storing new lipos

[boogiebot]

ok so i recently bought a bunch on new lipos got a great deal from an RC site and just could not turn it down.

after some reading on various sites and watching clips from youtube, my understanding is that Lipos need to be stored with half a charge. my question is this. If a Lipo is new from the warehouse do i need to charge them all half way and store them even though they have never been used?

[SuperHog]

Charged them to 3.75v-3.85v and they are ready for storage.

Also store them in a steel box like an ammo box just in case they go stupid.

[L473ncy]

Do you have an advanced smartcharger with a display or a "smartcharger" that just detects voltage and charges to the top?

If the former (eg. iMax B6AC, Turnigy, etc.) there is a lipo storage charge mode set it on that. If the latter just charge it up to the top and leave it as is. I always have my batteries charged top the top (and I own an advanced smartcharger with display).

AFAIK from the factory batteries will come half charged.

BTW: If you ever need to jump start your car because of a flat battery and you have an advanced smart charger you can attach the clips to your cars battery terminals and charge on lead acid mode at 12V (probably safely at 5 Amps as well).

[Ricochet]

Newer lipos "should" never go nuclear on you, but better safe than sorry I guess. Never buy cheap lipos though, or you'll find out why they were such a good deal.

I have seen one modern lipo explode. We were at Battlefield in Calgary, and it went nuclear while in buddies G36, a Tokyo Marui I think. Anyways, they got it out and saved the gun, but just in time watch it burn up on the ground. The battery brand was either Firefox or Airsoft something (white label). We had just switched most of our Systemas over to lipos, and now all of our batteries are pooched. I mean literally near every single one from a large group of them. To be fair, the charger and/or charging method could be suspect. What I've learned? Buy high quality lipos only, and but a high quality balance charger only. The IMAX B6 seems to be the preferred one in airsoft. Always store and charge your batteries appropriately. If not, or if this method is too expensive, then stick with NiHm or NiCd. They do work, they're cheap, and they don't explode.

[boogiebot]

Thanks for the quick responses gentlemen. I actually purchased the batteries from a place called Hobby King. They have some good reviews so I decided to give it a shot.

Originally Posted by L473ncy

Do you have an advanced smartcharger with a display or a "smartcharger" that just detects voltage and charges to the top?

If the former (eg. iMax B6AC, Turnigy, etc.) there is a lipo storage charge mode set it on that. If the latter just charge it up to the top and leave it as is. I always have my batteries charged top the top (and I own an advanced smartcharger with display).

AFAIK from the factory batteries will come half charged.

BTW: If you ever need to jump start your car because of a flat battery and you have an advanced smart charger you can attach the clips to your cars battery terminals and charge on lead acid mode at 12V (probably safely at 5 Amps as well).

Great Question, I actually use a regular smart charger. Its black in colour and says "Flame" on it. I hope thats not foreshadowing on whats going to happen to my batteries lol. Was thinking of getting a smart charger with display but unsure of which one. There was also a silver regular smart charger from Tenergy that had no display that has gotten tons of great reviews by well known airs of stores.

[L473ncy]

Originally Posted by boogiebot

Great Question, I actually use a regular smart charger. Its black in colour and says "Flame" on it. I hope thats not foreshadowing on whats going to happen to my batteries lol. Was thinking of getting a smart charger with display but unsure of which one. There was also a silver regular smart charger from Tenergy that had no display that has gotten tons of great reviews by well known airs of stores.

The Turnigy ones are fine. I use them myself. The "Airsoft" ones AFAIK are the same as their regular RC line just have the different connectors for airsofters. I myself however replaced them with Deans connectors when I got them.

As for the "flame" charger, they're the most basic smart charger you can get it's fine for a hobbyist or casual player. They charge via the white JST balance plug on the lipo and it looks like the Turnigy charger here correct? I'm pretty sure it's the same OEM that just pumps these out cheaply then other people just put their sticker or brand/packaging on it. They all look the exact same other than sometimes the plastics colour looking a bit different.

I've never heard of those blowing up or anything bad like that but it'll probably break on you after like a year or two if you use it a lot. When I had one in my hands the build quality was just OK. In fact I gave one of those to my ex along with a 12C 7.4V lipo for the clearsoft gun she has. Hasn't blown up yet.

As for charger any of the following should be good:

iMax B6AC Nice thing about this one is that you don't need to get a separate Power Supply (you can use your laptops power brick TBH but I bought the Turnigy T20Pro)
Turnigy Accucel6
HobbyKing ECO6 clone

Pretty much any of the chargers with at least a 3/5 star rating will be fine for airsoft. And if you have a team or have people over the night before a game or whatever you might want to invest in getting like a 4 bank charger so you can charge all your batteries at the same time.

