battery chargers for sov and excal

[Neil]

I keep reading(reference to some replys on Blings post) that there are better battery chargers than the stock minelab chargers. I know nothing of electronics so can you guys/gals who know please explain why they are better, what would one gain from going with a different charger?
I tried Sunray chargers in the past that were fast charge units and they heated up the Sov/Excal batterys pretty hot which I thought heat buildup was bad for a battery? The stock chargers are slow but they only warm up the battery at most. Even my newest drill, a makita, has a quick charger but also has a fan built in and the battery never gets hot during charging(fan comes on when battery starts charging).
So what does someone gain, what advantage does one have with these other chargers and also could someone name a few of them in case someone wants to try something new.
Thank you,
Neil

 

[Buried Crap NJ]

Neil, I fly RC airplanes so I have a group of fast chargers for all types of batteries. However I did read a post on this site that pointed me to this charger for the Excalibur. MC2002 Quick Charger (4-12) Found it on amazon 29.99 plus ship 7.46 I was hopping to use it on the GT but no joy! It just won't work. But the Excal I can charge a C rating and be done in less that 1 hr. not enough heat so long as its in an open space out doors works but a small fan could be used and a cool cast iron bath tub helps. It is a 12vdc charger so if you don't have a power supply you car would do. Tractor battery. this is good cause a filed charger is a good think. If you push the charge to 2000mah you can charge in 30 minutes a little more heat but not as much as a 16 hrs wall wart charger! I have started to use the Hobbico 2 battery quick charger on the GT but have to charge though the output tabs! Note here I just clipped my Excal wire and use it to charge with I will never use the wall wart again! steve