Cases My charging case.

[Geena]

I used a Dynamite Ultra Duo charger for years, and had great success with it charging 6s 5000mAh batteries. I actually still have it, and it still works great. But I needed something different, and I thought it might be time to step up to a custom charge case.

At first, I was looking at turn key charge cases from a few of the online vendors. But the prices for a custom built charge case were insane. So....I decided to build my own. I started with a $40 gun case (looks just like a pelican case) and went from there.

The charger I chose, was the FMA Dual PowerLab 8 which I purchased from Progressive RC. I`m using an 1800 watt, 24 volt, 75A power supply. Which powers everything quite nicely. For the deck lid, I used 1/4" sanded birch plywood covered with carbon fiber vinyl wrap that I got from amazon for $7.00 per 2'X5' roll.

I have a full build thread on my personal website blog, and if it`s OK...I`ll post the link to it later. But for now, here is a photo of the finished product.

 

[Chris Hadley]

Geena that's awesome. Want to build something like that myself but funds holding me back at the moment... well done, looks great

 

[Geena]

Thank you, Chris. I build this one on a budget too. I really didn`t want to put a couple thousand into a charger, so I built my own case for a whole lot less than I could have gotten it from any of the shops. I think I ended up with less than $800 total cost on it.

 

[Frank balbuena]

hi Geena,
what do you use to power your system? i built a field box also but mine has 2 12v 14amp batteries in it to power my imax charger for my 3s batts but i just made a big jump to 6s power bird and i realized that the juice get close to low when i charge one 6s but i can charge them 3s all day on a single charge to the batts. i think i am going to have to build another field box or tear the current one up and start again with different design for bigger power. i like the current box set up cause everything is in the box and i don't need to plug up to anything external to charge my batts. so any advice you provide sure would be great. thank in advance

 

[Geena]

I have two 1800 watt, 75A ,24V power supplies that power the charger, and I power those with a 2000 watt generator most of the time.

 

[Smoggie]

Nice job on the case Geena. if I ever need a charge case I'll go the 'home made' option too, because I'm too tight fisted to pay the prices that ready made ones come in at.

As it is I tend to fly in short sessions at a field that's ten minutes away. I can get all the flights I can fit in to these sessions just by pre charging a bunch of batteries at home so I don't really need a portable solution.

 

[Jimbo]

Very nice work.

Jim

 

[Geena]

Thanks guys. I needed a powerful charge case, because I fly a lot, and I needed a charger that could keep up with the demands of keeping three 12s stick packs going all day...plus the receiver packs for the nitros. I also cringed at the thought of putting obscene amounts of money into a charge case. That`s why I built it myself. Instead of having $2000+ in it, I have less than $1000 invested, and it is a real work horse.

 

[Boogs]

Well done young lady! Think I'll try to search for your page, to look at the build log.

 

[Geena]

Thank you, Boogs. It was a lot of fun to build it, and it came out pretty good, I think. I can move my blog here, as an article, to make it easier to find.

 

[Chris Hadley]

Evening Geena,
Can you power the PSU's from a standard generator or does it need to be an Inverter generator. Someone told me that you need a "smooth electrical" supply as per the inverter as the raw electric a standard generator supplies is no good or can damage the set up?
Have done a very cheap 12v charge case to power 2 small chargers but don't fancy blowing it up lol.
Any info is useful as always
Chris
Aka... The Flying Hippo

 

[Geena]

I`ve powered mine with both standard and inverter, and never had an issue. Matter of fact I have been using this generator with my chargers for about 3 years now. Champion Power Equipment 42432 1400W Multi-Purpose Portable Generator - For Life Out Here

No problems with my power supplies whatsoever with this generator. The only issue I have had with it, is when I try to parallel charge two 12s stick packs at 20Amps. The generator just can`t provide enough watts to make it happen, and the charger shuts down from under current.

 

[Chris Hadley]

Thanks Geena

 

[Geena]

You`re quite welcome.

 

[Tony]

I have used my generator to power my 1000w rig and have never had an issue. Server power supplies are tough and can accept some dirty pixies, it's what is going into the charger that you need to be worried about, and the PSU takes care of that. There are some caps in there that smooth out the voltage so that it doesn't blow up sensitive electronics in servers. so if it is good enough for a $4000 server, I think I can trust it on my $300 charger lmao. But if the power is too dirty, you may have an issue.

My generator is from Harbor Freight, a strictly chinese import tool company here in the states. So if this can give me decently clean power, I think any of them can.