What do you guys recommend?

Whats your budget?
What are you needs?
high current?
high amp discharge?
IR reading?
dual port?
6 cell? 8 cell? 10 cell?
AC/DC?
Touch screen?

Be more specific

I'm going to Bump this for myself.

I'm trying to get back into onroad racing, (last time I competitively ran Onroad, I used Nimhs.)

I just picked up 4 new Tresrey Batteries- (Still in the pkg) https://www.vbcracing.com/products/t...4v-5800mah-80c

And I am looking to find a good charger for mainly Onroad. Currently looking at VTA/SS and 17.5 TC class (Possibly F1 Later)

I get that Onroad requirements are a bit different and that IR is a key component. I mainly race offroad and currently use Pair of Venom Chargers. They do the job and thu far no complaints. I'm not the type to demand the latest and greatest, but if something is better suited, then I might explore it.

https://www.venompower.com/collectio...c-dc-powered-1
And
https://www.horizonhobby.com/product...eakers-VNR0668

Both great chargers and do the job I need. But I feel like my Onroad need something a bit more special.


Meh- Under $250
Mainly Onroad use- 1s and 2 s capable - prefer Dual charger
I never know whats appropriate- I try not to "overcharge"
Again, Discharge I thought was a no no.
I'm told IR is important more so in Onroad, True?
Ideally Yes
If dual - I suppose 4-6 cell capable per channel...
Yes
Meh, nice but not necessary


I just need enlightenment on newer charger and how exactly IR is important, or does it really only apply in MOD Onroad.


MOmo

If you want a sort of jack of all trades charger that is AC/DC and is capable of charging 4s lipos as well, then check out the Hitec X2 AC pro. It has a total of 200 watts to work with, or 100 watts per channel if charging two batteries simultaneously and it can charge up to 20 amps on a single channel which is useful if you want to fast charge your batteries for extra punch in spec racing. It pretty much gives you everything you're asking for.

Just an FYI about that charger.

It is a AC/DC style charger that cant do 20 amps on a single channel channel. It has a max limit of 10 amps. Now it doesn't specify if thats per channel or combined but it would be pretty weird if it was a 10 amp combined limit. I've attached the specs page on hitec's website.

X2 AC Pro 2 Port AC/DC Multi-Charger | HITEC RCD USA

You could pick up two of these https://www.amainhobbies.com/isdt-t8...isd-t8/p700372 and a power supply off ebay for about 250 and easly charge your batteries at 5C. BTW 5C on those batteries is 29 amps, which would be an insane number to charge at.

I would definitely suggest looking up how lipo's charge and some of the specifics about how they work. This may help with picking out a charger, figuring out what amps you want to charge at and how many watts it takes to charge at.

IIRC - of all your requirements, you should drop the AC/DC one. The majority of the AC/DC chargers are worthless on AC. Also server power supply can be had on ebay for damn cheap, and there are so many guides online for converting one over to charger duties.

Well... this is awkward.

lulz, that is on DC only power. Your comment was pretty vague and doesn't specify that it requires you to use an external power supply. When chargers have very specific requirements to run at what your claiming, its nice to tell people that. While your not lying it will charge at 20 amps, your also missing out a key part.

Also you don't mention that 20 amps on a 2s pack is at the upper range of what that charger can do on DC on 1 channel. If op ever does 3s and 4s your blowing way past the watt limit of that charger. Buy more charger than you think you will need.

Well... this is awkward.

Also, shame on Hitec they hide a really good feature of this charger in the damn notes. Why not have that 20 amp limit on DC front and center of your product page.

That is on AC power my friend And I stated it can charge up to 20 amps on a single channel, not that it can charge every battery at 20 amps on a single channel. The OP wants it for 2s lipos right? That means he can charge the batteries he's using at 20 amps on AC power.

EDIT: I do agree though, it's dumb for Hitec to not advertise the full capabilities of the charger. I found this stuff out from others that bought the charger while doing research before I purchased.

According to the specs on AC power it will do a combined 200 watts any way you want to slice it between the two outputs. That means on a 2s pack it will do 20 amps, but if you are charging another 2s pack on the other port you will be limited to about 4 amps.

Personally I would pick up a used server PS as suggested above and look at the following:

2 of these https://hobbyking.com/en_us/smart-charger-500w.html
2 of these https://hobbyking.com/en_us/0620-20a...version-2.html
https://hobbyking.com/en_us/0620duo-...version-2.html
2 of these https://hobbyking.com/en_us/isdt-t6-...w-charger.html

I have owned both the Reaktors (iCharger clone) and the iSDT chargers. I really like both. The form factor and menu on the iSDT is hard to beat. The only down side is they have very little discharge capability. The Reaktors as they stand have very little discharge capability as well, but at least you can pair them with a discharging resistor to increase the capabilities significantly. If I hadn't upgraded to an iCharger 406 DUO I could be content with any of the chargers listed above.

I've messed with :
LRP AC/DC charger
Powerlabs PL6
Hyperion duo
and finally settled on an iCharger duo

Depending on how serious you are about getting back in to the hobby, I would shoot straight for an iCharger 308 or 406 duo otherwise get a server power supply, and 2 of those ISDT chargers. If you're running on-road, you'll be wanting to run tire warmers soon and they don't do AC tire warmers so just go DC.
Also if you ever go to a track or somewhere where there's no power outlets, you can run off a 12V car battery no probs.

Well damn, I stand corrected. That's really confusing, the instructions lead you to think it's 10 per channel in AC mode.

What a poor way to sell a product.

Those isdt chargers look super promising, I may order one to play around with.

Icharger duo series FTW. Buy nice, not twice.

ISDT Revolution Starts Here

This is a nice compact dual port charger

Yeah it's pretty lame of Hitec to leave it out. And I'm not saying AC is the best, just that it simplifies things for the average racer. I don't use tire warmers or DC pit lights. I just have a charger, my batteries and a USB pit light lol

Plus you gotta admit, that solder iron is pretty handy to have at the track instead of lugging around a dedicated station like the Hakko or Trakpower setups. And the price is not bad either considering its capabilities. Just another option to consider if you don't need to fast charge 4s-6s batteries

I didnt notice the soldering iron at first.

Hands down one of the most full featured chargers I've seen.