Recommend me a battery charger

[jkflow]

What do you need to charge? 6S 5000mAh types you want a minimum of 100W/channel. Faster would be 150W/channel.
Anything lower would only be ok for 3S or 4S.

 

[AaronF]

I'm trying to future proof a little so i don't have to buy another later on. I will most likely be charging 3 and 4S

 

[Custnam]

Does anyone use the Ultra Power chargers? Here in NZ ISDT is a little hard to come by but I have found a local reseller, the model that seems to be the best for me would be the K2 but at $250NZD does anyone know if there is a better buy? ISDT looks pretty good to me since it is AC/DC and I don't plan on getting a DC supply for it.

Here is a selection from one of the Hobby shops I use.

View attachment 228628

Yes. I use the quad and love it. Got it for 169 at Amazon years ago.

 

[AaronF]

do you have a model number for it? I don't think I need quad charging just yet.

 

[Custnam]

do you have a model number for it? I don't think I need quad charging just yet.

Ultra Power UP240 AC Plus 240W 4-Port Multi-Chemistry AC/DC Charger

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B079J6KNLR?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

They make a duo too.

If your looking for a cheap but good dual charger. https://smile.amazon.com/gp/slredir...44120469295741&widgetName=sp_phone_search_atf

 

[AaronF]

cool, thanks for that, both of those are available here so will take a look.

 

[Heliguy]

Have used a Powerlab 6 and 8, 40 amp for many years along with a 24 volt 1200 watt power supply. A 6 place parrallel board. I’m able to charge 2 6s 5000’s at 3c each in around 15 minutes. Or 4 packs at 2c in under 25 minutes. It’s the last charger and power supply you’ll ever have to buy. It does it all.

 

[benbyrc]

Well, my Prophet Sport Duo has died, so I find myself charger shopping again.

Previously, I had said I was looking at the Reaktor 2x300w 20a DC only charger from Hobbyking, and the
UP120AC Duo Dual 2 Port from Amazon. These two chargers are still on my list, but I am expanding my search a bit before I spend my $$$...

I am also looking at maybe getting 2 single channel chargers. Cost wise, it will be similar to a two port charger. Note - these are DC only, you will need a 12v PSU.

Turnigy Reaktor 250W 10A 1-6S Balance Charger I read this a rebrand of the popular iCharger, and has a very good reputation. It is also sold under a few different brands, like the Banggood.com Charsoon. This is an intresting charger to me because although it is 'only' 10 amps, it can handle 250W - What this means for us, is that it can push that 10 amps regardless of whether you are charging a small 2s pack, or a big 6s pack. At $50 for the Turnigy branded version, this seems like a great deal for a charger than can handle almost any battery you throw at it.

Turnigy Accucel-6 80W 10A Balancer/Charger LiHV Capable - Another Hobbyking charger that I have come across in my research - this one is cheaper $30, and still 10A, but only 80W. So you will still be able to charge your 4s, 5000mah pack at 1c, but anything bigger, and charge times will get long.





So those chargers I mentioned are DC only. And what is the point of trying to save a few bucks on a DC only, of you have to shell out a bunch of money for a 12v Power Supply Unit (PSU)?

I bet most of us have an old, outdated, or dead PC taking up space in our garage or elsewhere. The good news, you can pull the power supply, and easily 'convert' it for powering a hobby charger. For these pics, I am looking at a smallish, 300w PSU. (Forgive me, but I missed some pics at the start of this...)

In a nutshell, when you pull the PSU from a PC, you will have a small box, with a ton of colored wires, going to a dozen different sized plugs. Don't get overwhelmed, we will be removing most of those wires.

First, inspect it. There should be a label similar to this:
View attachment 7511

This is the Faceplate, and it shows all the info about the different voltages available, and how many amps are on each bus. For this PSU, there are 2 +12v bus's. We don't care about the rest. You might do some quick math to make sure your PSU has enough watts for your application. Remember Volts * Amps = Watts. So 12V*8a=96W, on bus +12v1. Not a lot. Bus +12V2 has 174w output. remember we cannot combine these bus's. We can use them to power two different chargers at the same time, though. Assuming the chargers can keep up, bus +12v1 can handle up to a 4s 5000mah at 1c, and bus +12v2 can power a charger pushing 2c to that same battery.

Ok, math over for now. Look at the mess of wires. Note that most all of them are yellow, black, or orange, with a few other colors scattered in the mix. Each color represents a different bus/voltage inside the PSU. All the yellow is +12v, connect to the same solder point inside the case. Same with all the black (Common/Ground), and all the orange(+5v).

