Series Charging
07-05-2012, 01:20 PM
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Series Charging
I have 2 GForce 5000mah 20c 2s lipos, but I would like a way to charge them at the same time on my one charger. My charger is limited to 5 amps, so I need to wire them in series to charge them. How do I do the balancing plugs then? Is this decently safe?
07-05-2012, 01:57 PM
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RE: Series Charging
You could still do them in parallel too if you wanted , but it may not be any time saver for you. Anyways , for series charging they just need to require the same amount of charge. Series charging may or may not save any time for you either.
For the balancer connection one (left) pack's right most pin is common to the other (right) pack's left most pin and there are bords available that make this an easy connection to make. They are called series boards or multipack boards (not parallel boards)
It's safe as long as the pack's were used together in series and the connections are made proper. I suppose you can also make an adapter too. If your charger is 50 watts then both series and parallel is probably a waste of time because it won't save you much time.
For the balancer connection one (left) pack's right most pin is common to the other (right) pack's left most pin and there are bords available that make this an easy connection to make. They are called series boards or multipack boards (not parallel boards)
It's safe as long as the pack's were used together in series and the connections are made proper. I suppose you can also make an adapter too. If your charger is 50 watts then both series and parallel is probably a waste of time because it won't save you much time.
07-05-2012, 02:06 PM
#3
RE: Series Charging
ORIGINAL: guver
You could still do them in parallel too if you wanted , but it may not be any time saver for you. Anyways , for series charging they just need to require the same amount of charge. Series charging may or may not save any time for you either.
For the balancer connection one (left) pack's right most pin is common to the other (right) pack's left most pin and there are bords available that make this an easy connection to make. They are called series boards or multipack boards (not parallel boards)
It's safe as long as the pack's were used together in series and the connections are made proper. I suppose you can also make an adapter too. If your charger is 50 watts then both series and parallel is probably a waste of time because it won;t save you much time.
You could still do them in parallel too if you wanted , but it may not be any time saver for you. Anyways , for series charging they just need to require the same amount of charge. Series charging may or may not save any time for you either.
For the balancer connection one (left) pack's right most pin is common to the other (right) pack's left most pin and there are bords available that make this an easy connection to make. They are called series boards or multipack boards (not parallel boards)
It's safe as long as the pack's were used together in series and the connections are made proper. I suppose you can also make an adapter too. If your charger is 50 watts then both series and parallel is probably a waste of time because it won;t save you much time.
why not just buy a cheap charger
07-05-2012, 02:29 PM
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RE: Series Charging
Yes, sure it would. Not very much though if your charger's max is 50 watts. If you have a 63,80,100,120,ect watt charger then it can save you half the time.
07-05-2012, 02:33 PM
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RE: Series Charging
ORIGINAL: guver
Yes, sure it would. Not very much though if your charger's max is 50 watts. If you have a 63,80,100,120,ect watt charger then it can save you half the time.
Yes, sure it would. Not very much though if your charger's max is 50 watts. If you have a 63,80,100,120,ect watt charger then it can save you half the time.
07-05-2012, 02:39 PM
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RE: Series Charging
when you charge a 2s at 5 amps you are using about 42 watts of power at the cc/cv point. You only have 50 watts so doubling the voltage is going to nearly halve the current. Instead of
8.4 x 5 amps = 42 watts you'll get about
16.8 x 3 amps = 50 watts. You will save "some" time , but not half. Your charger will automatically limit itself to 50 watts and you'll get mopre current at the starting voltage , but will gradually come down to a touch less than 3 amps at the cc/cv stage.
Other than balancing issues it WILL save you some time and is probably worth it.
Just simply series a couple of packs that need charged and start a charge. You'll see what I mean right away. As the voltage rises the current will go down and at any time you mutiply those 2 together you'll get exactly 50 watts. It's too bad that is your charger's MAX power. [:@]
8.4 x 5 amps = 42 watts you'll get about
16.8 x 3 amps = 50 watts. You will save "some" time , but not half. Your charger will automatically limit itself to 50 watts and you'll get mopre current at the starting voltage , but will gradually come down to a touch less than 3 amps at the cc/cv stage.
Other than balancing issues it WILL save you some time and is probably worth it.
