Need help with first time charger

[Tosto]

I just finished building the mechanics of my Trex 450 hde and I finally need to charge the ominous black lipo battery it came with.

it's a DN 3S 2150mAh 11.1V battery, and I know almost nothing about it other than it's probably going to explode if I look at it too hard.

I would like to find a simple charger for this pack (and future packs) and keep the cost reasonable.

Suggestions?

In addition, do I need to balance it or acquire any other pricey electronic gizmos to make it work? Thanks!

[ChasHeliCop]

Look at the Cellpro 4s I think it's around $75 from FMA Direct, it's a balancer and charger. I am about to sink $300 into charging equiptment..... Nope I forgot, the $100 ac/dc power supply

[Tosto]

Just when I thought I was done with making major purchases... and I haven't even crashed yet! I'm hoping I can use my old power supply from about 10 years ago, when Ni-mhs first came on the RC scene and we used rocks for hammers....
Thanks

[ChasHeliCop]

You might can, I am going more high end, with the old saying, "Buy cheap, buy twice" and giving myself alot of room to grow. I could get by with a $75 cellpro , but I have the extra $$ right now, so I am going for it.

[kgfly]

Tosto - Good advice from ChasHeliCop. Don't try to go cheap on a lipo charger, at least it probably won't do the job well and at worst it could start a fire. Hence the best value entry level LiPo chargers by far that are currently available are IMO:

FMA CellPro4S ($75)
- Requires DC power
- LiXx charger: LiIon/LiPo/LiMn/LiFe
- 2S to 4S LiXx
- Integrated balance charger (no external balancer needed)
- Normal, Fast, Recovery and Storage LiPo cycles
- 50W/4A output
- 1C LiPo charge: 2S-3S <= 4000mAh, 4s <= 3000mAh
- A123 charge rate: 4A = 1.7C
- Optional PC interface cable and software
- Optional balance port adapters for Apogee, CommonSenseRC, ElectriFly, Polyquest, Tanic, ThunderPower, Universal

A really outstanding LiXx charger, IMO the best value budget charger around for small to medium 2S-4S packs. It won't charge your Tx or Rx packs but at USD$75 is great value for an intelligent and safe LiXx charger. Cheap enough you can get two and charge two packs at once to halve your waiting time. If you don't need NiCd/NiMH support and are uncertain whether larger models with larger batteries are in your future then this can be an excellent low-cost solution. Highly recommended.

eStation BC6 (~$160)
- Integrated ac/dc power supply
- Multi-chemistry charger: NiCd/NiMH/Pb/LiIon/LiPo/LiFe
- 2S to 6S LiXx
- Integrated 2S-6S balancer
- Normal, Fast and Storage LiPo cycles
- 50W/5A output
- 1C LiPo charge: 3S <= 4500mAh, 4S <= 3400mAh, 5S <= 2700mAh, 6S < 2300mAh
- A123 charge rate: 3S <= 2.2C, 4S <= 1.6C
- Optional temperature probe
- Optional PC interface cable and software
- Optional balance port adapters for Align, DualSky, Graupner, FlightPower, Kokam, Polyquest, ThunderPower, MPX

A great integrated package providing a one-box solution (ac/dc power supply, charger and balancer). The 50W/5A output means it is not well suited to high capacity 6S packs used in say a TRex600, but it will do a great job on most packs you would typically see in anything smaller. Although it initially looks expensive, since it is all 3-in-1 you don't have to buy a DC power supply or separate balancer so in fact it is very competitively priced.

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If you choose one of these I am sure you will be happy with their features and performance. If you hunt around you will find a myriad of cheap chargers but none as good as these two and none I would choose if I was buying today.

[Probedude]

FMA CellPro4S ($75)
- 50W/4A output


eStation BC6 (~$160)
- 50W/5A output


Interesting that the BC-6 is only 50W output, same as the Cellpro. You should add the BalancePro in there. It's 10A output even driving 6s packs (250W output). Bummer is no display.

[kgfly]

I don't recommend the BalancePro because it does not meet my own minimum requirements. For me, to be safe and useful a LiXx charger must have a display that tells me what it is doing (what voltage/current it is using) and the total charge put back into the pack. Ideally it will also show me the per-cell voltage. The BalancePro requires a PC to be connected to see any information and that is definitely a PITA in my opinion, hence I do not recommend it.

IMO the next step from the BC6 is the BC8, but now we are talking mid-range rather than entry-level:

eStation BC8 (~$270)
- Requires DC power
- Multi-chemistry charger: NiCd/NiMH/Pb/LiIon/LiPo/LiFe
- 2S to 8S LiXx
- Integrated 2S-8S balancer
- Normal, Fast and Storage LiPo cycles
- 150W/7A output
- 1C LiPo charge: 3S/4S/5S <= 7000mAh, 6s <= 6400mAh, 8S < 5000mAh
- A123 charge rate: 3S/4S/5S/6S <= 3C, 8S <= 2.4C
- Optional temperature probe
- Optional PC interface cable and software
- Optional balance port adapters for Align, DualSky, Graupner, FlightPower, Kokam, Polyquest, ThunderPower, MPX

Same features and benefits as the BC6 except DC-only input, 2S to 8S capability and the much higher output power makes this a real option for larger packs or fast charging A123 packs at up to 7A.

[Probedude]

I don't recommend the BalancePro because it does not meet my own minimum requirements. For me, to be safe and useful a LiXx charger must have a display that tells me what it is doing (what voltage/current it is using) and the total charge put back into the pack. Ideally it will also show me the per-cell voltage. The BalancePro requires a PC to be connected to see any information and that is definitely a PITA in my opinion, hence I do not recommend it.

I really wish FMA would hurry up and release the LCD version of the BalancePro. I'd expect their price point to be excellent (the BalancePro right now is only $110).

A user over on RCGroups came up with his own external display off the dataport of the BalancePro. Only cell voltages and current, but better than nothing.

At least an external wattmeter could be used for mAH into the pack (with some inaccuracies from the bleed current).

The power output is great! Even the 6s is very good, and does A123!
Oh well.

Dave

[kgfly]

I agree with you and think FMA could do really well with an upgraded version of the BalancePro that includes a decent display but retains their great pricing. Time will tell...

[Helifarns]

Ok, I have a real stupid question.
Will the CellPro 4s only work off a car battery?

[ChasHeliCop]

car battery or other 10-16v power source such as an AC/DC power supply or a smaller battery

I learned a long time ago, "the only stupid question, is the one you don't ask."

[Probedude]

Yep, as ChasHeliCop wrote, you can power it from anything as long as it can put out the amperage and is filtered.

I run my chargers at the house off a switching AC-DC power supply I bought used a very long time ago.

[Tosto]

speaking of old power supplies...
I have a Todd Engineering power supply from 1998. Will that work for the Cellpro?? Here are the specs I can find:

45 amp 120 vac input. No load output 13.22V DC
Max current 45.8 amps, Dual voltage 14.24vdc, S/C current 3, S/C recovery 4