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2400 - 3000 sport packs, dumping, need info

2400 - 3000 sport packs, dumping, need info

Old 08-25-2002, 02:47 PM
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Unhappy 2400 - 3000 sport packs, dumping, need info

At my track we must run unmatched stick packs. I bought a pair of peak performance 2400s but I am barely making it to the end of the race and the packs feel very flat during the tailend of the race . I need to know the following:

1) are the cells in the peak performance packs Sanyos?
2) What are good manufacture packs (ie- trinity 2400s, orions, etc)
3) are the cells in the Racers-edge 3000sp NiMH packs good, are they sanyos or Panasonics?
4) I run a novak Cyclone (purple model), what setting should I use to get the best performance? I currently use the drag bake option setting.

I am running the following:

1) XXX-S stock
2) Chameleon 2 motor (has been trued up, new brushes)
3) Novak Cyclone (purple edition, running the drag brake option setting)
4) MRC Superbrain charger. Packs peaked at 4.0 amps.
5) 20 Amp Integy reactor discharger

I really need to know what to do because I have lost races about 4 times now because my packs go flat and everyone else is just zipping by and have plenty of runtime at the end of the race even with 2000s unmatched!
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Old 08-25-2002, 02:48 PM
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These are the peak performance MAXX packs. Feel more like crap packs
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Old 08-25-2002, 07:18 PM
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Is your gearing in the ball park?
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Old 08-26-2002, 03:48 PM
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My gearing is a tooth or two conservative. Other guys are running much pinion sizes and their motors get alot hotter, but they don't dump. I know it is not the motor and my drive train is pretty free. I think my packs are just not working well.

One thing that has come to my attention is that my discharger may be going lower then 5.4 volts. If this is the case then maybe i have a case of cell reversal going on and that is why my cells are not working very well, and hence I will have to buy new battery packs. I am using an integy indi reactor 20 discharger. I heard that you can set the discharge voltage on these but I don't know how.

any ideas?
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Old 08-27-2002, 12:27 AM
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Cain - To get the most out of your 2400's they need to be equalized on a tray such as the Trinity real time 2. After they have been brought down to 0.0volts on the tray you can dead short the pack by soldering a wire from the positive to the negitive side of the pack. You can then leave the pack with the wire on it until the next time you want to charge it. Also you can charge the pack at 6,7 or 8 amps, this will give the pack more punch and from my experience more runtime aswell. Although I'm sure some people would disagree about the increased runtime, from my own extensive testing the higher the charge amps (to a point) the more runtime.
Note: if you dead short the pack it will probably false peak when you go to charge it the next time, this isn't a problem just restart the charge or use the long lockout feature if your charger has it.
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Old 08-27-2002, 11:28 AM
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Cain... start with the basics. Find someone who has a Turbo 35 or something equal... charge your packs with your charger and have them discharged on the turbo 35... post your numbers and we can tell you if your packs are any good... then recharge, after they cool or the next day, with the turbo 35 and retest them... compare numbers... this will eliminate the possibility of a charger problem.
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Old 08-27-2002, 06:08 PM
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my packs are sticks so I am unable to do the tray method. They are also unmatched as that is the rules at the track. I currently charge them at 4 Amps. highest I can go is 4.5 Amps.

I bought a voltmeter today and reset my indi reactor 20 to make sure it doesn't go below 5.4 Volts. It was discharging all the way down to 4.3 volts, not good though Integy said that is what they recommend.

When discharging a completely full pack, what voltage numbers should I see throughout the cycle? Seems my packs once I start the cycle tend to start around 6.5 Volts and go down and seem to hang around the 6 Volt area for awhile. I think maybe this is where I am getting my flat spots when racing where the pack feels really light.

What is a common discharge time for a 2400 pack with a 20 Amp load and a 30 amp load ( I have heard the Reactor 20 sometimes goes higher than 20amps during the beginning).

I will try posting discharge times for my packs tonite.
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Old 08-27-2002, 07:45 PM
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So far the numbers are not looking too good. But I think some of this may be do to something I read online.

My Charger is the MRC 959 Superbrain. I have read that when charging nicads to set the threshold at 15mV x number of cells. The highest setting is 50 mV and I have not set this on any of my charges. My charges were actually not taking very long, maybe 25 minutes at most. I am going to probably try charging my packs on someone elses charger.

Any recommendations for another charger that doesn't break the bank, I don't need a discharge feature, but I need AC/DC compatibility as well as Nimh compatibility.

I will post my numbers soon.
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Old 08-28-2002, 11:55 PM
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Cain - if your packs are starting the discharge at 6.5v then their is definately something wrong. All of my packs have an average discharge voltage over 6.6v, one is even 6.99v on a T35.

any discharge time over 360sec is good. BTW the formula for working out the 20amp and 30amp discharge time is:
Discharge time x discharge rate/desired discharge rate
ie. 360x30/20 = 540

charging at 50mV is fine. The intergy 16x9 is a good AC charger but you could always get a power supply and a DC charger if your budget will allow.
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Old 08-29-2002, 01:56 AM
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You try the indi 16x3pro nimh/nicd, it runs on both 12v and 110V, has a 4amp discharge and goes for about $120. You should also check out the Apex chargers. I've got a 16x9 nimh/nicd, it a great charger, has a 20amp discharge function(which I don't use), cycle and is very easy to use. It goes for about $200.

Last edited by fatdoggy; 08-29-2002 at 01:58 AM.
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Old 08-29-2002, 01:55 PM
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I think my packs may be bad, or at least one of them. They didn't take a charge too well on a indi 16x5 charger. I am gonna buy a 3000 niMH pack and see how it does to see if my charger is still charging right. Other than that, I think another charger may also be in order.
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