My DIY "Megabond" portable power station

With 125Ah available, you should install a couple of electric motors and let it drive itself around.

Dave F.

tetrode wrote in post #10245780
With 125Ah available, you should install a couple of electric motors and let it drive itself around.

Dave F.

Nice! now we're talking. Subscribed

MinGrey02Stg2 wrote in post #10245556
Yeah the only thing I really worry about is dirt and little things getting through the fan hole. I won't be using my strobes in the rain so this thing probably won't see it either.

Then you'd have to add filters and what not. If it isn't in the rain, no worries. Love your work!

Does the "power jack" inverter have chassis ground?

Are you connecting battery ground to chassis ground?

AlanU wrote in post #10247450
Does the "power jack" inverter have chassis ground?

Are you connecting battery ground to chassis ground?

The inverter has positive, negative, and ground terminals. The ground terminal will be used with a grounding spike.

Wow! Great work!

this is what i call a 'power plant'

I really want to pull the trigger on this, but the form factor and weight makes this out of the question for accessing a remote shoot location (think a beach/sand) or hilly area. the vagabond II is 20lbs, which is a lot of weight when walking from A to B, but not 40-60.

I'm not knocking your setup, as it is very cool. i'm at this phase where i either pull the trigger on a vagabond or build my own.

Great work!!!
Whenever I see something like this I always wonder why everybody is using lead-acid batteries instead of lithium-polymers??? Much bigger power density, could be as much as 50% (maybe 70%) lighter for the same power...

cvt01 wrote in post #10267455
Great work!!!
Whenever I see something like this I always wonder why everybody is using lead-acid batteries instead of lithium-polymers??? Much bigger power density, could be as much as 50% (maybe 70%) lighter for the same power...

My guess is price, most lithium polymer batteries are a tad more expensive (at least in my neck of the woods) than lead acid batteries ..

But I would call this project the Mega-hobo because it goes far beyond the vagabond

Great project!

Lithium batteries aren't ideal because thry don't have a great ability to provide a huge surge of power. They're more suited to a constant, low draw output. Flash units pull quite heavy loads when they recycle, making lead acid batteries a better choice. There are certain lithium batteries out there that can do it, but they're very pricey and lose their charge over time much faster than lead acid ones.

Lipo batteries need special care in the charging and discharging. They require special chargers and each cell must remain balanced. If they are over charged or discharged to far they may never be recoverable. Here is a sample my brother did with a puffed 5000mah 11.1 volt 3 cell pack rapidly charging.

They have an extremely high discharge rate and I feel they would work well for certain tasks. However, users must be educated in their proper use. I personally know of a few people that have burnt rooms, or their entire homes while charging Lipo's unattended. They've also been know for igniting in hot vehicles too. Fireproof containers should be used while charging or in transport.

MinGrey02Stg2 wrote in post #10268641
They're more suited to a constant, low draw output. Flash units pull quite heavy loads when they recycle, making lead acid batteries a better choice.

I would disagree, 10 cell 5500 MAH batteries can be drained in less than 10 minutes with a 18lb RC helicopter. High power constant drain and provide virtually no drop off in power until their cutoff voltage. The battery powers not only the motor but all electronics.

Lipo batteries would be better suited for portable packs to power the smaller flashes or even camera bodies because of their power to weight ratio. I've got a junk grip for my old XT that I'm going to test a 2350 mah Lipo in to check the number of exposures before recharges.

Lead acid batteries are much safer. Deep Cycle Marine will work, Gel or AGM would be better suited because they're sealed where most deep cycle need to be ventilated. Gel cell can have a hole shot all the way through it and they will not leak.

With a charge controller you can maintain a peak charge either at home, in your car or with a solar panel.

Last year I built a small power setup for charging batteries and to run an ASUS mini laptop and video receiver. (it left with a project). The 18ah battery would drain in about 20 minutes just with this little amount of power needed (about 5 watts)... But when a simple 25 watt solar panel was attached I could run as many things as I wanted all day long in direct sunlight. It also had an inverter and was about 1/4 the size as this platform, and cost around $450. The only thing I'd change is battery size. 18ah battery was used because of the weight restriction of the project.

I like what you've done, great project. Do you plan on using it for anything other than lights? Will it get daily or weekly use?

TroyRaymond wrote in post #10271493
I would disagree, 10 cell 5500 MAH batteries can be drained in less than 10 minutes with a 18lb RC helicopter. High power constant drain and provide virtually no drop off in power until their cutoff voltage. The battery powers not only the motor but all electronics.

I like what you've done, great project. Do you plan on using it for anything other than lights? Will it get daily or weekly use?

I understand they may have a decent discharge rate, but what about their surge rate? The battery pack for your heli uses probably around 16 to 20g wire and is plenty for the current that the servos/motor pull. I'd bet it doesn't have the surge power to start a small motorcycle engine, though. It would take a hell of a lipo pack to deliver 875 amps for 30 seconds like the lead acid battery in my setup is capable of. I would much rather run lipo packs if they were ideal because their weight would be such a help, but it would hurt the bank to see strobes fry them because their short surges.