Help on chargers to buy please

[nickyb]

Hi there,

I';m a newbe on all this charging stuff, LiPo etc.

I';m after a good quality charger. I will be charging 4500, 3S batteries for my quad. I saw this charger

http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__11341__Turnigy_MAX80W_7A_Lithium_Polymer_Battery_Charger.html

Its 80W, but would this be okay to charge 4500, 4000 or maybe 5000mA batteries?

I get a bit confused when people say it can take up to 2 days to charge a battery of the above capacities and since you should not leabve LiPo to charge on there own that can be a problem.

I don';t want to spend loads, certainly no more than £50.

BTW - why don';t chargers include a power supply on the listings, sure most people charge at home and not in the field?

Nick

[Marklincs]

Well the best advice is this buy one charger a decent one!

one pack should take about an Hour to charge at 1s

so a 3200ma pack you charge at 3.2Amps

This will charge 1 to 6 packs

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewitem.asp?idproduct=28156&aff=364745

UK warehouse UK spec

[nickyb]

Well the best advice is this buy one charger a decent one!

one pack should take about an Hour to charge at 1s

so a 3200ma pack you charge at 3.2Amps

This will charge 1 to 6 packs

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewitem.asp?idproduct=28156&aff=364745

UK warehouse UK spec

Thanks, will check it out.

N

[guest325]

If you intend to do a lot of flying I would recommend you get a 2 or even 4 channel charger and possibly use a Server power supply to power it - I';ve got 2 chargers now and would still like more capacity!

[tony]

ive been using this for over a year and it charges my 3 and 4 cells fine 1 at a time up to 1 hour charge time per pack  {p.s loads on ebay}

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__7028__Turnigy_Accucel_6_50W_6A_Balancer_Charger_w_accessories.html


all you need is a power supply of which i use this 1

http://robotbirds.com/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=9_161&products_id=4085

hole lot for 30 quid ish

[nickyb]

If you intend to do a lot of flying I would recommend you get a 2 or even 4 channel charger and possibly use a Server power supply to power it - I';ve got 2 chargers now and would still like more capacity!

..thanks for the info. Sorry for sounding a bit thick here but what do you mean by 2 or 4 channel? When you say a server power supply, do you mean maybe an old Computer server PSU?

I guess this means the bigger the PSU you plug into the charger the faster it will charge?

[guest325]

..thanks for the info. Sorry for sounding a bit thick here but what do you mean by 2 or 4 channel? When you say a server power supply, do you mean maybe an old Computer server PSU?

I guess this means the bigger the PSU you plug into the charger the faster it will charge?

Nearly right, the number of ports is how many packs you can charge at a time, and yes a Computer server power supply with enough amps to cope - expensive but you only buy once!

[kilby]

I';m using an iMaxB6AC which more than copes with my single quad and plane battery charging needs and no need for messing about with additional power supplies as it';s mains powered.

You will probably need to buy appropriate charging leads too

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=6478

[nickyb]

I';m using an iMaxB6AC which more than copes with my single quad and plane battery charging needs and no need for messing about with additional power supplies as it';s mains powered.

You will probably need to buy appropriate charging leads too

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=6478

Thanks I';ll probably get this one. All this watts/amps stuff stuff gets me crazy 

[QuadBod]

All of these charges are basically the same. The Turnigy one (which I have) is a clone of the iMax and so on. The difference, as you';ve discovered is that the iMax has a built in PSU, so saved the hassle of sourcing that, and makes for a tidier setup. In theory mine is more protable for charging at the field (even comes with croc clips), but in reality I';m not going to sit around waiting for an hour while a battery charges for a 10 min flight.

I had an old laptop PSU that was a suitable spec and even had the right plug for the Turnigy, so that was the cheaper option for me.

When you charge, you';ll find there';s an option for balance charging. It takes longer, but it will prolong the life of your batteries.

Also, there';s a Storage charge option, which only half charges (or discharges) them for longer term storage (ie. if you';re not going to be using them for more than a few days).

[kilby]

The iMax also has a 12v DC input if mains power isn';t available.

You can also get hook up a serial port from yourbpc to the charger to get some stats (and I assume the clones also have this ability as they robbed the source code anyway)

[QuadBod]

Didn';t say it didn';t just saying the Turnigy and it';s ilk are more portable by virtue of not having the built in PSU. Never used that capability anyway or the reasons stated.

The Turnigy doesn';t have a serial or USB data port, but TBH I couldn';t be bothered with the faf of hooking that up every time I charge. Might be interesting for checking the state of a battery over time tho.

[kilby]

Never said that you did

Just saying that it';s a feature that some folks will find useful (personally I don';t have a use for it but then again you never know)

There';s no USB or regular serial port, but there is a TTL level output which apparently the clones also have though I don';t have enough batteries to justify bothering

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rwSv8El2ahg&feature=youtube_gdata_player

[guest325]

I have a collection of about 30 packs altogether, it take most of the day to charge them all up if I haven';t had the time to charge them as I go along; that';s where a multi charger comes into its own!
If I just used the suitable packs to fly my Quad (including the ones I normally use for my planes) I could fly for about 2 hours - that would never happen, it would be exhausting!

[kilby]

I have been holding back from more batteries till I can get my fixed wing issues sorted out (I am unsure if I have to buy another plank)

Currently I would be happy if I could get about 40 minutes flying in a day without having to recharge anything

[guest325]

(I am unsure if I have to buy another plank)

Go on, you know you want to  ::)  ::) 

[fruitsalad]

lol then another and another   
im running out of space cos its mmmmmmmm thats nice........click the buy button...

[kilby]

Would prefer to not buy an outdoor plank at the minute as the club has moved the midweek meeting indoors, so an indoor flyer would be helpful, but I haven';t a clue what (perhaps a parzone micro Trojan)

Ideally a small v tail would be my next purchase (the 450 is a bit big) but I haven';t seen any so I guess a self build is the only option)

If course whatever I get will require yet another charging lead

[fruitsalad]

parkzone mossy one of my fav micros..
worst one is the flyfly p51 .............grrrrrrrrrr an absolute pig to fly
it needs speed lots of it..

[QuadBod]

Never said that you did

Fair point! 

[guest325]

http://www.flyingwings.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=55
OR
http://www.parkaero.com/twisted-hobbys-crack-pitts-green-mini-series-560mm-epp---was-3995-1623-p.asp
Both come highly recommended, but beware, neither are easy to fly if you have never tried this sort of thing! You could try one of these if you want something easier to fly
http://www.flyingwings.co.uk/index.php?route=product/category&path=25_74

[kilby]

Oh it will be a while before I consider getting a wing

[guest325]

Wing???
2x 3D profile models & 1 indoor trainer!!!

[Marklincs]

Okay so here you go

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewitem.asp?idproduct=44532&aff=364745

it';ll charge 1s to 6s packs.

as for a power supply I choose this one

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewitem.asp?idproduct=13416&aff=364745

This combo handles everything I throw at them