Kraton Newbie battery charger connection issue

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

chris.dempsey

Fairly New Member
Messages
31
Reaction score
15
This is a highly embarrassing first post but I got to ask - want to play with my new toy.

I purchased the following
  • Kraton 6s v4
  • Overlander EC5 Charge Lead 4mm to EC5
  • SkyRC D100 V2 AC/DC Dual Balance Charger
  • gensacearespammers Bashing Hard Case 3S 11.1v LiPo 4000mAh 50C - EC5
First thing I want to do is learn the battery procedures but the EC5 connector on the battery won't connect to the charging lead. They slide together but don't connect, just slide apart.

The battery connects to the model as expected, slide together then bit of resistance to break them apart.

Presumably this is because of the difference shown in the second image, model EC5 connector pins are slotted whereas the battery connector pins are solid?

What did I miss, is Overlander EC5 Charge Lead 4mm to EC5 the wrong lead?

Thanks.

IMG_20200505_152707.jpg


IMG_20200505_153752.jpg

Edit: orange connector is on the model, blue connector is the Overlander EC5 charge lead for comparison of the pins - I'm not attempting to connect these.
 
Last edited:
I purchased the following
  • Kraton 6s v4
  • Overlander EC5 Charge Lead 4mm to EC5
  • SkyRC D100 V2 AC/DC Dual Balance Charger
  • gensacearespammers Bashing Hard Case 3S 11.1v LiPo 4000mAh 50C - EC5
First thing I want to do is learn the battery procedures but the EC5 connector on the battery won't connect to the charging lead. They slide together but don't connect, just slide apart.

The battery connects to the model as expected, slide together then bit of resistance to break them apart.

Presumably this is because of the difference shown in the second image, model EC5 connector pins are slotted whereas the battery connector pins are solid?

What did I miss, is Overlander EC5 Charge Lead 4mm to EC5 the wrong lead?

Thanks.

View attachment 78587

View attachment 78592
Contact the charge lead seller and get a refund. Thats all Correct fit parts. It is weird they don’t stay together.
Id just tape them together and see if they are being registered by the Charger
 
If the battety connects to the car like it should then the problem must be the charge lead, is the right connector soldered on it? It should be male (bullet). Batteries should have barrel connectors, Esc’s and charge leads should have bullet connectors. Looks like you need a different charge lead
 
Are the connectors in the ec5 on the charge lead properly pushed into the blue housing?
The charge lead connectors certainly appear to be correctly in the blue housing, they are seated firmly and are about 3mm from the base, 1mm from the top.

I have two leads which are identical so I guess unlikely to be a manufacturing error.
 
I bought more or less the same stuff as you, you bought it from wheelspin UK by any chance? The reason I ask is because they messed up my charging lead too and didn't give me a loop for the battery so I had to go back twice!
 
Batteries and charger came from Wheelspin, rest including charge leads was from Model Sport.

I suspect the Overlander charge leads will fit the Overlander batteries, that's the combination Model Sport list with the Power Pack addons.

I thought EC5 was an accepted standard covering pins and connector housing. Seems like EC5 is just the connector housing?

Might be time to learn soldering!

Another thing I didn't realise is the Kraton 6s comes with a Loop Lead Connector, I bought one separately.
 
Well this is my charge lead from my charger to my Lipo, it looks the same as yours?
 

Attachments

  • IMG_20200506_010746.jpg
    IMG_20200506_010746.jpg
    177.9 KB · Views: 41
Well this is my charge lead from my charger to my Lipo, it looks the same as yours?
Yes, your charge lead does look identical to mine.

Image below shows the battery connector (top) and charge lead (bottom). These don't connect, charge lead just falls out.

IMG_20200506_102600.jpg


For comparison the next image shows the model input (orange) and the battery lead (blue). These connect firmly, presumably because the pins on the model side are slightly larger diameter and the slots allow them to compress into the connector on the battery lead.

