Interesting Multi Voltage Packs....

[Steven Vaccaro]

This is pretty cool. But I dont like how they charge them.

VdA4aWxemzE

[andym]

MMMM I can see the benefits and the down sides, like having to use Max amp packs........... They do think out side the square though and I do think it will be well recieved

[andym]

Oh Steve you better get on the Skippies and Kiwis thread, some moron on there thinks they should get an OSE discount. Reply 1501 I think

[Jeff Wohlt]

They are a big car/truck market. I think it is brillant but not sure how 100+ amps will work. If good connctors then it has little loss. I like that you can 3.7 at a time. Unitl now you can't do that unless you build your own and few want to do that.

Charging is not an issue in para config.

[ozzie-crawl]

yea but look at the amps to charge in parallel

[sailr]

Too many connectors, too many opportunities for failure. Connectors also look pretty small to carry the amps we demand.

[LiPo Power]

What was i thinking :doh:


not bad $49.00 for this kit.

[sailr]

Go back and look again! $49 is just for the connectors and ONE cell.

http://maxamps.com/products.php?cat=274

$169.99 for a 4S pack is a bit much!!

[tharmer]

Isn't 170 about what a Hyperion 4s 6500 pack is?

[Steven Vaccaro]

Can someone explain why there are no balance taps and is this dangerous?

[BondoBrushless]

Theres some good reading here on the topic

http://www.rc-monster.com/forum/showthread.php?t=27666

I and many others have had bad experiences with MA Lipos and with the @hole in the video. I've spent nearly a $1000.00 on (3) MA lipos several years back and all puffed and puked and MA refused warrantee so I have nothing good to say. But, I find it interesting reading about other folks experinces and opinions of them.

[sailr]

First, it's a 5250 pack, not a 6500. I sell the 4S 5000 Hyperion for $140 SHIPPED and yes, they have balance taps!


Isn't 170 about what a Hyperion 4s 6500 pack is?

[graill]

Interesting idea. Playing devils advocate i see the potential for all kinds of problems.

And what is with someone presenting a product many folks will take as "this is what we should do because its in a video", disconnecting a positive wire first?

Sad stuff.

[drwayne]

MaxAmps should include free entry forms for the Darwin Awards' ' look Ma, no hands ! ' category.

One crossed connection with those external plugs and Ppppffftttt..

Another winner !

[Ub Hauled]

I charge all my 2p packs like that... the paralleling of the packs allows one to charge multiple packs at the same time... just add the mAh... Steven it's less dangerous then the charging of multiple packs in series... instead of charging lets say 37v (10s) 5000mAh you would be charging 18.5v (5s) at either 10,000mAh or 20,000mAh depending f what your charger can take....

[austinelse]

Hi Guys!

Austin here with MaxAmps.

This is my first post here. I am excited to be here! I just started really getting into the boats this year as we live out on Long Lake in Spokane WA. They have been lots of fun.

I see that you have some questions regarding the new MV5250 packs.

Drwayne- I understand your concerns regarding the open 4mm connectors on the charging leads. I have the same concerns. I have been racking my brain trying to figure out how to avoid them. We are going to make one of the parallel connectors red and one black so that should help with reversed polarity issues. I still worry about someone setting it down on a metal table and shorting the cell out.

Any ideas?

BTW... I am working hard on a water-cooled lipo pack and we are getting close on the design. Any feedback that you all have on that would also be fantastic!

-Austin

[Jeff Wohlt]

I think it is great you are here to explain. You may take some jabbs...as many manufacturers have, but maybe you can also answer some questions. As you may know...this board is made up of many and many opinions...but we all know what they say about opinions.

Anyway...pulling 120-140 continuous is demanding for any pack...car/truck market is something of a different animal.

Hang here and see what you can learn about our industry.

[austinelse]

Jeff,

Thanks for the advice. As some of you know, I have been around a while:)

Feel free to beat the crap out of me at will as I have thick skin. I would rather know your opinions than not know.

Without your opinions, I would be wondering what to change to improve our products and service.

I have found that the boats are very hard on batteries:) We puffed a set of 6000s a few days ago with our castle powered monster.

When you start dealing with water, everything seems to get more complicated. When these boats jump out of the water at full throttle, the amp draw has to be going through the roof.

-A

[ozzie-crawl]

i dont think there some thing a newby should play with but as a lot of us use bullets any way and a lot of us run red hot female,we run risks each time we plug up.
how many times have you set a boat up and thought dam thats nice but would like to try 1 extra cell.

[drwayne]

Hi Guys!

Austin here with MaxAmps.

Drwayne- I understand your concerns regarding the open 4mm connectors on the charging leads. I have the same concerns. I have been racking my brain trying to figure out how to avoid them. We are going to make one of the parallel connectors red and one black so that should help with reversed polarity issues. I still worry about someone setting it down on a metal table and shorting the cell out.

Any ideas?

-Austin

You did ask for an idea.

