Algoforce Battery Options

[HardPack]

Looks good but appears to draw a lot of hostile fire. All I can say is them elk hunters need to get themselves a good mule that doesn’t balk at a stream crossing plus a retainer clip for their Poseidon battery pack. Oddly enough I do find it comforting to know there is a water-proof, bullet-proof battery pack prepared to take on the next ice age but is it…bear proof?

[Aureous]

2 hours ago, phrunt said:

This thing is cheap compared to a Minelab battery for the 5000, 6000 or 7000.

$225 for a 10Ah battery is in no way cheap. At best 4x what its worth. Not in any universe nor planet would I spend more than $50 for that size....'bomb proof' or not. It doesnt do anything that a basic Chinese 10Ah powerbank wouldn't do for our needs. All the extra 'bells n whistles' look like pure wank. But then, Im just a grumpy, pragmatic, lonely old bast%#d lol.

[phrunt]

Still cheaper than a GPX 6000 battery, will last on the detector for about 14 hours, when the 6000 batteries will last under half that run time, and has a whole lot of features the 6000 batteries don't, super build quality, waterproofing, and bomb and bullet proof 🙂 I guess we're just used to paying too much for Minelab gear, so their batteries prices are OK.

 

[Taz]

17 hours ago, Aureous said:

Yeah the video contained all of the BS and wank of a Minelab Ad...which is what made me imagine they were a subsidiary company lol     Plus the price of course 😉 

I remember the gel battery days of the Sds, I myself fell for one is better than the other thing and after buying several brands with various claims and a few hundred bucks later I realised,  I couldn't tell any difference 😄 

Ignore the below emoji, whatever its supposed to represent, hit by accident and can't erase it. 

😶‍🌫️

[phrunt]

I bought myself another battery yesterday, mainly as I wanted to see just how light I can make my Algoforce.  With the detectors weight being 840 grams without power bank and coil it sure is a light detector so worth exploring ways to make the full package as light as possible.

I bought a Momax 10000 mAh battery, it's a slimline version and really is a tiny battery bank.

192 grams, my Belkin which is 200000 mAh is just over double the weight, no surprises there

Both power banks will last over a day's detecting, well the Belkin should get more than two days and so far with my usage, this holds true.

If we compare to the GPX 5000 battery, it's quite funny.

878 grams! 

🙂

This is the Belkin, a bit meatier but still, tiny in comparison.

The little Momax locks in tight, holds in better than the Belkin as the Belkin has more rounded edges making the adjustable rail not as effective, it still holds in perfectly fine, but the Momax holds in place with less effort getting everything tight.

This is the Belkin locked in place, I don't like my USB cable how it is exposed like that so I've ordered a right-angle USB C cable so I can route it right up from the battery to the shaft without it sticking out at all, it should arrive today with any luck.  Then I'll just put the little USB rubber seal covers over any unused ports.

This photo is the rail that you loosen the nuts either side to adjust for different size batteries, and the rail has rubber grip pads on it to stop the battery slipping

This one has cover on its unused ports, they're micro USB covers I've put in USB C ports, not a perfect fit but do the job until my USB-C covers arrive.  I'll use the right-angle USB C cable on this battery too and you can see how if its in the middle port, and routed straight up to the shaft it can be tucked away neatly and not so exposed.

This is the cable I've ordered, in a 25 cm length which should be perfect.  I've also ordered a rounded version of the cord to see which I prefer.

So, with the Nugget Finder Sadie which weighs in at 574 grams I'll have a total weight PI of 1606 grams.  That's not much heavier than the stock GPZ 14x13" coil. 🙂 I don't even know if the Sadie is the lightest coil.  On another note I believe I can see in my Sadies cable they've twisted the wires, I'd like someone with an old Sadie to see if they can see the same with theirs, it would be interesting to see if this is a modern improvement over the older ones for EMI mitigation.

With my Equinox 800 with 11" coil weighing in at 1340 grams, it's not much heavier to be running a PI.  When I say it feels like you're swinging a VLF, I really mean it.

 

[Tony]

I've noticed there is quite a difference between Capacity v Rated Capacity of these style power-banks.

Allowing for the 5V needed v the 3.7V Lithium rated capacity means a 10,000 mAh battery is nearer 6000 mAh in regards to capacity.

Just something to bear in mind when thinking about real run time with the detector. Even then, 6000 mAh should be sufficient for a full days detecting.

And lastly, further capacity is diminished by power losses.

1.    As mentioned earlier, the power bank has native 3.7V, but actually needs to provide 5V. Therefore, the voltage is boosted through the converter circuit placed between the power bank and the charging device, resulting in an initial power loss.

2.   Batteries for electronic devices are made of lithium, and they also operate at 3.7 V, which means that another power conversion has taken place, creating even greater losses.

3.   USB cables also cause power loss due to their internal resistance. This cannot be ignored.

Momex are good in that they state their Capacity is 10,000 mAh but the all important Rated Capacity is 5800 mAh.

Their 20,000 mAh drops to 11,600 mAh........yikes. BTW...This would apply to any powerbank manufacturer.

[phrunt]

Yep, all good points, my Belin is the only one to get real world testing and its looking fine for at least 2 days detecting, it has done one and a half days along with plenty of bursts of testing so overall it's lasted longer than the two days of detecting hours.

The Momax I've not tested properly yet; I think it will outlast the 6000's battery for a day's detecting though 🙂

The genuine sort of brands are pretty good, I'd not go near a dodgy one though knowing they won't cut it for the job.

[Tony]

I mainly threw out the information for the new-comer who might not be aware of true battery capacity. I can imagine them thinking that their detector draws "X" mAh and then relating that figure to their battery Capacity. An example would be the Algoforce drawing 700 mAh and then expecting a 10,000 mAh battery running the detector for over 14 hours......that same battery should run the detector for just over 8 hours...according to the spec sheets on battery and detector.

It's a far cry from those SLA batteries we used to strap to ourselves back in the day !

 

 

[phrunt]

My Momax cost me $36 NZD delivered, $22 USD.   It's so cool being able to get such cheap batteries to run a detector, and I can use it for other stuff like my phone too.

[Tony]

Just to summarise.......all Power Banks when delivering USB power (5V) will lose about 25% capacity straight away. "Efficiency Losses" will depend upon quality of manufacturer with the best losing only an additional few percentage in capacity. The worst performers can lose an additional 10% or more in capacity. Some manufacturers advertise these specifications and others don't. I think ultimately you get what you pay for and buying higher quality powerbanks is the way to go. They are definitely not created equal. Unfortunately, the Momex must have very significant efficiency losses based upon dropping from 20,000 mAh to 11600 mAh (the first 5000 mAh capacity loss is to be expected in this case).....but kudos to them for including the specs.