Wall to Battery Adapter – Cordless Tool Hybrid

Hi everyone,

I’ve been entertaining the idea of making a wall to battery adapter for cordless tools for a while now. The idea is that an adapter can plug into the tool and then connect to the wall outlet to replace a dead battery (until the battery is recharged). 

I finally got around to it and have built a few of these for Ryobi and Dewalt tool systems. Right now, all the electronics are in a hollowed out battery case, so the adapter can fit normally into a drill/jigsaw/circular saw etc (no external power brick). They work really well, they seem to have the same power as normal battery operation (maybe a little more?). This got me thinking, that I could start selling these (~$40-$50) if there is interest out there, so any feedback would be appreciated. Feel free to ask questions.

Thanks,

Aaron

ActoDcTool wrote:

Hi everyone,
 
I’ve been entertaining the idea of making a wall to battery adapter for cordless tools for a while now. The idea is that an adapter can plug into the tool and then connect to the wall outlet to replace a dead battery (until the battery is recharged). 
 
I finally got around to it and have built a few of these for Ryobi and Dewalt tool systems. Right now, all the electronics are in a hollowed out battery case, so the adapter can fit normally into a drill/jigsaw/circular saw etc (no external power brick). They work really well, they seem to have the same power as normal battery operation (maybe a little more?). This got me thinking, that I could start selling these (~$40-$50) if there is interest out there, so any feedback would be appreciated. Feel free to ask questions.
 
Thanks,
 
Aaron

Hi, 

Sorry for the delay, I’ve been on travel for work.

Here’s a picture, it’s as simple as it sounds! It fit’s into any Ryobi tool because I used an old Ryobi case.  

How would they handle a cordless angle grinder? Could they keep up with the power draw? That would be a great tool to have one for.

Is the weight comparable to a battery? 

Yeah, it supplies the angle grinder with plenty of power! I don’t use them much so I had my neighbor make sure it could still grind the same. He says they’re the same, but I’m not completely satisfied with that; I’m going to do a timed test soon to make sure. 

As for the weight, the attachments weight is roughly 1/3 compared to a battery pack. That’s based purely off my hands, sorry I don’t have a small scale.

So, are these for sale?

Not yet, I just curious if anyone out there is interested. Right now, I’ve just given them to friends and family for their use.

Doesn’t a 2 foot tether defeat the purpose of cordless?

As cheap as batteries are, I think most people would buy a spare batteriy, as opposed to a converter.


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Mordekyle wrote:

6 hours ago, Mordekyle said:

Doesn’t a 2 foot tether defeat the purpose of cordless?

As cheap as batteries are, I think most people would buy a spare batteriy, as opposed to a converter.


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Some tools like a router, a sander, a grinder, a vacuum, … have a pretty short run time on a battery. Having an adapter would make lot of sense when you want to run the tool in the shop without continously swapping batteries. And it’s better than having both cordless and corded tools if you ask me… 

There is (or at least was) a brand of tools available here thats range of tools came with both batteries and power supply.

Pouet wrote:

On 4/6/2018 at 1:37 PM, Pouet said:

Some tools like a router, a sander, a grinder, a vacuum, … have a pretty short run time on a battery. Having an adapter would make lot of sense when you want to run the tool in the shop without continously swapping batteries. And it’s better than having both cordless and corded tools if you ask me… 

Most people that own a cordless router, grinder or sander already own a corded version imo. I own a slew of cordless tools for convenience. Plugging them in would defeat the purpose.

SetBuilder wrote:

On 4/12/2018 at 11:54 AM, SetBuilder said:

Most people that own a cordless router, grinder or sander already own a corded version imo. I own a slew of cordless tools for convenience. Plugging them in would defeat the purpose.

Yeah, but this means that you only need one tool instead of two. Why have a corded tool when you can have one that can be corded, but doesn’t have to be?

My point was people usually buy corded then buy Cordless. I owned two corded Milwaukee sawzalls before I bought a cordless one. I owned 3 corded circular saws before a cordless, 2 corded grinders before a cordless. There is not much of a market for corded grinders circular saws etc. So I just keep them around the house and my cordless stuff is for work and there is a slew of corded tools there as well.  

Here is my take on the situation:

The tools you have been testing with your adapter are relatively low draw tools. I can work with my driver all day with one battery. 

I would love an adapter for my dewalt table saw. It eats batteries.

The problem is, the size transformer (and related electronics) to run a high draw tool (like the table saw) would be big. Too big to fit into a battery case. I don’t know the specs, but the table saw probably draws 35-50 Amps on startup (on 60 Volts) Thats an arc welder sized transformer. 

A 30 or 40 Lb “adapter” is no longer convenient. 

Also, The newer cordless tools are drawing more power than a standard household outlet will supply (albeit for a short time). Remember, an outlet will supply 1800w continuously. The battery powered tool can draw more, because there is no breaker to trip. (grossly oversimplified).