Charging New MTH PS-1 Battery Question

Throw it in the ocean and get a BCR.  45 second charge each time you use it and no more worries.

Nickel metal hydride batteries don't have the NiCd memory effect, but their self-discharge can be slightly higher so it is necessary to charge more often. Check the voltage if you can; it should be about 8.4V. Then install it in your loco and let it charge for a few hours at a time while you are doing other tasks nearby.  (I don't like to leave my locomotives on an unattended, long term charge either!)  Good Luck!

Thanks for your reply.... boy can't believe I forgot it was NiCd, not NiMh, that had "memory".... My memory isn't so good anymore! 

I have  a volt meter, so I won't have any trouble checking the voltage and we'll move on....  I also found a small cell phone charger I don't use anymore rated output 9vdc at 0.5 A, so if I have to put a charge on it, I should be able to do it with that safely without overheating anything.   

Thanks again for your time and better advice than throw it in the ocean...

I purchased a small charger that plugs into a wall socket and holds two 9 volt batteries at a time.  Works great and you can leave it in for hours.  I just charged a green battery last week for a friend's PS1 Blue Comet, no problems.  Leaving an engine sitting on a powered track for hours is not a good idea in my opinion. 

Definitely make sure the battery is fully charged before applying power to any PS1 engine!

 I can't remember where I purchased it but it must have been Harbor Freight, Walmart or Radio Shack. It charges at 16mamps.

Again, an 8.4 volt battery that registers 8.4 volts is dead.  You must charge a new rechargeable battery before you use it.

.....

Dennis

Just in the event anyone is interested in one of the chargers that pennsydave posted pictures of:

I stumbled over it reading the All Electronics magazine page 36, or one very similar one. www.allelectronics.com

Vanson #V228 9VDC 16 mA. nickel-metal-hydride or Nickel-cadmium batteries Full charge 8 to 20 hours depending on capacity of battery and state of discharge.

$4.95 each

Gentlemen,

    I recommend replacing the battery with a BCR, they last a life time.

PCRR/Dave

Yes a BCR takes care of the battery problems. MTH should have changed to a BCR type circuit years ago.