At 02:12 15 November 2005, Marc Ramsey wrote:
Bill Daniels wrote:
I'm not suggesting lash-ups. A discrete 'brick' or
'slab' battery pack with
matched charger is what I am talking about.

Well, that is what you would do, but you are more careful
than most...

I've read the warnings from the model airplane sites.
The warnings seem to
all be about charging. I never charge a battery in
the glider.

Look more carefully, there are also warnings about
explosions resulting
from short circuits. I've seen a similar video where
they just shorted
the terminals together, and let the cell sit for a
minute or two...

There is a cure for that, a fuse. Regs in the UK require
a fuse within a very short distance from the batttery,
2.5 ins from memory and I use 3 amp. Not a lot of opportunity
for a short of any sustained time with that arrangement
if the terminals are insulated as they should be.
A standard lead acid battery will do very spectacular
things if shorted out as well, I remember (many many
years ago when young) trying to light a cigarette using
a strand of winch wire across the winch battery terminals,
worked fine until the top blew off the battery. It
would seem that even then smoking could damage your
health.

PS You needed a good pair of gloves :-). I think we
might have invented the automobile cigar lighter without
knowing it.