Futaba LiFe pack?

[Terry Keeley]

Anyone have any experience with these?

https://futabausa.com/product/uba0135/
Looking for a little more capacity for my SAW boat but don't have any room to spare. These are the same size as the 1600 mAh NiMh packs I've been running.

 

[Mike Hughes]

Here is the same size in a much better price. I use these all the time for my receivers.

https://hobbyking.com/en_us/turnigy...430&indexName=hbk_live_magento_en_us_products

 

[Mike Hughes]

Well, I am so helpful. My link is back ordered.

 

[Terry Keeley]

Thanks, I didn't see that one in my search. All the others were a good 25mm longer.

Wonder why Futaba says for transmitter only? Brian Spitzer told me to watch the C rating, if it's too low and can't supply enough current the rx could fry.

 

[John Beardslee]

Terry, if you are changing from NiMH to LiFe for a saw boat you won’t need that large a pack. I run 1800 max in my 90 heat boat. A 30C in a boat is a ton. Now my 90 helis I opt for slightly more but I’m running way more servos and constant inputs.
John

 

[Mike Hughes]

20C is fine for boats. Thats 20 x 2.1A = 42A max draw against the pack. Anymore than that can damage it.

 

[MarkDanielsSr]

Check with Daniel Place over on IW, I have many of his transmitter and receiver packs, never had an issue. Dan is a good guy.

 

[Terry Keeley]

Terry, if you are changing from NiMH to LiFe for a saw boat you won’t need that large a pack. I run 1800 max in my 90 heat boat. A 30C in a boat is a ton. Now my 90 helis I opt for slightly more but I’m running way more servos and constant inputs.
John

I only get 5 or 6 runs and the 1600 NiMH packs are about half done. I'm running a S9156 on the rudder and two logging systems so I can have two thermocouples, rpm and gps data.

 

[Danny King]

I only get 5 or 6 runs and the 1600 NiMH packs are about half done. I'm running a S9156 on the rudder and two logging systems so I can have two thermocouples, rpm and gps data.

A 1600 LIFE will last a lot longer then a 1600 NiMH. AND ID SUSPECT your NiMH is bad.

 

[Terry Keeley]

A 1600 LIFE will last a lot longer then a 1600 NiMH. AND ID SUSPECT your NiMH is bad.

Really? That's weird, I'm no electrical genius but I though 1600 mAH was 1600 mAH. I should have the futaba pack Monday and will check it with my Triton.

I've been running these: Onyx 6.0V 1600mAh NiMH 2/3A Flat Receiver Battery: Universal Receiver | Tower Hobbies

The one in the boat was new last fall and shows 1700+ on the Triton, I've ran these for years with no issues, just need a little more capacity for the SAW boat.

 

[bermudadude]

I only get 5 or 6 runs and the 1600 NiMH packs are about half done. I'm running a S9156 on the rudder and two logging systems so I can have two thermocouples, rpm and gps data.

its not the amps ur nimh is prob dead - prob 10 years old(?) even if its new. they been stopped making the tech.
get a fairly good life battery at same amps and ur good . it will be half the size and weight. dont worry about c rating u only had 1c before -anything is better,ur ni pack was doing it with 1600 so "maybe" the 1600 was barely enough with reduced capacity it could have been 1400.
1800- 2amp is a crapton. to make sure just check the full load specs of the reciever and all the servos ,add 200mah and ur golden . u get to run with all servos CONSTANTLY moving (never happens) for pulling "that" many amps for 1hour. with rec. pack u almost literally use more power to natural drain being plugged into the equipment and standby time than u actually loose to active use/runtime. thats why u dont want it too big so u never drain/charge it ,u literally kill it faster that way.
i know a guy that used a 22 or 2400mah battery and would charge it ,take it on the plane,use it at the track to test -thurs-fri-race sat-sun,,come back, use it next sunday . so he only charged it like once every couple months and it died for no reason after about a year . pissed cause it was still new .

 

[Mark Anderson]

Holy sticker shock! That thing is expensive. I second talking to Daniel Place. I have been using his packs for a while. Very nicely made.

