Airsoft batteries are made of two basic types Nickel Cadmium and Nickel Metal Hydride, commonly referred to as NiCD and NiMH. The large type packs are comprised of “Sub C” size cells and the mini’s are typically made of 4/5A or 2/3A, depending on the configuration. The most popular question deals with capacity. Battery capacities are rated in Amp/Hours. You would typically see packs with given ratings on the order of 600mAh or higher. “mAh” is short hand for Mili-Amp Hours. The main differences between the two types of cells are the dreaded memory effect. NiCD’s are far more susceptible to the memory effect. This is the condition occurs when you cycle your packs and do not fully discharge and charge the pack again. Over time the pack gets “trained” and will not hold a charge as well as when the pack was new. The NiMH cells are less susceptible to the memory effect, but it is recommended that you take the same care when cycling these packs. Fully discharge all your packs before you charge them again.
A word on Matched packs:
A matched pack is a process of matching the discharge times on every cell in the pack. This allows the pack to behave like one big “Cell”. If you are lucky enough to find a match pack, BUY IT. They are worth every penny. You will find that the pack will have a more consistent discharge rate. Usually what happens in an unmatched pack is that one or more individual cell in the pack will dump first and your voltage will drop, thus causing your AEG to behave erratically. A matched pack will behave much more consistent. Its more common to see matched packs in the Sub C’s, but its harder to find the 4/5A or smaller matched packs.
Charging times and rates.
How long should I charge my packs for?
Typically when using a slow charger or Trickle charger for a 1200mAh pack , anywhere from 14-16 hours would safe. Smaller capacity packs should take much less time. To calculate charge times you take the capacity of the pack and divide it by the output of the charger. You would then get an approximation of how long you should leave it charging. Its highly desirable that you spend the money and get a Peak charger. This will insure that you are getting a full charge every time. You can use the 15 min quick chargers to manually peak your packs with a digital volt meter, but that takes a lot more effort. When your packs start to get warm you know that you’re pretty close to peak. When using the VOM, you watch the voltage, when your battery is near full capacity the voltage will begin to drop. At that point the pack is full. Digital peak chargers do this automatically and take a lot of the guess work out of it. Ask anyone with a Peak charger and they will tell you it’s the only way to go. Higher end chargers will allow you to adjust the output. Sub C cells will take up to a 5A fast charge. Your smaller cells should only be max at 1.0A. Any higher will run the risk of destroying the cells. If you want to get the most out of your charge, use lower amps and a longer charge time. The main reason to use higher amps is that the charge time is much shorter.
Discharging.
When you’re done with the batteries at the end of the day, it’s a good idea to discharge them. Most people will say that if you have NiMH cells you don’t need to discharge. I agree, but I still discharge them regardless. In my personal opinion, I believe that the NiMH’s are simply less susceptible to the memory effect. You can either buy a discharger or make one. Either option works well. You can always go all out and get a Indi Reactor 20 that will discharge your 3000mAh pack in about 6 min @ 20A. I only recommend this for LARGE battery packs. My little packs didn’t like it too much. The packs got too hot and started to melt. So keep in mind that if you draw too much current through your pack, you run the risk of destroying the pack. 2-3Amps is sufficient to discharge your packs. When using the light bulb type dischargers, disconnect the pack once the lights are dim almost to the point of not being on.
I was pondering this if i have an 8.4 charger and im charging a 9.6 battery will it still charge it? and would it be safe to charge a large battery through a small battery charger by using an adapter to have them hook up?
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Originally Posted by Rjaniz
Last thing we need is 15 Australian generals running around.
Quick question, 9.6V 1100maH battery charged by a "universal smart charger" that has two settings, .9A is for 1100 to 2100 maH and 1.8A setting is for larger batteries. I tried dividing the charger capacity by the output of the charger (1100 by .9 i guess). No clue about math whatsoever. The problem is that I keep getting a really wierd number like 1.2 repeating and that does not seem right. What am I doing and help me fix this by telling how to do it. Thanks.
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In your castle. Killin' your people.
To calculate charge times you take the capacity of the pack and divide it by the output of the charger. You would then get an approximation of how long you should leave it charging.
You need to find the output of the charger in mAh. Then the equation is:
EDIT: Brain fart. So if you have it set to output .9 Amperes, that is 900 mA. So the equation would be 1100 / 900 = 1.2 hrs. So you were right the first time. So the charger should detect the peak at 1 hr and 12 minutes after you start.
If it is a wall charger, nothing. The voltage output by the charger just has to be higher than the battery (mine outputs 12v), otherwise current will not flow into the battery.
If it is a smart charger that is not designed for 9.6v batteries, bad things will happen.
I'm still confused about Mah. If in the description of my gun it says that it uses a 8.4 600 mah battery, could i use a 8.4 volt 1200 mah battery? or will it destroy my gears?
Think of it as a firetruck. With water = electrons. Crappy analogy, sure, but it works.
mAh = capacity of the truck. More water = more play time.
voltage = how fast it comes out the hose = faster motor = higher ROF (and potentially stripped gears)
The problem with batteries is space. If you're using minis, I think 1100 is about all you can do in the space you have. Unless you move to LiPo, but that's an advanced topic.
