Hi all
My trusty VX-5r has developed a fault. Can anyone tell me if the charging circuit is in the main body of the rig or built into the battery pack? The battery is not being detected and thus not charging. External supply ok and giving voltage on battery pins. Battery only giving 2V. Don’t want to spend ~£60 pounds on a new Lion if its a microprocessor fault :-(.
Any suggestions welcome - this rig has been used on every activation I’ve done and is covered in scratches and mud to prove it.
2V for a 2 cell Lion pack means totally dead. It won’t recover. It is correct not to attempt to charge it. What you don’t know is whether a fault in the radio killed it, or whether it died of old age.
How many connections does the pack have? 2 or 3? If 3, then they are probably connected to the raw cells and the protection circuitry will be in the radio. If 2, then there should be a circuit in the battery pack - but there may not be, and that may account for premature failure if the cells became unbalanced.
(Essentially there’s no way to handle a series connected lithium pack properly without being able to monitor individual cells).
If the pack is more than a couple of years old or has had more than a couple of hundred cycles then I’d be inclined to risk getting a new one. If it is relatively new then I’d be a bit suspicious of the radio, but it would doubtless cost you a fair bit just to get it checked out. That would be annoying if nothing was wrong - and you still need a new battery anyway.
If it is relatively new then I’d be a bit suspicious of the
radio, but it would doubtless cost you a fair bit just to get it
checked out.
Now you know why sites like eBay exist. That’s where all the iffy gear ends up!
Perhaps someone local has the same radio and you can see if your radio will charge their partly discharged battery. That would let you know if the radio was OK. As Martin says, if the voltage is so low on a twin cell Lion pack, it is almost certain to be dead. What you don’t know is whether it died or was pushed.
In reply to MM0FMF & M1MAJ:
Thanks both for replies. Radio is about 4 years old and Lion is the original.
I’m reluctant to try someone else’s battery in case the set is faulty and damages theirs. I think i’ll just treat myself to a new hand held and use the VX5 on an external supply as a monitor in my workshop (attic).
