Im sure many people here own an electric starter and battery. From EXPERIENCE, what would you recommend.

No bashing allowed.

tower hobbies cheap starter (under $20) or the heavy duty one, either work great and are probably the cheapest around. as far as battery, you can't go wrong with the jump start stations meant for auto's, find one on sale for around $20, but the battery setup probably depends more on your personal situation. (do you have a field box that can accomodate a battery?)

No field box, Which rechargeable battery should i get?

if you have a 12v charger ,just get a cheap small lawn mower or motorcycle battery,, all batteries are rechargable, I use a half dead motorcycle battery that wouldnt start my bike any more, but it'll start my planes......Oh and I got the Tower one about 10 years ago,, it still works fine......Rog

Thanks guys.
Im definately getting the $20 towers starter. Now for the battery im getting the " Hobbico TorqMaster Mini 12V 4.5A Battery " ($11), and for the charger I happen to have a voltage generator that generates up to 30v. You think i can use that to charge the battery?

Hi,

I'm new to RC'ing.. And field boxes etc.. Anyway I just ordered a battery
off of ebay for 7.50 and 7.50 shipping.. I hope its a good battery.. There
listed as Brand new 12v 7 amp. field box gel cell.. They come with a 1 yr.
warrentee.. Its from an alarm company(Gruber) that says they sell these
at their cost to help keep their cost down?? Anyway we'll see

Ron

C.R.A.P.S.
AMA 801542

Yup ive seen those... How are you gona charge that?

EDIT: what are the specs that the charger of a 12v battery has? maybe ive got a charger that would work already, or maybe i can use my voltage generator.

Their in Phoenix, AZ And I'm 3 hrs away.. Anyway I did not get the battery
when I thought I should.. Anyway I called them to see what happened.. They
were out of that type and was waiting for their new shipment which came in
yesterday.. I asked them if I could use my reg. auto car battery and they
said it should be no problem.. So that's what I'm going to use..

Ron

Im a little confused. Who is 3 hrs away Towers or Ebay guy?
Use the car battery to charge the battery, or to run the starter?

Ok, i just checked, and i can get like 20 amps from the voltage generator. Any electrician here know if i can charge a 12v battery with it?

I was going to use my automatic battery charger to charge the
field battery.. at least thats my plan as of now...

I'm 3 hours away from the alarm company that sells the battery I
bought on ebay.... And a note I bought the mini panel from Tower
hobbies. Both of which will go on and into my $4.00 tool box I got
at Walmart.. Just so I can use my $10 starter I got from my club
instructor.. :-)

How much was that automatic charger?

I don't remember.. Its just a regular automatic car batter charger that
I've had for a few years now..

You know you can get those over nite wall over nite(i think) plug-in chargers
from tower for around $10..

On your generator.. I think 20 amps is too much..

UP to 20 amp, i can get as little as 100ma

Well I guess it'll work, You just have to watch it.. Guess you could set it
at 2 amps or so and let it go over nite.. But you better check on this!!!
I would ONLY use it when your watching it!!! And checking the Battery!!!

Best bet.... Buy a charger..

Have a Great Day!!

I have used an electric starter on my plane, but I found that with a trainer, (and I heard that the evolution is like this) that not only could I use a "chicken stick" with ease (3 turns tops for most days) the stick works great, and it was CHEAP!!! The best part

Just my .02

Gell cell bats. don't like to be fast charged. 300 or 400 ma. would not hurt it.

Why not, if you apply 14.2 volts to a discharged battery, you will probably get over 7 amps until the voltage gets up to around 13.7 volts

Just from experience. Tried a 4 amp car batt charger on it, that works on wet cells, and wouldn't take a charge. Use a 300ma regulated wall wart 14.5 volts and it charged fine. Don't know the technical reason for it. Maybe someone who knows can chime in.

GTac,
The Tower starter should be fine (I used one for years), but if you haven't already ordered the 4.5 amp battery, try to get a 7 amp. The 4.5 will work, just not as well.

You said you can set the output on the voltage generator to as little as 100 mA, so it will work fine for the 12 volt. As was mentioned, keep it to around 400 mA. I think you could "fast charge" it at as high as 1 amp, but it's hard on the battery.
Dennis-

The advice on the chargers is good. DB said around 400ma for a gell cell. That should do it. Without a doubt you want the 7 amp gell cell. The smaller one will not have enough poop to starta bigger (90 or bigger engine) engine. I would also like to mention that when charging the battery should get warm slightly. A hot battery is a sign of overcharging.

Now i will break away from the pack. I reccomend a Sullivan heavy duty. The Tower starter is ok. But if you want one starter to last a lifetime. Then you want a Sullivan. The heavy duty costs a few dollars more than the Tower heavy duty starter. It can take abuse that I belive the Tower cannot. I have one and I think I will eventually have a Dynatron. I expect to get into some much bigger engines soon. I will need the extra poop 24 volts gives.

By the way I use a small motorcycle battery and a peak detection charger. Mine is made by Solar (a good professional brand charger). i only have to charge my battery once or twice a year. It has that much reserve power. Just be careful with your battery.

Just for information. Charging a battery creates heat and hydrogen gas. Sparks can cause a battery to explode (I have had 1 go up in my face as a professional mechanic). 2 safty tips, ALWAYS hook-up and unhook your charger unplugged! No sparks that way. And be sure the clips are on tight. And always let the battery sit 15 to 20 minuits with the charger unhooked before removing the clips or moving the battery. Doing these will avoid the unplesant things associated with charging batterys.

Good luck and have fun and please be safe.

Mark Shuman

Well, a little too late. I already ordered the towers starter plus 4.5 batt, and charger :/ , Should have told me that yesterday... Another thing is... chicken stick is fine for evolutions :/ you're right. Today I started my engine with 1-2 pushes thats it... That was only part of my journey today though, read my new thread