Lokihaus

My Feedback: (8)

I'm looking into converting mostly over to electric, after the winter's over. I was looking into chargers and I figured I'd get a good solid charger. I was looking into the GP's Triton Charger, but it says it 'needs' another unit, 12V power supply w/5 volt tap. So... I NEED this piece of hardware that's gonna cost me another 90 bucks?!? If that's the case, I'm looking into almost 250 bucks to charge batteries (although I'd have most of the bells and whistles in the Triton for that 250 bucks).

Does someone have another alternative to this? Maybe a cheaper charger? I currently only have a GP's L'il Poke Park Flier (8-cell 9.6V, 350mAh), and a GP's Ryan STA EP (which will require 7-Cell 1700-3000 mAh battery). Of course I'd like to get other planes, and possibly those planes would have Lipo batts. Any help would be greatly appreciated, here's a pic for your enjoyment! =) My Ryan in construction...

Time Pilot

I don't have a giant collection of batteries yet, but here's my take on it. Keep in mind that in this hobby, decisions are easier to make when you have more expendable money. []

I started with a GP AC Park Flyer Peak Charger and it has been meeting my needs well so far. I decided to get a Triton because I wanted something that could cycle my batteries and that could handle LiPos.

If you are looking for a charger that will take care of all your battery needs for years to come, the Triton may not be the answer as I keep hearing rumors of a new battery technology that may make LiPos the 'second best' battery for electrics. The question is whether the Triton will, in years to come, be able to charge them (and whether that matters to you).

With the Triton, you are also putting a lot of money into a charger that will only do one battery at a time. For $130, you could get 2 or even three smaller units that would still charge your Nicads, Nimh, and Lipos. This makes a difference when you've got 4 packs to recharge and you want to fly later that day, the next day, or peak the batteries before you go flying. With one charger, you have to be there to swap the batteries off the charger as they finish.

I don't like to fast charge my batteries so this means that a battery might be on the charger for 2 to 3 hours. You can see where this goes with a lot of packs. With a bunch of chargers, you're done in three.

I've decided to convert a PC power supply. Hopefully the instructions from Red's site will be enough for me to get through the conversion. The benefit of having that power supply are already evident to me. The Hobbico MKII has been praised here on RCU and looks like it would be a good add on to the bench. It handles two batteries at once and all battery chemistries so far.

Matt Kirsch

My Feedback: (21)

With the power supply, it's a "pay me now or pay me later" situation. If the Triton came with a built-in power supply, you know that its cost would be increased by the cost of the power supply. What's nice about the Triton as-is, is that it's nice and portable. You leave the bulky power supply at home, and the thing almost fits in your pocket for transport to the field, where it really shines.

As TP said, there are alternatives to paying full price for a lab-quality bench supply.

Lokihaus

My Feedback: (8)

Humm, interesting. Now, when looking at the Hobbico MkII Charger it says this in the description, "Peak Detection charging for NiCd or NiMH packs." ...does that mean that it doesn't have peak detection for Li-ion, or Li-polys?

Also, this is a field charger, which means it's meant for plugging into your car battery, correct? Ergo, I wouldn't be able to use this at home for charging my batts at home (unless I got a power supply??)

....great info, keep it comin'! =) Thanks a bunch!

SnoTraveler

You may want to take a look at the Hobbico Elite. I purchased one several months ago and I am very happy with it. It comes with a power supply so you can charge at home or at the field. You will need an adapter for charging from your cars power port. I picked one up at Radio shack. It's one of the higher priced chargers, but it maybe worth it.


SnoTraveler

Time Pilot

I read the manual (you can access it through the tower website) and I'm quite sure that it will fully charge LiPos and then turn itself off.

And you are correct. It is a field charger and you'll need to get a power supply for charging at home. I was just trying to suggest that once you do have a power supply, your options open right up.

For what it's worth, I bought my power supply new from a computer store for $25. Loads of amps. I think I spent under $10 for the rubber grommets, colored tape, washers, bolts, etc. I've got a two week holiday coming up soon--my priority for the holidays to get it converted.

Lokihaus

My Feedback: (8)

I think I get ya now. So this is the second time you've talking about converting a PC power supply. I consider myself technically inclined, could you link those instructions here, or let me know where I can go to read up on this? But who knows, maybe I'll just pick up the Hobbico Elite... because if I did that then the power supply is built in, like Sno said, correct? I wouldn't need any other device... decisions, decisions... ah hell, maybe I'll just stick to gas! =)

Thanks again everyone!