Find the green wire. It will go to the big 20-pin plug. Note the position, and find a black wire on a pin near it. Get a paper-clip (or similar small bendy wire) and jumper between the green pin and a black pin. Now plug in the PSU. Did the fan come on? If yes, Great! Pull the jumper. Did the fan stop? Great! the green wire is the on/off switch for most PSU's. If you have a multimeter, set it to 0-20vdc, plug the jumper back in between green and black (this should turn the PSU back on). Now use the multimeter to measure between any black (common) and any yellow (should be +12v) If you got +12v, we are ready of move on. Feel free to check the voltage of some of the other colors. also, look for a square 4-pin plug by itself - it will have 2 yellow and 2 black. If your PSU has 2 +12v bus, these two yellow will most likely be the second bus. The yellow wires may be yellow with a stripe - mine were yellow/black.

Unplug the charger, and give it 1-24 hours to "rest" to self-discharge all the capacitors inside. You can leave the green wire jumpered during this process to help it bleed off the power...

Now the fun part.

Cut off all the plugs, but leave the wires long. Sort all the wires by color, and bundle them together. Open the case, and enjoy cutting that "Warranty void if Damaged" sticker. If needed to get good access to the buses, unscrew the main PSU board from the internal case. Once you get it open, sort out the wires again, and it is time to start cutting -

Clip most of the wires off - leave all the yellow and black for now. Also leave the green wire long.
View attachment 7512

sort out 5 black wires, and clip the rest off. Check out the yellow buses - if there is 2 (like on mine) save the two yellow/black from +12v2 and 2 wires from +12v1. Clip the extra yellow wires. Once I was done clipping wires, I coated the ends with liquid electrical tape. Put the case back together, and I added wire wrap to tidy up the bundles.

View attachment 7513


Tie the green wire to one of the black wires. You could put an on/off switch here, as the green wire tells the PSU to power on.

Divide the 4 black into 2 groups, and match them up with the two groups of yellow wires - 2 yellow and 2 black in each group. Add connectors on the yellow/black pairs and heat shrink if needed. done!


FYI, I used a pair of wires for each power lead, because the 14a this PSU can supply is more than one single 18g wire should take, safely. A pair of 18g is safe, though.


That is all there is to converting the PC power supply to power a hobby charger. Really, though, if you did not want to open the case, you could clip all the extra wires an inch or three outside the case, and tape them all together. Also, if you want to get fancy, you could drill the case to mount bullet connectors on the case - then you would have a clean box with no exposed wires. All depends on how much work you want to do.

as someone who is a pc nerd I have to say really do this at your own risk. this can be extremely dangerous. Going into a psu (and especially old units which have far less safety features) can be deadly. mod safely.

i mean this with no harm or anything, this hobby is about tinkering after all.

 

[slick2500]

as someone who is a pc nerd I have to say really do this at your own risk. this can be extremely dangerous. Going into a psu (and especially old units which have far less safety features) can be deadly. mod safely.

i mean this with no harm or anything, this hobby is about tinkering after all.

Yeah you really should know what you are doing if you do that.

 

[RC_Noob]

Hello peoples of the Arrma world! Just got a Kraton 6s BLX and looking for which lipo to get. I plan on going with a single 6s lipo in the 5000mAh range. With the stock ESC for the 6s Kraton does the "C" rating matter, or give a bigger boost? I've been looking at the HRB 6s 5000mAh 50-100c ones and just curious if something that has a 120c would have more power. I suppose I just want to get the most of the stock ESC and run it to its full capability.

Any insight would highly be appreciated!

 

[Jerry-rigged]

Hello peoples of the Arrma world! Just got a Kraton 6s BLX and looking for which lipo to get. I plan on going with a single 6s lipo in the 5000mAh range. With the stock ESC for the 6s Kraton does the "C" rating matter, or give a bigger boost? I've been looking at the HRB 6s 5000mAh 50-100c ones and just curious if something that has a 120c would have more power. I suppose I just want to get the most of the stock ESC and run it to its full capability.

Any insight would highly be appreciated!

Arrma recommends 50C packs.

When it comes to C ratings, all mfgrs lie. (the absolute best hobby packs, when load tested only hit around 55C-60C) But, the 100c are generally better than the 50c, and 50c are generally better than 20c. Once you get above the claimed 100C, though, it is all d!@k wagging, with everyone trying to out-lie everyone else.

If you want that extra tiny boost, look for a Graphene or G+ or similar battery. The Graphene packs are a bit heavier, but they do give a bit of an extra boost.

