What brands?
 

Hi. So I'm curious what Life packs and Life compatible chargers everybody uses? I'm looking for the most reliable brands?? Any info would be much appreciated. Thanks a mil!
Extra_230

The most reliable LiFe packs by a comfortable margin are the A123 packs. They are different from all the rest in that the cell have a cylindrical shape instead of the flat Lipo type of shape. They are more durable and can deliver considerably more amps to your power system. After that, the flat type packs from the well established manufacturers will be next in line (in no particular order-Venom, Hobbico, Hyperion and others) and then the cheap brands like Zippy and Turnigy.

As for chargers, I don't think it matters much. If you buy from one of the bigger names you get warranty support if something goes wrong along with a manual that was written by someone who actually knows English. If you buy one from Hobby King it'll still probably work but don't expect any help if it doesn't or you don't know how to program it.

Thanks, Jester.

The minimum flying standards on a 4.8volt and 9.6volt pack are not to fall below 4.7 volts and 9.0 volts, respectively, or a crash could occur. What are the bare minimums on Life packs?

I was reading my manual for my JR XP9303 and I thought it said not to use a battery larger than 9.6 volts. It may have actually been the manual for the JR 12X. But I did read something like that. Is a regulator required to use Life packs to drop the voltage on the JR XP9303?

For other beginners looking at A123 or Life packs, I thought this was a very helpful insight.

http://hangtimes.com/a123rxsetup.html

You can't go by voltage measurements for LiFe. The discharge curve is so flat and drops off so fast when they are down that you don't get much warning that way. A load test can tell you if a pack has gone bad before your flight, but the only reliable method for knowing how many flights you can do is to calculate your average current use per flight and do some math.

On using an LiFe for a transmitter pack, here's the reality. NiCd/Nimh batteries come off the charger at 1.4 volts per cell. So for an 8 cell pack that will be rated at 9.6v, that's 11.2 volts. That will drop fairly quickly to about 10.5 then gradually down to 8.8ish before dropping off quickly. A 3 cell LiFe rated at 9.9 volts comes hot off the charger at 10.8 volts and gradually drops off until it crashes hard at 9v. So the LiFe, even though the nominal voltage rating is a little higher, actually matches the voltage delivered to your radio perfectly compared to the NiCd it was designed for. it's a similar situation for receiver packs. A 2 cell LiFe practically matches the voltage of a 5 cell NiCd pack.

Hey Jester! That really helps! So where would a 2 cell life pack drop off?

Around 6v. But if you're thinking about trying to gauge how much charge you have left by checking that you're going to have problems. The arithmetic method above is the way to do it. There are extra sensitive meters on the market that claim to be able to tell you the remaining capacity of a Lipo or LiFe, but I wouldn't trust one until a few cycles of testing it.

Has anyone ever had any issues charging multiple Life or Lipo packs on multi-chargers such as the Hitec X4? Someone told me today that these multi-chargers are known for "common ground" issues. I've gone on Amazon and read the customer reviews and people have put multiple Lipo packs larger than 2000mah and they say it takes about 2 hours to charge all their packs. I have to say, from the days of the Nicads and having to charge them for 12-16 hours, 2 hours is nothing to complain about. Any input here??

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/atta...mentid=2035080


This is my main charging station that is used on a steel roll around cart with the power supplies for each charger below. It is used in different areas of the shop depending on the airplanes going out the next day. I also use two other basic fifty watt four button chargers and in my flight box. Not sure what the complaint about the X-4 is as it certainly does everything I could have possibly hoped for.

Now yes I only have two airplanes that I use Life's in and that is my two turbines and that is because I do not wish to deal with balance cords for all my glow and gas airplanes, But that X-4 certainly is a honey. I even have three batteries that are four cell 5.0 mah, you know the kind of batteries you can weld with in a pinch I have no need to charge those more than two at a time charge those two at a time.

I have had at times all six ports of this station going at one time including one life two or three lipos and the balance Nimh which is what I use most of all. And hey those two eighty watt Venom Pro Plus (unfortunately discontinued now) are no slouchs either as i regularly charge twenty cell (24 volt) Nicd batteries with those lovely single port chargers.


John

John I much appreciate it. I believe the company just wants to sell his single port chargers. I appreciate it buddy!