Misc Banana Plugs

[Capn Pete]

Are all banana plugs (I think it's also referred to as a JST? The red ones with one male and one female plug end) created equal? I tried to plug in a 1500 mAH into a drone that uses a 2000 mAH and it didn't want to fit. I didn't want to force it. The 2000 ran out quickly and I was trying to just see if what I had on hand would work.

Also, are most balance chargers created equal? Will a basic balance charger that came with a 1500 mAH give a full charge to a 2000 mAH?

I assume that all 2000 mAH lipos are the same as long as the voltage is correct for it's use and the connector fits.

 

[RandyDSok]

There are several types of banana plugs ( a google search should show several ) and they come in various sizes... here is just one of the many ...

Where this is an example of a JST plug....

With electronics, batteries, chargers and most everything.... there is a large difference in quality, sizes and capabilities. From really cheap stuff to high end quality stuff. Like everything you get what you pay for. So some general question about some obscure and unnamed part... really can't be answered with any certainty.... You can not generalize technical questions and hope the answers you may be given actually applies to the items you may be inquiring about.

 

[Capn Pete]

I was wrong. They're not JST. They're the ones that are round and have male and female connections.

 

[Smoggie]

JST and banana plugs are completely different. As far as banana plugs go, there are a range of sizes. They are sized on diameter with ranges (at least) between 2mm and 6mm. the standard connection on a charger is 3.5mm

It's actually quite unusual to use standard single pole banana plugs on batteries due to the risk of shorting. Do you have photos of the connectors you have? Some of the most common battery connectors are:

• Deans
• XT60
• EC3

The XT60 and EC3 both have round pins so could be what you have. There are a bunch of others too which could fit your description. None of them are cross-compatible but you can get adapters to connect one to another.

 

[Smoggie]

on your other points..

No, all chargers are very much not equal. Chargers have a wide range of charge power and and battery voltage capability. Having said this, a charger that will charge a 1500mAh LiPo battery should charge a 2000mAh battery ok providing that the battery voltage (i.e. number of cells) and battery type (i.e. LiPo type) is the same. Charging would take longer on the larger battery. As you have discovered the connectors would not necessarily be the same.

No, not all 2000mAh LiPo batteries are the same. You first must have the same number of cells (eg 2S, 3s, 4s etc) then you need to consider the battery 'C' rating. C rating refers to the maximum discharge current that the battery is capable of. As a general rule 'the higher the better' so you should aim to get new batteries of at least equal C rate to the ones that the manufacturer of the model supplies or recommends. The other variable is the size and shape of the battery, this varies between manufacturers so if space in the model is restricted it may be a consideration.