The QRPer Board

All,

Quick question. Has anyone had success powering their QRP rigs from RC (radio control) LiPo batteries? These apppear to be compact, high energy density and available within the voltage ranges we use.

Reason I ask is that the range of LiPo batteries available in the UK seems to be somewhat less than the US and EU; bioenno and emerit brands do not appear to be available here.

I stumbled on some XT to 2.1mm cables that got me thinking about using RC batteries.......

Thoughts?

Richard M0RGM

I thought about it, but went with Li-ion instead. I can get 3 Ah out of a little holder that's about the same size as a 3-pack of AA batteries, which is good enough for my little SW-3B rig. I guess all batteries with Li chemistry have special handling requirements, but Li-Po ones seemed more foreboding than the other chemistries. Hence my preference for Li-ion. I'll be curious to see what other say.

73 Skip K4EAK

Thanks Skip,

I have a couple of LiOn packs and a spare for my KX2. These are all good as they have a BMS within. However I have more radios than battery packs and am looking to complete my set of "go-kits" each with their own battery.

That said, I like what you have built, food for thought!

72/73

Richard M0RGM

Just to be clear, these homemade packs don't have a BMS (although I suppose one could be added). Instead, I just take the batteries out and charge them in a four-slot lithium battery charger. The upside is that these 18650 batteries cost less than a couple dollars each, which means a 3 Ah pack runs about $5 total.

73 Skip K4EAK

For LiPO batteries, it is worth looking at the charging protocols used by the RC crowd. LiPO batteries can be really high performance, but the "fireproof container for charging" thing pushed me toward LiFePO4.