Hairy Hands

For the riders that use GPS bike computers or carry an Iphone on long 600k plus rides. Do you use a bike mounted charger that connects to your generator hub? or how exactly do you keep your phone and batteries charged on these longer rides.

Let me know all the options.

unterhausen

there are a number of charger systems that hook up to generator hubs. You can also buy an external battery. There are a lot more people that use external batteries than the generator chargers because the generator chargers are a relatively recent product. The generator chargers are quite a bit more expensive too. There have been a couple of threads in the electronics forum here about chargers

Carbonfiberboy 

My friends have cooked a number of devices using hub converters/chargers. To keep my Garmin 800 charged, I've set up a 4 battery pack using Maha Imedion AA 2400mAh rechargeable batteries. BH-4AA-USB from BatterySpace.com. This gives a 5v output. One set of batteries should produce ~50 hour life for an 800. An iPhone uses, or can use, a lot more juice. You'd have to experiment, since the iPhone is really fussy about input voltage. Fortunately, it's a relatively cheap experiment.

jakub.ner

USB batteries. Simple, cheap, no fussing, and works well.

DGlenday

I bought a Garmin GPS that uses AA batteries. Each pair lasts forever, and I can carry spares - or get them at any gas station / convenience store.

Hairy Hands

My Garmin uses a Non-removable battery. I would like to find some kind of setup that plugs into the Garmin's USB and then holds a bunch of AAA batteries. This would charge it after its battery gets low, and I could replace the AAA's as needed.

Anyone want to point me to the right website or product? Thanks

Steamer

Got a AA battery charger from these guys for my Garmin Edge 500... https://www.gomadic.com/

I am happy with it. The price was good too.

LesterOfPuppets

I can kill my Droid battery in about 3 hours if I run Strava and Pandora. I've heard about turning off some services, like dropping Data, and choosing "Use only 2G" (I have a 3g phone), but haven't tried those techniques yet.

For longer rides where I don't mind wearing a backpack I bring my laptop and keep my phone plugged into it. My laptop has one USB port that stays powered up even when laptop is sleeping.

Carbonfiberboy 

Battery holder:
https://www.batteryspace.com/batteryh...compliant.aspx
Batteries:
https://www.thomasdistributing.com/16...ml?frontpage=1
Battery charger:
https://www.thomasdistributing.com/Ma...del_p_381.html

You can't use 1.5v cells, because that adds up to 6v and you only want 5. The rechargeables are 1.25v, so that works.

znomit

I got one. Its ok, the plug had to be trimmed down to fit in the 500 and it won't hold firm enough to charge while riding.

Note the edge 500 won't run while charging unless you get the right connector, so you end up splitting rides if you just use a generic 5V supply (thats the only reason to go with gomadic).

Steamer

I haven't had either of those problems.

Yeah, the main reason I got one from them is because of what you said - that the right connector is needed for simultaneous charging and operation of the unit. I heard a rumor that the next firmware update will fix this and won't require any work-arounds with the USB connector.

k7baixo

+ 1. Simple, inexpensive.

iconicflux

I have a dynohub, the plug II+, and a Motorola P893 as a buffer battery (it can charge and recharge at the same time). The P893 is really only needed if you have smart phones that are picky about the current and unfortunately mine is.

Together, these things allow me to never run out of power.

Hairy Hands

First thanks for the help. I think this is what I'm looking for.

So, I need to keep the voltage of the external battery pack below<6.. Is that correct? If so that means I cannot use standard over the counter batteries? I have a free unlimited source of batteries.

I have the Garmin Edge 705. Will this external battery pack run the gps unit after the original batteries dies? In other words does it only recharge the unit or will it keep working. I would like to immediately plug in the extra pack and keep on going without loosing any information.

How many packs of batteries do you think I would need to keep the gps running for 90 hrs?

Hairy Hands

Several of the guys here said that these hub chargers are frying certain electrical items. Have you had any of these problems or know of anyone that has? Also which hub are you using? The son 28 or the son 20r?

Carbonfiberboy 

Won't work with the 705 exactly as described. The 705 and earlier need a special mini-USB plug with a resistor in it, tip #73. The Gomadic units have that tip as an accessory. I don't know of another place to get them, other than you can cut the tip off a Garmin car plug, the kind that's meant to be used with an automotive Garmin while navigating, and connect it to a battery pack. The special tip with the resistor is so that the unit won't go into charge mode when connected, but will stay in navigation mode. They fixed that with the 800.

The 4 battery pack is supposed to keep the thing running for 40-50 hours, so 3 sets of batteries should mean no recharge, or you can charge while hot-bunking at a control.

Carbonfiberboy 

One buddy of mine fried a Garmin with an eWerk, another did his in with an early PedalPower. The latest units may be better?

Chris_W

I have a Shimano hub dynamo plus The Plug USB converter that I use to give a boost to my Garmin 800 if I'm going for a ride lasting over 10 hours. It's working very well for me and has certainly not fried the Garmin or affected its charging or capacity in any adverse way as far as I can tell.

I've also charged a few USB-chargeable blinking bike lights with The Plug, and last December I powered a set of battery-operated Christmas lights that I taped along the frame tubes - I just cut the battery compartment off of the lights and put a USB plug in it's place.

iconicflux

I think there's little chance of it with a voltage regulator like the plug. If you go straight from the hub then I can see it happening. The plug puts out a very constant voltage but the hub ranges from 3v to as much as 12 v. Either way make sure to use a buffer battery just to be safe. I'm working on a new one right now that will fit inside the steerer tube but it's mostly for my gps project

It should be noted that the ewerks has an adjustable output and as such IS capable of frying electronics if set to the wrong output settings. This is exactly the reason that I did not get an ewerks (that can the cost). If you fry your stuff with an ewerks it's really user error but it's unfortunately a very tough lesson to learn.

