the phone replaced both the phone and the pillow.

Oh not a battery but electricity, I scared the delivery guys on some furniture. The power cord had gotten cut so my husband put it back together. He didn't get one side secured good. I noticed this and went to put it back together. No, I didn't unplug it. I wasn't worried. I couldn't have touched the hot wire if I had wanted to. Only after seeing the looks on those guys faces did I unplug.

[geekmaster]

Batteries (and phones) get rather hot while charging. Putting it under a pillow while charging is asking for trouble. The heat has nowhere to go -- especially if it was a high-current quick charger, like what comes with expensive smartphones.

PEBKAC, for sure. But easier to blame the technology, eh?

I have installed electrical outlets at work when the power could not be cut -- just wear appropriate rubber gloves. Another rule I learned when working inside operating high-voltage equipment (such as when tuning it) is to keep one hand in your pocket, so the electricity cannot pass between your hands into your heart. Stand or kneel on a rubber mat on concrete floors, also to prevent an electric path through your heart. Such rules were taught to children back before ambulance chasing lawyers got to make the rules...

Idiocracy is on the rise. Now, where did I put my Brawndo?

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by geekmaster

Batteries (and phones) get rather hot while charging. Putting it under a pillow while charging is asking for trouble. The heat has nowhere to go -- especially if it was a high-current quick charger, like what comes with expensive smartphones.

PEBKAC, for sure. But easier to blame the technology, eh?

I have installed electrical outlets at work when the power could not be cut -- just wear appropriate rubber gloves. Another rule I learned when working inside operating high-voltage equipment (such as when tuning it) is to keep one hand in your pocket, so the electricity cannot pass between your hands into your heart. Stand or kneel on a robber mat on concrete floors, also to prevent an electric path through your heart. Such rules were taught to children back before ambulance chasing lawyers got to make the rules...

Idiocracy is on the rise. Now, where did I put my Brawndo?

Why do I think I have heard about you? I don't remember if it was on the internet or on TV, but I think you were featured on the 10 smartest people in the world.

[geekmaster]

Originally Posted by Cinisajoy

Why do I think I have heard about you? I don't remember if it was on the internet or on TV, but I think you were featured on the 10 smartest people in the world.

Actually, certain professionally measured tests claim my IQ is "unprecedented, and too high to measure accurately". And even after "truncating" two of the most important scores to factor into IQ, I was still "one out of five million" (which means quite literally that there are many hundreds of folks smarter than me out there, not just nine or ten -- well, except for that "truncation" factor, which might make me "number one", whatever that means). And more than one "shrink" said they would be "filthy rich" if they had a tiny portion of what I have left after my traumatic brain injury (why I had those tests in the first place). But what is money anyway, when you cannot buy happiness?

And really, when you take hands-on reality into account, what good is test-taking ability when daily life and social situations make no logical sense? "Smart" is a relative thing. Friends and family are upset that I never got rich enough to support them in style -- but money was so artificial and meaningless to me (except now that I finally NEED some). Life is "highly illogical". I get too easily trapped and befuddled by internet trolls (or whatever interests my "muse" pushes into my mind). That supposedly "much too high" IQ just makes me feel guilty I cannot save the world from itself. The shrinks finally convinced me that saving the world is not my job -- the dinosaurs died off making room for us to evolve, and when we go extinct, we will leave room for the next dominant species. I can accept that...

My "industry-wide reputation" was mostly known in corporate boardrooms, not on TV. I do not watch TV. And my past accomplishments matter far less than the great things I have ahead of me. Sadly, even as a child (when gradeschool teachers sent Calculus books home with me, and stuff like that), I knew THEN that I already had enough projects to last me SIX lifetimes. Now it is in the hundreds...

I did have one of my own projects featured on the cover of Scientific American magazine, but my name was nowhere to be found -- my "bosses" took all the credit. And many other accomplishments too, but they are all in the past. Existential dilemmas get in the way of meaningful existence. Do I want to leave my mark on the world, or shall I tread lightly and not disturb the natural order?

My "potential" is meaningless if it remains unrealized, and it is a huge source of guilt for all the things I "could" have done. And as I age, life just keeps getting more difficult, not easier. I cannot trade this old body in on a new one, so I need a team of young folks to help me achieve my goals. But where are they?

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by geekmaster

Actually, certain professionally measured tests claim my IQ is "unprecedented, and too high to measure accurately". But really, what good is test-taking ability when daily life and social situations make no logical sense? Life is "highly illogical". My "industry-wide reputiation" was mostly known in corporate boardrooms, not on TV. I do not watch TV...

