Clark TK22

[tao]

Thanks for the clarification Michael! Wouldn't a little step down to drop and regulate the voltage be an easy fix?

[MichaelC]

Yes if you want to run 9.6v for the motors/smokers and 7.2/7.4v for the electronics. I wouldn't bother if it is just simply a case of freshly charged lipo. Basically Clark's advice was not to over-charge the lipos too much. Clark board was not designed for lipos so I can't really fault him for it. Also, Clark board does have some voltage capacitor or some kind that will withstand high voltage input for about 5-10 seconds. So if you hear a clicking sound when you fire up your tank you should turn it off right away.

I am not too sure if it has been address by Clark, but I haven't had that happen for about 6 months now. I killed about 3 boards last summer because of this but as always was fixed by Clark with minimal charge.

[tomhugill]

A freshly charged nimh will weigh in around 9v but I guess the voltage sag under load will stop damage.

[wibblywobbly]

Edit - It was late and I was tired, no idea why I totally ignored the fact that you already had the TK22.

If it was me, I would install the Clark and a 7.2v battery. The tank will run slightly slower, but it won't make a huge difference. While you are at it, you can simplify the wiring for the turret, you just need to get hold of an HL RX18 wiring set which can be bought from various sources. I seem to recall doing an RX18 conversion on one years ago, and it ran ok, probably more true to scale speed if anything.

Rob

[silversurfer1947]

HL RX 18 wiring set ordered. When I get stuck, I know who to ask

[Dr Phibes]

My Torro KT came set and running on a 6 cell NiMh.
Fully charged this about 8.6V on one I have and nearly 9.0v on another. All the spec I have seen on the Clark boards specify 7.2v - 7'4v. The voltage drop on the NiMh is however sufficient to bring the voltage into an acceptable range (clearly, or Clark boards would generally fry on 6 cells) but on 8 cells I doubt this would be the case, without a regulator at least. Lipo technology is quite different - a fully charged 2s (7.4v nominal) in good condition will hold 8.4v (4.2v per cell) and under load it will not drop anything like NiMh. Also, 8.4v for a 2 cell lipo is not over-charge it's full charge so to get it down to 7.2-7.4v range you have to dis-charge to nominal voltage, which is below even storage voltage (3.85v per cell). At 3.5v I'm looking to re-charge my lipos and some argue this is too low (typically 3.6-3.65v is recommended).
All of which makes me wonder what the supply voltage margins are on Clark boards as I can't find this information, or any other detailed specifications, unless I'm not looking in the right place?