Pure charging bliss - iCharger 3010b
August 27th, 2010 Posted in Heli News | No Comments »Are you a nitro flyer because you hate baby sitting batteries while they charge? The fuel and fly aspect of nitro is very appealing. Field charging large lipos off from your car is nearly impossible unless you leave the car running. My goal was to have a minimal set of packs for my 700e and be able to charge quickly. After some research and a few phone calls to David at progressiverc.com I think I have found my solution.
I would say that the cost is not cheap by the time you get all said and done but in reality it is very reasonable.
The weapons of choice and some data:
- iCharger 3010b -$239.00: Parallel cables - $20.00
- Yumo 1000 watt power supply - $200.00 (These are new and not listed on the Progressiverc.com site. Please contact David for more information.
- Honeywell HW100i generator - $325.00
With this setup I can parallel balance charge four 6s 5000 Lipos @ 30 amps from a storage charge in 31 minutes on average at home. At the field as soon as I get done flying a set of 6s packs I throw them on the charger at 2c (20 amps) in fast lipo charge mode and they are done in 20 minutes (following the 80% rule of course). By the time you shoot the bull with your flying buddies and get another flight in the packs are ready to go. I suppose if you are flying alone and want to get a bunch of flights you might need 3 sets of packs but for me this is working just fine. Chances are you have another heli to fly anyways in the meantime 
I am using older Turnigy 25c packs which the max charge rate is 2c. Once these die I will try some packs with a higher charge rating for field charging at the full 30 amps and I suppose it will be even less time.
Electric is certainly here to stay and things will keep getting cheaper. Pick your poison; Nitro (buy fuel as you go) or Electric (most costs are up front). The debate rages on!
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