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Noob Li battery question

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Old 06-16-2004 | 03:05 PM
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Default Noob Li battery question

I am just getting started in RC Planes. I bought an electric sail plane as my first plane also got the MRC charger for it. For my second plane I bought a GWS A10.

I was thinking of running the GWS with lithium batteries. I know my MRC charger wont work with them, but I have a sony digital camera that uses 7.2v Lithium batteries. Is there any reason not to use a camcorder battery in my GWS plane? I can easily enough charge them in my camera, I would just need to make a connector or something so I can get it in the plane and still charge it in the camera.
Old 06-16-2004 | 09:48 PM
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Default RE: Noob Li battery question

I am fairly new to electrics but i would not risk damaging my camera. lipos can be very dangerous if not charged properly. Can anyone tell me which is better GWS corsair or Zero in stock setup but using lipos??
Old 06-17-2004 | 06:48 AM
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Default RE: Noob Li battery question

Charging a battery in my camera is very straight forward. You just plug in the chager to the camera, it has never been a problem in the 3 years or so I have had the camera.
I can get the replacement lion batteries for only about $15 or so on ebay for it. Seems like its worth a shot to me.
Old 06-17-2004 | 07:35 AM
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Default RE: Noob Li battery question

What you need to be careful of is the discharge rate, how many Amps will be drawn by the A-10's motors at full throttle. Most consumer-grade Lithium technology is not meant to sustain a discharge of several Amps. Twice their rated capacity in mAh is about all you can expect normally. I think the A-10 can draw upwards of 8 Amps.

Then there's that pesky safety circuit. Who knows what it does. It could cut the pack off if the current draw exceeds a certain amount, which leaves you with a dead plane and no control. Can you get a measurable voltage off two terminals on the pack?

Other factors not having anything to do with the technology itself might make this a deal breaker, though. Will the pack fit? How much does it weigh? The A-10 is not known for being overpowered, and anything you can do to lighten the load...
Old 06-17-2004 | 11:40 AM
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Default RE: Noob Li battery question

Dimension: Approx. 38x20x55mm (W/H/D)
Weight: 2.5oz.

[link=http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=48521&item=3822087 049&rd=1]link[/link]
heres a pic of the battery.

It would be pretty easy to make a harness for the battery leads using some wire, rubber bands, and a dowel stick.


Just another side note, my celphone has a Li Ion battery too, I wonder how come li chargers are so much money for RC.
Old 06-17-2004 | 12:44 PM
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Default RE: Noob Li battery question

Don't do it. The lithium ion batteries will NOT handle the amp draw from RC use.
Old 06-17-2004 | 02:02 PM
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Default RE: Noob Li battery question

If you get a lithium charger that's designed to charge a certain cell count at a fixed rate, they're cheap for R/C too. Typical cell phone and camera battery chargers are designed to charge the pack for that particular cell phone or camera, and no others.

The major differerence is that R/C chargers are often designed to charge any number of cells at a wide range of charge rates. Take the Astro 109 for example: 1 to 8 LiPoly cells at 0 to 8 Amps. Flexibility costs money.

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