Just simply series a couple of packs that need charged and start a charge. You'll see what I mean right away. As the voltage rises the current will go down and at any time you mutiply those 2 together you'll get exactly 50 watts. It's too bad that is your charger's MAX power. [:@]
07-05-2012, 02:41 PM
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RE: Series Charging
ORIGINAL: guver
when you charge a 2s at 5 amps you are using about 42 watts of power at the cc/cv point. You only have 50 watts so doubling the voltage is going to nearly halve the current. Instead of
8.4 x 5 amps = 42 watts you'll get about
16.8 x 3 amps = 50 watts. You will save ''some'' time , but not half. Your charger will automatically limit itself to 50 watts and you'll get mopre current at the starting voltage , but will gradually come down to a touch less than 3 amps at the cc/cv stage.
Other than balancing issues it WILL save you some time and is probably worth it.
when you charge a 2s at 5 amps you are using about 42 watts of power at the cc/cv point. You only have 50 watts so doubling the voltage is going to nearly halve the current. Instead of
8.4 x 5 amps = 42 watts you'll get about
16.8 x 3 amps = 50 watts. You will save ''some'' time , but not half. Your charger will automatically limit itself to 50 watts and you'll get mopre current at the starting voltage , but will gradually come down to a touch less than 3 amps at the cc/cv stage.
Other than balancing issues it WILL save you some time and is probably worth it.
07-05-2012, 02:46 PM
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RE: Series Charging
That's cool then because you are running then in series and that means that they WILL require the same amount of charge. I think there are many others that sell them , but hobby king had them for sale with their balancers a while back. I'll link to them in a few minutes , but you have to be careful because some of them used reversed polarity and various connections. In otherwords they were specifically set up for their balancer. These are only an example and may or may not work for your particular chargers output and/or battery's balance connections.
07-05-2012, 02:51 PM
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RE: Series Charging
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...connector.html
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...onnector_.html
These are the two I got a long time ago and allow multipacks to be charged in series , but beware they used reversed polarity for the triton chargers I was using at the time. It is also very important that pack A and pack B not get mixed up when doing this.
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...onnector_.html
These are the two I got a long time ago and allow multipacks to be charged in series , but beware they used reversed polarity for the triton chargers I was using at the time. It is also very important that pack A and pack B not get mixed up when doing this.
07-05-2012, 02:56 PM
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RE: Series Charging
ORIGINAL: guver
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...connector.html
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...onnector_.html
These are the two I got a long time ago and allow multipacks to be charged in series , but beware they used reversed polarity for the triton chargers I was using at the time. It is also very important that pack A and pack B not get mixed up when doing this.
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...connector.html
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...onnector_.html
These are the two I got a long time ago and allow multipacks to be charged in series , but beware they used reversed polarity for the triton chargers I was using at the time. It is also very important that pack A and pack B not get mixed up when doing this.
07-05-2012, 03:06 PM
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RE: Series Charging
I'm gonna go check. Ultimately they WILL work , but they must be wired like this (use 4s and show balance wire hookup) http://www.scriptasylum.com/rc_speed/lipo.html
scroll down to balance wire connector and input high and low current 2s + 2s and you should easily see how and why the center pin is common between a pair of packs. I hope this site helps you out. It is from Brian G (a good smart guy)
Those boards won't directly plug in because the supplied wire adapter is wrong. The board itself WILL work , but would need a custom wire OR an adapter wire. I think I find some other balance boards on Hobbyking , but I can't quite say for sure if they are series boards. I THINK that if the board doesn't say parallel then it must be series.
Never mind, they are simply multi adapters allowing a single pack to be done. The 2 boards I linked are the only 2 that I know of. There has to be more somewhere.
scroll down to balance wire connector and input high and low current 2s + 2s and you should easily see how and why the center pin is common between a pair of packs. I hope this site helps you out. It is from Brian G (a good smart guy)
Those boards won't directly plug in because the supplied wire adapter is wrong. The board itself WILL work , but would need a custom wire OR an adapter wire. I think I find some other balance boards on Hobbyking , but I can't quite say for sure if they are series boards. I THINK that if the board doesn't say parallel then it must be series.
Never mind, they are simply multi adapters allowing a single pack to be done. The 2 boards I linked are the only 2 that I know of. There has to be more somewhere.
07-07-2012, 08:15 PM
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RE: Series Charging
ugh, those hobbyking adapters are a short waiting to happen. I guess it depends on if they wired them correctly or not, but still, I would not trust them unless you are VERY careful about matching up which lipo is which on the balance board. or if you just check them out to make sure they are wired right before using. and still be careful.
If you have a 50W charger, don't bother with series charging, hardly worth it. (my opinion, guver has been right on all technical counts in the thread, I just disagree on this point
If you are determined on doing it, do it the right way and build yourself a series adapter like the one from the link guver gave you. I'll attach a diagram of the exact one you want to build and all the supplies you need to build it with.
