Velociraptor73

I saw somewhere that the new 2.4Ghz radio generation doesn't need 12V, they are fine with 6-7V, the rest is wasted as temperature as the voltage from batteries is lowered to be used.
Why they keep doing it 12V then?
Until they change that I think Lipos are the way to go. I never used normal alkaline batteries in radios (only Ni-MH) but they say it would last like 20min only.

nitro-rob

There is a thread on this in another non RCU forum (rhymes with bar-pee-shrek) where they discuss somebody that will do the modification for you. I was thinking of BEC because they are small, cheap and convenient and I have some here that aren't being used. What kind of voltage regulator did you have in mind? I hesitate a little because the radio is fragile inside and there is a risk to damaging things but I've had it apart before.

One problem I foresee is you would need to run a lipo alarm and that would have to be installed and removed with each use.

AL3xGR

I was planning to use a voltage regulator like KIA(6V,1A).All lipo alarms have a buzzer,so there won't be a problem.I'm only afraid that I have to use a 3s lipo because the voltage drop that switching regulators have(or linear have this problem).(Google it.I'm busy right now...)(here is a vid: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GSzVs7_aW-Yhe says about the V drop too)

nitro-rob

I wouldn't recommend doing a voltage regulator. BEC's are less than $20 shipped to you, have high conversion efficiency, regulate voltage output, are packaged nice and small and just need to be connected between the battery and radio.

The problem with the lipo alarm is that its always drawing power so it would have to be removed when the radio is not used....unless it is connected to the power switch somehow but this creates some other problems.

redfisher1974

Whats new?

nitro-rob

Nothing new here. Its snowy, icy and generally crappy outside. EFS project is coming along and will be drivable long before the weather is good enough. My crawler is running well indoors. I put a goat 3s 18.5T setup in it and it drives over my sons very well. I assumed you meant with RC?

redfisher1974

Guess we have to stay on topic...lol

Just seemed slow in here.

Krazy Chicken

i think it is cause of the winter, and a lot of people dont run in snow.

nitro-rob

I could talk about work which has turned into a flaming bag of crap lately but it would defeat the purpose of escaping work and entering the world of RC.....I go here to get away from it. Some people from work showed up at the hobby shop a few weeks ago when I was there and it felt like they were invading my escape.

redfisher1974

I hear you....my storm is begging to be ran with the new 3s nano-tech.

DarksideVR

You are right it is slow here. I am sure I would have broken and replaced or upgraded something else by now but, the snow and super cold temps have kept me indoors. Caution: Winter Storms May Slow or Freeze RC Truck Forums

redfisher1974

Maybe time for some tear downs and clean up's.

AL3xGR

Cold weather may be a problem for 2wd cars.(poor traction).I have a 4wd car too.The good is that my motor's temp will be lower than they were during summer.

What about the BEC and the spektrum tx? Let's talk about this,since rc discussion is stopped at this period.

Velociraptor73

Here in Brazil the weather is just warming up every day for the summer.

Krazy Chicken

what lol that is weird, it is still cooling down here in az, but no snow

nitro-rob

I don't think there is much to it. The battery box goes out easily if you take the radio apart and a BEC and lipo will fit in there fine. I don't want to have to install and remove a lipo alarm each time I use the radio and consider it easier to put AA batteries in 3-4 times a season.

To do RC you need a house in each hemisphere.

redfisher1974

my Tactic takes 4 AA's and I use rechargeables that only need charged twice a season.

nitro-rob

I find the range of the DX3s goes down a lot with rechargeables. Even when I use alkalines and they get down to a combined voltage of 4.8 V the range cuts down. I've read about it in other forums too that this radio has that problem. One guy I know found a way to add an extra rechargeable to get the voltage up to 6v and all was fine.

I would be more interested in putting a 6v NiMH low leak pack in mine.

redfisher1974

I have never ran mine out of range, Knock on wood.

redfisher1974

Hey Rob, Im going to the leaf game on saturday...

AL3xGR

But a lipo seems more reliable to me....You have to plug the alarm...but it worths the 30sec you give to plug and unplug it.I'll try to make something with a switch.2S or 3S?(to prevent voltage drop because of the switching regulator)

AL3xGR

But if you don't get lower than 6V you won't have any problem about voltage drop.Any cut-off module for 2S that has buzzer and it's for 3.2V/cell?(3.2 to 3.6V)

nitro-rob

The 30s to plug and unplug the alarm every time versus putting batteries in every month or two is the convenience I am going for. Then again the lipo battery should last for hours and occasional monitoring is enough. The radio will always read 6v if it has a lipo connected through a BEC to it even if its running below 3.2V per cell so it can kill the battery. 3s is not necessary for a BEC, 2s is sufficient although most can take up to 25V input (some go up to 40V for the plane guys).


It is possible to wire the alarm to the on/off switch of the radio

Enjoy the Canadiens game, Red. I will be rooting for the bleu, blanche et rouge (sorry for butchering the French here if I did). I am one of the few that preferred Price over Halak.

EDIT - I am going to take the radio apart and see if the battery box is easy to remove. With it out i should have access to put any power setup in there I want including shrink wrapping five rechargeables. Stay tuned. Mom and the boys are away until tomorrow night so I can play all I want.

nitro-rob

Here it is so far. I apologize for the picture quality, my wife has the camera tonight. I will take better ones and will likely make a sticky or thread on this in the future.

I took the radio apart. The only hard part of taking it apart is pulling the screen off of half of the radio to split the case (see the first photo at the top of the radio the screen is 'hanging over'. There is one screw on the base by the batteries under the DX3s sticker.

The battery box comes out easily. I desoldered the wires off of it.

nitro-rob

Damn photo uploader! If you can't see the photos, they go to the right of the screen.

The back of the radio doesn't hold any of the guts. To make battery changes easier in the future I cut the back in two pieces and reattached the top. I did this for access and to give the ability to reuse the original battery box. There is only a small cut visible there because the grips cover most of that area.


Futaba ends were added on the radio side and the battery box. Now any 6v power can be added to the radio and it takes about a minute to take the battery part of the radio apart and make adjustments. I used a NiMH hump pack and lipo through a BEC and the radio worked fine. The only problem with the BEC is that it is from 8-26V so a 2s won't work with it.

I plan on making a pack of rechargeables or see if my flat venom hump pack will work.

The whole process takes about half an hour. I will look for alternative battery solutions for it.