Hairy Hands

The "Plug II" is really cool. I have never heard of it, but I have heard of the Ewerks. The Plug II installs onto the top of your fork tube and it looks really clean. What does it cost? I only found a german site that had it and I could not figure out how much it cost.

unterhausen

all of the regulators seem to cost about $200.

Carbonfiberboy 

Just in case someone was confused by some of this, the battery pack with 4 X AA NiMH 2400mAh cells works fine with a Garmin 800 in navigation mode, using the standard cable that comes with the Garmin. The internal battery in the 800 is only 1100mAh, so this will vastly extend running time.

Chris_W

It should be noted that The Plug does not fit inside all steerer tubes. In my 1 1/8" carbon steerer, it didn't quite fit because the internal diameter is a bit small. I was able to shave off some material from the expanding clamping wedges, and it then just slid in. The upper section of The Plug didn't slide in as far as it might, functionally it is fine, but it does protrude by one or two cms more than it should above the top of the stem. Also, you need to have a steering column that has a hole in the bottom so that the wire can pass out (that part wasn't a problem for me). It should be no problem to mount it in most metal 1 1/8" steering columns, it is only carbon steerers with thicker walls that will cause problems.

AsanaCycles

over the years I've gone round and round with this.

at the moment I use a Duracell Instant Charger (LiIon USB battery) https://www.duracell.com/en-US/produc...b-charger.jspx
and a USB charger like this: https://www.amazon.com/Coby-CA81BLK-A...630614&sr=8-11

I have a Garmin 705 and a cheapie LG (slider/communicator type) cell phone.

the 705 will run for about 15hrs which is usually more than enough for a double century.

in the past I've done a few "tours" Banff to Butte in the dirt along the Continental Divide, a trip down from Eureka, Ca, thru the Kings Range and Sinkyone, then onto HWY 1 and down the coast...

I also like to "bikepack" where I end up at least 1 day away from any pavement...

so I also use 2 Brunton Freedom solar (Freedom and Restore) chargers that I attach to my bike front and rear

combined with a Brunton Inspire battery pack: https://store.bruntonoutdoor.com/port...e-trade-black/

for me this is a huge amount of electricity for my Garmin 705, Cell phone (if it gets reception), and maybe my iPod... thats a huge maybe, bcz I typically don't carry it.

but really for a vast majority of my paved rides, the DuraCell Instant Charger has yet to be completely drained. that will probably change once I go to an iPhone.

joewein

A simple set of four AA cells, whether alkaline or NiMH, does not meet the USB spec (4.8-5.2 V). The reason is that voltage of single NiMH cells actually varies between 1.4 V (fully charged) and about 1.0 V (close to empty), so 4 in series will range from 5.6 to 4.0 V. However they will be around 1.25 V each = 5.0 V total for about the middle 80% of the discharge cycle, so most of the time it will really be OK. Some electronics won't mind the slight over-voltage of fully charged cells, with others you may not be so lucky. It's best to have a USB battery with a DC-DC converter or regulator to ensure the proper output voltage.


I agree with this comment about the eWerk. In theory the flexible output voltage is a bonus, but in a world of USB-powered and -charged device, who really needs that feature? 5 V DC is increasingly becoming the standard for mobile power. In my opinion, that voltage output selector is just a bad mistake waiting to happen. If it's available at all, it should be pre-set to 5 V at factory and then be covered up with a sticker, never to be touched by the average Joe, only by those who know what they are doing.

I am curious about your steerer tube project. Are you planning on using NiMH cells or Li-ion 18650 or something similar?


What worries me about the Plug II is the exposed location of the connector. I would prefer a USB socket on a short cable that you could point down, away from rain. With a USB battery it doesn't matter so much because if it rains, you can always put it in your pocket or back pack or handle bar bag. Being built into the steerer, the Plug II has to tough it out. A friend of friend of mine used one during a fully loaded bike tour of Japan and it died on him within a couple of weeks, not sure why.

I currently use a USB battery case (search eBay for "5V 1.5A Mobile Power Supply USB 18650 Battery Charger", about $13) with up to 4 cylindrical 18650 cells (blue TrustFire 2500 mAh protected, $8 for a pair from DX.com). That's over 8000 mAh for under $30. I used it at a 300 km brevet ride to power my Android (Google Nexus S) with Strava for GPS logging and Google Maps for navigation (following a KML trail on the map). I left the phone plugged in to the battery USB socket for about 22 hours. I came home with a fully charged phone after 300 km through the mountains. The shape and diameter of these 18650 cells would make them suitable for installation inside a seat or steerer tube, but currently I don't know of any such product. The PedalPower Super-i-Cable uses a single 18650 cell as a buffer battery.

Here is the Li-ion battery pack with 4 cells installed:



The DIY battery holder I made from a milk carton (stapled and taped) and some zip ties:





Attached to the stem and steering tube:



I now have a new dynamo hub USB adapter on order from another supplier in Germany which looks very promising. A friend of mine has tested it and it supplied power for him anywhere from 5 km/h to 45 km/h. Here is a picture: