New Batteries
 

It seems that a company called TJB has come out with a Li-polmer Battery for airsoft. It comes in 8.4v 3900mAh (Large) and 8.4v 1800mAh (Mini). I'm not to sure about how good they are but it's interesting. The price is kinda high so what do you guys think??

Link?

The 8.4V mini sure sounds interesting. I second the demand for a link :D

Lithium Polymer batteries are nothing new really. But the main danger about them is you have to separate the cells while charging, if I remember correctly. Each cell is 4.2V though, so it's only a matter of charging two cells separately. However, I guess 9.6 V is not achievable with these cells.

Li-po
 

I've read a lot about Lithium Batteries for RC modeling to apply in Airsoft. Yes, they are smaller, can give more juice, they have absolutely no "memory effect", and have many other advantages. But note that you'll have to buy a new charger, because they need special charging techniques. And they are much more expensive. Maybe in one or two years they'll be cheaper. For now, the NiCd/Mh are what you need.

Kymoz

How much more expensive?

The way I look at it, if you invest in a Li-Poly battery and charger, it will be a worthwile investment. Sure, it is more expensive at first, but these kinds of batteries last longer than Ni-Mh and Ni-Cads by about a year or so, AND have absolutely no memory effect, so if you wanted to charge it when its 90% full, that is no better or worse than charging it at 10% full. In fact, running these down to 0% is actually a little bad for the battery. This can be seen as a bonus because no investment in a discharger is needed.

I read an article a while ago about Li-Poly vs Li-Ion batteries and I read that one of them was better at supplying large amounts of current than the other, if anyone knows which, please share. With an AEG, the last thing you want is a battery that cant handle large current draw. This may not be too big an issue with stock guns (which 8.4V batteries are mainly used for) but still worth investigating. I know that almost all cell phones, mp3 players, laptops, PDAs, and other mobile electronic devices use either Li-Ion or Li-Poly batteries so it is not a "new" technology by any means.

The Li-ion battery for my laptop is about 1.5x the size of your average 9.6v airsoft battery and it says it's 14.8v at 6450mah. It is probably the Li-ion ones that can supply more current.

anyone know where and for how much these batteries/charges can be purchased?

Well that's not the place I saw it but the prices are $79 US for the Large one and $61 for the smal one.

sounds well worth it to me... however it appears that they're not made specifically for air soft, so finding special batteries like the minis and SD6s in Li-Po might prove a cumbersome task. If anyone has access to Li-Po airsoft batteries please post!

From my knowledge on battery (I work in Battery firm), Ni Cd is by far the most robust and have the best discharge rate. That's why the drillers still use NiCd as source.
Also the NiCd is the longest lasting battery (preformance stability), as well as best discharge rate. The reason for fading out is it cannot be recycled properly due to cadmium presence. As long as you properly use the Nicd, it can take 500+ cycle still remaining 90% performance.
Sure Li polyer battery have high energy density, but it is not as robust and performance drop is more significant than Nicd. Also discharge rate cannot match Nicd at the moment. (please compare discharge rate with same voltage)
For Airsoft, it's better to stay with Nicd, esp if you will upgrade in future.

what about the fact that airsoft NiCD typically can't produce as much mAh as they're NiMH counterparts?
Also, found an Intellect 8.4v 1200mAh mini on WGC, anyone hear of this brand before and/or know of its quality?

Anyone interested in a group order from Battery Space? Last time I checked them (during my Xmod days) their shipping was expensive.

Are mini sized Airsoft batteries composed of SC cells or 2/3A cells?