About this replacement
Kenwood TK-3200L-U15P Series — 7.4V Li-ion Replacement Battery (KNB-45L)
This is a 7.4V, 2000mAh Li-ion replacement battery for the Kenwood TK-3200L-U15P and related UHF portable transceivers. It replaces OEM part numbers KNB-45, KNB-45L, and KNB-45Li. Fits the TK-3202L-U16P, TK-3200-U2P, TK-3200-U8P, and over 50 additional TK-3200 series variants.
- TK-3200 platform fit: The TK-3200 series shares a common battery bay geometry, contact pin layout, and BMS handshake protocol across UHF variants. One pack covers the full production run without modification.
- Bench tested on actual hardware: We ran this pack through a full charge cycle in a KSC-35 dock and verified BMS handshake, cell balancing, and thermal cutoff behaviour under simulated transmit-load current draw. No anomalies flagged.
- First insertion into the dock: If the charger LED shows a fault blink on first insertion, remove the pack, wipe the gold contact strip with a dry cloth, and reseat firmly. The KSC-series dock requires a clean contact cycle to accept the new BMS handshake before charging begins.
Why the TK-3200 cuts out mid-transmission on a new KNB-45 pack
New Li-ion cells ship at storage voltage — typically 3.6–3.7V per cell, not full charge. When PTT is pressed, the transmitter pulls a sharp current spike of 1.5–2A. If the pack hasn't been through at least one full charge cycle, that spike can drag cell voltage below the BMS overcurrent threshold and trip an automatic shutoff. Charge the pack fully before first use in the field. After a complete charge cycle, the BMS headroom handles normal transmit spikes without interruption.
Bar indicator showing one fewer bar than expected after fitting the KNB-45L
The TK-3200 uses a voltage-threshold bar indicator — it reads pack voltage directly and maps it to bar segments. A new cell at storage voltage sits below the threshold for a full-charge display, so the radio correctly shows fewer bars even though the pack isn't faulty. Charge to full in the KSC dock until the LED goes solid green, then reinsert the pack. The bar display will reflect actual charge state at 8.2–8.4V resting voltage.