Can anybody recommend me the 'best value' intelligent charger for 9v NiMH batteries that displays capacity ?

Batteries and Chargers Chargers
1

As per title

I have tried searching this forum but have not had much luck yet
trying to find a decent 9v charger with capacity display/test that is not too expensive

A couple of chargers that have caught my eye

http://www.conrad-uk.com/ce/en/product/202009/VOLTCRAFT-9V-Battery-Charger-for-4x-NiCd-NiMH/0502131
& a more basic model
http://www.conrad-uk.com/ce/en/product/202600/VOLTCRAFT-P-600-LCD-Intelligent-Universal-Battery-Charger

Also
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ansmann-5207442-Energy-Battery-Charger/dp/B001FR6SNK

I was actually considering buying the first one but they put the price up
while I was still deciding if I wanted it so decide not too in the end

2

I don’t know of any PP3 chargers, but I love your username! Welcome to BLF! :party:

3

I loved the Ansmann, except that they turn out to be junk.

After replacing the one I bought from Amazon twice because it quit working, I told them not to send me a third one, and just refund my money.

Read the reviews over there, it just doesn’t work.

Both of mine just went electronically crazy with all the lights flashing and cycling and no actual operation or charging, but they were very nice for the first few days that they worked.

4

I might recommend a basic hobby charger such as the Accucel-6.

They charge/discharge many different chemistries (NiMH, Li-ion, Pb, etc.) and offer voltage and mAh analysis.

They’re about $30 shipped, so they might be cheaper than the chargers you’re looking at.

5

Yes that Accucel-6 looks like it will do the job

Couple of more questions - is this the best place to buy it

6

Yup, I got mine from Hobbyking as well, and they seem to have the cheapest prices.

For a power supply, I use a simple 12V wall wart like this one:

It won’t provide hundreds of watts, but for what I was doing (charging 18650’s at 0.5A) it was more than enough.

You probably have some lying around, or you can pick one up for pretty cheap.

Did you also notice that HK gives you about $1.50 off if you wait on the page for about a minute or two? :wink:

7

yep it give me the discount but it added the UK warehouse version to my basket when there are none actually in stock

I guess I should try getting the discount on the cheaper ‘international’ version instead as there should not be any customs fees as the price is below the customs limit - obviously I will have to wait longer for delivery from HK

8

One of these should do the trick :wink: iCharger 4010Duo - ProgressiveRC

9

Just received my Turnigy Accucell 6

While figuring out if I had a PSU that I could use with it I have read that it needs a 12v power supply that can provide 5 to 6 amps so I am surprised the poster above showed a picture of a PSU that can only provide 0.6 amps !

10

5-6 amps is only needed when you’re charging multiple cells at full charge rate.
An example would be a RC lipo battery, which tolerates 40C discharge and 5C charge.
It’s not recommended to charge a 18650, 16340, etc. cylindrical cells above 0.5-1.0C, so I never need a 5-6A power supply.

11

ok I sort of suspected as much i.e. that you can get away with a lower amps PSU depending on what you are doing

Luckily I’ve now managed to find a PSU that gives me 12v/6a

Do you know if the polarity matters or not ?

12

Good for you!

Yup, the polarity matters, and the center pin in the middle is positive.

13

While I was charging one of my 9v Li-ion batteries the +ve clip slipped off & very briefly created a short circuit with the -ve clip (briefly sparked !)

I restarted the charging & the charger appears OK - can I assume I have been lucky or could I have damaged something & not know about it yet ?

Does the charger have any protection built in against this ?

I think I will be buying some of these to stop it happening again
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1PC-DC-9-Volt-9V-SNAP-ON-BATTERY-POWER-CONNECTOR-FOR-GUITAR-PEDAL-EFFECTS-T-TYPE-/251254879236?pt=UK_ConsumerElectronics_Batteries_SM&hash=item3a7ff53404

14

The charger and the cell are probably fine.

The short was just for a brief moment, right?

15

Any of these power supplys should work. http://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?\_odkw=imax+b6&\_osacat=0&\_from=R40&\_trksid=p2045573.m570.l1313.TR3.TRC2.A0&\_nkw=imax+b6+power+supply&\_sacat=0
Make sure it has a 5.5mm by 2.5mm barrel type plug and 5 to 6 amps output as stated above and it should plug right in.
.
As far as the short, in my experience it has never effected the charger. I have let the leads connect together many times and noticed a arch many times without in ill effects. I use magnets to make connections to the cell or cells. The charger is always looking for voltages that is out of range for the selected cell or cells. When it senses a out of range voltage it will usually display a error.