[link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=9735]one set of these for the 2S balance leads[/link]
[link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=9918]one set of these for the 4S balance lead[/link]
High current connector of your choice. (probably Traxxas, since you are getting a summit).
Some wire, 16awg or bigger will be fine for charging [link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__9681__Turnigy_Pure_Silicone_Wire_16AWG_1mtr_Red. html]red[/link] [link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__9680__Turnigy_Pure_Silicone_Wire_16AWG_1mtr_BLAC K.html]black[/link]
Some heat shrink (very cheap on hobbyking as well)
Possibly some extension wire for the balance leads if you want, 20-22awg I would guess, also cheap on hobbyking.
Solder it up as in the photo and you'll be golden!
If you have a 50W charger, don't bother with series charging, hardly worth it. (my opinion, guver has been right on all technical counts in the thread, I just disagree on this point
If you are determined on doing it, do it the right way and build yourself a series adapter like the one from the link guver gave you. I'll attach a diagram of the exact one you want to build and all the supplies you need to build it with.
[link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=9735]one set of these for the 2S balance leads[/link]
[link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=9918]one set of these for the 4S balance lead[/link]
High current connector of your choice. (probably Traxxas, since you are getting a summit).
Some wire, 16awg or bigger will be fine for charging [link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__9681__Turnigy_Pure_Silicone_Wire_16AWG_1mtr_Red. html]red[/link] [link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__9680__Turnigy_Pure_Silicone_Wire_16AWG_1mtr_BLAC K.html]black[/link]
Some heat shrink (very cheap on hobbyking as well)
Possibly some extension wire for the balance leads if you want, 20-22awg I would guess, also cheap on hobbyking.
Solder it up as in the photo and you'll be golden!
07-07-2012, 08:58 PM
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RE: Series Charging
ORIGINAL: Brainanator
ugh, those hobbyking adapters are a short waiting to happen. I guess it depends on if they wired them correctly or not, but still, I would not trust them unless you are VERY careful about matching up which lipo is which on the balance board. or if you just check them out to make sure they are wired right before using. and still be careful.
If you have a 50W charger, don't bother with series charging, hardly worth it. (my opinion, guver has been right on all technical counts in the thread, I just disagree on this point
If you are determined on doing it, do it the right way and build yourself a series adapter like the one from the link guver gave you. I'll attach a diagram of the exact one you want to build and all the supplies you need to build it with.
[link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=9735]one set of these for the 2S balance leads[/link]
[link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=9918]one set of these for the 4S balance lead[/link]
High current connector of your choice. (probably Traxxas, since you are getting a summit).
Some wire, 16awg or bigger will be fine for charging [link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__9681__Turnigy_Pure_Silicone_Wire_16AWG_1mtr_Red. html]red[/link] [link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__9680__Turnigy_Pure_Silicone_Wire_16AWG_1mtr_BLAC K.html]black[/link]
Some heat shrink (very cheap on hobbyking as well)
Possibly some extension wire for the balance leads if you want, 20-22awg I would guess, also cheap on hobbyking.
Solder it up as in the photo and you'll be golden!
ugh, those hobbyking adapters are a short waiting to happen. I guess it depends on if they wired them correctly or not, but still, I would not trust them unless you are VERY careful about matching up which lipo is which on the balance board. or if you just check them out to make sure they are wired right before using. and still be careful.
If you have a 50W charger, don't bother with series charging, hardly worth it. (my opinion, guver has been right on all technical counts in the thread, I just disagree on this point
If you are determined on doing it, do it the right way and build yourself a series adapter like the one from the link guver gave you. I'll attach a diagram of the exact one you want to build and all the supplies you need to build it with.
[link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=9735]one set of these for the 2S balance leads[/link]
[link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=9918]one set of these for the 4S balance lead[/link]
High current connector of your choice. (probably Traxxas, since you are getting a summit).
Some wire, 16awg or bigger will be fine for charging [link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__9681__Turnigy_Pure_Silicone_Wire_16AWG_1mtr_Red. html]red[/link] [link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__9680__Turnigy_Pure_Silicone_Wire_16AWG_1mtr_BLAC K.html]black[/link]
Some heat shrink (very cheap on hobbyking as well)
Possibly some extension wire for the balance leads if you want, 20-22awg I would guess, also cheap on hobbyking.
Solder it up as in the photo and you'll be golden!
