Make the best busbars yourself! DIY custom copper busbars easy way.

copper flat bars: www.onlinemetals.com/en/buy/c...

[@tomstdenis]

Some tips you didn't mention. 1. If you don't have a drill press make sure you secure the bar well when you drill it. The bar will want to torque out of your hand. Using pliers or a clamp or vice is a really good idea. 2. When cutting the bars only use the first prototype as your template for length/hole marking. If you use "the last one you cut" your measurements will eventually drift.

[@SolarEngineering]

right, worth to mention, thanks.

[@bramboturham]

@@SolarEngineering also be carefull not to short your batteries when measuring at 2:41 kzbin.info/www/bejne/aKaVoqSXd9V3jbc :)

[@GoatZilla]

Probably easier to drill the holes before cutting them apart. It's easier to hold down a big piece than a small piece.

[@benkanobe7500]

Thank you for the demo and the link!

[@quinten5805]

Thank you so much for the very helpful info!

[@CrystalClearSQL]

That was awesome! Thank you thank you!

[@The.2.Minute-Man]

223: I did much the same but used an orbital sander .. Enjoyed .. Liked and learned more as with all your videos.Thank you 👍👍

[@obfuscated3090]

A flap disc on the angle grinder leaves a nicely polished surface making it ideal for both grinding and surface cleanup.

[@SolarEngineering]

thanks!

[@phennexion]

Nice! I need to make some for some new prismatics I got - so thanks for the video!

[@SolarEngineering]

right on time :)

[@Atr42Greasemonkey]

Thank you my friend. Its funny I was just going to start researching where to get these.

[@SolarEngineering]

Glad I could help

[@lennieadi]

Great stuff. Love it. I'm not technical but your videos are so clear that I'm inspired to try in the future when my time comes. I'm slowly becoming addicted to learning this stuff. 🇬🇧🇯🇲👍🏾

[@SolarEngineering]

glad that you liked video

[@lennieadi]

@@SolarEngineering 👍🏾

[@readyhouse]

I made these using a large bolt cutter its not real tidy but works fine - very quick and simple - also I used a 12 mm drill bit in the cordless drill to remove the bur -

[@toobglued]

easy fast accurate way to cut aluminum and copper is right on the chop saw. works slick.

[@sreekumarUSA]

Thank you. Good job.

[@SolarEngineering]

thanks

[@MattLesak]

Nice work!

[@SolarEngineering]

thanks!

[@kiberrussa]

Молодец! Для большей безопасности я бы попробовал, при наличии 3d-принтера напечатать пластиковые заглушки, которые надеваются на медные шины.

[@GregOnSummit]

Very nice .. 1mm more in thickness and you'll have the same resistance with an aluminum buss bar. Good stuff 👍

[@steveyoung8992]

Top job mate 👍👍👍

[@SolarEngineering]

Thanks

[@charlesrg]

How any amps would each busbar handle ? Do you need to coat to avoid oxidation ?

[@oogie-boogie]

great vid,,keep up the great work,,stay safe

[@SolarEngineering]

thanks.

[@DutchAussieProductions]

Thanks for the video. You have a new subscriber. Have a nice day.

[@SolarEngineering]

Thanks for the sub!

[@peter572]

Can copper touch aluminum? I read about long-term corrosion about the 2 metals, thus the connection will be poor. Plus a fixed length connection may be put catastrophic stress in battery posts as the cells expand (read datasheet, min expansion is normal). I have watched a video where a flexible copper busbar with a tin stamped connector had the smallest resistance.

[@frederick6008]

Use 3/4" copper pipe and flatten it.

[@hommerdalor6301]

Good job. I sand and than mate all my high current connections, this way you get the best and largest contact surface, less resistance, best efficiency. Even more with those battery posts which supports only low torque. Your bussbars being pretty stiff, you should tight the cells together to not damage the posts. Others would just throw all together without care and say it will be fine. Keep on the good job.

[@SolarEngineering]

do you have a solution in mind how to compress cells? and thanks for the feedback.

[@hommerdalor6301]

Yes, and no. :) . I put double sided tape between the cells, 2 vertical strips near the edges. I put the cells upside down on a non conductive flat surface, so all the posts are the same level. Like that, you get 1 block. With bumper protection tape, I wrap around along the outer edge of the posts, the tape is 7 cm wide, with 2 cm from edge to post, we are with 5 cm left dangling in the void, cut triangles out of the hooks, and we have 4 latches that can be nicely folded against the sides and add rigidity to the block. there's a gap of about 3-4 mm between the cells, witch leaves air circulation, so we can cool or warm the battery, there is no physical contact between the cells.

