Ernie Misner

Greetings, why in the heck do they still put 600mah nicads in new tx's when a 1350mah or so nimh battery would be so much better?????

Thanks,

Ernie

sarg96

My Feedback: (39)

Because the 600ma NICAD is a much cheaper battery and in my opinion totally useless

sarg96

tail strike

My Feedback: (1)

Mine came with 1500mah !

XJet

I was lucky enough to buy my last two transmitters without any batteries so I was able to fit the pack of my choice without having to toss a useless 600mAH NiCd.

But some manufacturers don't give you that option :-(

airbusdrvr

Let's see, there are two possible answers. 1) 600 mah is better, or 2) 600 mah is cheaper

TedMo

Don't know what you're buying that has only 600 MA in TX. I haven't seen one in anything I have bought in last 5 or more years. Suggest you buy top quality equipment . cheap don't pay in this hobby.

jcccc

600 ma works fine, just for a shorter period of time. Put on TX the quick charger for a bit and fly again.

jccc

mongo

My Feedback: (15)

mainly, because folks haven't quit buying the tx with 600 mah batteries yet.

SManMTB

The Futaba 3PKS comes with a 700mAh NiCd, I guess Futaba is low end crap then.

It's better than nothing and actually lasts pretty good.

huggins

No doubt, the bottom line is that they are used to keep the cost down. As far as being to being useless, I would have to disagree. A fully charged 600 mah will easily give you 6-8 ten minute flights, which is sufficient for most flyers trips to the field. If you fly more than that, you might benefit from a higher capacity pack. My 9c has a 700 mah pack and I never run out of juice if I charge before I leave the house.

Mike

fizzwater2

My Feedback: (61)

I just put new batteries in my radio - 1100mah NiCd.

I've had too many NIMH cells crap out on me with no warning, so I still trust NiCd in my radios.

TedMo

Smanmtb: I don't know to whom you directed your comment about Futaba but I haven't seen anyone that said that. Anyway all the manufacturers make both top quality and lesser quality equipment to remain competitive. I personally can't afford the top of the line but do value my planes enough not to try to save a few bucks by buying the bottom of the line. I've been flying RC since single channel escapements and know what it is to have really reliable equipment now therefore do not believe in compromising for the sake of few dollars. By the way a 600 MA TX pack will surely do fine as far as function but is limited only in it's time it supplies voltage. To supply a modest TX pack to me indicates that the manufacture may also be cost cutting elswhere.

GRANT ED

My JR PCM 9X set came with 600mAh batteries. I have done lots of flying in one session. I also use my 9X for my model sailing boat. I have sailed four hours and hours in a session and have not flattened the TX. In fact the whole time I have had my 9X I have not once thought to myself that I wished it had bigger capacity batteries. Nothing wrong with putting big batt's in a TX but IMO its not really needed. I'd bet my left arm that cost is the main reason behind companies still using 600mAh batteries.

XJet

Well I'd say that NiCd cells are not a good option for a transmitter. Because we seldom run our transmitter batteries flat before recharging, your NiCd pack will develop voltage depression (otherwise known as "memory") and will thus require cycling to restore its full capacity.

Since most transmitters have an internal diode in the charge circuit, this will mean unplugging the pack from the radio and connecting it directly to the charger. That'll create undue wear and tear on the battery connection (especially if it's the type where the socket is soldered directly to the circuit board). That's likely to create more of a reliability issue than an NiMH pack ever would.

I've been using NiMH packs in all (four) of my transmitters for over five years and *never* had a single failure. In fact I'm still using the original (RadicalRC) packs and they appear to have just as much capacity as when I bough them.

But if you feel happier with NiCds then I'm not going to criticize you just question your choice ;-)

Rodney

NiCad batteries are much more reliable than NiMh are: will last twice as many charge/discharge cycles and withstand minor abuse such as overcharge and deep discharge much better then NiMh. NiMh has only two advantages over NiCad, less bulk for equivalent energy storage capacity and less toxic if they get into a landfill. Since transmitters by law in the USA are limited in power output all 500 mah batterys will last for longer than most people fly in any one day. In a typical transmitter this is about 3 hours although some of the newer transmitters with lots of bells, whistles and displays eating up current, this may drop to 1.5 hours on a fully charged 500 mah battery.

fizzwater2

My Feedback: (61)

my JR's don't have a diode in the charge circuit, so cycling is no problem. I use the NiCd for the lower self-discharge, the higher cycle life, and lower internal resistance. My race planes are mostly 270 MAH NiCd packs, too, for the same reason.

Maybe I'm just old fashioned, eh? I do have one 1500 mah NiMh battery pack in a transmitter, but it might get swapped for a NiCd 1100 mah anyway. By the time I used up 1100 mah in a transmitter, I'd probably be ready to be done flying for the day anyway!

pilotpete2

I also run the Sanyo 1100mAh Nicd cells in my Futaba 9C. With the 72Mhz module it is good for about 3 3/4 hours, with the FASST TM-8 it has been tested on the bench at over 6 1/2 hours. I keep the stock 700mAh pack in my Tx case as a backup.
When it's time for a new pack I intend to get a pack made up from Eneloops, these do seem to be ideal for transmitters designed around AA cells, 2000mAh is more than ample. Under no circumstances would I ever consider using AA cells in the 2800mAh capacity class in a transmitter, let alone a receiver pack, but that's just me, others mileage (or Km per litre) will vary.
Pete

sfsjkid

Stock, I got a 600mAh battery in my 9C, a 700mAh one in my 3PK, 1100mAh in my 9Z, and 2200mAh in the 12Z. All are good for a day of flight without worry and can get by the weekend if I am careful. So, from my viewpoint I'd say while cost is a factor, the packs are sized for the job at hand and possibly with exercising/discharging the packs in mind. I put a 1400mAh battery in the 9C which was good for at least 7hrs plus, but if I was flying both Saturday and Sunday, found myself charging both nights before anyways, at the very least the night before the weekend even though I knew there was enough charge remaining.

bassmanh

My Feedback: (5)

ted,

hmmm, i just bought a futaba 7C 2.4 ghz radio system and it comes with a 600 mah TX battery. is this as YOU say a cheap radio ?? i dont think so.



bassman

pilotpete2

Equating "quality" based on the capacity of the cells used doesn't make any sense, as it can be argued that the 600 or 700mAh Nicad cells are the highest quality cells available when longevity and durability are considered.

SManMTB

Well, this is what you wrote.

Peace.

panzerd18

They do this so they can sell the after market 1500mah TX packs for more $$

Ernie Misner

Wow, thanks for all the fun info guys!!!

My origional thought was that, say a 1150 or so nimh battery probably wouldn't ? cost Futaba any more than a 600 mah nicad...... ??

But I could be wrong. Still wish my tx's came with the higher capacity nimh even if I had to pay $2.00 more for the tx!

Thanks again,

Ernie

TedMo

This discussion really makes very little sense. As has been said the 600 Ma packs will do the job. The 1200 Ma packs will do same job but longer. As far as what Futaba does and what they charge I have no idea since I switched to JR 25 years ago. Reason? Didn't like what Futaba had on market. Opinion means everything.