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View Full Version : Fat cables for Lipo



Mut1ey
06-15-2006, 06:08 PM
I have just plunged into that whole, lipo/brushless thang but am unsure of a few things.

My 3-cell lipo packs come with a 4 pin, flat plug for a charger, I believe, but:

1) How do I connect its small two pin plug to my brushless esc?
2) I have deans pairs ready but the cable attached to the battery seems really thin. Obviously I can't change the whole cable for something thicker - I don't want to fry the pack or myself :p What do people normally do? I see lots of thick wires on pics of people's cars. Also, the batt cables from my new esc are really thick and would not fit into the kind of plug used by the battery packs.
3) Is it ok to connect both packs into one deans connector for longer run times or should I keep em seperate?

Thanks

Mutts

ChrisOFNA
06-15-2006, 07:02 PM
The 4 wire connector is for a lipo cell balancer. Dont worry about that plug.

I dont know many people that switch out the wires. I would just clip off the small 2 wire plug and put on a deans connector. How many cells is it? 2 or 3?

I wouldnt combine 2 batteries together, keep em separate.

BiGRoB21
06-15-2006, 07:29 PM
it would really help if you had a picture of the pack or told us the size and make. most packs come with wire that will handel the current.

Mut1ey
06-16-2006, 11:42 AM
The make is MicroAmps and they are 3 cell 1300mAh. I have two packs, each one will fit in a battery bay. I think the wires seem pretty standard from pictures of cars in the gallery, but they seem narrow wires coming directly from the packs themselves, then they get fat. I'll post a link to the gallery pic I looked at.

Thanks

Mutts

FHM101
06-16-2006, 04:55 PM
I recently ordered a pile of cells and related building supplies from Team Scream and the wire I received had a very small diameter. I was concerned about using it for 9.4v packs so I called and asked if it would be OK. They told me it would work fine, but ever the skeptic I compared the resistance of a foot of the thin wire against a foot of Deans wet noodle and much to my surprise the thin wire was lower. I cut and stripped the insulation from an inch of this small wire and it's loaded with ultra thin strands of what appears to be pure copper. The strands are ultra limp and the only thing giving the wire any shape is the insulation.

Long story short, I built seven 9.4v packs and four 6v packs of IB1400 zapped and matched cells using this wire and they all worked perfectly with no heat issues. None too shabby considering they came off the charger at around 12.5v. It was like dropping a turbocharger in my MI when compared to the IB1200 packs I had been running. I have always believed that a larger wire guage and stand count meant less resistance, but this smaller wire proved that this is not a hard and fast rule.