Whats a good lipo charger?

[Trick440]

Whats a good priced lipo charger for 4s? Is it better to get one with a balancer?

These are the two I have found... cant tell if the second has a balancer...

http://cgi.ebay.com/X-Power-601BC-Di...QQcmdZViewItem

http://cgi.ebay.com/Team-Orion-ORI30...QQcmdZViewItem

[MetalMan]

The Orion charger can only do 2s Lipo. The first one is probably a rebadged charger, but is a brand I have never heard of.

Have you taken a look at the Duratrax ICE? It's a great charger, and I know a number of members here use it.

[hyperasus]

Hyperion EOS1210i. Got one myself and it charges LiPo's faster then anything I've ever seen. You can also get the Hyperion LBA10 Balancer to go with it if you want to charge and balance at the same time.

If that is too much money then take a look at the Hyperion EOS5i AC/DC charger. It is a 5 amp charger but it is a nice choice for people that want a charger with the power supply built in.

There are a few good chargers. Getting one with an integrated balancer is gonna cost you though. The Hyperion 1210I/LBA10 combo is nice for the price and the charger and balancer work in conjunction with each other. The upside to this is that the balancer can control the charge rate, if needed, to help balance the pack which speeds the balancing process.

The duratrax ice is a good charger too. It will also work with the LBA10 balancer, but won't interface with it. I like it because it's easy to use, is inexpensive, and pretty tough. The only downside is that it takes longer to charge a battery pack than some other chargers.

I'm now using a Thunderpower 1010C with a Thunderpower balancer and I like it. It's FAST and the two components interface with each other like the Hyperion setup does; but does not allow networking of two balancers as does the Hyperion. On the other hand, the software is upgradeable via usb link, so the charger will never go out of "style."

I've had all three of these and they all work well.

Another popular charger is the Superbrain 989. Check around for pricing.

The Hyperion EOS1210i will also support A123 M1 cells now.

superbrain 989 all the way!!!

[MetalMan]

If I had some extra cash and were looking for a new charger, I would also choose the Hyperion 1210I/LBA10 combo. It's a great charger for the cost. It can also be upgraded at service centers that are located throughout the world, so it could last a long time (and like Eccentric said, there's an update out that allows it to properly charge A123 cells).

BTW, the Thunderpower also has an update out that allows charging A123s. If you have the cable, all you have to do is download it. I too, was seriously considering the Hyperion setup. I went with the Thunderpower because my LHS had in on the shelf and he made me a good deal.

[Trick440]

Anyone have experiance with a.... Orbit POCKETLADER -
Mini charger up to 4 A, 1-5s Li-Poly cells.

http://www.duralitebatteries.com/batteries-trak.html

I would like to get the charger and lipos from the same place to save on some shipping. I'm having a hardtime finding Trakpower 4900 lipos in the US, and the place that I did find them only sells the charger I listed above. KNow of anymore places in the US for Trakpower batteries?

[BrianG]

If it matters, I really like the TME Xtrema. It too can be updated via software, does 10s and 8A (180w limit), and has an adjustable CC/CV threshold so it can do A123s and pretty much any Li battery out right now.

I forgot about the Xtrema. The thunderpower will not match those specs, it will only do 5S at 10A or 10S at 5S (or something in between), 150W max.

[BrianG]

I thought the TP has a 210w limit? If it does, it beats the Xtrema's power limit. But the TP does beat the TME at current...

BTW: I just added charger data and a charger calculation page to the R/C Calculations page, which has this info...

Brian, those are just the specs that I remembered. I've never had to really push my charger. I'm only running a 15A power supply and it keeps up just fine. Maybe I'll be able to give the setup a workout when I do my 1/5 scale conversion.