More Battery Ideas

bryancobb

Junior Member
Joined
Aug 2, 2010
Messages
5,336
Location
Cartersville, GA
Aircraft
Owned Brantly B-2b/Fly Kitfox III/Mini-500b
Total Flight Time
1350
Has anyone had any experience with these?

Ben Methvin showed me his and said he can start his motorcycle/ATV/Watercraft 4 or 5 times before it needs re-charging.

Sounds like a tiny battery to make the Rotax electrical system work correctly and one of these might be a good option.

http://junopower.com/

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Bryan- I was all excited about the ability to replace my 30 pounds of batteries with just a lithium ion battery that weighed 25 pounds less.. My heavy batteries are aft of my cg....and replacing them with this lightweight battery would require7.5 pounds of lead ballast way back near my TR gearbox. ....still saving me 17-18 pounds ! However, I am just not convinced those potential fire hazards are capable of starting my turbine hundreds of times without fail. I would replace my heavy batteries in a heart beat if I ever am convinced they are safe and would last. I mean
...who wouldn't want yo reduce the empty weight 17-18 pounds?
 
This is a cell-phone-like pocket device. Ben started his car with it to show me how it works. It has its' own proprietary charger it comes with.
 
You know what? That would make an excellent onboard jump starter should I have low batteries. I have a special jump port by my batteries I could use.
 
I have one.

I saw the YouTube video and bought one on the spot.

It has started my beach buggy numerous times and still shows almost a full charge. If you don't see it in action, it's hard to believe.

I'm not sure I'd replace my on on board battery with one but perhaps as a backup.
 
Don't know if this is of interest to anybody but when it was time to replace my battery I installed 2 lithium ions in parallel for 680 cca to start my subaru 2.5l. I've had them about 4 months now and so far they are working very well. Total weight probable 1.5#. Expensive though, those 2 cost $450 with a 3 year pro-rated warranty
 

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How do you charge your LiIon battery's? Not with the subaru alternator?
 
Yes, I do use the alternator. Manufacturer said it would not damage the battery as long as the output did not exceed 15v.
 
I have the jump box. Works great. Starts my F-150 on monday mornings when I leave my company radio's on. I would reccomend having one.
 
I have the same type on my 60hp MZ 202 2-stroke and it starts it very well. I'm happy with it so far. Be sure never to let it discharge completely- you'll ruin it the first time that happens!
 
I like the little button with 3 LED's that tell the state of charge.
 
The ArrowCopter uses a LiFePO4 battery with an integrated charger/balancer connected directly to the regulator. Small, light weight, no problems at all. I'm never going to put a Pb-acid battery in my aircraft again.

Additional benefit: you can charge a LiFePO4 battery from empty to full in one hour. Even 30 minutes if you're in a pinch and have a sufficiently beefy charger.

-- Chris.
 
I know in the RC aircraft environment, and even it seems the large aircraft environment as in Boeing 787, Lithium Ion batteries can present a significant fire hazard. It's been seen in phones, laptops and just about any environment where they have been used. To the extent that in the RC community charging is recommended in a safe place and with the batteries contained in a fire proof container. Just Google Lithium battery fires and check out the YouTube fires, they are impressive,and I have witnessed one. They are also of course significantly more expensive.
I'm not so sure that in our environment the good old fashioned batteries may not work just fine if treated well, kept on a trickle charger etc. I would also recommend that anyone using a lithium ion battery make it part of their preflight to carefully check the battery for signs of trouble, such as swelling etc
 
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Just google lifepo4 and fire. They are much safer than ordinary lipo batteries and don't pose a fire hazard.

-- Chris.
 
lithium iron

lithium iron

I use a Shorai "lithium iron" battery. Not "ion".

The battery weighs 2.3 lbs. Develops 270 cca and has worked flawlessly in my rotax 582 Dominator for two years. It charges with the rotax and I have never had to use any type of external charger. I just installed the battery and forgot about it. It has proven to be the most reliable part of my gyro. I cannot say enough about this battery and will never use anything else. The manufacturer claims the battery will hold a charge for months and will last for over five years!

The Shorai lithium iron batteries are available in several sizes so you can get one with more or less cca's depending on your needs.
 
Just google lifepo4 and fire. They are much safer than ordinary lipo batteries and don't pose a fire hazard.

-- Chris.
Hmmm, I must have a different Google to you. They are SAFER, but they can catch fire, so I would not say they are a zero fire hazard. The problem is, IF they do catch fire, it's an almost irreversible process, and in the air would likely be catastrophic with total destruction of the aircraft. The other potential problem is that even if the Lipo4 battery is not the source of the fire, it would almost certainly add to the combustible mix in the case of a fire from any other source. It seems to me for our purposes, the only real advantage is weight, and on a gyro what does one save, less than 5 pounds at most? Just seems like existing batteries, properly maintained with a trickle charger are one of those things that's hard to justify replacing with a much more expensive potentially hazardous option. In your Arrowcopter sure, cost is no object and there's a lot of intricate stuff crammed into tight spaces etc. Now for my RC quadcopter, I have no argument at all, it's the only option.
 
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