Norelco Razor Battery Replacement and Upgrade

Norelco Razor Battery Replacement / Performance Modification
Hot Rod Your Razor to Run Almost 3 Times Longer On a Single Charge!

If you have a run-of-the-mill Norelco with a simple charging circuit (no fancy high-tech stuff), this page will show you how to replace your dead or dying batteries with BIGGER, kickass batteries. If your razor has some sort of battery charge indicator (minutes remaining, etc.), upgrading to larger batteries may not work properly, but this page may still be useful in helping you to replace your dead batteries with new ones that have the same capacity as the originals.

Note: If your razor has a battery "minutes remaining" display, such as the 6885XL, this modification may not work properly because your razor has an "intelligent" charging circuit. This circuit was designed for a fixed battery capacity. If you install larger batteries, it becomes very stupid all of a sudden. It will only charge them about 1/3 of the way before shutting down because it takes longer to charge larger batteries, and it has a time limit. Actually, the new batteries charged 1/3 of the way will still probably perform similar to or better than the original batteries (running 35 or 40 minutes). But there is no point in upgrading if you can't get a full charge on the larger batteries. Also, since the "smart" charger can sense the current (charge rate) at the time of shut down, it will "know" that the batteries are only charged 1/3 of the way. The result?: The display will tell you you've only got 10 or 15 minutes of battery time remaining, because that's how much time would be remaining if the original batteries were charged 1/3 of the way. If you have the guts and/or skill to bypass or disable the "intelligence" in your razor so that you can get max charge on upgraded batteries, then please share your results and how you did it. I don't have a fancy, smart razor, so I can't try it myself.

Is your Norelco Rechargeable Razor not holding it's charge? Has it stopped working altogether?

It's probably the batteries. If you can solder, you can replace the batteries yourself. (Unfortunately, they don't make it easy for you to replace your own batteries.)

But why stop with replacing them if you can UPGRADE?

Pictured is a Norelco Model 7825XL with a pair of bigger, badder, Size "A" 1700mAH batteries. Shown below it are the original, puny, Size "AA" 600mAH batteries. Which would YOU rather have?

Before we get any further, please note the following:

Always replace rechargeable batteries with the same type of battery. If your original batteries are Ni-Cd, replace them with a new pair of Ni-Cd batteries. Do not use Lithium Ion or Ni-Mh unless your razor originally used those types of batteries.

Perform this mod at your own risk. If it doesn't work, you accidentally stab yourself in the eye with a soldering iron, the batteries explode, or people don't like your new, clean-shaven image, that is your problem - we take no responsibility. But we hope none of those things happen and you enjoy a razor that you can take on a 2-week trip without needing the charger!

Just because I was able to stuff Size A batteries into my Norelco 7825 XL Razor, it does not necessarily mean that it will work for all Norelco models that use 1.2V Ni-Cd batteries. Before ordering Size A replacements, check to make sure you will have enough room inside your case. If not, then you may be limited to replacing your batteries with another pair of "AA"s.

My replacement batteries are Sanyo #KR-1700AUT. These are Size "A" (larger than "AA"), 1.2V Ni-Cd 1700mAH rechargeables with solder tabs. They can be purchased from Digikey.com, part number SY112T-ND.

NOTE: If you cannot get these through an electrical supplier, here is an alternative solution to obtaining these batteries. This website sells them as a 4-pack that are soldered together for R/C applications. You can buy the set of four, remove two of them and set aside as a spare pair, and install the other two. In a few years, the new pair will probably die, so having a spare won't be so bad:

http://store.batteriesamerica.com/48volt1700mahsanyoni-cdreceiverpackmadewith4xkr-1700aucellschooseshapeandch.aspx.

First, open the case with the two screws as shown:
Razor Screws

Next, pry out the two metal brackets - these are actually what hold the case screws.

The original batteries will be covered with a white piece of plastic. Remove this - you won't be able to use it anymore if you up-size your batteries. Below it, you will see the original batteries that are soldered to the tabs in the circuit board. The batteries are also stuck down with 2-sided tape. Try your best to unsolder the tabs from the batteries, but if you have trouble like I did, you can cut them (as close to the battery as possible so you still have something to solder the new batteries to).

Razor Mod

Test-fit the new batteries and make sure they fit, and that the case can be screwed back together with them inside. Then proceed to solder them in place. Duplicate the same configuration, making sure the new batteries are configured and oriented the same way as the old pair.

Here is a list of Norelco models that use 1.2V Ni-Cd, Size "AA" battery pairs:

282XL, 300SX, 400DX, 605RX, 825RX, 835RX, 875RX, 885RX, 905RX, 915RX, 935RX, 945RX, 955RX, 965RX, 985RX, 3801XL, 3805XL, 3865XL, 4608X, 4625X, 4805XL, 4807XL, 4816XL, 4817XL, 4821XL, 4825XL, 4845XL, 4852XL, 4853XL, 4861XL, 4865XL, 4885XL, 5602X, 5603X, 5605X, 5801X, 5802XL, 5817XL, 5821XL, 5822XL, 5825XL, 5841XL, 5842XL, 5845XL, 5848XL, 5849XL, 5855XL, 5861XL, 5862XL, 5863XL, 5864XL, 5865XL, 5867XL, 5885XL, 5886XL, 5887XL, 6701X, 6705X, 6706X, 6709X, 6711X, 6716X, 6735X, 6737X, 6756X, 6826XL, 6828XL, 6829XL, 6846XL, 6848XL, 6863XL, 6865XL, 6866XL, 6867XL, 6885XL, 6886XL, 6887XL, 7616X, 7617X, 7735X, 7737X, 7745X, 7775XL, 7825XL, 7845XL, 7864XL, 7865XL, 7866XL, 7867XL, 7885XL, 7886XL, 7887XL, 8825XL, 8831XL, 8845XL, 8846XL, 8865XL, 8867XL, 282-XL, 300-SX, 400-DX, 605-RX, 835-RX, 875-RX, 885-RX, 905-RX, 915-RX, 945-RX, 955-RX, 965-RX, 985-RX, 3805-RX, 4865-XL, 4805-XL, 4807-XL, 4816-XL, 4825-XL, 4845-XL, 4865-XL, 4885-XL, 5825-XL, 5845-XL, 5848-XL, 5865-XL, 5885-XL, 6705-XL, 6735-XL, 6756-XL, 7825-XL, 7845-XL, 8825-XL, 8845-XL

Return to raktron.com