wrote in message
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My wife bought me a 19.2 volt craftsman drill 5 or 6 years ago. I use
it regularly and love it.
I looked at quite a few online businesses and the going
rate is around $50 per battery. That seemed high so I went to the
sears site and found I could buy new ones for $30 to $35 each. What
am I missing? Why would it cost more to rebuild old batteries than to
buy new ones?

Most of the re-builders offer a higher capacity battery that will last
longer. Primecell.com is $51 for a 19.2V.
You have the choice of buying Sears again for cheap, or a better pack for
higher cost.

This is a good explanation of what they can do for you
Standard capacity packs: They are usually sold in pairs, in kits with
do-everything attachments. They were made at minimum cost, with small size
cells, that provide little operating time. These batteries often spend more
time in the charger, than they do in the tools. The batteries are usually
only 1.0 AH cells, we rebuild them with the highest available capacity.
(depending of the model the upgrade can be 1.3 AH or higher. The result is
usually a 25 to 35% increase in run time.

Extra, XR or Maxi etc. battery packs. These are large capacity NiCd packs,
they are usually 1500 to 1700. We only replace these with 2.1 to 2.4 AH
cells for a 40% increase in run time.

NIMH -Maximum capacity packs: NiMh batteries are usually available in two
battery sizes. Small packs were 1.5 AH and large battery packs were 2.2 AH
to 2.6 AH We rebuild the small case with 2.1 AH and the larger packs are
improved to 3.3 AH. Either rebuild usually adds 50% more run time.

Our price to rebuild Tool Batteries is based on the voltage and cell type
(NiCd or NiMh). FOR ANY BRAND NAME. The brand name or model number does
not change the price.