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Lithium-Polymer (LiPo) Battery Primer


infected

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I cant wait, also waiting for the 100% aeg article :)

 

If you want to send me a brand new Dboy's Scar you'll see the article sooner :) Hehehe. The real hold up on the 100% Gun is time and money. I'm self employed, father of 4, and as such money and time do not exist in my world. :)

 

God's good though, so I'm believing in getting that gun soon so I can get that article written and published for you guys!

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Really starting to get the itch to try a MOSFET/lipo combo in my G36K.

Is a fet with resettable fuse similar in dimension to the standard fuse holder in an AEG, would it fit in the gap along side the gas tube on a G36 as the fuse holder does?

I assume a 7.4v lipo pack will fit in the foregrip as I use 9.6v 8 cell mini without problem.

 

:devil:

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Hey infected

What was wrong with your m14 that died in the Lipo review on your website

 

just curious

:)

 

I didn't build it as a 100% capable gun (to be honest). I put in a cheap piston that was overloaded when combined with the spring rate and the torque. When the sector gear came around it made short work of the first tooth of the piston snapping it clean off. But alas, the parts to bring it back like the Phoenix have arrived, and it's 500 fps glory will be feared upon the grounds of my local skirmish field yet again (maybe as soon as this weekend)!

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I assume a 7.4v lipo pack will fit in the foregrip as I use 9.6v 8 cell mini without problem.

 

Yup. I've been running a Thunderpower eXtreme v1 2S 7.4v lipo in my G36 since Dec. 07. The dimensions are 107mm x 32mm x 16mm.

 

One nice G36 trick is you can bypass the forward wiring set by connecting your battery directly to the gearbox wiring connector through the magwell. This way you can lower the resistance. Also, with an upgraded motor a MOSFET isn't necessary when running a high discharge lipo unless you're getting overspin, or you want higher ROF. I ran my G36 with and without a MOSFET and the trigger response wasn't any different. If there's no overspin, you really don't need a MOSFET (stock TM 5.5-6yr old trigger contacts are still in very good condition).

 

If you're looking for quality, yet very affordable lipo batteries I confidently recommend these. Shipping will be a bit (due to the shop being in HK), but if you order multiple items it's very well worth it. These will fit in just about any gun and perform on par with my Thunderpower pack. I've got a few on the way currently for some of my friend's guns.

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I didn't build it as a 100% capable gun (to be honest). I put in a cheap piston that was overloaded when combined with the spring rate and the torque. When the sector gear came around it made short work of the first tooth of the piston snapping it clean off. But alas, the parts to bring it back like the Phoenix have arrived, and it's 500 fps glory will be feared upon the grounds of my local skirmish field yet again (maybe as soon as this weekend)!

awe well not the lipos fault.

 

500 fps in an M14 gearbox, I thought those were as weak as the V2 did you get a reinforced shell...

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awe well not the lipos fault.

 

500 fps in an M14 gearbox, I thought those were as weak as the V2 did you get a reinforced shell...

 

That's news to me, I'm running a M130/425fps CA M14 & the gearbox shell looks as solid as a rock. I wouldn't think twice about taking it to 500fps if this was required.

 

 

Greg.

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That's news to me, I'm running a M130/425fps CA M14 & the gearbox shell looks as solid as a rock. I wouldn't think twice about taking it to 500fps if this was required.

 

 

Greg.

 

im not trying to spread false info

I've just read about version 7s cracking in the same place as version 2s with 1j+ springs

perhaps this is incorrect

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1, im not trying to spread false info

 

2, I've just read about version 7s cracking in the same place as version 2s with 1j+ springs

perhaps this is incorrect

 

1, I'm not suggesting you are.

 

2, I guess that's why our opinions differ. :rolleyes: We are talking about 2 different designs.

 

As said, mine is a CLASSIC ARMY m14 shell. Not the TM ver7 or clone there of. Which could well suffer as you describe. I don't know about the TM or it's copies, as I've not opened one up & had a look. ;)

 

The CA is a different design & having looked at mine, it's pretty chuncky. :D I really doubt this will suffer any ver2 type problems. Only time will tell. :)

 

 

Greg

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Yup. I've been running a Thunderpower eXtreme v1 2S 7.4v lipo in my G36 since Dec. 07. The dimensions are 107mm x 32mm x 16mm.

 

One nice G36 trick is you can bypass the forward wiring set by connecting your battery directly to the gearbox wiring connector through the magwell. This way you can lower the resistance. Also, with an upgraded motor a MOSFET isn't necessary when running a high discharge lipo unless you're getting overspin, or you want higher ROF. I ran my G36 with and without a MOSFET and the trigger response wasn't any different. If there's no overspin, you really don't need a MOSFET (stock TM 5.5-6yr old trigger contacts are still in very good condition).

 

If you're looking for quality, yet very affordable lipo batteries I confidently recommend these. Shipping will be a bit (due to the shop being in HK), but if you order multiple items it's very well worth it. These will fit in just about any gun and perform on par with my Thunderpower pack. I've got a few on the way currently for some of my friend's guns.

 

Cheers mate, useful info.

 

edit: just read part two, good stuff.

 

:devil:

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Very nice work there.

 

I have been looking at switching to LiPo's and this has given me that added little push.

