Close
0%
0%

Dewalt 20v to Ryobi 18v Tool Battery Adapter

Using off the shelf parts and minimal tools to use one brand's batteries on another's tools, while retaining cell protection

Similar projects worth following
I own a metal fab shop and have invested heavily in the Dewalt 20v and 60v tool lines, including purchasing a large number of batteries as I abhor tripping on cords and sometimes work on the road for extended periods of time.

Recently Ryobi has come out with some tools in their 18v lineup that I wanted to add to my shop, but didn't want to start purchasing new batteries, so I got to thinking about making an adapter.

When DeWalt released their 20v to 18v adapter I knew I could make that work. Lithium Ion batteries need protection from over discharge conditions and after taking apart a DeWalt 20v battery and tool, I found that the protection is in the tool, not the battery. On the other hand, Ryobi retained the same form factor when introducing Lithium Ion batteries so I suspected their cell protection must be in the battery. I opened one and found out I was correct.

I detail the process of building the adapter below and one youtube at 42fab

Once I had determined that the Ryobi 18v tools were just looking for an 18v source and not using any authenticity checks to make sure they had a real battery (as most newer tools do), it seemed like there was nothing standing between making this project a reality other than drilling holes, soldering wires, and a bunch of epoxy.

The only really tricky thing was getting the wires connected as the wires coming off the DeWalt 20-18v adapter and the ryobi battery are rather short, but once that was done, I tested everything and it worked, so I used a good amount of epoxy to attached the 20v/female part of the DeWalt adapter to the shell of the gutted Ryobi battery and it worked.

  • 1 × Dewalt 20v to 18v Adapter Knockoffs work too, but genuine is built better
  • 1 × Gutted Ryobi 18v Battery Found in recycling bin
  • 1 × Heat Shrink Tubing
  • 1 × Solder
  • 1 × Epoxy

  • 1
    Step 1

    Please see 

View all instructions

Enjoy this project?

Share

Discussions

Similar Projects

Does this project spark your interest?

Become a member to follow this project and never miss any updates