If you want I can take a picture of what my setup looks like sometime this week so you can get an idea of how I have mine setup. But basically what I have is a couple batteries, T20Pro, Accucel6, and a specially soldered Deans charging connector (only comes with an XT60 and some other crap connectors or something, either do it the cheap way like me or buy the connector for like $1.50 or whatever while you're on HobbyKing anyways).

[ThunderCactus]

Originally Posted by Ricochet

Always store and charge your batteries appropriately. If not, or if this method is too expensive, then stick with Nimh or NiCd. They do work, they're cheap, and they don't explode.

In defense of lipo's, James' G36 was right fucked and drawing a crazy amount of amperage with no sort of protection lol

lipo's are great, and dirt cheap, and efficient, but they do require a bit more responsibility in knowing your gun.
The high quality lipo's usually give you lots of warning before flaming up too.

Technically you don't NEED to storage charge lipo's, if you understand the reasoning behind it. Just always store them at room temperature.

[boogiebot]

Originally Posted by L473ncy

The Turnigy ones are fine. I use them myself. The "Airsoft" ones AFAIK are the same as their regular RC line just have the different connectors for airsofters. I myself however replaced them with Deans connectors when I got them.

As for the "flame" charger, they're the most basic smart charger you can get it's fine for a hobbyist or casual player. They charge via the white JST balance plug on the lipo and it looks like the Turnigy charger here correct? I'm pretty sure it's the same OEM that just pumps these out cheaply then other people just put their sticker or brand/packaging on it. They all look the exact same other than sometimes the plastics colour looking a bit different.

I've never heard of those blowing up or anything bad like that but it'll probably break on you after like a year or two if you use it a lot. When I had one in my hands the build quality was just OK. In fact I gave one of those to my ex along with a 12C 7.4V lipo for the clearsoft gun she has. Hasn't blown up yet.

As for charger any of the following should be good:

iMax B6AC Nice thing about this one is that you don't need to get a separate Power Supply (you can use your laptops power brick TBH but I bought the Turnigy T20Pro)
Turnigy Accucel6
HobbyKing ECO6 clone

Pretty much any of the chargers with at least a 3/5 star rating will be fine for airsoft. And if you have a team or have people over the night before a game or whatever you might want to invest in getting like a 4 bank charger so you can charge all your batteries at the same time.

If you want I can take a picture of what my setup looks like sometime this week so you can get an idea of how I have mine setup. But basically what I have is a couple batteries, T20Pro, Accucel6, and a specially soldered Deans charging connector (only comes with an XT60 and some other crap connectors or something, either do it the cheap way like me or buy the connector for like $1.50 or whatever while you're on HobbyKing anyways).

that is correct the flame charger I have looks identical to the one that you posted the link for.

going to start shopping for a new charger now. Please post a pic of the one you have when you have a chance.

Thanks again for all the info

[Red Dot]

When I bought a Turnigy just last month it was already in storage mode at around 3.5v-3.7v per cell I think. But to be on the safe side I charged it.

I will second the IMAX B6 is a good charger, they sell for around $70 bucks here but hobbyking.com has it from the US at $27.64 so with shipping you'd probably be further ahead that route.

As mentioned above a laptop power supply can run it, just make sure it's at the right voltage and you don't draw more amps then what it's rated for.

I went through a storage/balance cycle already and I was snoozing charging/discharging a battery that I didn't even use game day (almost 2 hours for nothing). I will keep one of my two 7.4v max charged until my next game and see where it's at.

I store and charge mine in a flame-resistant bag and I keep all my batteries out of my gear in a cold cellar until I need them.

[Kim-Haze]

If you want an IMAX B6AC look some up on Amazon.ca honestly I bought mine for 50 the only thing that was missing was the large tamiya to small tamiya converter.

[ThunderCactus]

lipos only lose around 1% of their charge per month

[zzzzsleepy8]

My old TM m4 from more than a decade ago used NiMH batteries. Never used lipos before.

Do you guys actually buy those so called lipo safety bags to store and charge in?

[SuperHog]

Don't trust Lipo bags. I use Lipos in other hobby models and actually had one burst and the bag melted and flames came out. Good thing it happened outdoors.

Any metal box is actually better and your best insurance.

Best Lipo charging box
Safely charging and storing your Lithium Polymer (Lipo) batteries. - YouTube

Bags - Forget them all
LiPo Bags - YouTube

[ThunderCactus]

I have the ultimate lipo safety charging device;
I sit next to the damn thing while it's charging lol

[Fuzzy]

I thought I would post this in case anyone doubts the potential danger of Lipo batteries.

Warning - graphic image.

http://www.rctech.net/forum/electric...e-warning.html

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