I'm thinking of getting a hobby charger now that I have some extra cash thanks to my tax return. Problem is I know nothing about them. I am thinking of making a bench power supply (12v) from a computer PSU with all the output voltages (12v, 7.5v, 5v, 3v) so I think that will cover input supply for the charger itself. I have no idea what is a good but inexpensive charger that will give me a readout for amps and voltage and let me cycle cells and do rundown discharge testing on them. What other accessories will I need with a new charger? I'm guessing cell carriers to hold the cells and connect to the charger.
It's a pretty good charger for the money, as for connections to the battery I just use magnets soldered onto the end of some wires. Keep in mind it can only discharge at a maximum of 1 amp.
I have the Accucel-6 as well. I bought it from HobbyKing. I like it. In retrospect I wish I had sprung for something that can discharge cells at higher than 1A or 5W. If I could do it over again I’d have gone with the Accucel-8.
The accucel looks pretty good. 1A discharge is all I really want anyway as I think that is a better standard drain for testing purposes. Ideally, what is required for a power supply? What do you guys use with them? I don't know why they don't come with wall plugs. I'm guessing they are mostly used by the R/C crowd and they plug into their car battery for juice.
Johnny, I originally bought the Turnigy Accucell 6. Although a very good charger for the money, it doesn't compare the iCharger 106B+. I know it's a lot more expensive, but it blows away the Turnigy in every way. More features, more accurate, higher charge, and much higher discharge rates, etc... Dont take my word for it, compare the two....
accucel 6 is a great “entry level” hobby charger… i ended up getting the accucel 8 - a small step up from the 6 so I can charge my pack of 16 aa nimh batteries (and it charges at up to 7amps, good for IMR)
HobbyKing’s description really should give the spec size of the DC plug. I was lucky enough that the power brick from an Energizer NiMH 15 Minute Battery Cooker fits the DC plug and satisfies the charger’s voltage and current requirements.
This is what I have been using for 8 years http://www.hobbico.com/cyclers/hcap0280.html
Will run you about 130-160 bones but is a good charger. Has 2 different plug in so you can do nicad/nimh on one side & li-poly/li-ion on the other. 2 amp charge & discharge, temp sensor ect
I hear that! mine even gives me a occasional BJ when I ask in a nice way. Maybe it's just one of my bizarre dreams I have... Please don't ask me why.....PLEASE!!!!
Glenn, clearly you got a good deal with that particular B6+
I have the Accucel6, but for serious battery testing I would not recommend it. When discharging, I have to add 150mV to the battery voltage as there seems to be quite a bit of dropout inside the charger. When charging it is fine.
If I was to get another, I would consider the B6+ or something dedicated to battery testing. I rarely use mine for charging anymore, unless I want a graph.
+ 1. I have one myself. The iCharger not only has good reviews, but also no known counterfeits. Who knows you will be reviewing li-Ions too! Limiting yourself to a 1A discharge rate is not a good idea.
I have owned a accucell 6 and its a great entry level hobby charger. Seems to always get good reviews and the one I owned I never had a problem with.
I own a accucell 8 now. I would have to call it a mid range hobby charger. The one I have is a older version of about 2 years ago that still had the usb data logging port works with logview. The newer ones do not have this feature any more. But that maybe modded with a little soldering and adapter. I’m pretty sure the 6 also has to be modded to use data logging.
If I had it to do again I would go with the icharger, may even get one any way. The icharger is more of the high end of hobby chargers. It has a few other features that the others don’t have. One extra feature is the usb data logging port. You can also set the cut off voltage above 4.2v for li-ions. Most chargers only will go to 4.2v with li-ions, icharger can be set to 4.3v.
If you have the extra cash that would be my recommendation. If you want cheap the 6 is fine. If you fill like you may want a little more discharge current or charge more cells at once then go for something mid-range.
For the power supply, if you have spare computer PSU, just use that, its 12V quality will equal or best any cheap/moderate 12V supply out there. And it’ll last longer too.
Short the green+black for power-ON. Yellow wire = +12V, black for ground, you may use 2-3 pairs to cut resistance. Every other wire can go.
THanks for the great suggestions. I just can't bring myself to shell out $100+ for a charger at this time. Maybe one day though. I've been perusing the HobbyKing site and found a few with good output and 5A discharge ability. Can anyone offer any insite on the EC06-10 200W 10A 6S?
