Battery voltage

[Danny RossParticipant @dannyross25552]

Hello, My dear wife bought an Occre Ulises for me for Xmas. 1st boat and its been a mission. Bought the recommended motor from always hobbies (12volt). The battery they suggest is 6 volt. Am I missing something, or is this the norm to reduce speed?

Kind regards

Danny

[Danny RossParticipant @dannyross25552]

Occre Ulises

[Dave MilbournParticipant @davemilbourn48782]

Hi Danny

I have no knowledge of the model but, in general, following the kit manual in respect of the motor and battery is seldom a bad idea. And yes – using 6v on a 12v motor will produce much lower RPM.

Dave M

[Danny RossParticipant @dannyross25552]

Hello Dave,

Thanks for the prompt reply, I'll go with the 6 volt battery; what's the worst that can happen!

Kind regards

Danny

[ashley needhamParticipant @ashleyneedham69188]

CMB lists this kit, a tug 830mm long if memory serves (2 mins ago). Assuming a 540/1 motor was specified, this should be ok for use on 6v on a model like this.

Ashley

[Malcolm FraryParticipant @malcolmfrary95515]

Agreeing with DM, running a specific motor on a reduced voltage often produces the required power characteristics that a particular model needs well within the capabilities of the motor. The kit was probably designed around using a 6 volt SLA which would provide both required ballast and power. Personally, today, I would opt for a 6 volt NiMH pack of similar capacity and make up the weight with separate ballast. Looking after NiMH batteries over time is simpler than doing the same for SLA, but that's just an opinion.

Running on less than the maximum specified voltage of a motor usually increases its life expectancy a lot while still moving the boat as intended. So no worries.

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

Yes, I think you would need to have pretty good reasons for favouring SLAs over NiMH cells + ballast in most situations. The latter give greater capacity, are more tolerant and offer better opportunities to improve stability.

Colin

[Danny RossParticipant @dannyross25552]

Hello,

Thanks for the feed back; makes sense to use four NiMH connected in parallel, still maintain weight / ballast and double ah capacity. I Will have to fit some lights now, I'll be at the lake all night!!!

Kind regards

Danny

[Dave MilbournParticipant @davemilbourn48782]

Danny

That would be five x NiMH cells connected in series for 6v – but who's arguing, especially at this time of night?

Dave M

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