Tabs: Temporary quick fix for loose tabs/broken battery box

[Ultrarobotman]

Hi guys. I thought maybe someone would like to try this. I have two robots that have some plastic broken out around the tension battery terminals, making it almost impossible to make contact with the batteries. Not even wanting to tackle the huge job of replacing the entire battery box with what will probably be from a cheaper toy with steel springs rather than tabs, I came up with this idea and it works quite well. I cut a piece off of a copper-coated scouring pad, basically copper-coated steel wool. I wanted the old-fashioned pure copper pads (which would be ideal), but settled for these from Wal-Mart. I cut them to fit each hole, made sure each piece was free from tiny loose strands that could fall inside the toy and make thier way to the gears, and also, made very sure no strands contact the metal frame of the robot (or the other tension tab) which could cause a short. This should be checked each time batteries are inserted. This trick worked very well for me and saved TONS of work. I am of course always careful now of not using over-sized batteries now, even though I could swear for some reason some battery lids close tighter than they should..

[PeeBee]

I recall that I used aluminiumfoil for that kind of thing when I was young

[Ultrarobotman]

Yup, foil was always a first choice, being so handy but it won't "fill in the hole" and is not springy like this stuff. This will retain it's tension on the battery, unlike aluminum foil !

[Roboto]

Sometimes the energizers seem to look bigger. Yes I also check before using you never know.