So what does a 'Balance lead/tap' do anyway?!
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- Опубліковано 9 лют 2025
- My video on LIPO basics: • RC Basics: Introductio...
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Most chargers can also 'suck' power out via the balance leads which is why you often see the cells dancing around between 4.18-4.20 volts as it tries to get all cells to the magical 4.20. And its also why the last bit of the charge cycle takes forever!
One of the biggest things that will make the balance part of the charge take a long time is actually the balance pins on the charger being worn and pitted.
The higher resistance of that balance connection coupled with the current flowing to try and balance causes a voltage at that connection that throws off the reading for the charger. Replacing the pins fixes it.
420v brah
Usually the balancing is done by discharging individual cells (the ones with highest voltage) over resistors through the balance tap, while simultaneously charging the pack through the main connector. It happens simultaneously not sequentially. This is called passive balancing and is the absolutely most common way of doing it as the circuit is simple and cheap. The more advanced way of doing it is to redistribute the voltages within the pack by letting the cells of higher voltage charge up the lower voltage cells. That’s called active balancing but is very rarely used in product designs as far as I know.
Not a lot of people know this about lipos. Good video mate! Cheers! 👍👌
I knew it balance charged my battery but didn't know how. Sending voltage down the balance leads to tidy things up. That's how. Thanks!
The good chargers keep the voltage going through the main lead and drain individual cells through the balance lead. That's why when buying a charger you should look at the amps each balance pin can discharge up to. A good charger can drain .5 amps per cell, that will also speed up your charging compared to a charger that can only do .2 amps per cell or 1 amp for the whole battery. Just use those little hair braid rubber bands to hold your balance plug down to the battery and you'll quit chopping them up with your props.
Great job explaining it.
Beautifully understandable explanation.. you should be a teacher. Cheers for the vid
Great video Lee. I wanted to connect 2 3s packs in series and use the balance connect on one pak to power a internal BEC on a older Maxcim sensored speed controler, but I dont think 1 amp is enough to power 4 full size servos. Good to know thanks.
Love the information, learned a lot, thanks 👍
So i have one big problem i have a charger that has only balance connector(i can connect the lipo to the charger only with that little wires on the side) and that charger is ,,dumb,, it can't balance the cells so is there a way to do it manually? For example I have a 2s lipo which has 3 little wires connected to balance connector and ,,dumb,, charger that has 3 pins which this balance connector connects to. Here is my idea: can I connect only 2 pins of the charger to the 2 pins on the lipo? That way i can charge individual cells manually and balance them that way i hope you get what im saying have a good day.
I'd upgrade the charger. Sounds like one that you'd get with a kit that has very limited functionality. A decent charger is an investment and will last you a long time and make sure your batteries do too.. Best of luck!
great vid ty
Can i swap the 4 pin balance connector on my 3s lipo battery to a 5 pin balance connector?
So long as the connectors are on the same place in it, yes. Happy flying
@Painless360 3s lipo battery has 4 wires and the 4s lipo has 5 wires
So when I plug the 4 wires into the 5 wire balance connector there will be 1 port empty. Is that OK?
If in doubt, use the same connector... Best of luck!
Great as always buddy.thankyou
I call it a balance lead I think a good few people do too. Is tap the proper name? am I wrong?
www.wattflyer.com/forums/showthread.php?t=54125
Maybe it's an old school term ;) happy flying!
Tap if you’re a Brit or Aussie ; lead if a yank, Yank.
@@kenrobba5831 I’m a Brit
Thank you. 👍
Great video,my Lipomat 4 plus vom JR (Graupner) only has 1 A max charging current, is it possible to charge my batteries by ONLY plugging in the balanced cable in the right balanced socket of the Lipomat 4 plus ? As the charger has no other inpur socket. Kind regards.
Possibly. Some cheaper, low power chargers are designed to work that way. I'd consider investing in a quality charger I'd you get into the hobby... Best of luck
thanks, yes I want a display to show me what happens in each cell, I bought mine around 2006 before I stopped for 17 years with RC and now I’m into it again :-)
It may be worth investing in a more modern charger.. Best of luck!
Ok so like Abba did sing: I’ll do I’ll do I do. :-)
Great tutorial.
Just recently brought my self a rc car came with a 2s 1500mah 7.4v battery but did not come with a balance charger , came with a usb KX7V4-200 charger . How do I go about putting it in storage mode , would I charge for half the time I would of a full charge? . I am a beginner at this and I am a little lost . Would it be a good idea to go out and buy a a basic balance charger or one with the storage feature ?
Of you are serious about the hobby then invest in a decent little charger. The chargers included in kits are usually very slow, cheap and not great... Best of luck
Please tell me that Acehe lipo is an old one. I've been looking for those but can't find them anywhere. Bought them 4 years ago, really liked them but when I wanted to buy more I couldn't find them no more.
It's not a new pack ;)
I have 2S lipos without any xt30 connesctor. It only has the XH2.5 balance plug and runs directy off it. Internally it is a 2S , so the heli omphobby m1 in my case runs off pin 1 and 3. How does the xh pin compare to xt30 or ph2?
Huge difference in terms of current carrying capacity for the main power connectors used in the hobby. That XH2.5 is rated for a around 3 amps. The XT30 is rated for 30 amps, the PH2 is 2 amps.
@@Painless360 3A is still better than 2A rating on the PH2 plug most whoops are delivered with. XH2.5 plugs easier too. I might try the XH2.5 plug for my Crux3 and UZ85 with my original Omphobby M1 batteries. They are so light and perform well on the M1. The 3A rating shurely will do 5A burst for these crazybeeX 5A AIO ESC board
Can I charge Lipo batteries while on load?
I've never tried. Be careful with Lipo batteries.... Happy flying
Noob question..what would happen if i connect just the balance tap to a charger? If it charges, is it safe?
Most chargers won't let you charge that way. You could charge a pack using just the balance tap but you'd have to use much lower currents... Happy flying
very good!
Chargers shunt charged cells to bypas them during charging so they don't go over 4.20. You dont get charge over ballance leads
Thanks for the comment. Not all chargers work the same. Why do you think that some chargers list the balance current? i.e. 'Balancing Current: 1A/cell * 2'
They fail! Lol quad's seem to Always mess. Even if remember to wrap up. Lol great video
Why cant we have the spektrum g2 style batts that dont use balance leads
I don't understand the question...
The Spectrum batteries have internal circuit boards for monitoring and controlling battery cell voltage in each individual battery. Normal batteries use the single monitoring and controlling circuits in the charger. Might be a contributing factor for why Spectrum ones are so expensive? 😁
Fantastic video, Lee! Thanks a lot! 😃
This knowledge is pretty important! Even more when you make your own packs (out of 18650 cells, for example).
Anyway, stay safe there with your family! 🖖😊
😎ThankQ🎉kindly 😎
I knew that correct current charging was 1/10 of nominal A of a battery so 650mah should be correctly charged at 65mah for about 10 h and it last for a long time and fly...isn't it?
No, check out the linked video. You charge using amps and milliamps not mAh... Best of luck
I don't know what they do, I cut mine off.
It helps you balance your tabs obviously