giant spark

[kumar2494]

whenever I plug in a 12s pack wired in series to my ice2 160, there is a huge spark. Im pretty sure this is normal, but im not sure if this will eventually deteriorate the connectors or the solder joints. Is there some kind of anti spark device that is for sale or that I can build?

[pctomlin]

Castle says that the big spark is your friend, but I don't know. Over time it pits your connectors and could cause problems. Try this thread for making your own spark suppressor.
http://rc.runryder.com/helicopter/t547501p1/

[kcordell]

If using EC5 connectors, the spark is much smaller than when using the deans, as the contact area at the time when you plug in is greater, spark is much less noticeable. I use EC5's on my 12S Whiplash and Deans on my 10S Furion 6. When I plug in the Furion 6, it's like arc welding, when I plug in the 12S I bareley get a spar,, much less see it thru the blue connector.
And, yes, spark is you friend, indicates capacitors are working.

[BatteryKing]

Yeah, if you are running Deans or something they will give you a pretty big spark. Also if you wire in a CC CapPack the spark will be much bigger as you have more capacitors to charge up.
I give a +1 to kcordell about EC5 connectors as I am a recent EC5 convert and am loving it for all of my higher powered stuff. One other thing I would recommend is picking up some DeoxIT G-series for regular connector maintenance and possibly some of their D-series if your connectors are really jacked from a lot of cycles. (I picked up on this on other Helifreak threads actually and it seems to be working for me.) You can find this stuff on Amazon in convenient, but expensive bottles, or at your local Radio Shack in little spray cans. Your connectors will come apart much easier after proper application and conductivity will increase. The D-series is basically a solvent that will clean out the oxidization and the G-series is more of a finisher. You won't need very much of this stuff, so small cans / bottles should be fine.

[nightflyr]

I setup a push button spark arrestor setup on my birds.. makes life a little easier...