[@rwhipple73]

What is the heat shrink protecting? You still have the battery terminal protruding up.....

[@MrDenisJoshua]

Great video... Maybe next time it will be better if you first make the holes and then cut it :-) It will be easier to make holes when the bar is longer.

[@SolarEngineering]

good advice, will be much easier.

[@mahkutaprawira2610]

hii,if we plan made connector bussbar for prismatic laser welding spot, so that we dont need to broke the alumunium, so can we use this alumunium for connector?

[@ForwardGuidance]

What's the benefit to sanding passed 80 grit? Just to make it pretty, because I would have stopped at 80 and I wouldn't have put the shrink wrap on since it doesn't appear to make much difference, there is still quite a bit of metal to avoid on the top so just need to be care with or without shrink wrap.

[@SolarEngineering]

Hi there, I did sanding to remove marks from jaw pliers and drill bit, to have max contact point between terminal and busbar. This step could be avoided if you do countersinking, and use vice to hold busbar while drilling. I think heat shrink still makes sense, especially on longer busbars.

[@peerperemans897]

Measuring heart to heart in the digital age: measure one stud and set your caliper to zero. Now measure the overall size...that's how its done.

[@krg038]

Are you concerned that battery swelling will pull on the lugs since the hole alignment is perfect? Thanks for the video.

[@SolarEngineering]

If you plan to push/pull heavy amps through the pack, it's better to fix cells together (something like I did here: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eaiQZn6ZgKh-sK8)

[@krg038]

@@SolarEngineering agreed. I saw that.. I found not compressing and reconfiguring the pack so cells are not side by side but packed length wise (narrow sides touching) Life might be shorter but keeping in the 80-85% range of use is a long life. I appreciate your videos.

[@knightslogisticsltd]

Hi, thanks for the video. please tell us where you purchased the lithium batteries, and is it really safe and economical to make your own batteries for a campervan conversion?

[@ForbiddTV]

There are lots of people doing just that, but already built 12V batteries complete with enclosures and a BMS are not much more than building your own these days. There are hundreds of educational videos on YT showing how to make your own, many with conflicting information and controversy.

[@daniele9160]

Hi, some advice, I need to extend an equipotential bar, is it possible to join it with two 8 bolts instead of doing it all over again? or is it not recommended? Thank you

[@strengthwisdom]

Good morning 🌞. Can we use another material like steal, aluminium, Lead etc;

[@SolarEngineering]

Hi, copper has best conductivity. but yeah busbars can be made from other metals too.

[@richt2633]

Is the 1/8 x 5/8 copper flat bar sufficient for a LiFe 280AH rated cell (8 cells in series) or what size bar do you suggest? GREAT VIDEO. Cheers

[@SolarEngineering]

You could push roughly 200Amps through this size. To size busbar you'll need to calculate how many amps you are planning to pull from the battery.

[@richt2633]

@@SolarEngineering That’ll work, max is 160 amps. Thnx

[@USA-GreedyMenOfNoIntegrity]

@@richt2633 You asked him, then looked it up yourself. What he said 200 Amps is max. If you need 160-200 amps, then I’d suggest you build at least two batteries in parallel for extended cell and BMS life.

[@bigboypapaboy]

do you think a hole saw would be better than a drill bit?

[@SolarEngineering]

for this size not sure, maybe for bigger studs would make sense.

[@marygeorgina3980]

How do you know the amperage it can carry

[@ForbiddTV]

Find the cross section in H x W then consult a conductor size chart online.

[@bigboypapaboy]

are you going to plate these in another metal for anti corrosion?

[@SolarEngineering]

no, using it as it is.

[@bigboypapaboy]

@@SolarEngineering sorry im new to bus bars, arent you scared it will oxidize and corrode over time?

[@Jennifer-007]

Great video, the 6 thumbs down are obviously from welding/inverter cable and connector company employees... LOL

[@SolarEngineering]

ha-ha for sure might be 👍

[@heidileask]

How do I work out what size copper bar I need for our setup? I need 10 bolts on each bar, I've got 450ah of lithium and run a 3000w inverter. Thanks!

[@ForbiddTV]

Consult conductor capacity charts online.

[@bigboypapaboy]

what kind of vacuum do you use??

