Charger Question- Duratrax Onyx or???
10-20-2012, 08:44 AM
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Charger Question- Duratrax Onyx or???
Hello all-
I have fallen back into the hobby after a 10 year break and I have a question about chargers for taking care of my plane and heli batteries.
I am currently flying 48v nicads but see myself upgrading shortly to at least nimh.I fly glow only so my need is to prepare charge my rx nd tx packs prior to heading out to the field for the day.I typically fly at least 2 different planes so I would like to be able to charge multiple rx pcks at the same time and the charger must also be ac/dc and have a built in power supply.Given this info, my LHS has reccommended the Duratarz onyx 245 (http://www.duratrax.com/chargers/onyx/dtxp4245.html)
Before I pull the trigger, I wanted to ask for your advice, is there a better option for what I need/want.I hear a lot of talk about overseas hobby retailers offering great chargers at great prices (if you dont mind the wait), but I wouldn't know where to start looking...
Thanks in Advance for your input and advice!
I have fallen back into the hobby after a 10 year break and I have a question about chargers for taking care of my plane and heli batteries.
I am currently flying 48v nicads but see myself upgrading shortly to at least nimh.I fly glow only so my need is to prepare charge my rx nd tx packs prior to heading out to the field for the day.I typically fly at least 2 different planes so I would like to be able to charge multiple rx pcks at the same time and the charger must also be ac/dc and have a built in power supply.Given this info, my LHS has reccommended the Duratarz onyx 245 (http://www.duratrax.com/chargers/onyx/dtxp4245.html)
Before I pull the trigger, I wanted to ask for your advice, is there a better option for what I need/want.I hear a lot of talk about overseas hobby retailers offering great chargers at great prices (if you dont mind the wait), but I wouldn't know where to start looking...
Thanks in Advance for your input and advice!
10-20-2012, 09:36 AM
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RE: Charger Question- Duratrax Onyx or???
That's probably a good recommendation. If your radio batts are rather small (aa,a,2/3A,ect) then the Hobbico elite is what I usually recommend. If they are bigger like subC packs then the Onyx is better choice. There's probably dozens of other good choices.
10-20-2012, 08:37 PM
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RE: Charger Question- Duratrax Onyx or???
I would be cautious about ordering a charger from over sea just because it's cheap. You get what you pay for! Onyx chargers come in 1, 2 3, and 4 charger designs. They are exceptional chargers and with the display it's easy to know what's going on with your batteries.
Too many people buy expensive equipment then wimp out on paying for a good charger. Don't be one of them!
Onyx has a 4 port charger for about $120.00 but it's only a 12 VDC input charger.
Venom has some very good chargers also. They have one with a display that is easy to read. It comes with all the connectors and adapters, it's AC/DC, but you can only charge one battery pack at a time. It runs about $100.
One thing to remember about charger. Most of them are not "Peak" chargers. In other words, you must disconnect the battery pack with full. These types of chargers don't "trinkle" charge. A "Peak" charger will "trinkle" charge after the battery pack has reached full charge.
Frank
Too many people buy expensive equipment then wimp out on paying for a good charger. Don't be one of them!
Onyx has a 4 port charger for about $120.00 but it's only a 12 VDC input charger.
Venom has some very good chargers also. They have one with a display that is easy to read. It comes with all the connectors and adapters, it's AC/DC, but you can only charge one battery pack at a time. It runs about $100.
One thing to remember about charger. Most of them are not "Peak" chargers. In other words, you must disconnect the battery pack with full. These types of chargers don't "trinkle" charge. A "Peak" charger will "trinkle" charge after the battery pack has reached full charge.
Frank
10-22-2012, 06:01 AM
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RE: Charger Question- Duratrax Onyx or???
Thank you for the replies.
It looks like the Duratrax or Hobbico is the one for me. I just wanted to confirm as a long long time ago we used chargers that were made by companies who specialized in them. That is why I was a bit leery of the Onxy. But if Duratrax builds a good charger, then I will give it a try. Thanks again!
