Multistar 5200 batts

Posted by Jeff Colhoun on February 25, 2015 at 10:45pm

I picked up a few of these Multistar 5200 batteries.  Had an incident with the battery that came with my plus and lets just say im lucky i used a lipo bag.  

What are peoples experiences with these?  Im getting about 9 minutes with a gimbal, fatshark vtx, minimosd and fatshark camera.  Does anyone have any experience with both that can confirm this is normal or if these batteries are just crap?  Im getting about .7 to.9v in sag.

Im basically trying to determine whether a 3dr battery will add a significant increase in flight time.

Im overall unimpressed with this thing.  I ditched the self tightening props for 10x47s because of the power issue and its still a bit of a hog.  I needed something cheaper than another discovery pro for travel that didnt say DJI on the side and im starting to wish it did...

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Replies

  • Erik Graham February 26, 2015 at 5:49am
    Using 3DR batteries I've gotten 11+ minute flight times on a few occasions in 0 to 10 degree Fahrenheit temperatures with a DYS 3 axis (I forget the weight, but it's more than tarot 2D). I assume it will be better in spring, summer, fall.

    Based on your post, I guess I should start using the LiPo bag. I used it at first, but lately I've been lazy about it. Overconfident I guess.
  • Mark Prince February 26, 2015 at 5:20am

    Jeff,

    I have the original Iris that has been upgraded to Iris+. The 3DR battery rocks. It's only 8C so it's very light and you should never need more 48 amps anyway. With full payload hover i'm still under 20 amps

    With Tarot gimbal (200 grams) gopro (75 grams) and the long Iris+ legs I get 14 to 15 minutes easy being on the ground by 10.6 volts

    In stock form I get 20 to 21 minutes. I'm using the self tightening props, motors and arms that came with the Iris+ upgrade kit.

    Since Jan 2014 with the original Iris (which sucked) and through the upgrade I have tried about 12 different batteries including the one you are using and nothing has come close to what I get with the 3DR 5100mah 3s battery.

    I was in the same boat as you with the original Iris. I was going to scrap it and build something else just to have enough power to lift the gimbal, camera and long legs. I can say that the Iris+ has exceeded expectations. Without any payload it's over powered and a blast to fly. With the full payload it's still got power to spare. I think they just hit the right combination of battery, motors, props and weight. The Iris+ plus arms and legs are much lighter than the original Iris.

    I actually discarded the original Iris motors since they were junk. Not only were they weak but I had several motor failures.

    I don't know the full weight of your payload but I am surprised you aren't getting better times. My battery failsafe is set at 10.3 volts which I never get to. My cardinal rule is to be on the ground before I hit 10.5 volts

    mp

    • Jimmy Oliver > Mark Prince February 26, 2015 at 8:10am

      Jeff - What motors did you end up buying?

    • Jimmy Oliver > Jimmy Oliver February 26, 2015 at 8:11am

      I mean, Mark

    • Mark Prince > Jimmy Oliver February 26, 2015 at 9:13am

      The Iris to Iris+ upgrade kit came with the same motors that the Iris+ comes with (950KV). https://store.3drobotics.com/products/motor-cw-950kv

      There are two models CW and CCW threads for the self tightening props. The original Iris had 880KV motors. So that means they went up on the motor speed and down on the prop length. Along with the lighter arms it made a huge difference for me.

      mp

    • Mark Prince > Mark Prince February 26, 2015 at 5:32am

      If you want me to I can do a full payload hover to 10.5 this weekend and post the log. 

  • Hans Miller February 26, 2015 at 1:07am

    These batteries are utter crap. I bought four to test them for possible future use and the rubbish bin is the only place for them. I'm estimating their true usable capacity at around 2.5 Ah.

    • Jeff Colhoun > Hans Miller February 26, 2015 at 1:23am
      Maybe that's why im having to land at 2500mah. I assumed the current sensor was wrong because i had to go in and mess with the voltage to make it accurate.

      You had a similar experience?
    • Hans Miller > Jeff Colhoun February 26, 2015 at 2:07am

      Absolutely. 

  • Dan McKenna February 25, 2015 at 10:51pm

    The good news is that your Plus did not fall out of the sky.

    Did you get any warning signs like, hot battery or swelling?

    How many charge cycles before the incident?

This reply was deleted.