[@SolarEngineering]

it's just RIDGID shop vac

[@olafschermann1592]

Awesome idea! Those busbars that come with the cells are trash.

[@RJ-cc1fz]

Cheaper to use type k copper pipe and flatten it in a vise. Or flatten with sledge hammer. Or do both.

[@vladbagdasarov1672]

spending 400-700 on batteries and $16 dollars for thick quality buss bars is too expensive?

[@RJ-cc1fz]

@@vladbagdasarov1672 his batteries for the main battery bank was like $6000. I’m saying for a bigger battery buying flat copper stock can get really expensive.

[@vladbagdasarov1672]

@@RJ-cc1fz He has 48 Batteries, even if you needed two buss bars per battery you're talking under $100 bucks.

[@RJ-cc1fz]

@@vladbagdasarov1672 A copper pipe is a lot cheaper. What is your point?

[@vladbagdasarov1672]

@@RJ-cc1fz Dude when paying $6k for batteries you'd be worried about saving $50-60 bucks on making janky buss bars? If you haven't gotten the point yet then I commend your stubborn reluctance to acknowlege simple logic.

[@man4evil]

Отлично сделал!

[@SolarEngineering]

спасибо )

[@man4evil]

@@SolarEngineering с удовольствием смотрю, очень информативно. благодаря тебе ко мне едут 280амперные батареи :)

[@SolarEngineering]

@@man4evil на сегодняшний день лучшие ячейки по $/Ah, поздравляю!

[@3dmixer552]

what is the point of the heat shrink? The nuts are exposed anyway.

[@SolarEngineering]

for these busbars not much (as I said in the video), I think for longer busbars it still makes sense even with exposed nuts. It will take just a few minutes of work and add some extra safety. On this note, I'm thinking about 3d printing some covers for nuts, then busbars will be fully insulated.

[@kenpole1840]

It clearly minimizes (but doesn't eliminate) the potential for a short caused by a dropped tool -- which I did on my boat last summer! Much bad language.

[@jokkiossaka3306]

@@kenpole1840 why you don't use plexiglass over the battery's? Use your brain

[@anthonycraig274]

I was wondering, why did you use copper instead of aluminium? I understand that copper is a better conductor but your terminals are aluminium and your bolts are steel. It seams to be a lot of elements. I assume I am making incorrect assumptions.

[@SolarEngineering]

Hi Anthony, you are right about copper - mainly used as a better conductor. I don't see any reaction of copper with nuts or terminals.

[@HG-Pilot]

Buddy, invest in some gloves and eye protection! Specially when using angle grinder.

[@lusa3002]

Never use gloves when using rotative power tools, that's a gold rule.

[@HG-Pilot]

@@lusa3002 I guess angle grinder is the exception to the golden rule. Regardless, it is evident that safety was not a part of this video.

[@ridiculous9730]

So what size copper bar on the website did you use?

[@SolarEngineering]

Depends of the battery size and ampacity, but that one is universal: 0.125" x 0.75".

[@user-tv1fk6ho3l]

Привет из России!

[@sarthak5]

Can I use aluminum bus bar? It will cheaper and so as bad.

[@SolarEngineering]

sure, just make sure it's enough size for amps you are planning to push through it.

[@svongsa]

I think rounding out the corners is too much trouble! Nice though.

[@SolarEngineering]

for sure!

[@arkatub]

Not to be a shill, but would you be interested in a sample of my battery project/product?

[@SolarEngineering]

what is the parameters/price for the battery?

[@arkatub]

@@SolarEngineering It is 18650 holder, stores 140 cells (in style) for £90, you could do 1kWh for £150? see my channel.

[@SolarEngineering]

@@arkatub you did a really great job creating these batteries. So neat and elegant cases!

[@arkatub]

@@SolarEngineering thanks, mostly focused on optimizing production right now.

[@rickrandom716]

1 dollar each ? So your time invested is free!

[@SolarEngineering]

build for myself :)

[@joevasquez1776]

I make 150 in three hours..... But I'm bad at math so help me out. And also I have no life and nothing to do after work......

[@josepeixoto3384]

sorry,friend,you don't know how to use the caliper well ,you don't know how to calculate copper busbars...the rest i won't see look: copper bar 1.6 mm x 10 mm is 16 mm2, 1077 mOhm/ meter good for 105 Amps DC ººº 12.5 x 1.6 125 ADC ººº 16 x 1.6 155 ADC ºººº20 x 1.6 185 ADC ºººº25 x 1.6 225 ADC dr google....