Model Aviation Notebook

Battery packs are not all created equal. Even within a specific battery family, like the lithium-polymer (LiPo) family for example, there are internal design differences which allow some brands and grades of packs to be charged and discharged at higher rates than others. The maximum rate is almost always expressed as a C-rating and almost all modern hobby-grade battery packs …

NiMH (nickel-metal hydride) packs don’t get as much buzz as newer lithium packs do these days, but they still play an important role in model aviation. Among other things, NiMH is still the most common battery type found in RC transmitters and they continue to be a popular choice for receiver packs in gliders because that type of aircraft can …

I bought my first AccuCycle Elite in 2004 and I chose it over other models because it had two independently-programmable outputs. Dual output chargers are old-hat today, but it was novel technology back then and I really liked the idea that I could charge a LiPo pack for a plane and the NiMH pack in my transmitter at the same …