First 5 miles

Last night I put in the second battery pack I put together with the old Ni Cad cells and one of the 5 tested BMS boards. I was able to set the controller to 2 batteries, download new BMS software from the controller (it did not like seeing 5.24 BMS software when it is 5.1), and do a normal charge to top off the batteries. I put air in the tires, cleaned the outside of dust, and took it for a spin. I gave rides for the better part of 2 hours until I felt I should charge it up again. The odometer read 5.1 miles! I noticed that one pack is stronger than the other as one was supplying more of the current and took more current on the recharge. I'm thrilled that the charging system works as well as it does. I have so much more technical understanding of the entire BMS/BATTERY/CONTROLLER system now that I have debugged all the problems bringing up these old battery packs. I estimate each pack is about 2Ah (2.8 originally) and that puts me at about 16 mile range for the two packs. I should be able to build up the third pack in the next couple of weeks which should get me close to 25 miles of range per charge. This should be enough for my daily commute while I work on getting my lithium battery built (expected range 40+ miles). I'm thrilled! I still have a long list of little things that need attention including the seat belts (retractors are sticking .... may replace seat belts), wood steering handle is split (patch for now), one of the plastic panels under your feet is broken (someone stepped on it while it was out of the car), etc. Also, I need to start the DMV/Insurance stuff now so I can get the vehicle home from Northwest Portland. If all goes well, I will be able to *drive* it home.