Gene: I rely on the voltwatch only after I have checked the battery with a loaded voltmeter. If I didn't get that point across before, I will clarify now.

I use the Voltwatch2 on everything I fly. I use it as a safety check in between flights, and not as a reliability check on arrival at the airfield and initial setup. For that I use a loaded voltmeter, as everyone should. As pointed out above, a loaded voltmeter should be part of everyone's field box.

Now in between flights, I check, as I said before, I check the voltwatch before and after each flight by turning on the electronics, (TX - RX) and once it is settled in (2.4 GHz) operate the sticks through all positions to the extreme while watching the voltwatch. Any deviations into the yellow become suspect and I check that out by working the stick in the direction that caused it to flicker into the yellow. If it goes to the red, I stop and see why that happened.

For anyone interested, I will relate what happened to me a few years ago and perhaps this may clear up a few things for those doubters.

I have a Venus II pattern plane, not a 2 X 2 meter plane, but the intermediate level, with an OS 1.20 AX engine. It has 2.4 GHz (Spektrum DX7) but I don't recall what receiver. I also am using a pair of 1200 mah NiMh packs in parallel, each to an individual slot in the receiver and each one has it's own switch. I power up battery #1 and check things out as stated above. I turn off switch #1 and turn on switch #2 and do the same thing. If all looks good, I power up both by switching #1 back on. I am now operating with both batteries in parallel to the system.

I fly that way, and upon landing, I reverse the above and check both batteries before shutting down. I do this all over again for the next flight.

This one day, after my third or fourth flight, I did the usual routine but when I checked Battery #2, the LED's were pretty much in the red all the time, where battery #1 was ok. I took the wing off and took the battery out and checked it with a loaded voltmeter.. and it was dead. I had a spare and put that in, re-charged battery #1 then started all over again with my battery check process.

The battery #2 went dead in flight. Imagine what would have happened if I didn't have a parallel operation. And, imagine what would have happened if I had not checked my battery operation in between flights.

Yeah, I admit that the same thing can be done using the charge jack and a loaded voltmeter without having to use a voltwatch, however, the voltwatch is simply a tool and a good quick-check of your battery condition.. and that's ALL I am saying.

You (any and all posters) can do what you want. The process is what I follow and it works for me. You can take your chances and not check batteries, or you can be safe and check batteries. The method you follow is totally up to you.

CGr.