Need your help determining the cause for these battery marks

[Mooch]

This is a new cell from its original undamaged box and what you see is identical on three cells of the same type. I have some thoughts about what caused that outer ring roughness but would love to hear what you think does this. I've never seen this before.

If you know which cell this is, please don't say anything. Thanks.

 

[Mooch]

Another better picture...

 

[Robert B]

recycled cells? sloppy manufacturing? heck, I don't know. What are you thinking it is?

 

[Neunerball]

I wonder if those are tool marks from rebranding/rewrapping the cells.

 

[Mooch]

recycled cells? sloppy manufacturing? heck, I don't know. What are you thinking it is?

Don't know but my thoughts ranged from a badly set up sealer machine to damage from opening up the can, doing something, and resealing the can again,

 

[Robert B]

Don't know but my thoughts ranged from a badly set up sealer machine to damage from opening up the can, doing something, and resealing the can again,

Who's cells are those? I'd like to stay far away from that.

 

[dr_rox]

What I see is pitting and some oxidation residue, esp. on left cell, due to etching.

Opening a roll crimp would be a real difficult task to recycle a cheap container.
Cutting the old crimp off then reusing would expedite the process, but change the length of the battery.

Look at cell w/ scope and look for pitting, where it stops and starts.

 

[Mooch]

What I see is pitting and some oxidation residue, esp. on left cell, due to etching.

Opening a roll crimp would be a real difficult task to recycle a cheap container.
Cutting the old crimp off then reusing would expedite the process, but change the length of the battery.

Look at cell w/ scope and look for pitting, where it stops and starts.

Interesting, thanks!
I have a stereo microscope so can take a closer look.

 

[Mooch]

Scope shots...

 

[BoomStick]

What I see is pitting and some oxidation residue

Me too. Looks just like what I see after using a wire wheel to knock the rust off of parts.

 

[dr_rox]

I still see a lot of pitting, which doesn't look normal.
Oblique light will show more relief.
I haven't looked closely at unjacketed batteries to examine the roll crimp.
But, I have examined poor chinese workmanship where they overuse tooling that should have been pulled from the line once the job starts to suffer cosmetically, even though the dimensions are in tolerance.

The tale is told w/ how the battery performs.
The etching could have been done by improper storage - e.g., wet cardboard in bulk storage - and/or they cleaned the battery with a caustic fluid (perhaps the battery had enough of a charge to electronically etch the surface as that is where both poles are closest). Battery could be recycled, repurposed, or NOS poorly stored.

A look at others from that lot would help figure it out. They're sneaky.

 

[dr_rox]

Me too. Looks just like what I see after using a wire wheel to knock the rust off of parts.

Somewhat.
Wire wheels leave the rust pitting behind.

There are no swirls. Use of soft wheel whould have left brass.
SS or steel bristles would definitely leave swirl marks in the soft metal.

But the biggest thing that says no wire wheel, is that the plastic insulator is undamaged.

I think they were etched, either puposefully or by accident. If by accident, some effort was made to clean them up somewhat. Hard to speculate without a sample in hand.

What is hiding that can't be easily seen under the + button??
Crystals, other funky residue, battery herpes??

 

[BoomStick]

Didn't mean it was necessarily a wire wheel was used, just that it resembled pitting caused by corrosion.

 

[Jon@LiionWholesale]

That's odd, haven't seen that. Agreed that it's weird the insulator looks good otherwise I'd say someone was going after it with a wire brush to get rust off. I can't imagine anyone would spend the time and effort to open and reseal these. So....I dunno.

 

[Robert B]

I can't imagine anyone would spend the time and effort to open and reseal these. So....I dunno.

never under estimate the chinese.. lol

 

[Jon@LiionWholesale]

never under estimate the chinese.. lol

Definitely some truth there...