Time Pilot

Here is Red Scholefield's site. There are two links to converting power supplies near the bottom of the left hand frame.

If you're technically inclined and do read up on the conversion soon, please post your comments/suggestions. I'm good at following instructions, and hope that everything I need is there. If not, I've got a digital camera and RCU!

http://www.rcbatteryclinic.com/

The power supply for the Hobbico Elite is built in, but you can't use it for any other charger. Like I've said before, the more money you have, the easier it is to make decisions!

Matt Kirsch

My Feedback: (21)

NO! This is the MkII (MARK TWO) we're talking about here. It does NOT charge LiPolys! If you try to charge LiPolys with a charger that is not designed to do it, YOU WILL CAUSE THE BATTERY TO CATCH FIRE!!!

The instructions on the Tower website are for the newer version of the charger, which can charge LiPolys.

You need the Hobbico Quick Field Charger MkIII (MARK THREE) to charge LiPolys.

Matt Kirsch

My Feedback: (21)

Also, LiPolys do not "peak" like NiCd or NiMH. They charge to a fixed voltage of 4.2 Volts per cell.

A NiCd or NiMH will peak out anywhere between 1.25 and 1.5 Volts. It depends on the design of the cell, its age, and how hard a life it has had.

Again, LiPolys do not peak. If you find a charger that says "peak charges LiPoly," RUN AWAY from it as fast as you can. Do not buy it. It does not use a proper charging sequence for LiPoly, and will eventually cause a fire.

sharker

The MarkII has the ability to handle 1-8 cell NiCd or NiMH radio batteries and 1-3 cell Li-Ion or Li-Po park flyer batteries. I own one and they work great. It is the Mark II (2).

traskos

We have Matt who says the MKII will not charge Lipos and Sharker who says it will. This is quite confusing.

Time Pilot

I went to Hobbico's site and didn't see a MK III charger. A MkIII voltmeter, yes. Charger, no.
Matt, could this be the first time you're wrong?

For any that need confirmation, go to the tower page and read the manual yourself. You really think that Hobbico will say that a charger will charge LiPo's when it won't? McDonald's can't even serve hot, hot coffee because some women with large thighs burned herself when unsuccessfully holding a cup in her crotch. A burned house is a tad more serious.

traskos

Matt
This is just about word for word from Hobbico`s specs. for the MKII

Jobu

Since you are starting out with lipos you probably won't have much use for nimh and nicd batteries . I have a Worley lipo charger and it is very easy and reasonably quick. Limited to 750 1100 1500 or 1800 mah for 1-4 cells. $49.99 at Balsa Products. www.balspr.com

also a cheap way out is a 12v Field battery and charger (Hobbico Torque Master) for about $30 @ Tower. I use mine when DC supply is being used, works fine.

joe

Matt Kirsch

My Feedback: (21)

As I said before, REFER TO THE INSTRUCTIONS. That is the final word. If it says it can charge LiPolys (not "peak charge," just charge), then it is okay.

We're probably talking about the same charger. There are at least two different versions of the Hobbico Quick Field Charger. I was under the impression that the old version was the Mk II and the new one the Mk III.

I now look at the Tower website, and see that the current version is indeed the Mk II, and that it is indeed the version that can charge LiPolys. My bad. I place some of the blame firmly on Lokihaus for providing an incomplete quote. As some of you have quite clearly pointed out, there is a short sentence after the blurb about peak charging that clearly states the LiPoly capability of the charger. Hope he doesn't mind

BTW, it is far from the first time I've been wrong on here, and not even close to the first time I've been caught at it

Lokihaus

My Feedback: (8)

Holy H E double hockey sticks, people! =) Here's a copy, paste from Tower's site about this charger.

This is the Hobbico 12 Volt DC Quick Field Charger MkII.
Two ports with completely independent circuitry allow for one pack to be
powered up by itself, or two at once.
Recharges, NiCds, NiMH packs, even Lithium-ion batteries on either side.

****The Manual and Box is Wrong. This Will Charge Lithium-Polymer batteries*****

FEATURES: Super Easy to use, and comes with many safety features. Simple push button start-up. Peak Detection charging for NiCd or NiMH packs. Visual and audible error messages that indicate reverse polarity and poor output connections. Time-out charge termination and fused current overload protection. Can be mounted on a field box, or used as a stand-alone unit. Charges 1 to 3 cell Li-ion or Li-po (Lithium-Polymer) park flyer batteries. Charges 1-8 cell NiCd or NiMH radio batteries. Two year warranty.

