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DC pelican battery


Keenan925

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I am building a small cart and need to have a DC power supply that lives on the cart. I see a bunch of people have batteries inside pelican or ammo cases and I would like to go this route. Weight is not a big issue a this point because I wanna keep cost down. Where do I buy the battery? and how do I wire it to the 4 pin XLR to power my BDS distro?

Keenan

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33aH battery usually fits the Pelican 1300, I think. Insert 4-pin F panel mount XLR (after you have fit the battery, so you can see where it'll fit). With fuse in line, neg to pin 1, pos to pin 4. Then buy a smart-type 12v battery charger and solder 4-pin M in place of clips to charge your battery. (I have one of these I'll sell you, if you're LA local). In fact, I may even have empty Pelican with connectors ready for a new battery. Email me.

But there are other DIY solutions. Jeff is the king of this, but I still don't quite get what he has done, so I left my power to the pros at PSC. No regrets.

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I've been using Sealed Lead Acid batteries (33 or 35Ah) for years, packed in Pelican 1300 cases. I used to punch out holes for xlr 4f jacks, but the last ones I made, I permanently attached a short power cable that would exit out a groove in the case and could be stored inside when not in use (that way I would never be w/out a power cable). I always put an in-line fuse in the case.

I use a 6amp automatic car battery to charge it up, then put it in line with my cart ac/dc power supply to keep it topped off and be in place when I need it.

post-52-0-33026100-1320094260.jpg

post-52-0-87901800-1320094273.jpg

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I have seen a homemade Pelican SLA battery with the hinges blown off from where a spark ignited the (I believe) hydrogen released during charging in the enclosed box. If you make your own, be sure to vent it or charge it with the lid open.

On the other hand, Pelican honored the lifetime warranty. (I don't know if that would happen if you were killed in the explosion.)

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Keenan,

I use a Powersonic ps-12350 in a Pelican Case 1300 with the leads wired up to a 4 pin panel connector drilled into the side of the case. I always open the top to charge and don't do the float charge thing that many do. Lot's of my shoots are a hassle to get AC so I just go straight DC. I use the PSC-124000A charger. My local electronics dealer Ralph's Electronics carries them in stock and was cheaper than any place on the net, mainly because I didn't need to ship it.. A rare event for me!

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Keenen,

Go for it! Over the years, I've discovered an operation that not only ships quickly, has competitive rates, yet carries top quality, made in the USA products: BatteryStuff.com

The ChargeTek chargers I use (I own two of them, one on the cart, one on the truck) have an on-board computer to manage charge voltage and current, are waterproof, and the only time I've ever heard of one failing was when it was fed 220VAC by mistake. The output is so clean that I use it as a large DC source for my cart and float it over a large MK glass-pak (AGM) battery. None of my analog or digital equipment seems to mind the voltage jumping from 12 to 14 volts when high charging. These units are used exclusively by the Warner Bros. Sound Dept. for all of their production carts.

In my application, I connect to AC whenever possible, but on a full charge, I can run my big ass rig (11amp draw) for three hours before having to switch out the battery (I use the 70+ amp version of the MK for the cart). The Pelican case size (31 amp) I use for my portable bricks. Two years ago, when researching AGM batteries, the East-Penn MK batteries came out on top and are made in the states (so is the ChargeTek). Very quick delivery.

http://www.batterystuff.com/ (the website)

http://www.batterystuff.com/battery-chargers/12-volt/marine-chargers/RTIC-1120.html (excellent charger)

http://www.batterystuff.com/batteries/rv-marine/gel-cell/8GU1.html (31 amp hour made in the USA - Pelican size)

I also agree with the 4-pin flip-out cable method. Additionally, I have taken to using 14 gauge zip cord for all "hidden" dc, using wire nuts for gathering leads together. When I buy a new battery, I immediately attach an automotive fuse holder to the positive lead, bare wire after the fuse, along with a piece of same gauge wire on the neg lead, terminating in bare wire. Any system changes can be accomplished quickly using the wire nuts. I am willing to spend a little more for top quality, made in the USA, products. I look forward to the LiFE stuff and the reduced weight, but the Adjusted Glass Material sealed lead-acid batteries work real well. A tip - try never to run a lead-acid battery down below it's rated voltage. A "12V" AGM when fully charged will produce 13.5VDC or so - switch it out when it hits 12, and you can expect FIVE times the `manufacturers projected life cycle.

