Help with charger
 

I am looking into getting a charger and I am looking for opinions:

first I want to know if I can simultaneously(sp?) charge two 6 or two 7 cell battery packs if my charger says that the limit is 15 cells

I want to charge two at a time because I have an E-maxx and I dont want to charge one then charge the other

also would there be any benefit to charging them together, would it take twice as long?

the chargers I am considering are:

TLP - X15 Digital Charger/Discharger
http://www.rceasyshop.com/index.php?...roducts_id=251

Venom AC/DC Pro Charger
http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...&I=LXUAB8&P=ML

I like these because I wont have to buy a DC power supply, and they both support lipo (I would like go lipo in the future)

any help with this decision would be greatly appreciated

Those are okay, but for not really for what you want to do. Just bite the bullet and get a power supply! You'll get a waaay better charger, and the PS will last for forever anyways. Those chargers you listed are pretty weak, like
5 amps max. You would be better off with something like THIS thats 10 amps.

thnx for the suggestion, but that is a little out of my price range. why do I nee 10A anyway? I thought most packs recomend 6A max for charging

also is it possible to charge two packs at the same time? will it take twice as long?

also whats this I hear about only being able to use NiMH packs once a day? cant I just use them, let them cool and then charge them again? I used to do that with my NiCd packs and never had any problems

Yes you can-wired in series so the cell count will be the total with voltage to match, but it will be same size pack. Do not try with pacs of 2 diff capacities. These should be as identical as possible.

Unless these are well matched cells and built in a side by side configuration (sbs), you'll find they won't charge as well together as a 12 or 14cell pack. If they are sbs and you discharge them to identical voltage with an individual cell discharger, you increase the odds of geting a good charge. But practically speaking, if theyre' not matched, not sbs and not discharged to same voltage, you'll get a better charge charging them separately. Get a 2nd charger - thats what I did for my Emaxx.

I've tried it with stick pacs, there always seems to be cells that are slightly out of balance with others and this makes for uneven, incomplete charging. You'll prob see one pac getting hotter than the other. With a stick pac, all you really know is the total voltage and its rare that all cells in the pac will be at the same voltage with the same internal resistance.

If you're racing, its once a day to get the utmost out of a pac. Bashing - I run mine as many times as I want/can. Let them cool like you said and charge and run. I also limit charging to about 1C - 4400packs gets charged at 5a, but I monitor how hot pack gets as it gets close to peaking. I don't let mine get over 135F - high temps tends to shorten batt life.

thanks duster, that is everything I wanted to know

any more opinions/thoughts are greatly appreciated from anyone else too

An option for you is to maybe buy the charger you want with the built in power supply and all the features.. then buy a simple peak charger on the cheaper side so you can have your two pack at the same time...

5 or 6amps charging is what is recommended by just about every battery company... you don't need 10amps...

And YES! you can use a NiMh as many times as you want.. just cool it down and watch the heat. I go one step further and equalize cells before charging again.. mainly so I know how the pack is doing by the charge times and reading on my chargers.


Good luck and have fun!

Jerome :tire::tire:

thanks Jerome, thats what I decided to do I think this setup will give me the best of both worlds without killing my budget!

thanks to everyone so far, and any more suggestions/opinions are very appreciated

Hyperion EOS606i ac/dc balance charger aint too shabby either. CBP has em for $139

Does equalize mean to put your batteries in a discharge tray??Whats the cheapest discharger worth getting??Anyone ever hear of 4500 batteries,I got some and was wondering if they were ok or not??