Going to make a battery pack for my Sovereign XS and need help.

[Ron from Michigan]

Kered,the AA rechargeable I have used have 1.2V on them and I would have to conclude using these in my Explorers and trying to use these for my Sovereign in the alkaline pack would enforce the manufacturer rating.By the way what was the cost of your battery setup for the Sovereign.

 

[synthnut]

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=7292

Here's one we've been using with much luck .....Very light in weight ....Jim

 

[dbsmokey]

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=7292

Here's one we've been using with much luck .....Very light in weight ....Jim

How many hours does that battery last? 750 mAh...does the detector draw 1 amp so the battery lasts 7.5 hours or......? Thanks

 

[synthnut]

Here's another .....

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=9787


I've hunted the 750 for a good 7 hrs with no problem .....You can carry an extra in your shirt pocket ....very small and light ... Remember , you need a special Lipo charger to go with this setup ....Get a list of what you need and make one big order ....3 - 750's , and an Accucell charger , and some connectors with shipping and all comes to less money than you would pay for just one rechargeable battery from Minelab ....I haven't used the 1450's yet .....I wouldn't think twice about giving them a shot though if I still had my Sovereign .......Jim

 

[dbsmokey]

Here's another .....

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=9787


I've hunted the 750 for a good 7 hrs with no problem .....You can carry an extra in your shirt pocket ....very small and light ... Remember , you need a special Lipo charger to go with this setup ....Get a list of what you need and make one big order ....3 - 750's , and an Accucell charger , and some connectors with shipping and all comes to less money than you would pay for just one rechargeable battery from Minelab ....I haven't used the 1450's yet .....I wouldn't think twice about giving them a shot though if I still had my Sovereign .......Jim

Yea, I have been watching that charger for a while. I am considering the 1450 mAh, but it is on backorder. Listening to you guys makes me realize using lipos is the way to go: light, long-lasting, inexpensive. I suppose the battery thread contains details about the proper connector? I will go check that now.... Thanks Jim.

 

[Ron from Michigan]

The 750 is compact and inexpensive,but the conventional 10 double As bundled in a pack is going to give 10-15 hours of operating time.The users who use these old Sovereigns can find rechargeable AA batteries at any corner store,they are assured of staying with in operating specs and inexpensive.I would add no rewiring or adding packing material.The extra weight of two batteries isn't going to make any difference(advantage lost from packing material of empty space),example the GT uses 10 batteries in the rechargeable pack vs 8 batteries in the alkaline pack anyone notice a difference(someone should weigh),LOL I never did.

 

[synthnut]

Ron,
The weight is probably cut in 1/2 on the battery pack .....The Lipo can also be charged fast , and you can carry 1 Lipo as opposed to a bunch of AA's .... If you think you're gonna need more power, you only have to carry ONE battery with you as opposed to a bunch of AA's .... The way I had my battery pack wired up , I could go with the Lipo , or I could also load the 8 AA's ....Either setup would work without a problem , so if I forgot to bring a Lipo with me , I could pop in 8 AA's from any available store ....... To each their own ..... I'm not saying that Lipo's are the best solution ...I'm only saying that they are the best for ME !!.....YMMV ......Jim


dbsmokey

These are the connectors that I used .....Note: one is male , and one is female ......Jim

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=9631

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=9630

 

[Ron from Michigan]

Just another point that there has to be negatives with the Lipo.

 

[dbsmokey]

Just another point that there has to be negatives with the Lipo.

To counter that argument, if rubber switch boots were so great, why aren't they also included? Also, the vclip is also no longer included with the Sovereign. I think there are many oversights in design of this metal detector. In spite of that, it still blows most of the competition away....

 

[Ron from Michigan]

I agree the Sovereign is a great metal detector.Minelab still carries V clips even though not included.IMHO a GT made for a V clip mount would be better more convenient,save manufacturing cost and cut weight.Rubber boots would make an improvement but most Sovereign users never use the All Metal or other switches on the GT,because of the very awkward location.A Lipo installed on a newer GT could also cause a warranty problem.

