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[Patrick Henry]

A 6volt 1.0a/h gel cell battery, it fits perfectly in the watertight box. It'll be running just the radio...three servos operating front planes/rear planes/rudder.

Opinions chaps?

Rich

[Flying Sparks]

Rich

Should be OK, but it depends on what radio you are using. Some manufactures say 6V is alright but some like JR specify 4.8V for receivers and servos. Some people say they use JR on 6V and have no problems 

I would check with your radio manufacturer first and if in doubt put in a regulator.

Phil.

[Patrick Henry]

It's a HiTec Optic 6, I have run it on a six volt nicad pack before quite happily, but space is tight in the radio box and this fits a treat.


Rich

[Martin (Admin)]

No difference between Nicad volts and Gelcell volts!  

[Patrick Henry]

A volt is a volt is a volt.... I was just thinking if it had enough power to run three servos, I hope so...






Rich

[alan colson]

Ran a boat in a 24 hour charity event a few years back, rx ran on 6 volt 12amp gell cell, tx was run on 12 volt 24amp gell cell and boat had 7 x 12 volt 12amp cells. We did 24 hours non stop.
Alan

[malcolmfrary]

The RX should be just fine, BUT some of the items plugged into it might not.  I have it on the very best authority that some of the modern magic thingys have components that don't survive above 5 volts.  A careful read of the instructions should reveal any potential problems.

[Patrick Henry]

The only things that'll be plugged into the rx will be three servos and the Action esc...fingers crossed they'll be ok?

[FullLeatherJacket]

the Action esc...

That's the one - the one that says in the Instructions "Do not use a 6v SLA to power the receiver direct". You'll need a regulator in-line; P99 does that job.
More here http://www.action-electronics.co.uk/pdfs/P99.pdf
FLJ

[Patrick Henry]

Thanks boss...be in touch soon.

[malcolmfrary]

I said it was was on good authority 
That smiley even looks like FLJ at Doncaster. 

[nsa66]

I've been using a 1AH 6v gel cell to power the RX on my King Orry and TID for years. Radio is Sanwa 40MHz and servos from Sanwa, Hitec and Futaba have all been fine. Electronize and Hitec ESCs have never suffered from the experience either. It is simple enough to rig a 5v regulator in the supply line to the ESC if that's needed for your setup.

It seems odd that the ACTion ESC is not internally regulated as receivers are often powered by 4xAA alkalines which can approach 7v when fresh and under very light load.

[FullLeatherJacket]

It seems odd that the ACTion ESC is not internally regulated as receivers are often powered by 4xAA alkalines which can approach 7v when fresh and under very light load.

Most of the Microchip PICs used in our units are good for 7.2v; we don't have a choice with this parameter. This is plenty for use with the usual 4 cell rechargeable packs and also with our 5v or 6v regulated power distribution boards. I personally haven't encountered a 4 cell pack of alkaline cells which would exceed this, but a 5-cell NiMH pack or a 6v SLA can. John Pollitt was the first to find this out, as he habitually runs his receivers from a 6v (nominal) battery without a regulator. Fortunately we fixed his P94 very easily.

The problem with fitting a voltage regulator to the units is that they then wouldn't be suitable for use with 4 cell packs once they are a little down on charge. This type of pack is still very widely used for the job. This is why we introduced the P99 In-Line regulator, so that modellers who prefer to use higher Rx voltages can do so safely without risk of damage to our units. As you say, rigging this regulator into the supply line couldn't be easier; it has a plug which goes into the Rx and a socket flylead for the ESC plug. Almost 'ugget-proof, really 

I hope that clarifies the matter for you.
FLJ

[nsa66]

There you go U33. Straight from the horse's mouth. Thanks FullLeatherJacket - I'll certainly bear that in mind when it comes to my next build (love your products though I've not used one of your ESCs yet).

Incidentally, I've had a couple of instances in the past where voltage of a single AA has been above 1.7v off load. I've never actually measured the voltage of any of my 6v SLAs but I can imagine they do run a bit high if 12v nominal car batteries are anything to go by. Sounds like the in-line reg. is a great idea. Consider me converted.

[FullLeatherJacket]

Sounds like the in-line reg. is a great idea. Consider me converted.

That's what we like to hear 
FLJ

[malcolmfrary]

Incidentally, I've had a couple of instances in the past where voltage of a single AA has been above 1.7v off load. I've never actually measured the voltage of any of my 6v SLAs but I can imagine they do run a bit high if 12v nominal car batteries are anything to go by

True.  Lead acid cells have a nominal voltage of 2, but thats just to make doing the sums easier.  The real figure is nearer 2.2.
I once had a nominal 50 volt battery (24 cell, regulated to 52 volts) go up to 64 volts, due to an expert (thankfully not me, this was an expert trained on the unit) messing up the float regulator and over voltage cutout so that it just kept on charging.  And charging.  Until something that didn't like 64 volts went "pop" and let us know something was amiss.  Just as well. The other 50,000 or so transistors in the building were only rated for 65 volts.  
A lot of folks have gotten away with things because of luck. (see above) Some batteries have a high internal resistance, which, under load conditions, restricts the current.  This shows as dropped voltage, and saves a lot of components from an early bin.  When the battery is replaced with one that can stand the load, component failure results.

[martno1fan]

Why would radio gear not survive 6volts its all we use on big petrol boats  .
Mart

[malcolmfrary]

Why would radio gear not survive 6volts its all we use on big petrol boats  .
Mart

Most radios & servos were designed for a nominal 6 volts off 3 lead acid cells or 4 dry cells.  A lot of current usage relies on the fact that the electronics was designed with tolerances allowing use on 4 rechargeable cells, nominally 4.8 volts, which is handy because 4 cell holders are readily available, as opposed to 5 cell holders.  Co-incidentally, much computer hardware is designed for use on 5 volts, but very little more.  The functions are very useful in model control, so it gets used. 

[martno1fan]

We need a full 6 volts if it drops much lower the failsafe kicks in and no more boating,5 cell packs for us big boat guys  .4.8 volts wouldnt even move the rudder at full tilt on a big apache  .
Mart
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FS-Racing-1-5-5th-Battery-Pack-1600mah-6v-5-cell-Hump-/380198925940?cmd=ViewItem&pt=UK_ToysGames_RadioControlled_JN&hash=item58859f3674

[FullLeatherJacket]

But you don't use microprocessor-based electronic speed controllers such as the one that U33 mentioned above, so the problem of excess voltage doesn't arise in your "big boats". Incidentally, I'm informed that some of the yachting blokes use up to 9.6v packs in their models.
FLJ