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DC pelican battery


Keenan925

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One additional problem with Sealed Lead Acid Batteries. I have had Gel Cells overheat and self destruct even though they were protected by in-line fuses (which never blew) There is not much room in the Pelican 1300 case and a 31 or 33 amp Hr. Battery. No room for padding. If dropped to the concrete from a few feet even while in the case, the internal plates in the battery can break and develop an internal short which will cause the battery to heat up and evaporate most of the gelled electrolyte. I discovered this when I opened the battery when it wouldn't take a charge and found the inside of the case wet with electrolyte and the plastic battery case wavy and distorted looking like it was baked in an oven. Of course this internal short caused by sharp blow can go undetected and can destroy the battery even when it is stored on a shelf and not hooked up to a load or a charger.

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I've never used a Pelican case setup, but currently looking in a Powerstar based system for my cart this year.

In Bob Marts Pelican case is there even enough space to do a panel mount for a speakon and xlr connector on the side? I've seen front mounted jacks on these pelican 1300 cases... How the heck do they fit in there?

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Here's what I did with a 1300/33AH I got from LSC:

post-379-0-97728800-1325788282.jpg

basic dual 4-pin config.

post-379-0-88992900-1325788336.jpg

modified with a couple o' gauges (backlit, so they're switched, to avoid constant draw)

I've replaced the batt. (33AH AGM) once in 5 years. Granted, it only powers my CS208... there are 2 other DC systems on my cart (one BDS with dual NP1's for the bag, and a 92AH AGM which feeds a Xantrex 1800i for the rack)

I know, I know... it's heavy... and expensive... but I've learned the importance of redundancy and backups -- this system has yet to let me down (knocking on wood as I type)...

Anyhow, just thought I'd share -- I really like the 4-pin/1300 case approach. It's modular, and like Philip said, in an emergency, can be swapped out with any # of 4-pin batts. likely to be found on set at any given time -- you just have to have a bottle of Scotch or something handy with which to negotiate : )

~tt

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30 years of 4 pin XLRs here--no probs! One advantage: you can use your power system a lot of different ways, and also use camera batteries etc directly. I've mostly had 24 to 33 AH gel cels in large ammo-cans, with the fuse arranged as Jay P suggested. For a small rig they worked nearly all day, even when using a Nagra and doing a lot of fast-winding of tape (like for playback).

phil p

+1 on the Never a problem with the 4 pin set up... I have cables, camera has cables, VTR has the cables and I have lent my Pelican set up to VTR and they were happy... cross platform way of doing it.... I mounted two 4 pin connectors on mine... Also have a pigtail model, but the cable is always a pain in the ass for me just hanging there... I also keep a pair of the old Location sound battery belts handy, I just keep up to date on the batteries inside... they can be handy hanging from a rail on a process trailer and such...

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I wonder if anyone has tried the new Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries as replacements for SLA batteries for cart use.

They are more expensive than Sealed Lead Acid but last up to 5 times longer and have more recharge cycles

I think they are lighter and smaller for similar current requirements and can even use SLA chargers

post-230-0-94079900-1325901398.jpg

Read more about the Technology here:

http://www.micro-pow...-1295915408.pdf

They come in a case with a handle that looks a lot like the 1300 pelican for a 44 Ahr 12V battery but thinner and lighter.

They are available from a company called Micro Power at www.micro-power.com

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I wonder if anyone has tried the new Lithium Iron Phosphate batteries as replacements for SLA batteries for cart use.

Where have you been, Courtney? Months and months ago I posted info about the cart power supplies I was beginning to experiment with using Lithium IRON Phosphate batteries (often called LiFePO4 or LiFe batteries). I have built 2 Cart Power Supplies and 1 block battery (Pelikan-style). I was intrigued by this new chemistry but most interested in the weight savings. The cart power supply I have been using (with Sealed Lead Acid batteries) weighs 25 lbs. --- the new supplies (with LiFe batteries) weighs 11 lbs. and has higher capacity!

Just recently, Glen Trew (RemoteAudio - Trew Audio - Coffey Sound) is marketing a cart power supply called the RemoteAudio Meon LiFe which is a much more sophisticated supply than the ones I have been able to build myself.

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  • 3 months later...

Has anyone had any experience using and running off a Samlex SEC-1230A charger? Jay reported the success he and Warners have with the ChargeTek RTIC1120, which like the Samlex is a 3 stage charger. I'm asking because Samlex lit promotes a selectable UPS mode that "mutes" Stage 2 (Constant voltage boost or Absortption) consequently removing overvoltage as a potential problem for attached gear. This appears to provide 30 amps to be used by the cart load and charging whatever battery(s) are attached.

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  • 3 weeks later...

30 years of 4 pin XLRs here--no probs! One advantage: you can use your power system a lot of different ways, and also use camera batteries etc directly. I've mostly had 24 to 33 AH gel cels in large ammo-cans, with the fuse arranged as Jay P suggested. For a small rig they worked nearly all day, even when using a Nagra and doing a lot of fast-winding of tape (like for playback).

phil p

+1 Phillip.

The photo is of my 18A/h battery rigs for my lightweight cart. These small .3 US ammo boxes are becoming harder to find in the UK

but I bet you wouldn't have any problem in the US.post-233-0-56634400-1338030000.jpg

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