Jay Patterson

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Just a quick question too all.. I recently purchased a battery from another sound mixer also in a 1300 case. It had 2 4-pin XLR connectors on it. But, I ripped on off, and replaced it with a Speakon 2-pole connector. Then I just created a 2 foot Speakon to Speakon patch cable.

For what I was told is to try NOT to use the 4-pin XLRs because they can fail a lot easier then the speakons. Also, the all the ones Coffee sound sells are also Speakon connectors, etc..

Just a thought.

-Richard

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Current handling capacity

XLR4 < Speakon < Powercon

Sorta:

4 pin XLRs are rated for 10 A.

There are 3 different Speakon connector models:

FC connectors used to be rated for 25 A. continuous and are now rated for "up to 30 A." Two pole Speakons are FC series and there are 4 pole FC versions rated at 25 A. too.

SPX (plastic) and STX (cast metal) series connectors are rated for 40 A. continuous, come in 4 and 8 pole versions if I remember correctly but no 2 pole.

Powercon connectors come in both 25 A. and 32 A. versions, I think.

Best regards,

Jim

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Thanks Jim G for elaboration. I think the Powercons can go up to 60 A, but hazy about this.

In any case, the question about XLR versus the speak/power |con is answered. :)

Peter K makes an important point - PLEASE allow for air flow.

Senator also makes an important point - XLR4s are wired differently at times. I eventually made a few Pelican batt packs for people out here, and gave options for a Power/Speak |con AND an XLR4 panel mounted. Inside, two stages of protection - over current (by self-resetting polyfuse) and over heat protection using a heat sensor. Some of the batt packs which were meant for cameras (16/35mm) needed XLR3.

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Thanks Jim G for elaboration. I think the Powercons can go up to 60 A, but hazy about this.

In any case, the question about XLR versus the speak/power |con is answered. :)

No worries, Vin. Sadly, I knew the information by heart. I had just helped a neighbor with some research for his band's gear package a few days ago. I can remember that stuff, but not where I've left my keys or where I've set down my glasses.

Best regards,

Jim

.

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I want to emphasize what has been said about venting cases for lead acid batteries. Even sealed lead acid batteries ("SLA", also sometimes called "Gell Cells") have tiny vent holes that allow hydrogen gas to escape while charging. When an enclosed Pelican/Battery case sees a spark and explodes (and I've witnessed it more than once), it is deadly dangerous and sounds like a Volkswagen dropped from 20 feet.

I suggest boring a bunch of 1/4" or 3/8" holes in strategic places in the Pelican case.

Glen Trew

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Speaking of exploding batteries:

http://www.chicagotr...,0,959818.story

Can't wait to see what kind of knee-jerk reaction we get to this.

A United Airlines employee suffered minor injures after a battery shipped in a bag exploded at O'Hare International Airport, officials said.

The employee was taken to Resurrection Medical Center in fair-to-serious condition but officials said the employee sustained, "minor injuries", according to a Chicago Fire Department spokesman.

The explosion occurred as the employee was moving the bag and it burst open a little before 11 a.m., hurting the man's arm, fire officials said.

"The item was a sealed lead battery, which is permitted in checked baggage," the Transportation Security Administration said in a statement. "It was screened appropriately at its point of departure..."

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  • 4 weeks later...

Note that most Pelican cases come in both vented and non-vented versions. I have removed the vent plugs from mine, and so far have never had one blow up.

If you decide to use Speakon connectors, just make sure to not plug a speaker into the battery (when it's 6:00 AM, and you have been shooting for 18+ hours, stupid stuff can happen!)

Also, FWIT, I have found the reliability of the female JAE Cannon connectors to be superior to most others over the years. Yeah, they are outrageously priced now, but most have outlived similar connectors made by others.

--S

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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

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  • 1 month later...

One unmentioned point that I've found great about having an on-board battery and inverter on the cart is that I can set up and test everything (including getting a "find a clean freq" checkout done) without having to wait for electric to get their distro stuff off the truck, once in a while that extra pre-flight time helps (me, anyway) a lot. Oh yeah, since I have a ton of 4 pin cables, including a few with inline on-off switches, and all my gear has a 4 pin input, I'm not about to make any change over soon.

Jerry

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