Awesome. i was worried that i would have to use a 600 mah battery. that doesnt seem like a whole lot of play time. actually i found a 1200 mah mini battery at depot 53. whats LiPo? super battery?
lithium polymer. they tend to spontaneously combust. seriously. unless you really really really know what you are doing they just don't make sense for airsoft in my opinion. i'd be nervous just having them around.
Yeah, Depot 53 has a nice battery+charger deal that comes with a 600mah battery, so i'm thinking i'm going to get one of those and buy an extra 1200 mah battery. that way I save a few bucks, and have a back-up battery if i run out.
a)be too much voltage for my stock TM M4s?
b) fit into my M4s? I ask this because the regular minis are kind of a tight squeeze, or at least it seems like it to me.
c) cause any other problem that I just cannot forsee?
Yeah I do, I dont know where you got m733 from noSup4u, thanks anyway though. For any future reference (I think it says it in my first post too) I have a completely stock Tokyo Marui M4 S-System.
I was thinking of going the battery box way, but my only hesitation is that they don't run too cheap, meh I might just sick it up and spend it, an extra 1100 mah ofer the mini sure would be nice. Sorry about the S-System typo, my fault.
no the nunchuck will not work, when i use my s-system i have extra 8.4 1100 mah minis. its the only thing that looks right. the battery box just feels awkward as the rail isn't rock solid.
What exactly do you mean by awkward, do you worry it's going to fall off all the time or it just seems unrealistic to you? Which rail did you have yours on (assuming you had one) I was thinking of putting mine on one of the side rails, would that make any difference?
Your Rate of Fire would go up. but you will most likely strip your gears faster.
I have to disagree about the gear stripping. Just changing to a 9.6v battery will increase your ROF, and it may make your gun wear out faster, but it certainly won't strip the gears on a stock gun.
I'm sorry. You have no experience, and you are giving people bad advice. Please stop.
It is NOT LIKELY that a 9.6v battery on a stock AEG (TM, CA, G&G) will cause the gears to strip. We have people that have been doing it for YEARS, and they have not had any problems. I don't care what you have read anywhere else; they were wrong, or they were trying to sell upgrades.
the side rails are held up by the two pins on the side that pop out so you can swing it down on the hinge. I would highly recommend not stressing those points as much as possible. The anpeq's are quite heavy as well. As for the gun itself. it does just fine if you use the 8.4 1100mah's. I have one and just carry two extra batteries, never had to switch to the third though.
As for the 9.6v battery stripping your gears, not right. If your gearbox was shimmed correctly(read tm or professional) then you will have no problem. I've done it for years without issue.
oh battery guru - i have not a battery charging question but a discharging one...
i have a 6 and 7 cell NICD ONLY battery charger that has a discharger feature as well, can I use it to discharge my 8 cell NiMh batteries safely? or shall i have to sell the relic on ebay?
I say old bean, - it seems you can cook nimhs - i used this same charger, on my 7 cell nimhs and now - they couldnt hold a charge when using the superbrain - and no the superbrain does not have a discharger.
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"...The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he did not exist. And like that... he is gone..." Verbal Kint
I think you'll be fine with useing the old charger to discharge your batteries. Its just a resistor inside. If its too much bulk you could just make a simple discharger and sell the other charger for a few bucks.
The only thing with those quck chargers is that you may have to go through a few 15 min cycles before it is completely flat.
Good Luck.
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E46 Fanatic Team Douche - Rear Tactical Insertion
Pink is in.
Several more questions if you please - I noticed the amp meter show more negative amps when I plug it in. Could I get away with it if I plugged it in?
I know its discharging because the needle hits the opposite (negative) end of the amp meter. Unplugged I pull -1amp, plugged it goes up to -2.
Also - if I reverse polarity on the discharge will I blow my batteries up? Or at the very least damage them? Not that I want to - but this charger is actually built for R/C cars and have the polarities reversed.
If you open it up they just wired the Meter like that. Its a DC cell on a Resistor. It won't make a difference. You do not have to observe polarity when using resistors.
RC cars are not wired backwards, so there is no danger.
I think you will be pretty safe using this charger. I have one just like it sitting in my basement. Still works. I'm amaized.
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E46 Fanatic Team Douche - Rear Tactical Insertion
Pink is in.
OK, I just wanna MAKE SURE I got this right. While google searching info on batteries I came across a "fill in the blank" thing to calculate charge times, and it said 8 hrs, and 23 minutes. If I take the capacity of the pack (1800 mah) divided by output of charger (300 ma). That should be 6 hours right?? Is that estimated 6-8 hrs??
The 2 different times confused me??
Just got my TM M-16VN, and don't wanna mess anything up.
What would be the best battery pack (Longest lasting in both the length of the charge for the AEG, and before it dies on me completely) for the TM G36C? Much appreciated!
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Beneath this mask there is more than flesh......... beneath this mask there is an idea ........................... and ideas are bulletproof - V
They are way out in the west coast but they send out priority mail, pretty reasonable too. And just in case you're thinking it - upgrades for the battery are not necessary.
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"...The greatest trick the devil ever pulled was convincing the world he did not exist. And like that... he is gone..." Verbal Kint
Quick question, exactly how hot should the battery get before I need to start cutting back on the recharge rate and worrying about cell damage?
Charging a 9.6v 1100mAH battery at about ~1.0A causes it to get a little warm. (You can hold it for about 2 seconds before you can tell that it's slightly warmer than when not being charged)
Would it be safe to ramp up to 1.5A?
I'm probably just being overly anal about this though.
