iCharger 4010 Duo vs 308

[rs2k]

The parts I got to modify my PSUs don't fit, so I won't be taking them apart tonight. I was planning on changing the way they get AC power. I can give you the basic overview of the process for now though.

Be careful while working on the inside of the PSU. Capacitors may retain voltage. Also, make sure you don't try to do this while it's plugged in.

First, remove the screws holding the case of the PSU together.
Then, remove the case. You'll need a butter knife or something else which can slide between the metal case and the plastic insulator sleeve so you can separate the plastic sleeve from the metal case. It's hot glued to the metal case.
Then, unbolt the nut and four screws holding the small PCB. Two screws go into the case, and two hold the two large power transfer tabs to the output standoffs on the large PCB.
Then, you can remove the small PCB from the large PCB and the case of the PSU. I found that unplugging the fan helped with removal. Don't forget to plug the fan back in though. The PSU won't turn on without a fan connected.
If you're making this PSU a floating DC PSU, the next step is to remove the large PCB. There are four screws that hold it to the large PCB to the case. The AC plug should also be removed. It's easy to remove the AC plug from the case one you figure it out. It's hard to explain how to do it though. There are small tabs that hold it in that can be pressed in for removal. Once the large PCB is removed, turn it over and use a dremal to sand away the metal from the spot where the metal feet attach near where the small PXB goes. There are also two small stiff metal jumpers that you need to cut near the same area. Your goal here is to make sure when you screw the large PCB back into the case that you have no continuity between the DC ground and the case. You also need to sand away a little metal from the top of the PCB as well. (This is MUCH easier to do then it sounds. Pictures will help.) Once that's done you can put the large PCB back in and screw it down. If you are not floating the DC ground you skip all that. If doing a24v setup, only one of the two PSUs need the DC to float.
Then, you can make a few solder connections on the small PCB. (Pictures will make this clear). If you don't want to do this you can also use servo wire connectors to make a small harness instead.
Then, you put the small PCB back in and bolt it down.
Then you can put it all back together the same way you took it apart.

I did not go fancy and add a power switch. I have my PSUs setup to turn on when plugged in. They are also setup so the fans also are running in quiet mode.

[IamProStreet]

Thanks rs2k, that will help!!! So if I'm using 4 PSU's 2 in parallel and 2 in series for 24v do 3 of them get floated? I'm guessing this is kinda like bonding circuit breaker boxes in a house, you only want one box bonded. Going to do some studying on my days off.

[Danny Dugger]

Originally Posted by IamProStreet

Thanks rs2k, that will help!!! So if I'm using 4 PSU's 2 in parallel and 2 in series for 24v do 3 of them get floated? I'm guessing this is kinda like bonding circuit breaker boxes in a house, you only want one box bonded. Going to do some studying on my days off.

I run 4 dps600s in series for my 4010. For your setup you will only float the grounds on two supplies. Use the "-" side of the grounded ones for the common or ground terminals, and the floating ones will be connected in series for +24v on the "+" terminals of each. Then just connect your two 24v supplies in parallel. The dps600s have pins you have to short to allow load sharing when connected in parallel so you should check into that. If yours work the same way, you will connect the current share pins of each grounded supply together and connect the current share pins of the floating supplies together and you're in business.

[IamProStreet]

I see the benefits of running higher voltage now that I played with my current power supply that I can adjust the voltage on. My current charger can run on 11-17 volts. If I vary the voltage to the lower and upper limits it almost doubles the amperage the power supply has to put out. See pictures. Think I might just go with the 4010 and run it at 48 volts with the 4 power supply's I have coming. I'm assuming they will put out all the power the 4010 will need configured like that? Oh and by the way I was charging 1 6s battery at 8.2 amps in both pictures.

[Danny Dugger]

Originally Posted by IamProStreet

... Think I might just go with the 4010 and run it at 48 volts with the 4 power supply's I have coming. I'm assuming they will put out all the power the 4010 will need configured like that?

Yes sir. About 2,284 watts of power out of those puppies in series. Only things you have to worry about are if your charge cables are heavy enough gauge, and don't over draw your breaker! Lol You will love the 4010 it is a really great charger and very versatile as well. Good choice!

[IamProStreet]

They came in the mail today, look really nice almost new. They didn't come with power cords like I thought they might. Still haven't had time to read up on the mod yet. Guess I still have time as I haven't ordered a charger yet.

[rs2k]

I still haven't had a chance to take mine apart.

Here's the basic procedure I used to make the 12 volt version. I didn't put a switch in though. I connected pins 6, 8 and 10 to the back of the pcb using solder instead of a harness and switch. I connected pin 4 to ground using solder as well. To use solder on the back of the small PCB you have to remove it. IT's a lot easier than it looks once you do it. I had no trouble putting it back together. I've done it four times now.

http://www.ultimaterc.com/forums/sho...d.php?t=174225


The one that floats is a similar procedure, but you also have to remove the big PCB and cut the DC grounds wit ha dremel. That's the part I want to take a picture of for you.

