FMA Cellpro 4S and Flighpower

[felborn]

Anyone know if there's a cabel so that the FMA Cellpro can balance both old and new type of Flightpower batteries?

[Jermo]

do they both use the same balance plug? if so then yes. If not then you'll need to find out what the old plug and new plug is compatible with.
http://www.fmadirect.com/support_docs/item_1234.pdf

the CP-TP/PQ appears to be correct but you might want to call FMA directly for help finding the correct adapter.

I can say the Cellpro 4S is a very good charger/balancer in my opinion.

[felborn]

Aye, it's because of your advertisment im wondering if I should get a couple of them. I would love 1 with a powersupply built in, and im also wondering about the Bantam BC-6, since thats all in one. But the cellpro looks sweet for cheap money. Any idea when your movie will be ready, looking forward to seeing that! :glasses2:

[RC Accessory]

No one out there supports the old Flightpower taps. I was told that Flightpower will change these out for the new ones either for free or for a nominal charge.

The BC-6 will support the TP/FP packs up to 6S via the adapter board.

[Jermo]

I didnt' know I was advertising rofl.. I am not paid for or compensated in any way. I have over 20 years electronics experience and prefer tools specific to the job. Manf. are bad about cutting corners where they can. If you have something that's "all in one" you can bet the power supply is the first place they'll cut costs.

I'm also of the mind that simple is better and get the right tool for the job. How often has someone messed up the settings on their charger and ruined a pack? Likely more often than anyone will admit.

I classify chargers by the S rating. It's hard to compare the Bantam BC-6 directly with the Cellpro 4S because they are different classes of charger. At $100 less the Cellpro 4S is a bettery entry level charger for most of the market. Even buying a seperate powersupply for the Cellpro only adds $30-$40 to the cost.

However, I must say if someone needs a unit that goes OVER 4S then we can look at the BC-6.

IMHO we have to compare apples to apples and the BC-6 shouldn't be directly compared to the CP 4S.

I've not seen many 4S chargers I liked. The next closest charger to the Cellpro 4s is the DN charger. It doesn't do several things it should (like show capacity back into the pack..etc).

I would have preferred to have lots of other 4S chargers to compare against. I believe with the upcoming release of the T-Rex 500 more pilots will be going to 4s this year.

edit: the video will be ready by the start of next week at the latest. I have a few more segments to shoot and will start first cuts tonight.

[RC Accessory]

Jermo, I have been saying all along that the CellPro 4S and the BC-6 are apples and oranges. Thank you for finally seeing that.

A more viable comparison would be the BC-5 charger. Almost the same specs as the BC-6 except no AC power, just DC. Street price is about $115. So basically you're paying about $45 to add nicad, nimh, pb, up to 5S lithium balance charging.

If you ever want to have the conversation about manufacturers cutting corners, I would be happy to talk to you on the phone about it. I see it all the time.

[felborn]

For the price, this seems like the best deal out there by fare, as long as your happy wiht 4s max. Im flying a Trex450, so for me it's more than enough. Sadly tho, I live in norway, and noone here seems to sell it. With shipping, tolls and taxe, it's gonna be atlest twice the price the rest of you guys pay for it. Thats really the onl reason im thinking about the Bantam BC-6, since that can be bought locally. But im waiting for you video before I decide, If I like what I see, im getting two Cellpro chargers and laugh all the way to the bank :noteworthy

[DebianDog]

For the price, this seems like the best deal out there by fare, as long as your happy wiht 4s max.

If you stay in the hobby you will want a 6S, 8S or maybe even a 10S charger on day. :wink:

But this one is hard to beat for the price.

[Jermo]

With battery technology changing I really don't see any reason to buy for the future too far out.

As far as the Bantam charger I'll probably look at them more seriously when the T-Rex 500 releases . Rumor is they'll fly 6S1P with 2- 3s1p packs in series. If it ends up I need to go above 4S I'll be looking at chargers. Just understand I'm picky. Before I selected the cellpro I actually designed the charger I wanted.

I'd be happy to take a look at a bantam charger sometime. My biggest concerns with all in one chargers are safety, ease of use, and quality. Most battery charging incidents I've heard/read about revolved around operator error getting the charge mode/voltage/rate set correctly. I don't know if anyone has manf. a charger to date that adapts or detects operator error.

I'd rather have 10 chargers I can just plug and go than 1 I have to read the manual on.