Need AC/DC Charger With More Than 50W / 5A on AC Power

[Pavmentsurfer]

I have a TP610AC/DC for exactly the same reason your looking for one. I looked and looked for a charger that could do 10 amps on AC for a reasonable price and this was the best option I could find... in a quality charger. id never trust my packs to an AC6 or something from turnigy. I ove it. I only charge 2S packs and for me it will charge on AC at 10 full amps until the last little bit of a 6500mah 2S pack at which point it drops to 9 amps till the pack is full.

On DC it will maintain a full 10 amps obviously.

 

[MailManX]

I have a TP610AC/DC for exactly the same reason your looking for one. I looked and looked for a charger that could do 10 amps on AC for a reasonable price and this was the best option I could find... in a quality charger. id never trust my packs to an AC6 or something from turnigy. I ove it. I only charge 2S packs and for me it will charge on AC at 10 full amps until the last little bit of a 6500mah 2S pack at which point it drops to 9 amps till the pack is full.

On DC it will maintain a full 10 amps obviously.

Thanks for letting us know this. I've never owned a Thunder Power charger, but I know they have a great reputation. I wish they would publish this AC output in their specs. If they did, I'd have ordered one. But that's OK. I'm constantly experimenting. If I end up not liking one or both of the sets I just purchased, I'll be looking once again and this TP will be a giant blip on my radar.

 

[Col_Sanders]

I wish I had known that as well. So far I am happy with my 106B Plus and my Juicebox power supply, but I would prefer to have one thing to pack instead of two.

 

[Pavmentsurfer]

Just remember about the Dynamite Passport line. Their Passport Ultra Force AC/DC is a 200 watt charger that will do up to 10 amps. They make great quality stuff. I had the Passport Ultra and it would charge to the max specs on AC all day long.

Amain has the Ultra Force on sale right now for $119... I'm going to pick one up.

 

[MailManX]

Just remember about the Dynamite Passport line. Their Passport Ultra Force AC/DC is a 200 watt charger that will do up to 10 amps. They make great quality stuff. I had the Passport Ultra and it would charge to the max specs on AC all day long.

Amain has the Ultra Force on sale right now for $119... I'm going to pick one up.

This is frustrating! Yet another quality charger whose parent company fails at writing specifications. Pretty much every RC enthusiast I know loves to quote specs on everything they own. Yet, when you look up the specs on AC/DC chargers, 90-percent of them do NOT show the difference between the AC and DC specifications even though you know there has to be a difference. Rather, they use generic verbiage like "Up to" or "Maximum". How much would it cost to make two columns of specs, one for AC and one for DC? I can understand why it's not done with the low-quality underpowered AC chargers. But when good quality high-powered AC chargers leave off the AC specs, I think it costs them sales. I'd have purchased either a Thunder Power or a Dynamite had I known they could produce such decent output on AC power.

On a different note: I always find it interesting to read product reviews on various sites. So many times, the 1-star reviews are written by complete nut jobs. On the Horizon Hobby website, one guy gave the DYN4105 a 1-star review because it does not have "Storage Charge" capability. He's wrong. It does, and it's easy to access just like any other charger with a similar 4-button control panel. A different reviewer gave it a 2-star rating because the 1-sheet instruction sheet was cluttered, hard to read and had some errors. Boo-freaking-hoo! Does it affect the operation of the charger? The old saying is true: "If you try to make something idiot-proof, some people will become better idiots."

 

[Brainanator]

I might be a little late to the party, but:
Thunder 0620AC 300Watt 20Amp Dual Charger w/ Built-n AC Power Supply
Looks like a pretty good option if you want an AC/DC all in one with some power. Finding it in stock would be another matter though.

 

[Wade]

My 2 cents. <$300...........

Buy a power supply and a cellpro pl6 with the paraboard setup..................and never look back. High quality charger, will charge in 10 minutes, multiple batteries, start your car, run your coffee pot, refrigerator, band saw,TV, and power New Yorks power grid lol.

Cheers,
Wade

 

[MailManX]

I've never owned a Thunder Power charger, but I know they have a great reputation. I wish they would publish this AC output in their specs. If they did, I'd have ordered one. But that's OK. I'm constantly experimenting. If I end up not liking one or both of the sets I just purchased, I'll be looking once again and this TP will be a giant blip on my radar.

10 months later and I'm posting an update to the thread that I started. My goal was to find a "portable" charger to haul around in my travel bag. As such, I wanted an integrated AC/DC charger with high quality and the most possible amps from the internal power supply.

Of the two systems that I purchased to test, I preferred the Hitec X1 MF AC/DC because it is more compact than the Turnigy Accucel-6 (80W, 6A) DC Only. I like the Accucel-6, but I do not like also having to carry a power brick for it. The Hitec is plastic, but well made. I also like using a knob to quickly rotate through settings. However, I kept longing for a bit more power.

A few months ago, I gave in and purchased a TP610C-ACDC. It is really hard to find that unit on sale. I finally purchased it online from RCPlanet.com for their regular price of $109.95, but I had a rare 10% off coupon. The shipping was free and it was out-of-state for me, so I did not have to pay tax. That put the final price to my door at $98.95.

Was it worth that price? Heck yeah! It is super TOUGH so I don't have to worry about it in my travel bag. The internal AC is the strongest of any charger that size. I also like that the DC input wires are quite long and have alligator clips. If I'm out with my grandson just bashing around, I can attach it to my car battery. This is a super flexible charger with a lot of charging options. Check out this EXCELLENT TUTORIAL:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YNTL8-y0hYs

I still use a much larger DC charger at home, but the Thunder Power is exactly what I had been looking for on the road.

 

[Pavmentsurfer]

Ive always preached the merits of the TP610AC/DC... I recent just switched to a Dynamite Passport Ultraforce. Its got a 200 watt internal power supply and can therefore charge most 3S packs at a full 10 amps. Its an extremely well built unit and is very user friendly. My only 2 complaints are 1: Its size. Its big. Way bigger than the TP610... but its more powerful so I guess thats liveable. And 2: it requires a jumper plug to be inserted in the DC power port when using the 120volt power cord. It seems pointless and its one more thing you need to carry with you. Not a deal breaker, but something to know. This model is now discontinued and is replaced by the Ultraforce 220watt touch. Its smaller and doesnt need the jumper plug, but its also $169... I paid just about $120 for my ultraforce 200.

When its all said and done, the TP610 is a pretty hard bargain to beat.