 

[synthnut]

Thare are thousands of "IF'S " in this business ....You could continue to wonder all day long ...... Here's a couple of easy ones ....." IF " you don't want to use Lipo's , then don't .........."If " you want to use other types of batteries ,then use them !!.......SIMPLE !!.....Jim

 

[Ron from Michigan]

Jim,I'm glad you are alright with me using AA rechargeable batteries.Your post reminds me of a poem.If ands and buts were cherries and nuts we would all have a Merry Christmas.Happy New Year.

 

[synthnut]

Ron,
I'm glad that you're glad !!......You're alright and I'm alright .......Don'tcha just love when a plan comes together ? ...... ....... Happy New Year !!..... Sincerely, Jim

 

[Ron from Michigan]

Jim,I rented the A Team movie for tonight.My son said they stayed in character and it was a good movie.I really appreciate the information on Lipo batteries.Sovereign users should have a national hunt this spring.Thanks Ron

 

[synthnut]

Ron,
A national event would be very cool !!..... I did a hunt this year with some guys who hunt NYC parks and beaches .....We met upstate NY where one of the members had a house ..... It was a BLAST !!..... Imagine a bunch of whacky detectorists , all swapping stories , and one was funnier than the next .... What made it even more interesting was the fact that we got to check out each others machines ....There was a variety of machines there , so we could see the good the bad , and the ugly of everything there .... There were newer machines and older machines ..... It only comfirmed my belief that the BEST machine out there , is the machine that you spend the most time with , and learn as well as you can learn it !!....I'm typing now and its 2011 .....Have a great year and stay healthy !!.....Sincerely, Jim

To all the members ,

Enjoy the New Year , and stay healthy !!......Sincerely, Jim

 

[kered]

Your right, As far as i know all AA rechargables have 1.2v on them, thats the minimum but when charged they have more.

Total cost for my setup was less than $50 for charger, 2 x 1450mah, and a few cables and connectors, including postage from hongkong(about 8 days to Spain) i've since got another one and added a few more cables like the handy cigarette lighter plug for using in the car(i don't charge the lipos while driving but handy if any batteries run down) and a splitter to charge both lipos together, most of these can be got cheap at somewhere like Radio shack for a couple of bucks.

At less than the price of 1 XS battery i can charge anything(within reason) not only that but i have rejuvenated/recovered 2xXS dud nicad packs(1 to 9 hours and the other to 7),1x dud excalibur nicad battery amongst numerous drill batteries, well worth the price for that alone. Even if you don't use it for detector batteries its handy for many others arround the house, its just a matter or making/buying the holders.

It also charges faster and more efficient too and gives a readout of how much its putting in, you can log this over time and see when the batteries need a recycle charge, i'm getting on average 1800ma into the minelab 1600mah Etrac/Explorer battery and about 1150 into the 1000mah SovGt battery

 

[Ron from Michigan]

Kered,I appreciate the information.Yesterday stopped by radio shack to pickup some wire glue.The clerk wasn't sure if there was such an item at least not there.I'm still waiting for the Hong Kong AA batteries.Just bought a Musketeer Colt on Ebay I'm sure its going to need a battery pack.It had three coils a 14 inch coil that need pinned.I'm hoping to get at least 12 hours with the simple AA rechargeable pack,which there is a demand still for these packs because of so many older Minelabs that used these Musketeers,18000,17000 Gold series and Sovereigns.Thanks Ron

 

[Ron from Michigan]

After seeing the You Tube video Wow! The Sovereign could power up for lift off and look like a flare or roman candle.Users beware.

 

[dbsmokey]

nice videos. I guess it is best to ensure they don't short out....

 

[Ron from Michigan]

At this point I would be uncomfortable using these batteries.