Hi Dino, re our lopo's conversation. As you are aware, I am not up to speed on this type of battery technology but have made a couple of enquiries on your behalf.
I had aword with a friend of mine who's really into these things and they use them all the time for model aircraft. He has every faith in them and I picked up a bit of the low down regarding useage.
First and foremost, you must use the correct charger or you are on a loser any which way you turn. Secondly, never ever run the things completely flat otherwise they will generate gas internally and swell up. Thirdly, it is perfectly ok to use them with ordinary dc motors but you need a smart speed controller which will sense low battery condition and slowly shut down before the cells are completely discharged.
The real downside is cost, the whole shooting match costs an arm and a leg by the time you've got all the right bits together. He emphasises the point, that the cause of failure of these batteries is generally abuse by the user, normally running down way below the recommended 'flat' condition. Their primary role is to rapidly charge, accept and store a large amount of current for their size and weight and have the capability to discharge huge amounts of current in a short space of time.
A great battery, but at what cost!!
Regards..Chris
Ps, have'nt managed to get up the pond yet....soon I hope!
