Battery selection

[Pilot_35]

I recently got a fun cub it needs a battery and In the Manuel it says it should have a Li-BATT eco 3/1-2000 (m6) I could not find many and the one I did find were extensive. Is there something that is the same and a little more common what charger should I get with it?
Thanks

 

[Pilot_35]

I also will need to get a 1300mah 3s 11.1v and recommended charge for this battery? I want a charge that will plunge into the wall and not cost a lot of money.
Thanks

 

[ElectriSean]

This is about the cheapest AC/DC charger I would go with - https://www.banggood.com/SKYRC-iMAX...scharger-SK-100090-p-945684.html?rmmds=search

As for batteries, it really depends on where you want to shop. Hobby King has a nice lipo search function, and their Turnigy branded batteries aren't bad. I personally love Tattu, but they are on the expensive side.

 

[rockyboy]

For the same price range as the iMAX charger, I would highly recommend this ISDT charger instead:

https://www.banggood.com/ISDT-Q6-Li...S-6S-Lipo-Battery-p-1212757.html?rmmds=search

And here's a power supply if you don't have something at home that puts out 12v 10a already:

https://www.banggood.com/12V-250W-1...-p-1157394.html?rmmds=detail-left-hotproducts

You can get the ISDT chargers through a lot of different hobby stores too if you're not a fan of ordering through banggood (not my favorite vendor, but the prices can be very attractive at times).

That iMAX B6 design has been around for 4 or 5 years I think, and is very limited and more complicated to use compared to the capabilities of the new ISDT stuff. I do have one of those that I still use as a backup charger, but I absolutely love the Q6 and it will last you a lot longer I think.

For batteries, my current favorites (and very popular with my club's Multi-GP racers) are http://chinahobbyline.us/ - great performance for some of the best prices I've seen online.

And the general rule of thumb is spend a little more on your charger and transmitter if you can - they stay on the ground out of harms way and will last you through the lifetime of many planes if you get a good one With batteries you're doing good to get a couple seasons out of them before they stop holding a charge due to age or crash damage.

 

[Pilot_35]

I think I will do the isdt q6. It looks like good little charger I can charge my battery on. Weather I am at the field or at my house. Would you recommend a battery cheacker? Also do you know a charging board that I could connect the the isdt q6 to charge 3.7v-180mah 45c li-poly 2c charge rate. For small batteries I have for my micro.
Thanks

 

[rockyboy]

I started with one of these battery testers

http://www.headsuphobby.com/Battery-Checker_p_1279.html

And ended up getting one of these after a couple months cause it's easier to use (can see all cell values at once - don't have to wait for the single number readout to cycle through all the cells)

http://www.headsuphobby.com/Digital-Battery-Capacity-Checker_p_1872.html

You can also find this checker all over the cheap electronics sites for $7 or $8 too, but waiting 3 weeks for shipping from China isn't worth saving $4 to me

You don't need a charging board as long as you have an XT-60 style power connector on your battery (looks like this)



If you have another style connector on your battery & plane, then you'll need an adapter (or an adapter board). The other reason you might want a charging board is for charging multiple batteries at the same time - which is perfectly fine if done correctly. Here's the one I use: https://hobbyking.com/en_us/hobbyking-parallel-charging-board-for-6-packs-2-6s-xt-60.html

I also like that you can make an adapter for the ISDT charger to go from the XT-60 connector to the micro size batteries (or just buy this one https://www.ebay.com/itm/Crazepony-...in-/162563613566?_trksid=p2385738.m2548.l4275 ) - the advantage over most of the micro battery chargers is you can use the ISDT charger to put the 1s batteries into a proper storage charge so they last longer.

 

[Pilot_35]

On the charging board does it matter where you plug the balance plug in and the xt-60 connector as long they are in the right connector port?

 

[rockyboy]

As long as they aren't plugged in backwards, it's all good - all the balance and Xt-60's are wired together in parallel inside the board, so it's not a problem to put them in any place that fits.

 

[Pilot_35]

Thanks for all the help.

 

[rockyboy]

You're welcome - happy flying!

 

[JimCR120]

Turnigy P403

I own 4 chargers and this is my favorite charger for 2-4 cells, so much so that I bought a 2nd one. It doesn't do anything but balance charges but since that is what I want most it works for me. It's the Turnigy P403.


There are a number of things I like about this charger over most.
1) I don't have to switch cell or rate settings from One LiPo to the next. I do set a modest charge rate and then just leave it there. It's easy to change but I'm satisfied with a slow easy charge.
2) Once it's set I only have to plug in a LiPo and it automatically starts the charge. I don't even have to tell it how many cells. It auto-detects.
3) I can charge 2S, 3S, or 4S and if charging 2S I can charge two of them at the same time.
4) It has internal power supplies so I can connect it directly to house AC power or an external 12VDC.
5) At about $25 it fits my budget nicely.

 

[rockyboy]

That's a pretty nice and simple unit Jim! Will it balance batteries back to a storage charge as well?

 

[JimCR120]

That's a pretty nice and simple unit Jim! Will it balance batteries back to a storage charge as well?

That is the one thing I wish it did do. If it did I would get rid of my other 4 button charger that has an external power supply, 4 required cable connections, cell selection, initiation selection, and confirmation of initiation. On occasion I will charge up a number of batteries intending to fly them all and then life happens and I can't fly some or all. My workaround is to either use my other cumbersome charger which does do storage charges or just hooking up a plane on the counter and running the LiPo down.