You are not missing much by not watching TV.
Found it.
It was on the internet.
http://anonhq.com/10-most-intelligen...e-alive-today/
I thought you were one of these people.
But it seems the industry kept you hidden.

[geekmaster]

Originally Posted by Cinisajoy

You are not missing much by not watching TV. [...]

https://www.facebook.com/robwen1/posts/1364954610185130

[knc1]

Originally Posted by Cinisajoy

Why do I think I have heard about you? I don't remember if it was on the internet or on TV, but I think you were featured on the 10 smartest people in the world.

You might be thinking of the "Club of Rome" which was founded in 1968 with 12 members.

Membership was (is?) "by invitation" only.

But since those times, their activities have gotten into the public eye ('news') on several notable occasions.

[Cinisajoy]

Originally Posted by geekmaster

https://www.facebook.com/robwen1/posts/1364954610185130

You forgot one little thing. TV advertising also helps to keep the poor poor because they think they need everything shown on TV.
My personal gripe is all the alcohol commercials. They took cigarette ads off because they were supposedly influencing the younger ones to smoke. Alcohol ads do pretty much the same thing. Not to mention associated diseases, deaths and family upheaval that alcohol contributes too.

Ok end of rant.

[geekmaster]

Originally Posted by knc1

You might be thinking of the "Club of Rome" which was founded in 1968 with 12 members.

Membership was (is?) "by invitation" only.

But since those times, their activities have gotten into the public eye ('news') on several notable occasions.

I have a book on the "Club of Rome" from decades back. A nasty group of folks there, as I recall. They wanted to kill off most of the population of the planet. Some folks claim they engineered AIDS. No, I am not one of them.

When I was a child my father gave me a book about the Federal Reserve System, which greatly influenced my views on our debased money (along with abandoning "silver certificates" and taking the silver out of our coins when I was young). Monopoly money, but all printed with green and black ink (though with the new tinted paper they are attempting to make it look more like what it really represents -- play money). But even so, I have no immediate plans to throw the money lenders out of the temple.

And "too big to fail" is really "too big to exist", considering that they broke up "Bell Telephone" and slapped Microsoft on the wrist (for monopolistic practices) back in the day. But these days we have the best governement money can buy, so the "golden rule" (upon which I based my life) ain't what it used to be -- now it is "he who has the gold makes the rules". Bailing out the rich crooks who stole our homes and our life savings seems more than evil, especially when it means taking that tax money out of the pockets of the victims, while the "legitimized-crooks" invest in tax havens (e.g. 1209 North Orange Street in Wilmington).

But really, what I have learned over my lifetime, is that those you help most seem least likely to help you in return. The golden rule is a good theory, but a sham in practice. Being a "gentle soul" just makes me an "easy mark" (the story of my life). One friend even admitted he avoids me because he feels guilty he can never repay me...

But why worry about history, or politics, or money, when technology is so soothing to my mind?

[knc1]

Originally Posted by geekmaster

I have a book on the "Club of Rome" from decades back. A nasty group of folks there, as I recall.

That isn't my recollection.

Originally Posted by geekmaster

They wanted to kill off most of the population of the planet.

I've mellowed, I'll settle for exterminating a few of my immediate neighbors.

Originally Posted by geekmaster

Some folks claim they engineered AIDS.

Some folks (still) claim the earth is flat. So what?

Originally Posted by geekmaster

No, I am not one of them.

I declined their invitation.
But not for any of the reasons above.

Originally Posted by geekmaster

- - - - -
And "too big to fail" is really "too big to exist", considering that they broke up "Bell Telephone"

That one I will admit too - I am one of the "they".
And that adventure is related to my declining the above invitation.

My first thought was, that they wanted a "pipeline" into the policy making involved in the divestiture process.
I may be wrong and may be doing them a great injustice, they might just have wanted an insider view of what was going on.

Originally Posted by geekmaster

- - - - -
Being a "gentle soul" just makes me an "easy mark" (the story of my life).
- - - -

The inability to distinguish between generosity and gullibility.
I think it is an acquired personality defect.

Perhaps the best wording of how to deal with such people is:

Originally Posted by Al Capone

I'm a kind person, I'm kind to everyone, but if you are unkind to me, then kindness is not what you'll remember me for.

My translation:
Kill the first few that abuse your kindness, the rest will get the idea.

#10,500 unless it gets moderated away