 

[Greg Bonahoom]

Terry,
Check out these 1/8 scale buggy receiver packs:

https://www.amainhobbies.com/life-receiver-batteries-lipo-lihv-cars-trucks/c2418

 

[Daniel's Racing]

Really? That's weird, I'm no electrical genius but I though 1600 mAH was 1600 mAH. I should have the futaba pack Monday and will check it with my Triton.

I've been running these: Onyx 6.0V 1600mAh NiMH 2/3A Flat Receiver Battery: Universal Receiver | Tower Hobbies

The one in the boat was new last fall and shows 1700+ on the Triton, I've ran these for years with no issues, just need a little more capacity for the SAW boat.

I have a few LiFe 2500's in stock that will likely work for you. Can't see carrying much more mah than that.

You cannot compare MAH ratings of batteries of different chemistries.

MAH does not carry over like you think.

Yes you think it is a load versus time and all rated the same but it is not the case at all.

LiPo in a transmitter will outlast a NiMh of same capacity many times over.

Same if you take a 1800 LiFe. It would out last a brand new 1800 NiMh pack by a huge amount.



You couldn't even compare MAH going way back and referring to alkaline versus say NiMh as the NiMh would have about 4 times and when comparing NiMh to LiFe or Lipo it is even more than 4 times for same mah.

Look at lithium batteries for like motorcycles compared to lead acid or agm. For same exact mah rating the lithium has more than twice the power inside.

>>>>>>>

Anyone have any experience with these?

https://futabausa.com/product/uba0135/
Looking for a little more capacity for my SAW boat but don't have any room to spare. These are the same size as the 1600 mAh NiMh packs I've been running.

NEVER choose a Futaba LiFe transmitter battery as they have shutdown built into them and are not suitable for receiver use. I would never use one in a transmitter personally.

FT2F2100B-V2 – 2100 mAh Transmitter LiFe Battery
Lithium Ferrite Battery for 3PV, 4GRS, 4PK, 4PKS, 4PKS-R, 4PL, 4PLS, 4PM, 4PV, 4PX, 4PX-R, 6J, 6K, 7PX, 7PX LE, 8J, 10J, 12K, 14SG, 16SZ, 18SZ, 18SZ 70th Anniversary (UBA0135) NOTE: This is for TRANSMITTER use ONLY.

DO NOT use that pack in your boat. Transmitter only and I do not even recommend these in transmitter.

 

[Terry Keeley]

I have a few LiFe 2500's in stock that will likely work for you. Can't see carrying much more mah than that.

You cannot compare MAH ratings of batteries of different chemistries.

MAH does not carry over like you think.

Yes you think it is a load versus time and all rated the same but it is not the case at all.

LiPo in a transmitter will outlast a NiMh of same capacity many times over.

Same if you take a 1800 LiFe. It would out last a brand new 1800 NiMh pack by a huge amount.



You couldn't even compare MAH going way back and referring to alkaline versus say NiMh as the NiMh would have about 4 times and when comparing NiMh to LiFe or Lipo it is even more than 4 times for same mah.

Look at lithium batteries for like motorcycles compared to lead acid or agm. For same exact mah rating the lithium has more than twice the power inside.

>>>>>>>



NEVER choose a Futaba LiFe transmitter battery as they have shutdown built into them and are not suitable for receiver use. I would never use one in a transmitter personally.

FT2F2100B-V2 – 2100 mAh Transmitter LiFe Battery
Lithium Ferrite Battery for 3PV, 4GRS, 4PK, 4PKS, 4PKS-R, 4PL, 4PLS, 4PM, 4PV, 4PX, 4PX-R, 6J, 6K, 7PX, 7PX LE, 8J, 10J, 12K, 14SG, 16SZ, 18SZ, 18SZ 70th Anniversary (UBA0135) NOTE: This is for TRANSMITTER use ONLY.

DO NOT use that pack in your boat. Transmitter only and I do not even recommend these in transmitter.

Ah, what does "they have shutdown built into them" mean exactly?

How big is your 2500 pack? This Futaba is 79 x 43 x 17mm, I can't go much bigger than that, I'm seriously limited on space.

