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ToolKitRC M8 Field Charging Kit

by MARSCHAL FAZIO

Inspired by the build I saw Botgrinder do on his channel and using the Turtle Laboratories field charger kit for the ISDT Q6 charger, I decided to build my own field charging solution using the ToolKitRC M8 charger* that I had just acquired.


I designed all of the brackets and mounts for the battery charger, balance leads and fan in Fusion360 and 3D printed them on my old FlashForge Creator PRO using ABS Filament from Solutech. I use ABS because it prints well on my machine and because of its ease to finish. Starting with 220 grit sand paper and moving up to 400, 600, and 1000 or greater you can get a smooth finish that takes paint really well.

I wanted my charger to have a vintage look so I used an old piece of 2.5mm plywood (stained) as a base and painted the 3D prints gloss black and a vintage brass color. I hand cut all of the cut outs using a portable drill, jig saw, and a cut off wheel and sanding drum on my rotary tool. In the future I will create a template which can be CNC'd, but I didn't have immediate access to a CNC mill and I wanted the ability to change things as I went since this was my first time taking on such a build.

Like the Turtle Laboratories build I included the ability to charge from A/C using a 24v PSU I included in the field charger. I also wired a pair of 4mm Banana jacks that can be used to charge from a DC source, such as a car battery or other external power supply. For cooling I included a 60mm 12v fan along with cut outs to draw air across the PSU and ToolKitRC M8 charger. I also wired up a USB charging port and a 12v DC auxiliary out jack for plugging in a 1s lipo charging board. Both the USB and aux DC output can be turned on and off using a secondary power switch. 

For charging Lithium polymer batteries using the M8 I included a 2-6s extension board (I couldn't find an 8s capable board) and a pair of 4mm banana jacks. I can charge a single battery using this setup or add a parallel charging board and charge several at one time. 

Below I will list the materials I used to complete this build as well as retails sources (affiliate links). I will also include a Thingiverse link to my 3D printed files that I used. I am working on creating a clean wiring diagram which will be included in the Thingiverse link. It may or may not be up at the time this is published.

BOM (02/20/18)

Thingiverse STL Files: https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:3441083

Waterproof Storage Box:

ToolkitRC M8: https://www.banggood.com/custlink/DGGDyLsaUu

24V Power Supply: 

JST Balance Wire

DC-DC step down converter: 

USB Charger: 

Banana plugs: 

Power Switch: 

60mm Fan: 

  • This is the one I used: https://amzn.to/2WjNMDn
  • But any 60mm fan would work. One with 2 wires instead of three makes it easier to wire.

Misc (screws, nuts and wire): 

M4 Hardware: 

Wire

Parallel Board and Charging wires

2.5mm plywood: I had a scrap piece laying around that I used. Of course you can use acrylic, aluminum or any other sturdy material

 

*Disclosure

This blog post contains affiliate links. DLQFPV is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to Amazon.com and affiliated sites. In addition to Amazon, this site participates in other affiliate programs, including but not limited to Banggood.com

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