Hey guys I have been in rc for a number of years now and I am thinking about getting some li-po batterys but I have a few questions about them before i make my first purchess. first off i know many new chargers will charge them but also I know that alot of guys are using what is called a li po balancer. and if im not mistaken it is a charger that charges each li po cell separately. and if this is true could you tell me is this all i need to charge my li po cells and if it is can you make some recomendations on a good one. also what is the big deal with li po. the airplane guys seem to do just fine with them. but everyone that i have talked to at my local track seams to fear them. any info you guys can give me would be much appreceated

THANKS
Sean Scott

THere is a ton to be learned on these threads. This should get you started.

http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/showthread.php?t=174150

http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/showthread.php?t=175081

As far as chargers go, I'm going to use an Duratrax ICE when I get into Lipo's. There are a lot of other ones out there.
I don't know alot about the balancing issue yet. But, I have learned it isn't something you have to do everytime you charge.

I too use an Ice charger for my Lipos and love it. People seem to be afraid of Lipos because IMO they either a) don't understand how to use them or b) have heard half-truth horror stories about them. They are like any other component - they need their own care. And like ANY OTHER component if they are misused then there will be problems. Take the time to educate yourself, just like with any other aspect of this hobby, and you'll love the extra punch and run time that Lipos bring.

That sums it up quite nicely.

I too use an Ice charger for my Lipos and love it. People seem to be afraid of Lipos because IMO they either a) don't understand how to use them or b) have heard half-truth horror stories about them. They are like any other component - they need their own care. And like ANY OTHER component if they are misused then there will be problems. Take the time to educate yourself, just like with any other aspect of this hobby, and you'll love the extra punch and run time that Lipos bring.
While what you say is quite true my concern regarding LiPos is that it is possible to damage them in various ways without realizing they have been damaged, and then they can cause problems (i.e., fire) on future charges even though you treat them properly from then on.

yea but if you just give em' a once over before ya charge/discharge them there will be no problems ex. dents, nicks, bloating etc.

On another board Shawn Palmer (then of Castle Creations) said that one of the things that could lead to later problems (i.e., fire) is leaving them with a full charge too long. How does that manifest itself such that you can tell the pack is toast before it turns your house into toast?

I think Shawn is wrong. I have a Sony digital camera, I have had it for years. The battery finally gave up so I took it out of the camera to get a new one. Well, what do you know. It is one of those DANGEROUS Lipos! Man, I guess I should have been careful, I could have burned down my house. LOL I have left it fully charged all the time. No problems here.

That doesn't really convince me of anything. I doubt your camera charger was charging it at 4-8amps.

The ICE will not charge LiPo,s if they are out of balance very far. Use a temp sensor and set it at 95 degrees or less just to be on the safe side. If you by new LiPo's.......... Check the Volts before you charge them, if they are less then 3 Volts per cell they will give you trouble. IMHO.

allright guys I did some reading and so far only good things have come up. also in some of my readings I found that kokam and apogee (i think i spelled that right) boath use a no flame chemistry wich means that instead of catching afire the energy will be transformed into some other form of less dangerous enery (ie. extreeme heat for a longer period of time or the pack just stops working) boath of wich tho they will end the packs life are better than the pack catching afire and losing my life or all of my posesions on my never ending quest for more power and run time.

you should check out the certain ones... i forgot which :D but they will not catch fire are completely safe and the charger will charger them within 15min or a half hour ill try to find them :D

The point is that the charger takes care of the amps for you. My buddy has been using lipo's for 3D airplanes for a couple of years. His charger will not let him charge at a higher amperage then the battery is capable of handling.

You are thinking of A123 Racing. http://www.a123racing.com/ARCOR is doing extensive testing right now with the Orion 3200 Carbon pack. http://www.teamorion.com/Products/Batteries/Li-Po

ahh mclin thats it thanks for finding it!!!

oh yea and look at the adjustable output ones there sick u can pick to out put between 7.2 to 10.8 volts there crazy!

You are thinking of A123 Racing. http://www.a123racing.com/ARCOR is doing extensive testing right now with the Orion 3200 Carbon pack. http://www.teamorion.com/Products/Batteries/Li-Po

sound like they might be real good packs, i have a problem with the charger being dedicated to the hypersonic packs though. kinda sticks you to buying only one brand, clever of them i suppose. of course if you dont buy the charger then you dont get the fast charge capability. add in the whos even heard of the company factor.... i think i want to see one blow by me on the track a few times before id want to throw all my eggs in one basket.

Team lost - That adjustable output is an option. The ouput of the pack is 6.6 volts.

ALL of this LiPo technology is new to us so it's hard to say for sure what is good or bad. The bigger voltage is my main concern right now. I have some Orion stuff coming for actual track testing and I will be able to talk more about it in a couple of weeks once I see for myself what they are actually like.