Actually, all 4 of my MA packs came at something close to ~60-75% charge. If so, then that's where they should stay and you don't need to do anything.
You can approximate charge level by the pack voltage. But since lipos are fairly flat over the majority of a cycle, there can be errors. To ensure a charge level, I go by the amount of Ah I put into/take out of a pack.
i just started to discharge the pack, according to the charger it is at 12.4v, is it normal for it to be this high (4.13v per cell)? also i will be watching it carefully and pull it when it reads a discharge total of around 2500mAH, is this correct?
Toys:
Slash with VXL
E-revo with MMM/Teckno Nue 1515/1yf running 4s and 5s
Yeah, that's about right. Sounds like it had close to a full charge. Right off the charger, a lipo pack will be at 4.2v/cell, but will drop a bit after a while. You were probably at around 90-95% charge. I would stop the discharge at around 2000mAh. It doesn't need to be exactly half, but somewhere fairly close.
Non-recoverable capacity loss on lithium-ion and nickel-based batteries after storage. High charge levels and elevated temperatures hasten the capacity loss.
If you have a spare lithium-ion battery, use one to the fullest and keep the other cool by placing it in the refrigerator. Do not freeze the battery. For best results, store the battery at 40% state-of-charge.