On Sat, 10 Apr 2004 9:00:27 -0500, Ron Hardin wrote
(in message ):

I need to toss out NiMH batteries that won't hold enough charge (the
Pogo RipFlash destroys itself if the battery dies while recording).

Is there a quick way to test battery capacity?


I have yet to write up a mini-review on the CCrane QuickCharger Battery
Charger" but I think that's it's "interesting" to note that I have never had
a NiMH battery that failed to charge (out of mebbe 50 that I use).

Now - a /lot/ of them are in lowdrain devices, small clocks (about 2 or 3 of
these with one AAA), over 300 remotes that are under the sofa cushions as
well as the three that are on the coffee table as well as the three SW's (on
standby battery power) as well as various gee-gaws and gadgets. (Also note
that I, originally, bought a couple of 9v "transistor" [grin] batteries but
gave them away and went to alkalines on those devices (nearly all AC=powered
with 9v backup (weather radios and such).

The CCrane charger has a selectable "low drain" that can be automatic or
user-selected.

And you can check out a single battery by just inserting one battery in the
charger and leaving the translucent cover in place (I gort the older boy one
for Christmas and he caught this as I had missed it [sigh].)

You might be interested in downloading the instruction manual.


The reason I bought this - and it is not clear in their ads for some stupid
reason, I had to call - is that it charges "up to four" cells.


Does that mean that it can charge 1 cell, 2 cells, 3 cells or 4 cells?

[sound of trumpets sounding a clarion call]

Yes, that's exactly what that means. I figgered forty bucks ($30 return price
most times) was just a nifty price to pay to charge one of the 37 clocks that
use one cell or the shortwave radio that uses three cells.

And I was right; looks good - lasts a long time.


Gray Shockley
--------------------------
Entropy Maintenance Technician
Tao Chemical Company
--------------------------

http://www.compcomm.com/
Vicksburg, Mississippi US






At the moment I am resorting to a slow process

1. Put battery pair in RipFlash

2. Start recording, note the time when the first battery bar goes out.

3. Test the voltage of the batteries; label the weakest one with the
time and put the strongest one, recharged, back in the pool.

4. Take a new charged pair from the pool and repeat.

Eventually you get a set of batteries that last long enough for the
purpose, and a batteries labelled with time according to their weakness
that won't.

It's a little slow though.

Something that simply discharged the batteries and measured the
total energy or something would do better.