Need Help Making Balance Adaptor Cable
 

Recently purchased an Onyx 235 balance charger for my Xcelorin 3800mah 7.4V lipo batteries which use bullet connectors.

I wish to do away with the balance board and wire up a connector set that will run directly from the charger. However I can not find any adaptor cables that have the correct balance plug for the Onyx charger.

I can buy a balance plug online that will fit in the 5 pin port on the Onyx but I don't know what pins are used for negative and the balance plug (2mm bullet connector).

I'm attaching a pic of what I want to build or even purchase but the balance plug on the end is the wrong size (3 pin) or brand for the Onyx charger port (5 pin) so I can do away with the balance board.

I believe if your charger came with the board, you need the board. I don't think you can just get rid of it and plug in a wired version. I think.

You certainly can make the adapter you want, the balance board is just a pass-through for different cell-count packs.

If you examine the board, you should be able to follow the traces, and figure out which leads from the balance plug go to which bullet plugs. I'm *almost* positive that, holding the plug with the wires facing you... the far right is the negative, next is the center 2mm plug, next is the positive, and the other wires are not used.

Thanks - I will try to trace the circuit board to figure out which pins are negative, positive and balance. I emailed Duratrax and they wouldn't tell me which pins are what as the information is proprietary. With some help from fellow racers like yourself I'm sure it can be figured out.

If you take a look at the board, you'll see the 2S/3S etc plugs all line up on one side. The wire on that side is the negative. The next one is the 2mm "middle" plug, and the 3rd one is the positive battery lead for a 2S pack.

I checked it out too and was able to see where each pin went on the board. Thanks for adding your input to confirm the pin arrangement

If you know how the wires are supposed to be sequenced, you can use a thin screwdriver and release the wires from the 235 balance connector that goes into the side of the charger. If the pic in the manual is accurate, it looks like its a special plug.

You may be able to just transfer wires from your charge/balance harness balance connector to the balance port plug once the wires are released.

Great idea. The pins should be similar configuration even if the plastic balance plug is unique to this charger. I will give it a try. Thanks for the suggestion.

I tried to install the pins/wires from the 3pin connector into the Duratrax 5 pin connector but they would not fit. The holes are too small for the pin to insert all the way.

I may end up cutting the standard plug/wire set and solder it to the other wires I have installed on the battery side. I will be stopping at a couple hobby shops this week when I'm out of town and will look for the proper harness there.

So Bob did you ever get your cable made? I am looking to do the same thing with my Venom 210.

I never went ahead with it. The stock cable length is fine for my needs as I don't like to charge the battery in the car. I would still like to get rid of the balance board but I have not been bothered by it enough to go ahead and make a connector to replace it.