Airsoft Action 05 - Jan 2012 | Page 79

device that attaches to the balance lead and lights up green if there is enough charge and turns red when it’s too low) or when you hear a notable power drop (if the rate of fire decreases or semi-auto becomes sluggish, for example). If this happens, stop firing and change over the battery immediately. The last main safety factor (for me at least) is discharging your batteries. This is something that has had a running debate online now for some time. It supposedly can and does get done but discharging your battery must be done precisely or it can result in damage to your battery. The battery cannot be deep discharged or it will be damaged beyond repair. For this reason I personally choose not to discharge the batteries at all, as they are the same as mobile phone batteries which most of us know take a pounding and last for ages! Next time I know this sounds like horror stories but there are a lot of safety issues with these batteries. Now that we have got most of them out the way I can focus on the positive: the huge advantages of using these powerful batteries. Next issue we will look at the stats of each battery, powers, mAh (how long they last), larger voltages and upgrading your gun to handle the power increase. ■ BATTERIES www.airsoftactionmagazine.com 079