Typing from memory from our involvement with the guy with the NOS original. These NiFe motorcycle batteries were made under license from the "Swedish" parent company by the British Battery Co for Lucas.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nickel%E2%80%93iron_battery

And our lovely repros, thanks to Rob, Arnaud and Jan. Ron

email (option): ronpier@talk21.com

Hello Mark,

I know it sounds strange but the Lucas C105 "Nife" definitly was a Nickel Cadmium battery and "Nife" was definitly a brand name in this case.
I obtained an article written by Scott Atkinson, the first managing director of the Batteries Limited firm (as it was called in the 30ties) in which he also described the confusion about the name and the metal contents of the battery.

The Jungner company started with the manufacture of NiFe batteries in late 1800 and marketed these under the "Nife" brand name.
They developed the Nickel Cadmium version while making/selling NiFe batteries and retained "Nife" as brand name also for the nickel Cadmium batteries as the brand name was well known in those days.

NiFe as Nickel Iron batteries were and are still made so there is no doubt that you worked with both!

My initial article can be found on my website www.wdnorton.nl but it needs to be corrected for this confusion issue.

Cheers,

Rob

email (option): wd16h@telfort.nl

Rob can you post a link to that article. I can't seem to find it? Is it be under "Electrical" ?

Ron

email (option): ronpier@talk21.com

Thanks Rob that explains some of my anger in my youth.
The expensive NiFe dry cells I purchased were no better than Nicad's with the same bad habits.
I've read up on Nickel Iron Batteries and it's a shame they seem to be all but lost to history.

Mark

email (option): pes.sales@btconnect.com

Hello Ron,

It is indeed a bit difficult to find I will change that in future to be more easy.

It is a pdf file to be downloaded, but the link is somewhere in the text and only visible because it is blue.
This should help https://www.wdnorton.nl/Electrical_equipment_page/Article%20Nife%20C105%20issue%202.pdf

But be aware, this still is the old version in which I made the incorrect remark that Lucas C105 Nife was a Nickel Iron battery instead of a Nickel Cadmium battery.

I will send you the correction I wrote for the VMCC by mail.

Cheers

Rob

email (option): wd16h@telfort.nl