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NitroSpazzz
06-06-2005, 09:28 PM
I got my Half8 on saturday (2 days ago) stuck in the x-speed ad the 8 cell NiMH pack. I charge the pack on my Hobbice Quick Field Charger mk2. The max I charge it at is 1 amp. I am getting horrible run times before the throttle starts pulsing though. My last run lasted 2 mins 48 seconds (yup I timed it). There is no reason the runs should be that short with a 1100 pack. What am I doig wrong? I generally let it cool about 5-10 mins before I hook it back up to the charger after runs and let it cool a few mins after a charge before running. I have't bee discharging but I am trying it now. I need help because I am racing tomorrow night and need more than 2 minutes for a race.

BitHed
06-06-2005, 10:05 PM
...your pack needs some runs through it and I would charge it at 2...no real needto discharge it but i know that sometimes it just 'feels' good to to it...Your pack will 'settle' and kind of keep itself filled after it has been run and cycled a few more times...Thin of it as 'finding its groove'...Hope this helps a little bit...Peace..

NitroSpazzz
06-06-2005, 10:12 PM
Oce it starts to do the stuttering throttle should I stop driving immediatly? I usually just limp it over to me (if its under 15-20 feet) then turn it off. I'll see what happens after the discharge here. I figured something was up because it was takig 20 mins to charge instead of the hour 15 it was initially.

On a side note I have a castle creations pheonix 25 brushless controller thats not in anything. Whats a good, semi cheap motor? I wanna go faster :D

vindictor67
06-07-2005, 01:34 AM
The Phonix 25 is an aircraft controller and not recommended for car applications. It doesn't have dynamic brake, ect. I'm sure it works but it may be causing some of your trouble. E-mail Castle and they will help you out. Steven at AON will also give you some good advice. Both are very professional companys and won't steer you wrong... :D

NitroSpazzz
06-07-2005, 01:55 AM
Sounds good, I'll start looking around.

Are these good matches for the half8?
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXHAH8&P=7
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXHAH9&P=7
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXHAJ0&P=7
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXJFY5&P=7

Just did a lil browsing over at tower

Mini-Devil
06-07-2005, 01:26 PM
Hello NitroSpazzz,

I usually do a break-in of all my packs when they are new. Here is what I would suggest with a 1,100mah one:

Step #1: full discharge
Step #2: first charge at 300mah
Step #3: full discharge
Step #4: second charge at 500mah
Step #5: full discharge
Step #6: third charge at 900mah
Step #7: full discharge
Step #8: fourth charge at nominal 1,100mah

A few additional comments:

- full discharge: only do a full discharge with a good charger to avoid polarity problems/inversions. If you don't have a reasonably good charger, you can discharge the pack with your car: put the car on a box so the wheels won't touch anything, then set your throttle trim so the motor works and let it run until the pack has been discharged.

- the longer the break-in process, the better. You can skip one step, but again the more steps the better.

- after you have done the break-in, no need to discharge a pack every time you charge it again. However, it is recommended to do a full discharge every so often (I do it every 5-6 uses of a pack) for maintenance.

- when using cells (ie not a pack), always use/charge/discharge the same cells together. Don't mix them.

Mini-Devil
06-07-2005, 01:28 PM
Hello again,

I forgot to add that I experienced the very same problem (ie bad runtime) the first time I used brand new cells (Sanyo 2,500mah Nihm). A friend advised me to do a break-in, and then the cells acquired an excellent runtime. It went from 2-3 minutes to 30-40 minutes with an X-speed !!!

NitroSpazzz
06-07-2005, 01:34 PM
O wow 30-40 minute runtime, nice. I'll try your break in procedure today and see if it helps. Thanks for the tip, I never knew you should break in batterys.