 

[Custnam]

Hello peoples of the Arrma world! Just got a Kraton 6s BLX and looking for which lipo to get. I plan on going with a single 6s lipo in the 5000mAh range. With the stock ESC for the 6s Kraton does the "C" rating matter, or give a bigger boost? I've been looking at the HRB 6s 5000mAh 50-100c ones and just curious if something that has a 120c would have more power. I suppose I just want to get the most of the stock ESC and run it to its full capability.

Any insight would highly be appreciated!

I run Hoovo, Socokin, Zeee, and Ivonic. Ive never seen a reason to spend a lot more on name brands.

 

[RC_Noob]

Sweet, thank you for the replies!

 

[slick2500]

Arrma recommends 50C packs.

When it comes to C ratings, all mfgrs lie. (the absolute best hobby packs, when load tested only hit around 55C-60C) But, the 100c are generally better than the 50c, and 50c are generally better than 20c. Once you get above the claimed 100C, though, it is all d!@k wagging, with everyone trying to out-lie everyone else.

If you want that extra tiny boost, look for a Graphene or G+ or similar battery. The Graphene packs are a bit heavier, but they do give a bit of an extra boost.

No with the current test bed the best lipos will only sustain 45c.

Bang for buck I would go with the CNHL Black 60c or the Turnigy HD 5000mAh 60c.

 

[Jerry-rigged]

No with the current test bed the best lipos will only sustain 45c.

Bang for buck I would go with the CNHL Black 60c or the Turnigy HD 5000mAh 60c.

Did they change their testing standard? I though for sure the Panthers were testing out at 55C, but that shows 45c.

I do have a set of the CHNL G+ 5000mah, 2x3s. I'll run them as 6s in my Outcast or 3s in my Granite. They do hit hard. More punch than any non-Graphene battery I own, by a noticeable amount.

 

[jkflow]

The test standard hasn't changed, but many manufacturers have changed the materials this year.
Many brands turned from good to crap over the last quarter.

 

[Adiabatic]

The test standard hasn't changed, but many manufacturers have changed the materials this year.
Many brands turned from good to crap over the last quarter.

Any examples of brands you're aware of that used to be good but should now be avoided?

 

[jkflow]

Shamelessly copied from this thread:
https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?1767093-Battery-Load-Test-Comparisons/page917

Panther is now a Zippy packs in black heat shrink. They used to be great, but it has all changed this year.

CNHL, stay with the higher C rates, the lower are hit or miss. I'd stay above 70C on CNHL.


These are the Black Listed Units:
ThunderPower
Maxamps
Zippy
Ovonics
Zeee
RoaringTop
Spektrum
GoldBat

Here's the GrePow (GenAce) clones to be excluded:
Glacier
GetFPV N20

 

[slick2500]

Did they change their testing standard? I though for sure the Panthers were testing out at 55C, but that shows 45c.

I do have a set of the CHNL G+ 5000mah, 2x3s. I'll run them as 6s in my Outcast or 3s in my Granite. They do hit hard. More punch than any non-Graphene battery I own, by a noticeable amount.

Yes he changed his testing. He now test them to the highest sustainable c rate. Before he tested them for the max achievable c rate as he found that a lot of packs could not sustain those high discharge rates over repeated usage.

 

[Jerry-rigged]

Shamelessly copied from this thread:
https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?1767093-Battery-Load-Test-Comparisons/page917

Panther is now a Zippy packs in black heat shrink. They used to be great, but it has all changed this year.

CNHL, stay with the higher C rates, the lower are hit or miss. I'd stay above 70C on CNHL.


These are the Black Listed Units:
ThunderPower
Maxamps
Zippy
Ovonics
Zeee
RoaringTop
Spektrum
GoldBat

Here's the GrePow (GenAce) clones to be excluded:
Glacier
GetFPV N20

That is a shame. Hobbyking used to have some great batteries. I have 2 sets of the older Turnigy grey pre-panther Graphenes, and they are great batteries.

The Zippy batteries were generally not great, but the Zippy Compact (yellow label) were great if you only needed mid-rated amp packs. Hobbykind also had some blue label Turnigy 25C packs that were actually a true 25C - which made them better than 90% of the 90C rated packs on the market. I have a set of those I run in my 1/10 scale trucks, they don't have the punch of the graphene's, but they run my Granite nice, plus they are a LOT lighter than any of my Graphenes.

But I have not bought anything from Hobbyking in years. My last several battery purchases were from CHNL, and my "cheap china servos and stuff" come from Banggood or Amazon...

Yes he changed his testing. He now test them to the highest sustainable c rate. Before he tested them for the max achievable c rate as he found that a lot of packs could not sustain those high discharge rates over repeated usage.

Sounds like a better test.