Many thanks.

S'long,
P

On Sun, 29 May 2011 07:29:38 -0700, Jeff Liebermann wrote:

On Fri, 27 May 2011 22:10:49 -0500, Puddin' Man
wrote:

First,
just measure the terminal voltage of the battery pack after it's been
sitting around for a day without being charged. Even if totally
discharged, it should have at least 1.1 volts per cell or about 7.7VDC
across the terminals. A fully charged NiCd will have about 1.45VDC
per cell or about 10.2VDC across the terminals.

I measure just under 4vdc for the pack. Your opinion is
solicited.

Your battery pack is dead, kaput, eWaste, gone, shorted, etc. That's
what probably killed the wall wart and inspired the recall. Charging
a shorted cell is a great way to overheat an unprotected transformer.
If you simply replace the transformer, you're likely to fry it again.

Now, if you really want to test you battery packs, I have a West Mtn
Radio CBA-IIv1:
http://www.westmountainradio.com/product_info.php?products_id=cba3

Only $150-300. Lordy mercy!

The requisite computer is not included in the price. I use it to
characterize Li-Ion mutations for model airplanes, robotics, cell
phones, and general havoc. The energy available is basically the area
under the discharge curve.

ATLINKS USA
Telephone power supply
Input: AC120V 60hz 4.4w
Output: DC 9v 200 mA
Class 2 transformer
UL etc

but when I measure, I get about 20vdc from my meter.
Any idea why the drastic difference from spec?

Sure. You're measuring the voltage without a load. If you load the
xformer with a 200ma load:
R = 9V / 0.2A = 45 ohms (47 ohms is close enough)
and
Power = E*I = 9v * 0.2A = 1.8 Watts (so use 5 watt resistor)
you should get around 9V DC.

"Law Without Equity Is No Law At All. It Is A Form Of Jungle Rule."