Craftsman 240.74801 Replacement Battery 6V 3500mAh

Craftsman 240.74801 — 6V Ni-MH Replacement Battery (700113)

This is a 6V 3500mAh Ni-MH replacement battery for the Craftsman 240.74801 cordless tool. It matches the original cell chemistry, voltage rail, and connector format. OEM part numbers 700113, 7174806, and 6033-BH-BZ1P all cross-reference to this pack.

• 240.74801 platform fit: The 240.74801 runs a 6V Ni-MH architecture with a specific cell arrangement and connector polarity. Swapping chemistry or voltage — even to a close match — causes BMS rejection or charger fault codes. This pack replicates the original cell count, terminal layout, and discharge curve the charger expects.
• Bench tested on actual hardware: We cycled this pack through motor-start inrush loads and sustained mid-torque runs. The BMS held its overcurrent threshold without nuisance tripping, and cell temperature stayed within normal Ni-MH operating range across both test cycles.
• First two cycles on the 240.74801: Run the tool at half load for the first two cycles before pushing full torque. This lets the BMS profile the motor inrush draw and set its overcurrent protection thresholds accurately — skipping this step can cause premature cutoffs under heavy load.

BMS cutoff on trigger pull — why the 240.74801 shuts down mid-start

When you pull the trigger on a cordless drill or driver, the motor draws a short inrush spike — often three to five times the steady-state current. On a Ni-MH pack that has been in storage, the BMS may not yet have a calibrated overcurrent profile for that specific motor. The protection circuit reads the spike as a fault and cuts the output before the motor reaches speed. Running two half-load cycles first trains the BMS threshold to the actual motor draw, which stops the false trip.

Charger not recognising the 240.74801 pack after storage

Ni-MH cells that have sat unused for several months can self-discharge below the charger's acceptance voltage threshold. The original Craftsman charger for this platform checks cell voltage before initiating the charge cycle — if the pack reads too low, the charger stalls or blinks an error. To recover the pack, place it in the charger and watch for the charge indicator within the first five minutes. If nothing happens, check that the terminal contacts are clean and making full contact, then retry. A fully seated, clean-contact pack reading below 4.5V across the terminals needs a trickle-start — if your charger supports it, use that mode first.