Ryobi 6-Port Battery Charger

[Stormbringer]

....Yes I said 6

Spyed this thing at the Borg tonight. Can't figure why Ryobi would come out with this as I would think the only buyer would be contractors (what shall they do with all their single lithium ion chargers). I didn't think ryobi was big with contractors. Not a knock against Ryobi (I have many of their One+ tools) but most builders I know favor DeWalt, Makita or MW.

Features are pretty cool but my single charger does a fine (quick enough) job by itself.

Size was about 12" X 24"
Price, btw, was $119.

Ryobi BCS-618 6 Port battery Charger Maintenance Station Features

• Dual chemistry charger suitable for Lithium Ion and NiCad batteries.
• Maintenance station - tops up the batteries every 5 days.
• Fits all 6 batteries.
• Electronic feedback shows status of each battery; charging, charged, error.
• Systematic battery recharger (charges 1st battery in 1 hour, 2nd battery in the next hour etc).
• Wall Mountable.
• Carry Handle.

[pelligrini]

I don't see a big market for it. That's a lot of batteries.

The 5 day maintenance station is a cool.

[Jim Frye]

Ryobi Contractor Use...

....Yes I said 6

Spyed this thing at the Borg tonight. Can't figure why Ryobi would come out with this as I would think the only buyer would be contractors (what shall they do with all their single lithium ion chargers). I didn't think ryobi was big with contractors. Not a knock against Ryobi (I have many of their One+ tools) but most builders I know favor DeWalt, Makita or MW.

Features are pretty cool but my single charger does a fine (quick enough) job by itself.

I have seen several tradesmen using Ryobi cordless tools. The Pella window installers that did my house two years ago used them. They had a row of chargers in the work truck to support the five crewmen. I built my own six pack tote with two chargers some time ago to support me on job sites. I currently have six NiCad packs and five LiOn packs. The LiOn packs are ever so slightly wider than the One+ NiCad packs and don't fit in my tote. Neither do the new dual chemistry chargers. I've been looking for a plastic tote that I could modify to carry the larger packs and larger chargers (I have two of those). Here's a couple of images of my current battery tote. One of the advantages of having two chargers is that if I blow a fuse in one, I don't have to stop work and tear down the charger to replace the blown fuse. The black battery protective caps are number 22 rubber crutch tips.

[Gator95]

I've seen multiple small-scale contractors with Ryobi cordless tools. Think the appeal of this is also the battery storage function when mounted to the wall, and the fact it will top off the NiCads every now and then so they are ready to go. Now that I have the Li batteries the NiCads drain on shelf frustrates the heck out of me.

I'd buy on on clearance for ~$30. Not shelling out $70-100 though.

[Uncle Cracker]

Not so fast... Some folks (like me, for instance) bought a multi-tool kit, but it only came with one charger. So, when I added 2 batteries to the 2 that came with the kit (the kit has 6 tools), that left me with six tools, 4 batteries, and still only one charger. I had to go and get a second one. I would have sprung for one like this in a heartbeat, but my tools are DW, so instead I bought one of their double chargers, and have not regretted it. While I agree that those who bought tools one at a time and have a charger for each might not find a charger like this much of an improvement, I think the assessment that it has no market might be a little exaggerated...

[Bill in Buena Park]

I agree with UC - small shops that use Ryobi (which includes many school district maintenance shops, etc.) would create a market.

But I wonder why they haven't thought to modularize these. If you look at the design, it appears you could start with a dual-charger, and buy extra dual extensions to add (chain) on as needed. Put in a good transformer and a hefty bus to handle up to, say, 3 or 4 extensions (and some kind of circuit breaker to prevent chaining on more than the max.)

[stocktr8er]

If you look at it from a marketing standpoint. Trying to one up the competiontion who has the two battery station, why not do three? And if three - why not four? Why not five? Cost is probably almost the same as a small charger and by doing 6 stations you get a nice ballanced product that could be used by contractors and the DIY guy.

I have two stations and 3 batteries and when I upgrade I will end up with even more. This would greatly simplifuy my workbench. (But only on sale)

[dwk]

Oooooo. I may look seriously at this. We have a ton of the Ryobi tools and batteries that we use down at our off-grid cabin/land project. Being able to charge 6 in parallel would enable much better use of generator time, or even inverter time. A single charger is really inefficient on an inverter as the inverter losses are worse than the charging draw - this might well make it more tolerable. (yes, an 18V solar setup to charge directly would be even better, but that will have to wait).

[docrowan]

I've gone all Black & Decker 18volt. They have a three battery wall mount charger that I purchased, and I'm considering getting a second. If there was a Ryobi outlet instead of a B&D outlet down the street from me, I'd have one of these as soon as I could scrape the cash together.

[BigguyZ]

I'll note that I've seen several contractors use Ryobi tools as well.

[dbhost]

A lot of IT shops such as data cable installers etc... use the heck out of the Ryobi 18V driver / drill, light, and recip and circ saws. (sometimes you gotta cut clearance holes!). I have seen a lot of plumbers, and more than a few trim guys with Ryobi One + stuff...

But honestly, their main market is the home hobbyist and DIY-er. With all those One + multi tool kits out there, and a ton of extra batteries, the additional charging space would be useful. I can see a market for this. But then again, I can see a bigger market for the BT3100 and you don't see that for sale any more do you?

[garymuto]

Note that this does not charge all batteries simultaneously so batteries cannot be charged "in parallel"

[Uncle Cracker]

Note that this does not charge all batteries simultaneously so batteries cannot be charged "in parallel"

To clarify, the charging cycle rotates between occupied docks, and the maintenance cycle trickles on all docks at once, which keeps the charging circuit reasonable in size, while allowing six batteries to be kept "topped off" simultaneously. You just can't put six dead packs in at the same time and expect them all to recharge at once... Takes longer.

[cgallery]

why not do three? And if three - why not four? Why not five?

I'm betting because some user would think, "why not eighteen?" and burn their house down.

[aggrex]

Some of the contractors in my area seem to have made the switch to Ryobi power tools for the small jobs. You can see the lime-green power tools a block away. One contractor stated the lime-green power tools have a decreased tool theft/loss rate and are relatively inexpensive to replace. The lithium battery upgrade for my "blue" tools charge fast and last long to not consider the 6 port charger.