I just received my new batteries and I was set up to use the 4mm bullett connectors. The batteres have a matching connector on the positive side, but the negative side has a different connector. My question is: what do you guys do in a case like this ? Is there a "special" connector I need to get ?
The wires on the battery are 10 guage which is too big for a 4mm connector.
The batteries are the Flighmax Zippy 6c 5000's

Thanks in advance
Randy

Randy,
   Everyone has their favorite connector.  Some cut the ends off and install Deans connectors and some others use Anderson connectors.  I don't know many folks that "trust" the bullet connectors in their planes but like I said, each to their own.  Personally, I use Deans connectors because there is no way to mess up plugging them in incorrectly.<br type="_moz"/>

there is nothing wrong with the 4mm bullet. For some odd reason the Deans connectors are popular in the US. The bullet is popular in the ROW. I don't "trust" the Deans connectors, personally. In order to get the 10ga wire into the 4mm connector you should wind the end tightly and see if it fits. If it doesn't then separate a small amount of the strands and clip them off and then re- wind the strands and tin them. Then put it into the pre tinned bullett. You'll be fine and it will work great.

When you say that the negative conn is different, what is it?

As a matter of practice, I always chop the connectors off the battery and install my own. I keep their balance connectors however.

Thanks for answering Steve,
See attached pictures of the connector in question.
I almost changed the connection as you described but thought I might get some feedback from here before I did it. I was hoping I could get the connector to match the battery, so I didn't have to take a chance on ruining a battery. I feel more comfortable soldering connections onto the controller.

I use the Anderson Powerpoles - no soldering! There is a tool you can use (not required) that makes consistent, perfect crimps. They are easy and fast and clean.

Some people don't like them because they are rated at 30-45A, but they are for high voltage use so they are meant to handle large amounts of power. All the guys in my previous club use them on their big electrics and I have been using without issue.

It's best to find a connector you like, and covert everything to that. One connector for charging, watt meters, making substitutions, etc.

The 45A powerpoles work great on the 10ga battery wire. The 30A powerpoles work great for 12-14ga. They all use the same housing and same tool, so you can plug 16-18ga wire into a 10ga wire if so desired.

http://www.powerwerx.com/anderson-po...owerpole-sets/

And if you u are worried about the current capacity on the 45A Anderson Power poles and don't mind taking a weight penalty they make power poles that handle much higher current capacity...(I have seen up to 350 amp on fork lifts)

Randy
that looks like it should mate with a regular 4mm female connector. It should be fine, but you should try to slide one of your unused female connectors onto it. Just make sure to keep the other connector on the battery away from it while you mess around.

That connector looks similar to the Castle Creations 4mm bullets I just got (I think the Castle connectors may be slightly different but similar in dimension). They fit into the regular female connector but are shorter. I wish I had known that before I bought them. The female connector is also shorter in length and the regular male connector fits but doesn't go all the way in. They have a MUCH higher insertion force.

I have some of these connectors if you want to check them out. I like them but don't really want to change all of my connectors over to this style. They may be better, but that's a lot of soldering work for me. If I were starting out I would probably use them instead of the older style.

Personally I am using bullet 5,5mm and I find them OK. The reason I started using them is because of the 10 AWG wire. Now there is a better solution, 4mm bullet with enlarged base so that even 10 AWG wire fits easily:</p>

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=9283</p>

The contacts are covered and the red plastic can be split so you do not need any additional cables to connect 2 batteries in series.</p>

Problem solved....After I snipped off the connector I couldn't use I discovered the 10 gauge wire wasn't that much bigger than the 4mm connector, so with a little care I cut off a few of the wire strands and soldered on my new connector with no problem.

Thanks to all who chimed in with suggestions.

Randy

Yep, that is exactly how you do it and then it works perfect.

To prevent the spark when connecting the 4mm plugs I always first "load" the ESC using a little resistor with 4mm connectors on the +. Then I take it out and connect the battery directly to the ESC. Without the spark the connectors live forever so you don't have to replace them.

Volkert

Great tip, could you elaborate on that resistor thing a little. Maybe a picture and resistor size.

check out this link: http://www.scriptasylum.com/rc_speed/nospark.html

Now I don't like to go and solder an additional wire to each battery so I decided to have the resistor seperate from the ESC. Effectively you would not even need to solder a male/female 4mm connector to each side of the resistor. Just let it make contact for a second to the battery & ESC.

Volkert