I know the cells must be balanced though I wanted to confirm that the the 54.6v "smart" charger (which made no mention of battery prerequisites) didn't some how trickle the charge into the pack in some safe way I did not know about. I would have been VERY surprised if it could.
This is my first LiOn project and I have been researching diligently. Unfortunately confirming an author's credentials is not self evident. I have discovered http://henrysbench.capnfatz.com and http://batteryuniversity.com which seem to be solid resources, but I know there are insights to be had from members here.
Concisely, I am enquiring here for advice.
I was advised to buy something labeled as "Charger for 13S 46.8V/48V (13S 3.6V*13/3.7V*13) Li-ion/Li-Polymer or 15S 48V (15*3.2V) rechargeable battery". There was no mention of balancing, I assume I need my battery to balance itself under these conditions. (and would be surprised otherwise. Hardware recommendations or references anyone?)
I am leaning toward constructing the "Arduino 18650 Battery Charger Project" described here: http://henrysbench.capnfatz.com/henrys-bench/arduino-projects-tips-and-more/arduino-18650-battery-charger-project-1/
Have spent a relative fortune for 78 Samsung 25R batteries I want to charge them right.
Best Answer
Did you read my answer to your question that you posted 3 days ago?
What you need is a battery manager, or BMS. This is the current standard way to handle your problem. There may be other jankeyer solutions, such as charging your pack 6s at a time using an RC balance charger, but I wouldn't recommend them if you don't know exactly what you're doing.
Here's some examples of battery managers that I found with a quick google search.
https://vruzend.com/product/48v-13s-battery-management-system-bms/
https://bmsbattery.com/bmspcm/713-10s-13s-30a-50a-lipo-battery-bms-system-bms-pcm.html
https://www.aliexpress.com/item/48V-30A-13S-BMS-used-for-lithium-ion-battery-assembly/1250293246.html
http://www.batterysupports.com/48v-546v-13s-30a-13x-36v-lithium-ion-lipolymer-battery-bms-pcb-p-271.html
Picture in case the links die:
A battery manager is powered from the pack and will actively balance the cells. All you have to worry about is charging the pack to the correct voltage.