Handheld VHF charger

Lady Campanula

Lady Campanula

N/A
Joined
26 Dec 2009
Messages
5,000
Location
Tottington Hall, near Bury, in the Duchy of Lancas
Visit site
I'm trying to check out the Simrad TC50 trickle charger device for my handheld VHF.

It accepts 12V DC via a 3mm jackplug and should output 'something' via 4 springloaded studs which make corresponding contact with their oppos on the handset,

If I push 12V power into the trickle charger, what should a test meter's probes show me if the thing is functioning?

:)
 
Good question, do you have the radio? It should tell you the working voltage & charge rate. In fact doesn't the charger have a label on it with i/p & o/p Volts & amps?

Why not measure it & see? Do you get the charging light on when you put the radio in the charger?

The battery pack in the radio doesn't have to be 12v (ie 10 rechargeable cells) it could be 9.6 (8 cells) or even 7.2v. (6cells) or some other multiple of 1.2v.
 
Searush said:
Good question, do you have the radio? It should tell you the working voltage & charge rate.

Not this one.... and the device + charger is to hand, with the boat 3 hours fast/5 hours slow drive away. There could be a cable corrosion issue with the 12v supply lead on the boat, which I cannot check at present

In fact doesn't the charger have a label on it with i/p & o/p Volts & amps?

Nope. "For 12V DV operation only"

Why not measure it & see?

There are 4 contacts on the charger. I shall measure it as soon as I can. Knowing what to expect if serviceable - or not - would be helpful.

Do you get the charging light on when you put the radio in the charger?

No. There is an ambiguous comment on the Simrad .pdf re cleaning contacts. That's been done.

The battery pack in the radio doesn't have to be 12v (ie 10 rechargeable cells) it could be 9.6 (8 cells) or even 7.2v. (6cells) or some other multiple of 1.2v.

Yes. The voltage across the 2 terminals of the NC07 700mAh Ni-Cad battery is 7.63
Click to expand...

The handset appears now to function, although I don't know how well charged the thing is. For now, it's an ill-understood and unresolved small issue, thanks. I'm going to ( try to ) open a beer. Maybe I can still handle that....

Practice makes perfect.

:D
 
Last edited:
The easiest way to test if the charging is working would be to measure the battery voltage, put it on charge and recheck the battery voltage.
Even after 15mins charging you should see a significant rise in battery voltage if you test it just as its come off the charger.
 
Searush said:
Do you get the charging light on when you put the radio in the charger?
Click to expand...

you should be a red light flashing on the charger when the radio/battery is being charged, it should take around 14/16 hours to charge then when it is charged the light will change to green.

are you using the mat50 uk 240v to 12v dc charger, or the 12v ships supply lead.

If you have the rapid charger which is quicker than the mat 50 charger it will take around 1 hr 30 mins to charge.

Have you checked the simrad manual which you can download from the simrad site, ht50/51 uses same hc50 charger
 
Last edited:
I think you will find the above info about the lights on the charger is wrong.

According to the on-line charger instructions:

The LED on the front of the charger indicates the status of
the battery pack -
Steady Red : Charger on, no battery
Flashing Green : Charging
Steady Green : Charged / Holding charge​
.

According to the radio instructions:

Except when adjusting the volume or squelch level, the bar
graph on the display shows the battery charge level (Fig 2.6).
This indicates the voltage at the battery terminals, not necessarily
the charge stored. Ten or nine bars indicate a fully charged
battery, three or four bars mean the battery is almost drained.
A more accurate indication of the battery state will be obtained
by transmitting briefly on high power​

HENCE
The red/green lights on the charger should indicate whether or not the battery is charging and when it is charged.
The bar graph on the display should confirm that the battery is charged.


There is no information in either the radio or the charger instructions, other than the above, which is useful for checking the charger. No information as to which is what out of the four contacts


Note however that in order to charge the battery the charger must be switched on before inserting the battery ( the opposite perhaps of what comes naturally)

The battery can be charged separately, or fitted to the radio
as shown. Insert the battery with the charging contacts
pointing backwards into the charging pocket and push
firmly down until the contacts engage into the charger. To
ensure the battery is fully charged, turn the radio off.
Switching the TC50 on with the battery already inserted will set
the charger to Holding Charge Mode. To full charge a discharged
battery, switch the TC50 on, then insert the battery.​
 
Last edited:
12v charger for HH

Another option to test if the charger is charging is to measure current from the 12v supply. This can easily be done by putting your multimeter on amps across the on off switch of the 12v supply. This is best as it will check integrity of 12v supply plug /socket however if that is difficult wire the multimeter on amps between the socket and plug. You should measure something close to actual charging current. ie around the 50 to 100 milliamps. (guess here) good luck (and happy Christmas) olewill
 
Thanks, guys, all that's hoisted in. The handset belongs on a boat about 150 miles away I'm now looking after, and has been left 9-10 months without use. The trickle charger, with the handset pocketed, was hardwired into the 12VDC supply busbar and NO lights, neither Green nor Red, have been visible. I was unable to switch the handset ON in the boat, so brought the whole kit home for a closer look.

I have now been able to switch the handset ON and OFF with perseverance, and the charge display shows 8 bars of 10. The NiCad battery output measures 7.62VDC. All contacts, internal and external, have now been scraped. So the handset is functional.

I've tried connecting the charger to a car's 12v lighter outlet, without any lights showing. I now need a better procedure for checking the charger, as a new one is around £60.
 
Last edited:
You say the charger was originally hardwired to the boat's 12volt system. BUT you second picture appears to show it now being connected via another charger that plugs into the car ciggy lighter.

If that is so that charger will probably be delivering a voltage below the 11-16.5 specified for the TC50.

Do away with the ( what is it a mobile phone charger) extra charger and connect the TC50 directly to a 12 volt source as per the instructions. Alternatively use the recommended mains power supply unit or an equivalent.

The lights should be visible, I think, in the window at the bottom of the charger.


Do the above and then if you still need to check the charger output look for an output between any two of the 4 contacts. It looks as though only three may be used anyway. Even then not guaranteeing you'll find anything meaningful.

I have little faith in NiCds ... the battery pack may be knackered.
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.

Share this page

Top