Im looking to buy one charger that can do it all charge, discharge and balance etc. I dont mind paying a higher price but want something that is proven and easy to use.
Most importantly it can charge 3-4 batteries simultaneously.

Cheers

They can all do that, its called PARALLEL charging. When looking to buy chargers the numbers you need to look for are WATT OUTPUT. Get the highest rated you can buy, you wont be sorry later.

And another advice when buying is look at the WATT per $$$ value.

150$ rated for 200W is a WAY BETTER deal then 50$ for 50W charger.

can you recommend a charger? im open to suggestions. brand and model?

What type of batteries? Number of cells? Capacity?

Originally Posted by 2dcurb

can you recommend a charger? im open to suggestions. brand and model?

Not at this stage in my hobby, I have only limited experience with different brands BUT enough experience to give you the advice I did about the IMPORTANT numbers to look at when buying. WATTS, WATTS and WATTS.

Tend if you want to figure out if its a good deal then figure out the $$$ per WATT.

Originally Posted by ColinB

What type of batteries? Number of cells? Capacity?

im new to this hobby so will let you know what it reads on my batteries.

lipo 11.1v 2100mah 20C. this battery is from my Align 450 helicopter

and

lipo 11.1v 1300mah 28C
36.4A continuous output
Charge at 1.3A max.

In the future I plan on upgrading to better batteries, more run time and power etc. Maybe I can get away with a charger than can handle almost anything?

There are few chargers that actually have the capability to charge their biggest rated pack at their highest amp rating. Right now, there's about a dozen or so quad chargers that are basically 4 chargers in one, but they're only rated to 50 watts (doing the math, amps x volts = watts, so they're limited to charging a 6s at 2.2 amps, 5s at 2.7 amps, and so on and so forth), even though they say they can charge at up to 6 amps and 6s.

They are good chargers, don't get me wrong, it's just that when it comes to their wattage rating, they fall short. Most people are fine with a simple 50 watt charger, as they don't fly much bigger than a 4s power system. I myself get away nicely with 2 50 watt chargers, but if I were you, I would be looking at 150+ watt chargers, something that can actually charge at close to its rated specs.

A couple recommendations:

HobbyKing Quattro 4x6s
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...Multi_Charger_

HobbyKing EC08:
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...Charger_w/_acc.

Turnigy MAX80W:
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...attery_Charger

Turnigy MEGA 400W:
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...attery_Charger

And of course the humble Accucel-6:
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...w/_accessories

Go to EPBuddy.com and liase with Dale. Discuss your needs. He's in the U.S. also, and will advise in real English. I use the iCharger 1010B+ and would recomend it if that's what you need. There are many other choices in this line. Tex.

This one will do about anything you can imagine. Well almost, it doesn't wash windows.

http://www.revolectrix.com/pl8_description_tab.htm

It might take you a while to grow into it though.

Glen

Originally Posted by ggcrandall1

This one will do about anything you can imagine. Well almost, it doesn't wash windows.

Or take out the trash, or make you breakfast...

Good charger though.

Thanks so much guys will look into these chargers

Originally Posted by 2dcurb

im new to this hobby so will let you know what it reads on my batteries.

lipo 11.1v 2100mah 20C. this battery is from my Align 450 helicopter

and

lipo 11.1v 1300mah 28C
36.4A continuous output
Charge at 1.3A max.

In the future I plan on upgrading to better batteries, more run time and power etc. Maybe I can get away with a charger than can handle almost anything?

A PL8 for a newbie?????

LOTS of different chargers out there and the bigger you go, the more the power supply becomes an issue/expense and some of these guys aren't even talking 'bout power supplies.

For the OP; just get yourself a nice 50W size charger which will handle what you've got and you'll need a power supply for convenience.

Later on when you learn some more about 'lectric powered models and have a better idea of where you'll be going, then you'll most likely be in a better position to make an informed choice about a "charger than can handle almost anything?"

I have several chargers and use 'em for different things I've started doing since I've been playing with RC models and my preference is for the FMA/Revolectrix stuff. Other folks have mentioned some chargers which folks report good results with so you might take a look at those. One additional thought; is there a club you associate with or another fellow modeler? Sometimes getting what others are using can help shorten the learning curve....

Check out the icharger thread running here for a long time. I bought the big one and never looked back. Never had a hick up. Charge about any battery type know to mankind. Mine does 1-10 cells. Adjustable everything. Easy. This unit requires a 14 V DC input to work right. Car battery NG for my use. Update able off the net I think.

Problem with the FMA chargers seems like every month they have a new and improved model.

Buy too small and if you move up to more cells( which you probably will)you get to buy again and again.

Hi,

Maybe this charger can be an alternative for You:

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...Multi_Charger_

/Bo

http://sites.google.com/site/tjinguy...arging-how-tos

4 each 11.1 3S 2100s > 11.1 volt is nominal (low point of charge) ..... fully charged is 12.6 volts.

4 each in PARALLEL is 12.6 volts @ 8.4 amps (2.1 x 4) = 105.84 watts = 1C charge rate.

4 each 3S 1300s in PARALLEL is 12.6 @ 5.2 amps = 65.52 watts = 1C charge rate.

iCharger 206B with PS350 power supply http://www.progressiverc.com would be my suggestion.

Here is David parallel charging 6 packs>

Parallel Charging 6 LiPo Batteries Using iCharger 206B (2 min 2 sec)