[IamProStreet]

Did some reading, maybe 10 pages of 50 page post. It's a little clearer what I have to do. The ones that need to float are the ones that have a positive wire going into the negative port???? A 48v setup would float the second third and forth, where a 24v setup would float the third and fourth??? Is that right?

[RedOctobyr]

"3rd and 4th" on a 24V setup is an ambiguous statement (I don't know which way you're numbering them), so I won't try to answer it that way.

The supplies that must be floated are any whose negative (black) terminal is connected to the positive (red) terminal of another supply, rather than the charger.

That is, you need to float the supply if its negative terminal is not at 0V.

If this was 4 supplies in series, the first supply's negative terminal, which connects to the charger, is at 0V, doesn't need to be floated. Supplies 2, 3, and 4 have their negative terminals connected to the positive of the previous supply, and are at 12V, 24V, and 36V respectively. They must all be floated.

[rs2k]

I'm uploading an album of images I just took to imgur. I'll post them shortly. It shows how to float the PSU and solder the back of the small PCB.

[rs2k]

Album: http://imgur.com/a/0HNbJ

This album will clear a few things up I hope. This is a 12 v PSU with a floating DC ground.

Nut and two screws that nee to come off to remove the small PCB. You can also see one of the two screws that attach the standoffs that provide DC power to the small PCB that need to come off to remove the PCBs.


The other two screws that attach the standoffs that provide power to the small PCB and ribbon that need to come off to remove the small PCB. You can also see the connector port for the fan I removed to show this image.


This shows the back of the PSU. There's a screw in each corner of the large PCB that needs to come out to remove it. You can kind of see one at the bottom left of the PSU. You can see one of the two tabs you need to push in on the black AC port. When you push them in the port will slide out the back, This makes getting to the screws and removing the large PCB much easier. The screw on top holding the black wire is the AC ground. Remove it to give yourself room. Put it back on when you're done. Ignore the two red wires. That was an experiment and the reason I'm opening these up to make a change.


Small PCB removed. You can see where I ground the large PCB away so the screw holding the large PCB had no continuity to any contact on the large PCB. The back side is ground off in the same way. I didn't actually remove the large PCB for these pictures.


Other screw near small PCB on large PCB. This side does not need to be ground away. You can see the two jumper links I removed on the top. The bottom side has a copper run or two that needs to be cut. Simply check for continuity between the pad the screw rests on on the DC ground to make sure you cut the run all the way through. Be careful on the back side of this one. One of the runs you have to cut is pretty close to a run that needs to stay. Looks like there's also a bit of grass in this image. The black and blue wire connect to the small PCB. No reason to disconnect them, but that means the small PCB is attached to the large PCB while you're working on the large PCB. That's not really a problem.


Back side of small PCB with no solder connections.


Back side of small PCB after making solder connections. I scratch away just a little of the epoxy on the PCB to expose a little copper to help make the solder bridges stick. Pin 4 goes to ground. This slows the fan down until it need to spin faster. This makes the PSUs MUCH quieter. The other three connected pins are what power on the PSU. I prefer to solder the back like this. Some people prefer to make a harness on the front.

[IamProStreet]

Haven't had time to mess with these as OT at work is just crazy right now. 12-16 hour days just don't leave much time to have a life.

[IamProStreet]

Got some time to work on it tonight.

Jumpers cut


Both sides of the large board ground down.




Is that all I need to do to float the ground? Want to make sure before I put it back together to check continuity. Not sure if I want to solder bridges on the small board or use switches.

Not sure what you mean when you say "The bottom side has a copper run or two that needs to be cut." And "Be careful on the back side of this one. One of the runs you have to cut is pretty close to a run that needs to stay."

[IamProStreet]

Checked continuity from the negative lug going to the small boards to the 3 mounting points that were not ground down and had no continuity to them so I assume it's safe to put back together and recheck once screwed down.

[rs2k]

I think you got it. If you have no continuity between the DC ground and the case when it's back together then you're good. I meant be careful not to cut the small run circled in red here. You did very well.

I ended up cutting the jumpers and a small run or two instead of grinding away part of the board simply because it was easier for me. I think grinding the board so the screws don't ground it out is the best solution though. You're just making sure the screws that attach the board to the case don't ground the board.

[IamProStreet]

Looks good to me!!

[rs2k]

Yup, you got it. I finally finished my parallel setup. It works great. I'm able to max both chargers out at the same time with no sweat.

My thunder power charger doesn't fit in the case though.

[IamProStreet]

Nice setup!!! Now I have to do two more and wire them all up. Another day though.

[IamProStreet]

Just drew up a quick wiring diagram. The "F" denotes PS that are floating. I would assume if I wire it up like this I could run a 12v and a 48v charger at the same time or would I need diodes wired somewhere? Just thinking out loud.

[rs2k]

That looks good to me. No diodes are needed, just make sure you never plug a charger ground into anything but the ground on the non floating PSU.

Also remember that if you run both 12 volts and 48 volts at the same time (for example) The 12 volt PSU is running two chargers and will be putting out more amps than the other three PSUs. The current limit is 47 amps, though I've done upwards of 54 amps per PSU without trouble.