Lipo not fully charging???
 

Just got into SCT with the xxx-sct. I got the 5000mah losi lipo hardcase with EC3 connectors and an accucycle elite. From a totally dead batt I'll only get 2800mah readout on a full charge. I charge at 2.0amps and it takes about 2 hours.

I did alot of reading and the accucycle elite has the constant current/constant voltage function which seems to be the same as buying an extra lipo balancer. With the cc/cv feature I plug directly into the EC3 connector to charge, it also has the small white balancer connector but I haven't used it.

I just ran it at the track and got 10:20 runtime out of it. So am I doing everything right? Both batt and charger are brand new.

Sounds like you need to read up a bit more on lipo charging

Lipos should never be dead flat as you called it

You should not be taking the pack any lower than 3.5v / cell

Unless otherwise indicated on the pack you should be able to charge at a 1c charge rate

That would mean 5 amps for your 5000mah pack

It should take 60 minutes or so on a good charger / balancer

Cheers

My fault used the wrong terminology there. By "dead flat" I mean I ran it in the truck until it quit.

And I would love to charge it at 5 amps, but I don't think the accucycle elite lets me go over 2, it initally wants to charge it at 1 but I moved it up to 2 and it won't go any farther than that.

I've had lipos in small rc planes over the years, but never had any issues with those.

What kind of run time do you folks get out of a 5000mah batt? My xxx-sct is stock motor/esc and stock gearing, nothing changed.

That sounds about right. If its oly accepting "X" amount of mAh to reach full capacity. Your only using some of the pack. Your not using 4000 of the 5000mAh's. At least thats what Id think

Depends on the car and type of use

I run a largish Castle motor in a Slash 4x4 and get 15 mins out of a 5000mah pack when bashing pretty hard

Cheers

Your never going to see 5000mAh charge on a 5000mAh battery, especially a Lipo. If you do you have major problems. You need to use the 80% rule for lipos. 5000mAh battery should be run down 4000mAh MAX. What is your pack voltage after charging, should be 8.4V. If it is your getting full charge. These batteries are easily damaged by over-discharging. It sounds to me as though things are just fine. I'm not familiar with Losi ESC's but I'm sure it has a lipo cut-off voltage feature to prevent over-discharging. Most will cut-off at 3.0V per cell, some higher, but it doesn't read each cell, it averages. You need to use that balance connector! To get the most out of your battery you should balance it every time. The charger is fine, your just charging below 1C which means it takes a little longer but it will not negetively effect battery performance. A new charger will only speed up the process, not improve it. Does your charger have internal balancing circuitry? If not, get a new one. All Multi-cell lipos need balancing to avoid damage.

Accucycle elite is a cyler/charger more intended for maintaining receiver batteries for aircraft, not charging high capacity racing packs. It does NOT have internal balancing curcuitry, it requires a seperate external balancer for proper lipo charging. You should look into getting a charger with internal balancing circuitry, at least 5.0A charge capability, get the proper balancer adapter for your battery plug, and individual cell voltage read-out for insurance. Sorry, Man... but that's what I'd do. I still don't think you have too many problems going on other than no balancer. Batteries with a balance lead generally do NOT have an internal voltage safety curcuit to protect against over-discharge. They rely on a proper charger set up to do that.

You are only charging the lipo if you're not connecting the balance connector to the charger (small white balancer connector), they both should be connected so you balance charge the lipo. Your charger may have a "balance lipo" charge mode that will balance and charge at the same time, thats what you need to be doing.

What do you have for overdischarge protection? Is there an LVC (low voltage cutoff) in the esc? What do you have it set for? The guideline is to not discharge more than 80% of capacity - for your 5000mah that would be 4000mah, you shouldn't see more than 4000mah going back on a charge after running.

You did charge the lipo before running it the 1st time? Lipo is delivered partially charged and intended to be charged fully before using. Discharging before charging it fully can compromise that lipos performance.

You may have terms mixed up , but are doing everything right. It looks possible to run about 12-14 minutes at max (based on the pack's charge level when started) The elite is a very precise small charger.

mixups :

the white plug is for the temp probes
cc/cv is the charge routine for pb/LI type packs (not the same as balancing)