BC6 charging

[th3tick]

Just charging my AT 5000mAh pack for the first time, and I put it on my new BC6. Two things came up:

1) Does this thing have a fan? It sure is quiet, and got kinda warm...

2) On the LiPo Charge setting, it only got it to 25.09V before stopping. I thought it must have to do a charge cycle, then balance, but on the LiPo Balance setting, it stopped at 25.10V. Why not 25.2?

TIA,
John

[RC Accessory]

Just charging my AT 5000mAh pack for the first time, and I put it on my new BC6. Two things came up:

1) Does this thing have a fan? It sure is quiet, and got kinda warm...

2) On the LiPo Charge setting, it only got it to 25.09V before stopping. I thought it must have to do a charge cycle, then balance, but on the LiPo Balance setting, it stopped at 25.10V. Why not 25.2?

TIA,
John

1). No fan. It will get warm since you are using all the power the charger has. No fan is needed since it runs through the AC power.

2). You didn't describe the way the charger stopped. Did it say FULL, TIME, CAPACITY, ect.?

The charger has the ability to test the cells to determine how much they can actually take. If the cells can't hold a voltage, the charger can recognise this and finish the charge at a lower voltage instead of forcing 4.2V per cell.

[th3tick]

I'd have to say it said Full, although my memory has faded a bit. It's a brand new pack, so I'd be very very concerned if the cells didn't have full 4.2V capacity. Are you implying that there would be a problem with those cells?

Perhaps I'll run another balance charge cycle to see what it says.

BTW, since I bought the BC6 from your company, THANKS for taking the time to help me, and thanks for being on HF!

Johnh

[jaywhy]

Might have been TIME? They have the auto-shut-off time set by default kind of low, if you are charging at a nice slow rate, it might time-out before getting full charge. Did you put it back on and try finishing the charge yet?

[th3tick]

No, it wouldn't have been time. The timeout is 120 minutes, which I agree can be a tad low, but the initial charge was about 50%, so it took around 60 minutes to charge (more on this later).

I then did a Balance charge, which took only about 10 minutes, and like I said, stopped at 25.1V.

One other oddity was that it only went up to about 2.2A, even though I'd set it for 5A both times. This is also why it took longer to charge from 50%...

Coming from a Cellpro 4s and TP-1010, this one seems a little different...

John

[dlmcmichael]

The BC-6 won't charge your 6S 5000 mah at 5A because it is limited to an output of 50 watts. 2.2 amps is all you will get.

[jaywhy]

Holy crap... I just recently upped my charge rate to 1.5 from 1! Do people recommend charging 3s lipos much higher with a BC6? Am I being a little girl - or am I at least extending the life of them? Or just a little girl? :)

[dlmcmichael]

Holy crap... I just recently upped my charge rate to 1.5 from 1! Do people recommend charging 3s lipos much higher with a BC6? Am I being a little girl - or am I at least extending the life of them? Or just a little girl? :)

:shock: Maybe one too many Busch Lights for me tonight, but could you expand on that a little....I don't understand??

[th3tick]

The BC-6 won't charge your 6S 5000 mah at 5A because it is limited to an output of 50 watts. 2.2 amps is all you will get.

That makes perfect sense. Thank you. I think I'd read this limitation elsewhere, but until I experienced it, it wasn't clear.

Two mysteries down, and one remains...

[th3tick]

OK, I guess I'm closer to an answer. I ran another short charge cycle, and 37mAh later, it did climb up to 25.2V, but once it shut off the charge process, it dropped to 25.11V. Previously, I guess I was only watching it "after".

John

[dlmcmichael]

OK, I guess I'm closer to an answer. I ran another short charge cycle, and 37mAh later, it did climb up to 25.2V, but once it shut off the charge process, it dropped to 25.11V. Previously, I guess I was only watching it "after".

John

John,

Do you still fly the CX2? I started with a HMX Axe EZ and it is still a blast!! Same 2 cell lipo, millions of charges and continue to get 9 minute flights.
David

[jaywhy]

I was saying I just recently started charging my 3 cell lipos at 1.5a, I was wondering if I'm being a little girl by not upping that charge rate. Can I charge 3 cells at 5A?

(Just had to have a shot of vodka myself - just had my tail pinion give loose in flight and had to do my first unplanned auto-rotate. Not a scratch, HELL YEAH!)

[th3tick]

I was saying I just recently started charging my 3 cell lipos at 1.5a, I was wondering if I'm being a little girl by not upping that charge rate. Can I charge 3 cells at 5A?

(Just had to have a shot of vodka myself - just had my tail pinion give loose in flight and had to do my first unplanned auto-rotate. Not a scratch, HELL YEAH!)

Well, it depends not on the Voltage or cell count, but the mAh. I fiddled with 2C charging for a while, but fell back to 1C when I started on the 6S lipos - too much money invested to worry about some extra charging time.

If they're 2200mAh, then you should charge at 2.2A.

John

EDIT: Some say you can do 2C or 3C charging, so I'd first check what the manufacturer says.

[th3tick]

John,

Do you still fly the CX2? I started with a HMX Axe EZ and it is still a blast!! Same 2 cell lipo, millions of charges and continue to get 9 minute flights.
David

I haven't flown it in a long while (probably June), but with winter approaching, it's going to come out. I'm just wondering how I'm going to fly my big fat figure 8s in tight quarters!

John

[jaywhy]

Well, it depends not on the Voltage or cell count, but the mAh. I fiddled with 2C charging for a while, but fell back to 1C when I started on the 6S lipos - too much money invested to worry about some extra charging time.

If they're 2200mAh, then you should charge at 2.2A.

John

EDIT: Some say you can do 2C or 3C charging, so I'd first check what the manufacturer says.

Ok. I just recently stepped up to 1.5 from 1 - it's still on the safe side, but helps on the time. I don't need fast charging... yet. ;)

[dlmcmichael]

Ok. I just recently stepped up to 1.5 from 1 - it's still on the safe side, but helps on the time. I don't need fast charging... yet. ;)

I would say if it is a 2200 mah go ahead and charge at 2.2 amps. Definitely no higher though. I know what you mean....I tend to stay on the safe side myself when it comes to these lipos :lol:

[RC Accessory]

OK, I guess I'm closer to an answer. I ran another short charge cycle, and 37mAh later, it did climb up to 25.2V, but once it shut off the charge process, it dropped to 25.11V. Previously, I guess I was only watching it "after".

John

That is the "resting" voltage of the pack. That is a drop of 0.015V per cell in a 6S pack. I'd say that you have a good pack. :)

[jaywhy]

I would say if it is a 2200 mah go ahead and charge at 2.2 amps. Definitely no higher though. I know what you mean....I tend to stay on the safe side myself when it comes to these lipos :lol:

No kidding. A fire of any size in the computer/heli/dining room (!) would not help the lady appreciate the hobby any more. ;)

I'll bump it up to 1.8, maybe 2. ;)

Thanks!