Now, Mr. Matt I was asking about this charger's ability to peak detect Li-Poly/Ion batteries, I knew the charger could indeed charge them. You were the one who started yelling that the MarkII (MARK TWO), couldn't even charge the batts. But that's okay... Anyhoo! =)

So, back to the original post, we have the:
Triton at $130 (needing a PS for home use)
Hobbico II at $50 (needing a PS for home use)
Hobbico Elite at $150
Worley Charger at $50 (which only does Li-Poly/Ion Bats)

If anyone else has any other charger suggestions, please post, but there's a lot of info here for me to make an educated decision as to what would be best for me. Thanks for all the help, and this is the longest thread I've ever started! =D

AndySteere

My Feedback: (2)

While the MkII will charge Lipos safely, it won't charge them fully. In fact, this charger was designed to charge Lithium-Ion packs, which have a nominal voltage of 3.6v instead of the 3.7v for Lithium Polymers. The MkII will charge L-ion's to 100% capacity, but Li-Po's to only ~90%. This charger is also limited to 1-amp output with Lithiums... so bigger packs will take longer to charge.

They do work fine though... and if you don't care about that last 10% capacity... it's a decent charger for $50 and will charge two packs at once. Of course, it has no cycling capability. You'd need an Elite to get that. I do wish the MkII had an indicator of how many cells it thinks the battery has. It has never been wrong the few times I've used it, but I'd feel better about it. (I have an Astro-109 and an Orbit too, so I don't use the MkII much for lipos).

Another option for powering your charger from home is a 12V deep-cycle battery, or even a lawn tractor battery. I use the same one both at home and at the field. I have both a cheap flightbox charger that will recharge the 12V battery, albeit slowly, and a 10amp deep-cycle charger for quicker recharges.

traskos

Matt
I don`t care what other people say about you. I think you`re great and I nave learned a lot from you
Dave

balsabuster2003

"While the MkII will charge Lipos safely, it won't charge them fully. In fact, this charger was designed to charge Lithium-Ion packs, which have a nominal voltage of 3.6v instead of the 3.7v for Lithium Polymers. The MkII will charge L-ion's to 100% capacity, but Li-Po's to only ~90%. This charger is also limited to 1-amp output with Lithiums... so bigger packs will take longer to charge. "

I believe this to be true. Mine terminates charging at 8,24v on a 2-cell battery. Word of caution: I have heard that you do not want to "top-off" a 2-cell battery. The charger thinks (because of the elevated voltage) that it is a 3-cell battery and the result will be an overcharge and a FIRE. The same probably goes for a fully charged 1-cell battery. 3-cell batteries should pose no problem with this charger. Just make sure your 1-cell and 2-cell batteries are sufficiently discharged before attempting to charge them.

lwatson

My Feedback: (2)

This thread is already too long, but I think the right investment to make is to buy a converted PC power supply that puts out 13V. I got one on e-bay for $30 bucks, and an excellent li-poly charger like the 109. Li-polys simply take this hobby to a whole new level, don't mess with the rest.

It is possible that a newer better battery will come out, but for now this is as good as it gets.

Larry

ratman572

Well said Larry. I have not personally played with any Li-Po stuff yet, but am very curious. I'm not really into electric planes, but I do have the need for a new charger/cycler for all my other stuff that I have (and the kid's electric Stampede R/C truck)

I never really got into electric planes or heli's because of the limited run-time, but with the advent of lithium stuff out there, I'm very interested in starting a project soon.

I just finished doing a PC power supply conversion per Red's instructions, and it powers my piranha charger flawlessly (even when it's full-tilt at 5 amps charge current). I used an old 250W "AT" power supply (since I used to do a lot of computer stuff and had several lying around). The conversion was easy, and inexpensive. I highly recommend it to anyone with moderate skills. In fact, anyone who is into electric R/C should be able to do most of it with their eyes closed.

Just be careful poking around in there, (since the capacitors can remain charged for quite a long time after the thing is powered down).

I am now in the process of deciding which charger/cycler to get.

Right now I'm in between the Intellipeak ICE, and the Triton.

They both look like very capable chargers.

Does anyone have any advice in regards to ease of use between these two chargers?

The ICE has a nice multi-line display, -and according to Red's review on the Triton, the only complaint he had was the programming difficulty on the Triton.

Any thoughts and/or opinions between these two?

Thanks in advance.