Build a 4 x AA USB Altoids Battery

Step 3 (Almost) Total Destruction.

Four AA batteries can fit comfortably in the space provided by the good people at the Callard & Bowser company. However, the battery holders will not. We'll have to teach them a little lesson in space management!

Take the wire-cutters and carefully cut the ends and middle part off. Take a piece of fine sandpaper and rough up the surfaces that we're going to adhere to the metal.

Start off by sanding the inside of the tin. We want a nice rough surface for the super glue to hold onto.

You'll want to arrange the holders so that the batteries will be in a series circuit (5-Volts.) Make sure there are no shorts. The metal back of each contact is recessed in the plastic so shorts are unlikely, but it won't hurt to make absolutely sure there isn't any metal on metal.

Gluing the battery contacts to the tin is almost an art, so all I can tell you is try your best to keep the alignment of the 3 parts in true. Use a junk battery and glue on one piece at a time. The glue sets PERMANENTLY in about 10 seconds.

Comments

[peterjt]

hey i have built something like this and if you can get a 4 AA batt pack at like radioshack it will fit with minimal perswasion, then bend back into place, and also unfortunately this design will not charge an ipod touch or newer ipods.

[pancho del rancho]

can we do this with a AAA batery holder break it like in the picture above and put AA's instead of AAA;s since it would fit

[Zem]

Couldn't you take a 4 AA battery holder, and do the same thing?

[kroggiee]

kroggiee here email ur reply at [e-mail]

[kroggiee]

hey, i am building this and i dont know what kind of altoids tin you used but i took a 4 battery holder and it fits in a peppermint altoids tin just fine mabey you should try it i still like destroying things though