 

[Danny King]

A BMS. Battery management system. So they won’t be used lower then a set voltage.
A group 27 wet cell or AGM MARINE battery rated at 100 ah will last less then half the amount of time as a LIFE 100 AH. THE batteries need to be measured in watts to be more accurately compared. Not only does LIFE last longer then lead acid. AGM and nicad and NiMH but it out performs them while being used. The voltage drop is much less.
the downside to Lipo or LIFE is if you discharge all the way or too far the pack is ruined. Which is why futaba puts the shutoff on em. But I’d rather not have that and just use personal awareness. On. The $800 100 ah batteries in my boat.....I’ll gladly use the BMS. lol
I have a 2100 LIFE pack in my hitec transmitter and it makes 3-4 full sundays of testing.

 

[Terry Keeley]

A BMS. Battery management system. So they won’t be used lower then a set voltage.
A group 27 wet cell or AGM MARINE battery rated at 100 ah will last less then half the amount of time as a LIFE 100 AH. THE batteries need to be measured in watts to be more accurately compared. Not only does LIFE last longer then lead acid. AGM and nicad and NiMH but it out performs them while being used. The voltage drop is much less.
the downside to Lipo or LIFE is if you discharge all the way or too far the pack is ruined. Which is why futaba puts the shutoff on em. But I’d rather not have that and just use personal awareness. On. The $800 100 ah batteries in my boat.....I’ll gladly use the BMS. lol
I have a 2100 LIFE pack in my hitec transmitter and it makes 3-4 full sundays of testing.

Oh, ran into a BMS issue with the Dewalt 28v LiFe packs I use in my starter box, if they go below a certain level they won't charge on their charger anymore. Had to pull the pack apart, bypass the BMS to give them a jump start then they would charge OK.

I hope the Futaba pack doesn't just shut off at a certain level does it? That would seem pretty dangerous to me.

 

[Daniel's Racing]

Oh, ran into a BMS issue with the Dewalt 28v LiFe packs I use in my starter box, if they go below a certain level they won't charge on their charger anymore. Had to pull the pack apart, bypass the BMS to give them a jump start then they would charge OK.

I hope the Futaba pack doesn't just shut off at a certain level does it? That would seem pretty dangerous to me.

It sure does. No problem in transmitter because you will have plenty of warning from the transmitter before it reaches the voltage at which it chops the power going out.

If the sudden draw on a hard corner as battery is getting run down you could easily dumps below the cutout thresh hold and then not even failsafes will help.

It is pretty dangerous. You do not want anything built into battery that can shut off the power or just fail because you have put a relay and electronics in the battery. Get that wet and run again or during a run and you are risking it all. The electronics were never not designed for output of battery only for input of transmitter which is very low compared to servo's.

 

[Terry Keeley]

Great, thanks for the heads up!

I cancelled my order, found these that should do the job:

https://www.amainhobbies.com/protek...er-battery-pack-6.6v-2100mah-ptk-5188/p165091
Half the price and a little smaller even!

 

[Mike Hughes]

Oh, ran into a BMS issue with the Dewalt 28v LiFe packs I use in my starter box, if they go below a certain level they won't charge on their charger anymore. Had to pull the pack apart, bypass the BMS to give them a jump start then they would charge OK.

I hope the Futaba pack doesn't just shut off at a certain level does it? That would seem pretty dangerous to me.

Terry here is an easier fix for the dewalts. Just get a piece of thin K&S brass plate. Cut 2 piece and slide them into the main battery terminals on the pack. Hook up alligator clip to your charger and charge it for about 2 mins on nimh setting. Get 100-200 mah into the pack. Then pop it onto the dewalt charger. If it dont work then, pump another 100-200 into it. I have brought back many a pack this way. If it dont go after 2 tries, it is done. I have about 50/50 success. I use these all the time at work. Sometimes in the tool bag they will keep hitting the trigger because I forgot to put it on lock. It does have a cut out but it will let it go back on after it sits for a bit. When it riding around in the truck, it keeps taking it down jsut a little bit at a time until its too low.
Mike