I focused on pack assembly ...
Make one polarity outlet larger than the other...
Modify the slide connector so the small socket will not fit to the larger outlet.
Supply series plugs[large-small] not as now, same-same

Different size slides would help prevent charge conflict also

A large proportion of your market are hyper enthusiastic kids filled with
ignorance, arrogance, stupidity or plain bad luck ...
I wouldnt give them the option of crossing polarities.

jm2cw.

regs
DrWayne

[ozzie-crawl]

the packs are clearly marked pos/neg
but there is still a high chance of it being plugged up wrong,using different size plugs would eliminate some of that but would then not allow paralleling of packs unless different plugs are used but having same/same plug for pos/pos neg/neg would fix that.
problem is no matter how fool proof its made some fool will find away to hurt them selves.

[drwayne]

the packs are clearly marked pos/neg
but there is still a high chance of it being plugged up wrong,using different size plugs would eliminate some of that but would then not allow paralleling of packs unless different plugs are used but having same/same plug for pos/pos neg/neg would fix that.
problem is no matter how fool proof its made some fool will find away to hurt them selves.

Hiya, a fellow colonial !

Video shows configuration for series connection use , and parallel for charge.
Making the charge plug for +ve one size..and -ve the other ..add color coding as per Austin's post..and the risks are limited.

But I do agree.. the more we make things fool proof.... the more people try to be Darwinists.


On a completely applicational query.. how sturdy are those terminals on the packs.. likely to survive a few hundred ( thousand?) connections ?

W

[LarrysDrifter]

There is no balance tap because it is still only one cell.If its a multiple cell pack,you need a balance tap.Even charging the packs 2s,3s,or 4s, its still a 1s pack as far as the charger knows.Watch the video-it explains it well.I dont know if us boaters can benefit from this type of battery,but if Austin hangs out with us,he can learn more about what we need from batteries.And no I dont like paying for expensive packs(MaxAmps)and elsewhere,but sometimes I buy them to either try something different or I know I get a quality product.With that said,I love MaxAmps packs.Never had any problems with their packs.And when I did,it was completely my fault.And their customer service is some of the greatest I experienced.We should welcome MaxAmps here and help him in anyway we can.Even if you had a bad experience with them.

[ozzie-crawl]

hello dr wayne (fellow convict) :lol:

i think for a companies first attempt at this they have done well.
its some thing mates and i have discussed before,we even brought mini buzz bars and tossed around ideas.
i think with boats they could be very handy, in cats running 4s 1p you could run 2 cells per side just run a single wire from postive on one pack to the negative on the other
same as we do with 2x2s 4s setups
also if your running a setup say 4s but want to try the odd 5s run,just clip in a extra cell.or for odd cells not available like 7s maybe possible.
it also allows different weight distribution threw the boat by splitting the pack.
lots of variables not to mention if you kill a cell,it can just be replaced.

[drwayne]

hello dr wayne (fellow convict) :lol:

i think for a companies first attempt at this they have done well.

..... if you kill a cell,it can just be replaced.

But how would you identify the dead series cell if charged in a parallel array with others ?..
Easily .. it'd be the one on fire ! :flammes-09:

Yes indeed, plenty of applications where these would suit

However IMO the parallel charging idea as on video ... sux.
Perhaps a 2pack, 3pack., 4pack series endcap that includes tap.. charge as 2,3,4 respectively ? .. use same application for power draw...

Me a convict ?.. no, never caught ... :thumbup1:

[ozzie-crawl]

:yea well i only have 5 amp capable chargers. but i very rarely balance my lipos
only if there out of balance, i would charge them as 2 x 2s packs
or if they hold there voltage as a 4s pack.
if one is out i could just charge as a 1s pack.
thats just for my application tho.
whats interesting me as well is iam about to do a twin motor 32" cat
8xls on 4s
no water cooling,sub 60 second runs.
am thinking if these have a 60c discharge thats 315 amps
wondering if one set would power both motors, shouldn't be more than 120a burst
around 70-80a constant. 240 for both motors burst 140-160 constant
that way i could run 2 cells per side with just a jumper cable between them.
having there bullet connectors on the packs it would be easy to make a connector for plugging up 2 esc,s.
yes it has its draw backs but it has a lot of pluses going for it as well.
i know a lot of people jump on the price wagon,me included,but as some would know a lhs here $160 will get you a venom battery if your lucky
seen a lhs here had a old venom 4s 5000 pack $240 :eek:

[m4a1usr]

On a completely applicational query.. how sturdy are those terminals on the packs.. likely to survive a few hundred ( thousand?) connections ?

W

Those were my thoughts as well on viewing the video. Modularity is actualy a nice option being offered. Something never seen before at this level. But then what begs to be answered is the quality of the bullets and then how they are attached to each cell. Will they survive repeated flexing of solder joints? What quality is the gold plating on the bullets? At least its a step forward in design and offers users choices. This needs to be evaluated further before anything can be concluded.

John

[nomobux]

I just know ............. somehow ............... I'd blow myself up :doh:

[mschaffer66]

What happens when one of the many idiots that buys Lipos reverses the polarity on a connection...poof.

Seems like a neat concept, but premature.

[detox]

I did not see this tread. I just posted this video in new product section.

[Rich]

This is pretty cool. But I dont like how they charge them.

VdA4aWxemzE

Steve, is it possible for you to get a hold of a set for testing and maybe write a review on them? I am thinking about buying these for my boats and trucks and would like to hear what you have to say about them. I have also noticed that some don't like the 12ga wire because it is small. If you look on the drop down menu for the main lead plug you can get a 6.5mm with 10ga...which is what I use for my mean machine pulling 180 peak amps.