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[tomocj]

What are your thoughts on the choice between lead acid and nicad batteries ,which are best suited to model boats,is it a question of type of hull ie high speed planning lighter nicads and heavier hulls tugs etc using lead acid for capacity and weight /ballast?
Any thoughts welcomed

[Capt Podge]

I aint no expert on this subject however:- I use sealed lead acid batteries whenever possible and locate them as centrally as possible and as low in the hull as possible.
Built 8 boats - 6 use the SLA batteries - these vessels are tugs and fishing boats. The other 2 boats are fast electric for which I use Ni-Cad "six-packs" 1800 and 2400 capacity.

[Colin Bishop]

I don't think you can get NiCads any longer, just NiMH which are greener and generally better.

Colin

[tomocj]

Thanks for that I did mean nimh not nicad ,It seems sensible to use SLA in the larger Hulls saves adding weight .Chris

[tony52]

Hi,

Do the newer and greener NIMH have the problem of memory locking, which plagued the old NiCads? Didn't the old Nicads had to be fully discharged before recharging to prevent this?

I have just bought my first NIMH pack and would be interested to know.

Tony.

[Colin Bishop]

No, the NiMH cells are essentially free of the memory problem that affected Nicads but you should still charge them as recommended.

Colin

[DickyD]

Hi,

Do the newer and greener NIMH have the problem of memory locking, which plagued the old NiCads? Didn't the old Nicads had to be fully discharged before recharging to prevent this?

I have just bought my first NIMH pack and would be interested to know.

Tony.

Hi Tony, no you dont have to discharge NiMH packs before charging as you had to do with NiCADS

[tomocj]

Anyone used Li-po in boats??
Chris

[Islander1951]

Li-po batteries are a completely different ball game.   They are great if you need high power, low weight and fast discharge , e.g. brushless FE boats.

   However they need a special charging system , and are not as robust as  NiMH packs.  Don't drop them on anything hard , or they may become damaged , then they must be discarded .  Charging damaged cells may , in some cases , lead to them exploding !!!

      Lots of info out there , just be careful.

                                                                                    Islander51

[nick_75au]

I use a 7.2v 350 mAH Li-po in my 1/72 Revell Schnellboot, only because other types of batteries are too heavy. they are also good for a lot of capacity in a small space. the equivalent in Lipo takes up 1/4 the space of Lead acid
Nick

[tomocj]

Thanks for your in-put ,I have used Lipo in aeros not bad results but I still prefer a proper engines Diesel and glow.Just wondered if many boaters had switched to Lipo.
Started boating as it is the building I enjoy and probably less chance of a total wipe out than aeros.It is sad to see a plane in more pieces than when you started building it Ha Ha.
Chris