enginear joe Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 I got a USA Trains box car that came with three six volt batteries inside (18V). I think they're ni-cads but they're very heavy. They seem to have a full charge. I believe they were assembled by Stan C years back. I haven't figured out what to use this car for. I need to first figure out if I can re-charge it if I use it. I'd hate to spend a ton on a set-up just for this car. I have several cordless drills that have varying voltages (12, 14.4?, 9, but no 18). I'm trying to find out if I could use any of their chargers to re-charge this car? I have a small automotive charger that can be set for 6 or 12 volts. Maybe I could charge one at a time? It would probably be a hastle to get at each. Should I just yank out the batteries? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rayman4449 Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 I would probably just invest in an inexpensive 18v charger and not mess with charging individually as you will hate using it because of the effort to charge the batteries. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kevin Strong Posted July 13, 2014 Share Posted July 13, 2014 Those are sealed lead acid batteries, aka "gel-cells." In terms of battery technology, it's pretty outdated. They're 4 amp-hour batteries--which is a decent capacity, but how old are those batteries? Gel-cell longevity falls off as the batteries get old. You can use the automotive battery charger set to 6 volts and charge one at a time easy enough. You'll spend a whole lot of time waiting... and waiting... and waiting... for the batteries to charge. I've never seen a fast charger for gel-cells. (Granted, I stopped looking 25 years ago when we switched to NiCads.) Frankly, I'd ditch 'em for running locomotives. You can get 18-volt Li-Ion packs with the same capacity that take up the same space, and likely weigh less than one of those packs. They'll also charge a whole lot faster. Use the Gel-cells for building lights or something like that. Later, K Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enginear joe Posted July 13, 2014 Author Share Posted July 13, 2014 Thank you guys! great info. I couldn't sign on this morning until now? So I just read this. I believe these were never used. The car's wheels were un-run. The battery car had a broken fuse holder and all the paper work and fittings looked un-touched. I hated to throw away something un-used. I just don't do battery. Maybe someone else would want them but shipping them would seem a waste or hastle. There's some type of Crest power protector? inline that looks cool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jerry B44 Posted July 18, 2014 Share Posted July 18, 2014 Might check with Stan about it, when he gets back. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
enginear joe Posted July 19, 2014 Author Share Posted July 19, 2014 Thanks Jerry! Stan saw the car when I got it and said it was probably built by him. It must have sat on a shelf for a long time somewhere. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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