That is a name that John Wayland gave to a charger that has only three parts: A 110 VAC plug, a long extension cord (usually several connected end to end) to provide current limiting and a Bridge rectifier to convert the AC from the wall into DC to feed the battery.
The device works with 120, 132 and 144 volt battery packs with varying degrees of success. The process for using it is: Connect lots of extension cords together end to end (not coiled up). Connect bridge to battery pack. Plug into AC outlet. Monitor current into battery pack. When current drops below about ~5 amps, remove one extension cord and reconnect to AC outlet to get more current. When voltage is high enough, disconnect from AC outlet and battery pack. The charger has good features: Low cost, Low parts count, Easy to build, Easy to repair. The charger has bad features: Poor power factor (breakers open at a relatively low power into the battery). Poor efficiency (heats up cord instead of charging batteries). Over charges 120 volt packs, Undercharges 144 volt packs, No isolation, Requires constant supervision, Cannot be left unattended. Limited pack voltage range. Very susceptible to line voltage variations. No current regulation, No voltage regulation. No short circuit protection. Very easy to open breakers when removing extension cords. Joe Smalley Rural Kitsap County WA Fiesta 48 volts NEDRA 48 volt street conversion record holder [EMAIL PROTECTED] ----- Original Message ----- From: "Patchem, Eric EM2" <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> To: <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> Sent: Monday, October 07, 2002 9:51 PM Subject: RE: Tropica update/charger chip. > Please excuse my Ignorance, > > What is a bad boy charger? > > > Eric >
