Halos and Rechargeables

[surfbum]

so i am officially sick of buying batteries for my halos, especially when they can eat up juice even when they are turned off. i managed to get ahold of some rechargeable AA batteries but they seem to run out so fast because they are 1.2V instead of 1.5V. ive been thinking about using rechargeable 9V and ive come up with two different options.

OPTION 1:
the standard rechargeable 9V is rated at 8.4V. because halos can take up to 18V i could buy 2 8.4V rechargeables and power my halo that way.

OPTION 2:
i have found a rechargeable 9V that is actually rated for 9.6V. i could use just one of these and run my halo off of this.

the reason i am debating between these options is mainly cost. the charger rated to charge the 9.6V costs ~$30, while the charger to charge the 8.4V only costs ~$6. the individual batteries cost $10 for the 9.6V or $7 for the 8.4V.

Total cost (to power 2 halos):
OPTION 1: ~$36
OPTION 2: ~$50

besides which one costs more, is there any specific reason why i should go with one option over the other? what would you guys choose? thanks for your help

[SR_matt]

how do the halos take 18 volts?

running 2 9volts you run them in parallel not in series, to give more amps hours at the same volts amount.

if the halos can stand the 9.4 consistantly id go with that because, if i remember basic electronics from physics, the 9.4 will give a faster speed.

-matt

[surfbum]

i swear ive read somewhere that halo boards could handle an input of up to 18V

[benzy2]

What you read was someone running two 9volts that were wired parallel to each other. This still only gives 9volts to the board, which is what it wants, but it gives you twice the mah which is basically the life of the battery. Dont, DONT, DONT run 18volts into the board. You can use two 9volts but not in series. You want the positives wired together and the negatives wired together. That will work and give you longer life. You can get connectors at radio shack for a few bucks and do it yourself. There are tons of diagrams if you dont know what you are doing on pbnation. I would just try that first.

[FiXeL]

Get a battery pack with 8 AAA batteries and a decent charger... You'll have 700-800 mAh capacity that way instead of ~500 mAh with a dual 9V block setup. Just charge it the day before playing and you don't have to worry about running out of juice. I can shoot 3000 balls with one charge with ease, maybe more but i rarely shoot more than a box a day.

[SR_matt]

the boost pack i got for my reloader b will go i think some where between 7 and 10 cases on one charge (ive gone at least 4 cases, probably more like 5, over a 4 month span and see no slowing down at all on this charge)

-matt