[deaconFlyer]

Originally Posted by dashpuppy

the idea would be to balance it, then discharge it, then balance charge it slowly. It might bring it back to life. If it's a cheap hobby king crappy battery don't waste your time.

One might be surprised to discover how few companies are actually manufacturing the insides of the batteries we buy. Canada now has a law that prohibits something as being "Made in Canada" unless it is exactly that. Prior to that, if the Canada Post shipping rates were the most expensive part of the product, you could claim it as domestic. Not anymore!

You don't have that protection from products made in the US. The product can be entirely prepared in China, brought over in bulk, shrink wrapped in a US plant and if they charge more at the wholesale than the price off the boat it has the "Made in the USA" label. They don't have to show the "Country of Origin" ... we do!

Look at LCD screens ... how many companies actually make them versus how many package them into their products. Same internals. If I pull the back license plate on my VW I can see the Audi symbol and part number.

So ... don't turn your back on something just because you think it is "crappy" ... it may be exactly the same internally as the sparkly package you just paid 3X's more for. Yes, there are poor quality products but they can be as easily built here as there.

[gixerfien]

Originally Posted by deaconFlyer

One might be surprised to discover how few companies are actually manufacturing the insides of the batteries we buy.

There's actually only 3 companies that produce the cells in these lipo packs!!

[rome]

don't mean to butt in, but since we are on the topic! what apms do you put when you balance discharge.

[MikeCam]

Originally Posted by rome

don't mean to butt in, but since we are on the topic! what apms do you put when you balance discharge.

I assume you mean amps, put as high as the charger will allow, most times it will be less since the charger limits it.


Also I have had a few lipo's go really out of balance and I have used my old trident charger plus the balance lead extensions from HK. The pins pull out of the case real nice and you can then use the pins to isolate the low cell in the pack and only charge that one cell. I have brought it up to the other cells and it has worked fine after that and stayed balanced.

[michaely]

Originally Posted by gixerfien

There's actually only 3 companies that produce the cells in these lipo packs!!

hi Cory,

I'll bite.... who are the companies or, at least, where are they located?
Do these same three companies also supply the cells to the 'premium' brands?
Just curious.

thanks

Michael

[gixerfien]

Originally Posted by michaely

hi Cory,

I'll bite.... who are the companies or, at least, where are they located?
Do these same three companies also supply the cells to the 'premium' brands?
Just curious.

thanks

Michael

I'm not sure of the companies, but they are all located in china, and yes they are the SAME cells as in the "premium brands"

I got this info from bobby watts in a smacktalk video which can be found here at the 15:15-17:00 min mark:
http://www.smacktalkrc.com/archives/832

The video is about $4, If you want to watch it, I own them all

I have rewatched the section of the video and will try and give the coles notes version lol

Bobby states that all the cells come from the same 3 guys in china. Then questions, "well why can I get a turnigy pack for half the price of a thunder power one for?" He says even when they interviewed thunder power, it boils down to the biggest difference is how the rc battery companies manufacture the cells in retrospect to the quality of the components they use with those cells, the matching of the internal resistance of the cells they choose to make that individual pack, and how well they have put it all together.

[michaely]

Cory, thanks for the information.

I'm not surprised about the variance in quality of cells......when nicads were more popular in r/c, if you dug deep enough you learnt that nicads - even coming off the same production batch - were graded as to quality and rebranded. For competition grade brands, when nicads were used as motor batteries, the internal resistance were lowest and matched.

Michael

[gixerfien]

no prob mike

glad I could help