IMG_20200506_102821.jpg
 
I did a bit of research into EC5 connectors following a problem with a charge cable (that came apart when connecting the battery) - EC5 connectors are a bit strange in that they have male and female pins and male and female housings, BUT the male pins are in the female connector and the female in the male housing. So, this sometimes leads to the wrong connectors being selected, i.e. what is identied as male? male pins or male connector? You sometimes see connectors advertised as mail (Pins) to avoid confusion.

So, looking at the first picture, that looks like you have two mail (pinned) connectors that wont fit together, if the look at the bottom picture (currently) look how much larger the hole in the female pins are.

I think you just have the wrong connectors on the charge lead......
 
Male connectors have pointy things! :D The electrical contacts determine gender, not the housing.

I don't use EC5s but looks like the pins in the charge lead are too thin? Return them.
 
EC5 connectors are a bit strange in that they have male and female pins and male and female housing
Learned this yesterday from a bit of Googling after the problem presented. Thing I find odd is of the circa 2 dozen supplier websites I looked at none highlight the potential for both solid or slotted pins on the male connector. Most don't include a view of the pins in the product image, just the EC5 housing.

Male connectors have pointy things! :D The electrical contacts determine gender, not the housing.
That's the most succinct description I've seen so far, makes it easier to remember.
 
All of my EC5 connectors have had slotted male pins. I’ve never seen a solid one before and think that they either used the wrong pins or they are just knock off connectors.
 
All of my EC5 connectors have had slotted male pins. I’ve never seen a solid one before and think that they either used the wrong pins or they are just knock off connectors.
I get the feeling Overlander have just decided to use their own style of pins in the EC5 housings, I'm sure the Overlander leads I have will connect to an Overlander battery.

The suggested accessories in the Power Bundles listed by Model Sport for the Kraton 6s all have Overlander batteries (and leads) which are rated 35c. I'm sure they must work fine but from what I've read I was more comfortable with the gensacearespammers at 50c.
 
I get the feeling Overlander have just decided to use their own style of pins in the EC5 housings, I'm sure the Overlander leads I have will connect to an Overlander battery.

The suggested accessories in the Power Bundles listed by Model Sport for the Kraton 6s all have Overlander batteries (and leads) which are rated 35c. I'm sure they must work fine but from what I've read I was more comfortable with the gensacearespammers at 50c.
First off C ratings are arbitrary and every manufacturer determines these values on their own. There is no real standards based approach to assigning these ratings.

That said, you should buy the highest C rated packs you can afford. Some well known brands perform better than others. But beware that the highest cost packs doesn’t ensure the best performance. There are seemingly luxury brands that cost double other prices that actually underperform them by a good margin.

Your best bet is to find someone local to you with a similar RC used in a similar way and get their opinion. If you’re in the USA, you have a wide range of lipo options. Abroad is where the options get narrowed greatly and you will have to pick from a much shorter list.

I do believe you can get the Turnigy brand almost world wide now. They are generally some of the very best packs, if not the best. Some of their lower priced lines are still very good for a General basher. Their high end line, the Turnigy Graphene Panther is regarded as the best packs for speed runners.

Another very popular brand today is China Hobby (CNHL). Their packs have been tested as almost as good as the Turnigy Graphene Panther packs and are somewhat cheaper to buy. So if you don’t need that one last mph for a speed run, saving some money probably makes sense.
 
I always recommend Turnigy, use Hobbyking's filter feature and select UK or EU warehouse... they always have some lipos on sale and even if not, you'll pay half the price you would pay someplace like modelsport or wheelspin.

Lipos are horribly overpriced in European and UK stores.

Its good to throw in some screws, a lipo checker and bits and bobs while you're at it :)
 
I thought you have a wrong connector on your battery but I just checked mine (same brand) and it looks the same also? Now I'm confused o_O :LOL:
 

Attachments

  • IMG_20200506_133237.jpg
    IMG_20200506_133237.jpg
    105.1 KB · Views: 38
Old Thread: Hello . There have been no replies in this thread for 90 days.
Content in this thread may no longer be relevant.
Perhaps it would be better to start a new thread instead.
Back
Top