# need help on picking a battery



## trainbuffjr (Jan 11, 2008)

I currently have a Bachmann annie running on 12 aa batteries, but I would like to replace with a little smaller rechargeable battery. Normally pull about 6-7 cars with it. What would be the best battery for the buck?

Thanks,
Aaron


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## acmartina (Jan 6, 2008)

Aaron, A 14.8v li-ion pack will work fine. It is a four-cell pack that will fit nicely in the tender. Potential sources - www.cordlessrenovations.com, www.batteryspace.com, www.all-battery.com. Search the forum here for additional advice. Steve H. Cypress, TX


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## tom h (Jan 2, 2008)

Hey Aaron, e-mail Rick from Cordless Renovations(sponsor on MLS) he just recommended a battery for my Bachman Engine, great guy to deal with, and has great product.

Tom H


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## East Broad Top (Dec 29, 2007)

I'll echo the LiIon battery. A 14.8 volt, 4.4 amp-hour battery takes up just a bit more space than 8 AA batteries. A 2.2 amp-hour battery takes up half that space, and gives similar life to the 2.3 amp/hour NiMH AA batteries I also run for the really-space-impared situations. The tender of the Annie is certainly NOT space-impaired in that regard, so go for the 4.4 amp/hour batteries. I've dealt with all-battery.com for mine. Their prices and batteryspace.com's are typically within a dollar or two of each other. Rick's batteries are a few dollars more, but also have a higher capacity. (5.2 amp-hours vs. 4.4) Rick's got a great charger which is definitely worth checking out if you're serious about battery power. I've not got one myself, but it's on my "short" list. 

Later, 

K


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Best battery for the buck? 

If best means smallest and lightest, Li-ion. 

If best means cheapest, nicad (gel cell might be cheaper but may be too big) 

Really depends on what best means. Also, be sure to factor the price of the charger into your equation. 

Regards, Greg


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## Chompers (Jan 8, 2008)

If you are going to go the Li-xx rout. I REALLY suggest using batterie packs that have balancing plugs. thees allow a smart charger to monitor the voltage of each individual cell and make shure that they all remain at the same voltage,and that one is not over charged/ under charge. this is important when using li-xx chemistry. 

the charger that i use to charge my RC aircraft is the accucel 6 50W charger. this thing is a great charge, balance charging my Lipo packs to exactly 4.2 volts per cell-Perfect. it will also charge nicad nimh pb li-ion li-po. plus the thing cost me only $32.00 quite a reasonable sum. 
i don't know about MLS rules on posting other vendors web pages, so i won't but google around for accucel-6 and it will come up 


alright at the risk of sounding like some paid rep. i'll stop now. I'm just really happy with my charger
Philip


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Nice feature, but there will be some additional expense for the pack and charger. 

Not everyone will want to spend the extra bucks, and it's worth mentioning that locomotives do not work the batteries anywhere NEAR what your RC airplane does... we typically discharge at 1/2 C, you crazy airplane guys discharge at 30-50 amps or more! 

Just giving a balancing perspective... 

Regards, Greg


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## Chompers (Jan 8, 2008)

Greg- 
"it's worth mentioning that locomotives do not work the batteries anywhere NEAR what your RC airplane does" 
well almost- my rc p-51 pulls about 1.5 amps at full throttle---- but then again the thing only weighs 30 grams! So point very well taken. 

Personally for 32 bucks, I really think that a good quality balancing charger is cheap-enough for most hobbyist to afford. 
Does everyone want a balancing charger? No 
Will a standard charger work just fine - Yup (i used one for 2 years with narray a problem) 
But a good quality charger is key in maintaining battery health. its just a little extra TLC for the batteries that's all. after those two years i have found that a few of the cells have drifted apart with respect to voltage. they were still with in .1 volts of each other, so not way to serious, but it did pose a threat for over charging. (I'd like to not that once i put these packs on the balancing charger the voltages were corrected and are matched nicely again)

SO in the end every one can choose what they like- nothing wrong with that. 

take care 
Philip


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

32 bucks is very cheap for a balancing charger, would appreciate a link so I can read up on it. Most are more expensive. 

Regards, Greg


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## Chompers (Jan 8, 2008)

Here is a google link to the search page. you can find threads discussing it on other forums and the top result is for HK- the retailer that sells them. 

I really like my new charger, but it is far too new to give a longevity report. but looking at past chargers and what others have reported i am expecting a long life- my balances accurately- is quiet- and well calibrated. For larger Packs used in G scale trains i think the accucel-8 would be a better bet- it is rated for 150 watts instead of the 6's 50 watts. I have no personal experience with the 8, but it appears to be a very similar quality product. 

here is the google link: 

http://www.google.com/search?q=accu...s=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a 

top hit is hobbyking- the link for the accucel 8 is half way down the Hobby king page. 

3rd hit is to an rcgroups discussion thread of about 104 pages  

take care 
Philip


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## Greg Elmassian (Jan 3, 2008)

Very nice... one reason it is cheap is that it does not include the power supply, so you need 11-17 volts up to 5 amps to supply it. That would add $20-50, depending on the current and the quality. 

So, the price is more in line with what I expected. Does look like a nice charger, and also balances nicads and nimh... can't go wrong going the extra distance in charging accuracy. 

Regards, Greg 

p.s. I saw a VERY cool item on that site, the wireless battery tracker that shows you the discharge levels of each cell. We need one of them for JJ!


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## izzy0855 (Sep 30, 2008)

This is the same charger Tenergy sells for $60.00 dollars called the TB6 and includes the power wall adaptor. 

Rick Isard 
Cordless Renovations


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## TonyWalsham (Jan 2, 2008)

Hobby King have a fantastic range of low cost R/C items. 
The problem is the freight costs often make purchasing from them uneconomical unless the items are small and light.


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## Chompers (Jan 8, 2008)

in order not to drag this thread further off topic i am starting a new one, my apologizes for starting this.


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