Lipo questions
 

Hello,

Simple questions: what real world differences should I expect between, let's say:

a 2S, 8000mAh, 10C Lipo pack,

and

a 2S, 8000mAh, 30C Lipo pack?

---

Also: which brand(s) is now considered the best for Lipo packs?

Thanks

Loa

Well, the 1st is good for 80amps cont, and the 2nd is good for 240 amps cont.

Best to list what you plan to run, and what brand lipos you are looking at... All specs are not created equal!

Make sure you're not buying maxamps...

All the enerland packs - Poly-rc, polyquest, flightpower, trakpower, hyperion are all very good. Other good packs include Neu and probably elite. If you're on a budget, Zippys are really nice and true rc seem to be pretty good. Stay away from maxamps and you'll be fine.

Hello,

Thanks for the list Metallover!

Linc: I'm running a 3.3 Revo conversion using MMM v1 and a good old 9XL. Right now I'm using two 2S-8000 (10C) lipo packs from TrueRC and I've had 0 problems with them.

But I'm reading just about everywhere that a higher C rating is better all around.

Loa

Better C ratings will give you more power off the line or in situations in which you are drawing more amps.

Good luck with the v1 :yes:

If you have some crazy capacity like 8000mah then the c rating isn't too important. If you're running 4s with a fiegao I'm guessing you arent going too much higher then 70-80 amps. If you upgrade the motor then you might be pushing it depending on the motor and the motor's kv. In the future I would recommend as much of a c rating as you can afford.

With that motor you might not be able to use it. But there will be a big difference in higher c rated big packs. My buddy went from SPC 12c 8000's to SMC 9000 28c, E-revo with MMM combo. He was running 44 with the 8000's, hit 50 with the 9000's. I run the same combo, but went from Neu 7800 25c packs, 2 4s 3900's paralleled. I went from 48 to 51.

I went from 2s 6000mah MaxAmps(20C claimed discharge) to a Neu 5000mah 25C pack in my CRT.5 and the difference was day and night! With the MA pack it was fast but with just a battery change I was pulling wheelies going faster without a gearing change and will also pull the steepest gearing I have without heating up. C ratings do mean a lot!

The C rating wasn't the only thing that made it faster! Brand name and the cells they use make a big difference too.:yes:

If you only look at the C ratings of these two packs:

6000mah 20C = 120 amps continous discharge
5000mah 25C = 125 amps continous discharge

If both were rated accurately, the difference wouldn't be enough to really notice.

Perhaps one of these companies is making false claims. Hmmmm......

Building packs out of cheaper cells, inflating the ratings AND the pricing?

Thx for the added infos guys.

A very slight difference in top speed is not meaningful for me, as I don't race.

Would I gain anything else from having packs with a higher C rating?

Loa

True but that still relates to C ratings. They must be accurate ratings and certain companies like MA like to inflate their ratings. Instead of marking them with a 12C rating that they most likely are. Higher C ratings will give more punch and cooler temps which help to extend the life of the cells

I see some good info in this thread and some not so good info...

A higher C rated pack will provide more punch as noted. Your current cells are around 12c, so you have close to 100amps cont available. That is pretty close to what your setup should draw. Very few 4s setups in heavier vehicle draw less than what a 100amps cont battery can provide. (I do understand that the average drw will be much less than 100amps, but factoring a fair number of accel spikes and understand that lipos have a "duty cycle" of sorts leads me to believe that most 4s setups need a 100amp rated lipo min)

Also, having a higher c rating will not necessarily lead to lower pack temps. The 30c enerland cells run hot.

A correctly sized pack is very important to building a good setup. Problem is that the retailers have the specs all over the place, so trial and error are the best bet to find good cells that are correctly rated.

Thx Linc.

Any brand suggestions of your own?

Loa

Well, if you are on a budget, zippy lipos seem to be the best bet. I know the zippy rhino 4900 cells are good, but they may be too long for your application.

As far as what I use, flightpower, poly rc, polyquest, neu energy. I have used the 4500 30c cells from fp and polyquest, 5000 25c cells from polyquest and neu energy, 3900 25c cells from neuenergy, 3200 30c cells from fp, 6000 25c polyquest cells, and a few other sizes that I cannot recall. Good stuff, never had an issue and they all seem to be true to the ratings.