Mini-T gone WIld!

[403forbidden]

Originally posted by HumboldtBlazer
Actually the Super Brain 969 (PRO SERIES) Is specifically designed for Li-Poly and Li-ion as well as conventional Ni-cd's and Ni-MH's This is not to be confused with the Super Brain 969 regualar version (the purple one) It says right in the hand book and the guys selling these batteries who is very knowlegeable lists the 969 Superbrain Pro Series as the right charger for the Kokam 7.4 1500mah Li-Poly

oh yeah you're right..i confused the 969 with the 969 PRO

 

[HumboldtBlazer]

UPDATE !!!!!!! ALMOST HAD MY CELL VENT AND CATCH FIRE!!!!

www.one18thscale.com is selling the Superbrain 969 Pro and they are also selling that Kokam battery that is Li-poly and on their site the say to use the SuperBrain 969 Pro. My battery almost caught fire! The cell swelled to 4 times it size. I wrote Kokam about the problem and here is the reply I get:

I am sorry, but MRC has been warned repeatedly by Kokam USA and by others that their Super Brain charger , with attendant instructions for charging Li Po cells is not correct and that it must be changed. I am relieved that the MRC charger did not cause your pack to vent with the possibility of igniting. Mr Red Scholefield has put an alert on EZONE about that charger. I am truly sorry that the MRC charger has damaged your cells. I recommend that you insist that MRC replace your pack at their cost, then I would relegate it to charging Ni Cd batteries. I am forwarding a copy of this e-mail to Red Scholefield and, I am sure, Red will direct you to the information he posted.
In keeping with our policy to look after our customers, we offer you our "crash and burn " deal. That is, we will sell you a replacement KOK 1500 mah pack and the proper charger, that will not do that to your cells, at a deep discount if you wish. Please advise.
To dispose of the damaged cell, please discharge the pack through your motor or a DC lamp bulb until it is exhausted. The, working in a safe area, very carefully slice gently through the plastic envelope (do not poke with the point) to vent the swollen cell. Drop the depleted cell in a pint jar of salt water for about three hours. Then you can drop it in the trash.

Best regards,
Fred Marks


So I like Kokam standing behind this but wtf Speedster Racing? Here is the web page and at the bottom the recomendation of the charger. I am no pro about electronics so I followed what it said. http://www.one18thscale.com/itemDesc.php?itemNumber=1500HC&cat=1

 

[mcvickj]

Yikes HB! Luckly you caught it in time before your cells caught fire.

Who is Speedster Racing?

Was this the first time charging your Lipos? What settings were you using to charge the batts?

 

[HumboldtBlazer]

Speedster racing owns and operates www.one18thscale.com where I bought both my battery and charger. They recommended that combination. Before I charged the cell I called him on the phone (owner of speedster racing) and asked how do I charge this batt correctly with the MRC SuperBrain 969 Pro? He said charge @ 1.5 amps, tell the charger 2 cells, then put to 1500mah which I did, then charged it until peak. I ran into the problem after the first run, then I charged one more time and it swole bigger, then I ran it and it almost poped! ( Iguess the don't really pop, they have a mechanism to realease the pressure but it will most likely catch fire at that point) My mini-t almost ended up as a flaming pile of plastic!

 

[Error401]

All I can say is take some pictures and do a "how-not-to" article about it. You might save someone else alot of heartburn. Sorry to hear about the troubles HB, I know you were pretty stoked about the setup.

 

[HumboldtBlazer]

Just to update people further DO NOT CHARGE LI-ION OR LI_POLY BATTERY WITH THE MRC SUPER BRAIN PRO SERIES. IT says they can but they can actually make them catch fire period! I was wrong and following information given to me by the vendor and the manufacturer. PLEASE DO NOT USE THAT CHARGER WITH LI-ION OR LI-POLY batts.

UPDATE EMAIL:

Dear Mr Blazer,

To clarify: MRC has taken a charger that was designed to charge Ni Cds and tried, via the instructions, to make it a charger for Li Pos. This was done without a clear understanding that a peak detection charger can not be used as is to charge Li Po cells. The peak detector tries to hold constant current, therefore keeps raising charge voltage as cell voltage rises. They try to do the charge on the basis of time and that can not work reliably. This was explained to MRC.
We have found that most chargers for Ni cds can be made to work if one uses a Safety Guard on the charger and if the charger is designed for no more than 10 Ni cd cells. Although we have not checked the MRC charger specifically with Safety Guard, it might work OK. At this stage, I don't think you want to be a "guinea pig!" Lets get you the right charger.
I will pass your request on to Jamie who will instruct Sales to quote for you.

Best regards,
Fred


I have to say on Speedster Racings (www.one18thscale.com) behalf that they were given the mis information by MRC.

 

[HumboldtBlazer]

UPDATE: www.kokamusa is www.fmadirect.com and they are stand up people. They were not at fault here and the are selling me a charger and battery at a deep discount because of my problem with the battery. www.one18thscale.com has yet to reply if he will be replacing my batteries. I think it would be his responsability to take it up with MRC. I ruined 2 batteries here and both times the charger was recommended by him (7.2V Li-Ion 1200mah Sony and a 7.4V Li-Poly 1500mah total over $65), and I called him before charging each battery to get instructions. Who knows really I know everything will work out. Problems are just always frustrating to deal with. I just have to be paitient. Thanks fmadirect!

 

[HumboldtBlazer]

UPDATE. Well www.one18thscale.com is replacing my batteries. MRC is still not admiting to a problem here. Also Kokam (FMA Direct) is selling me the charger and batt for cheap style so all in all I am happy. I will only use my MRC SuperBrain 969 Pro Series for only Ni-cd's and Ni-MH's now. The charger I got is ONLY for Li-Ion and Li-Poly and will not charge the otheres.

 

[mcvickj]

Glad to hear everything was resolved. If your looking for a charger that will do it all I would suggest looking at the Triton charger. Average price is about $150.

I picked up a Hobbico Quick Field DC Charger MKII 12 Volt and I've been really happy with it. People over at RC Groups says this will charge Li-Po's up to 95% if I remember correctly. I suppose that takes a little worry out of destroying your Li-Po batts.

 

[irishXminit]

MCvick i got the same charger i love it.. charges my li-on li-po without problem also can charge nicad or nimh and also charge 2 batts at once. love that thing! :smoke:

 

[psunitro]

Those batt. are great!! Got one (an 800) and put it in the son's mini.....HOLY COW!!! Ended up toasting the stock motor! Truly a night and day differance. The old e-bay has them for pretty cheap.