 

Looking at this http://www.rctoys.com/rc-toys-and-parts/TP...2-LI-POLYS.html Free shipping so it looks quite good.

 

for my ICS CXP. Should fit nicely in the handguard. Just trying to search out a charger now, one with a build in balancer that wont cost the earth would be cool.

 

Looking forward to part 3 mate, really am.

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Nice write-ups infected, thanks.

I'm thinking of going Li-Po in my MP7, to get rid of the bulky (relative to the gun) external pack (7.2V 2700mAh).

Like the majority of most players (I'm guessing) with several AEGs though, making the jump from Ni-Mh/Ni-Cad to Li-Po for all my AEGs is a big(ish) one financially.

 

Just a couple of questions arising from your articles;

1. As you said, Li-Pos need balancing before charging, is it usual for the cells to discharge at different rates, because later on you mention that if they are charged after balancing, they'll drop to the same voltage together, in use? Where would any imbalance come from?

2. What's the overall 'life' of a Li-Po, compared with Ni-Cad/ni-Mh (i.e. roughly how many charges before it's 'dead' and no longer useable)?

3. I'm sure I'll think of another as soon as I hit the 'Add Reply' button :P

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Nice write-ups infected, thanks.

I'm thinking of going Li-Po in my MP7, to get rid of the bulky (relative to the gun) external pack (7.2V 2700mAh).

Like the majority of most players (I'm guessing) with several AEGs though, making the jump from Ni-Mh/Ni-Cad to Li-Po for all my AEGs is a big(ish) one financially.

 

Just a couple of questions arising from your articles;

1. As you said, Li-Pos need balancing before charging, is it usual for the cells to discharge at different rates, because later on you mention that if they are charged after balancing, they'll drop to the same voltage together, in use? Where would any imbalance come from?

I knew someone would pickup on this. I was having a bugger of a time with my wording in this article. Honestly, I'd suggest a charger that has a balancer built in, or charging using a balancer add-on like the Electrifly Equinox (like I use). You should make sure your cells are charged before you use the battery (so they drop to 3v together). If you're batteries are not balanced before charging, and you don't have a charger that balances (or the addon balancer for a charger), then you'd need to balance the cells before charging to make sure they all hit their peak capacity. If you don't, you might have one cell peaked and the charger will stop charging before brining the other cells to peak. The real imbalance would occur during the charging phase, but could happen while in use as well (less likely). So in essence, you should just use a charger with a balancer, or get a balancer like the Equinox that can work with just about any charger out there. Then you can just let it balance while it's charging, and you don't need to worry about a thing after charging is complete. Hopefully that makes sense. If not, let me know.

2. What's the overall 'life' of a Li-Po, compared with Ni-Cad/ni-Mh (i.e. roughly how many charges before it's 'dead' and no longer useable)?

Greg would probably be able to answer this better than me, as he has a lot more experience with them. I for one haven't been using them long enough to have one run flat on me and have to put in the bin. I'd would venture to say that you'd get more use out of a li-poly as they'll last longer in the field without needing to be recharged, and they have almost 0 discharge when not in use. So with comparably sized batteries (based on voltage and capacity), I'd say you'll get more total shots out of a Li-poly than a NiCad or NiMH before they are no longer usable.

3. I'm sure I'll think of another as soon as I hit the 'Add Reply' button :P

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Infected,

 

Loving the whole article so far. Actually made me purchase a Li-po, balancer, and a charger that was in the classifieds over at ASR.

 

I have some questions for you if you don't mind answering them.

 

1) If I put a Li-po battery in a drawer for a month for storage, will it discharge or do anything else I should worry about?

 

2) Would it be a good idea to charge and balance the Li-Po every week? Whether it's been used heavily or not?

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Most of those do not use Lithium Polymer batteries but Lithium-Ion batteries. Big difference.

 

However, technology is actually just starting to use them and implementing them in stuff. Popular products include iPhones and PS3 wireless controllers.

I love my little 3.7v 1100mah 1 cell Li-Ion battery in my Nikon camera.
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Dammit! Infected's article has prompted me to go out (figuratively speaking) and buy myself a balancing charger, 7.2v 2,200mah lipo pack and a little audible buzzer that will tell me when the voltage in the battery drops below a certain level. These things plug into the balancing socket, and various LEDs light up on the board (which is tiny). This one won out because it'll go "BEEP!" & save me having to cut chunks out of my battery compartment to show the LEDs :)

 

I've also put in an email enquiry for one of Infected's MOSFETs, which could probably lead to about 8 purchases for myself & a chum if all goes well :o

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Infected,

 

Loving the whole article so far. Actually made me purchase a Li-po, balancer, and a charger that was in the classifieds over at ASR.

 

I have some questions for you if you don't mind answering them.

 

1) If I put a Li-po battery in a drawer for a month for storage, will it discharge or do anything else I should worry about?

It shouldn't discharge much if any at all. Just make sure it's in a cool dry place. I.E. not your car dash board or next to a roaring fireplace.

 

2) Would it be a good idea to charge and balance the Li-Po every week? Whether it's been used heavily or not?

It doesn't need it. If you haven't used the lipo in a month or two, just check the voltage at the power plug to make sure nothing funky is happening. If you're using it on a regular basis, just follow the regular balancing & charging and you'll be good to go.

 

Mikeiw, I sent you a pm about the mosfets, as I didn't get your email.

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