Finally got gear and stuff together so we can head out and play. But my son is worried, between the guns, smart charger and other stuff we needed I cant really afford extra battery packs for a bit.
Now we both got 8.4v 1600 mah battery packs. How long should these last. I dont want us to drive a good distance...then have them go dead 1/2 way through the day and have to leave. Does PL or Lp rent battery packs or anything?
Normally 1 mah = 1 shot or so I have been told. It really depends on what kind of a player you are. If you're using a SAW or the like you'll need at least 2 batteries. If you guys don't go spraying hundreds of BB's each game and stick to small bursts or semi you can make it last the whole day.
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Our fields don't rent batteries, some players will though. And generally 1600 mAh will last one day if you play conservatively (less shooting, more moving) but I use a 2000 mAh just to be safe. (and carry a spare)
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My favorite battery to use is an Intellect 9.6V, 1600mAh. I am FAR from light on the trigger, and I often go through 2000-3000 rounds in a day. I've yet to kill one of these 1600's, on field. This is with my KWA M4, G36C, or Echo1 MP5.
Certainly, the charger I use makes the most of my batteries, so your mileage may vary. I also have some cheap Tenergy batteries that I can kill in a few hours, with the same mAh rating.
There is more to the "how long will it last" equation than just the raw mAh rating of the battery pack. Consider the accuracy of your smart charger, quality of the battery cells, the shimming of your mechbox, and the size of the spring it's compressing, to name just a few variables.
If you let us know when you are coming, usually one of us will have extra charged packs. No guarantees, but always ask before you call it a day.
On a quality battery, the general rule of thumb is 3 shots per mAh. There are lots and lots of variables though, but I find it to be a relatively accurate.
Either way, there are generally a quick charger or two floating around at PL games. I always have mine with me, so if you need a quick charge, around lunch, we can set you up.
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Philadelphia Hardcore Airsoft Group - Team Founder
Team P.H.A.G. - "We proudly bear our (Combat) cocks!"
C3 "Special" Operations - "Yes, we're better tan you!"
P.A.A.G. East - "Acta non Verba"
“Whoever does not miss the Soviet Union has no heart. Whoever wants it back has no brain.” - VP
Last edited by GeneralPoraboo : 07-06-2010 at 11:17 PM.
A lot of it depends on the charger. I got a really great charger a long time ago, and it's been working awesome ever since. I've seen a lot of those purple brick "smart chargers", and they are far from smart.
You should also monitor your batteries while you charge them. Calculate how much time it should take your battery to charge, and see if it comes close to that time. 2000mAh at 4 amps = 1/2 hour. If it finishes much quicker than this, your battery may have false peaked, and needs to be charged again.
__________________ Speak only if it improves upon the silence. -Mohandas Ghandi Quit fapping to your guns and get on the damn field!
My $.02 on the battery question. Definately some good info here, especially with the shots per mah comparison.
As for the batteries it does matter if you have a quality pack. A pack that comes in either the gray, black, or yellow shrink where you can't see the cells, are normally made from low quality batteries. Packs where you can see the cells, usually IB cells, tend to be better packs, mainly becuase IB is a good cell. But one thing I have not seen for any AEG, is matched or even zapped packs. A matched pack is made of the same IB cells, but each cell has been run through several cycles (charge/discharge), and the pack is matched together based on voltage & runtime. These packs would be the cream of the crop for NIMH batteries. When I was racing RC cars, my battery sponsor would cycle through hundreds of cases of IB42's to get the team guys the absolute best packs.
As for battery care, no matter how good of chrager, you will never be able to get the most out of your batteries when used in AEG configurations. I say this becuase you can not individually discharge the cells, without damaging the packs casing. NIMH work best when taken down to .9V and then chanrged. The problem with using a discharger built into a charger it discharges the pack as a whole, not individually, so when one cell get's to .9V, the charger will cut off. This often leaves the cells unblanced, and causes damage when recharged. Nothing that will ruin the pack on the spot, but over the long run, it hurts the cells.
NIMH are touchy batteries, and you have to be a lot more carefull on your charging, discharging, and storage. NIMH also have been know to die without any warning or reason. So if you have a pack that charges too quick or does not last as long, you could have a dead cell. Again back in RC, we would literaly get packs fresh off the matchers, build them, and then go to cycle the pack, and a cell would already be dead. Very frustrating, but thankfully lipo's came out...
Just some random ramblings on batteries while drinking beers and watching Family guy...
NIMH work best when taken down to .9V and then chanrged. The problem with using a discharger built into a charger it discharges the pack as a whole, not individually, so when one cell get's to .9V, the charger will cut off. This often leaves the cells unblanced, and causes damage when recharged. Nothing that will ruin the pack on the spot, but over the long run, it hurts the cells.
Sort of...
I agree with most of what you wrote, but accurate discharger/chargers take the pack down to 0.9v per cell. Since we can't balance the NiMH packs, the discharger takes a 9 cell pack down to 8.1v total. Since you will never get all 9 cells down to 0.9 at the same time, that means that some went below 0.9, and some never made it that far.
The same happens with you charge the pack. A good charger has an adjustable peak detect that will allow you, with practice and some note taking, get the most out of your packs.
I don't think there is a lot to gain with an airsoft battery pack by trying to squeeze every last mAh out of a pack. We are using such forgiving equipment that a poorly charged pack is just going to run out quicker than a perfectly balanced pack. You won't loose much if any performance on field, during discharge.
The easiest thing is to just buy two good battery packs (I like Intellect) and go from there.
Oh, and come to the field and play... that always helps with the discharge aspect!
There are ways to get the cells down each to .9V, but they will cost you a pretty penny. One item, and probably the best, for doing this is the Muchmore CTXD-2. This is as good as it gets for NIMH cell care. You can use this to do sub c, 2/3, and even AA batteries. You can even changre your pack through it, and see each cell's individual charge. The use of a good charger/discharger and then something like the CTXD2 is the ideal way to treat IB's, but not to easy to do with the AEG type of pack configurations.
Another $.02 on batteries - charging at high amps will give you the most voltage out of a pack, while charging at lower amps will give the pack more runtime. And for discharging, do not be afraid to discharge your pack at the highest amps you can, NIMH cells love it. I discharge my big packs for airsoft at 30A, and the little ones get 15A. Just wait till somone figures out how to use a brushless motor in a AEG
quick chargers
