Dual battery placement ... Does this make sense?

[Greg2K6]

Hey all!

First off, I bought my Scx10 Rubicon 24hrs ago and am having a blast! The first thing I did this morning was to move my battery up front. Had a great hour or so trail and crawling.

This had me thinking, would more weight accompanied by more torque allow me to climb steeper grades and crawl more effectively?

So, I was thinking that doubling up the batteries might be interesting. I also popped in a 55T motor. I can't test it until tomorrow, but what are others thoughts? Clearly I lose out on the RELATIVE difference in front to rear end weight (resulting in relatively less front end grip) but will the overall increase in weight help out? I am thinking that stiff springs would help here..

Like I said, I have no real experience bit thought if experiment a bit.

Just thought id get some opinions!

Thanks,

Greg

PS I can't seem to post a pic yet....so just imagine a stock battery (nimh) with another in the same orientation in the front

[TacoCrawler]

I run dual Venom 3s 2100 mah LiPo's...
one is mounted to each slider (zip tied at the moment)
I do not run them combined (series/parallel).
Each is plugged in individually when used.

At first I used the original battery plate/mnt up front...
with a 2s 5000 Mah hard case LiPo...
The COG suffers from that mount design.
I prefer the battery(s) mounted this way instead (saddle pak style).
I will eventually be constructing platforms/plate, mounted directly to the slider posts...
the battery's will secure to that using Velcro ties.

[Redovermind]

I've mounted battery's all over my truck to find the sweet spot. This seems to work best

[Johnnysplits]

Originally Posted by TacoCrawler

I run dual Venom 3s 2100 mah LiPo's...
I do not run them combined (series/parallel).
Each is plugged in individually when used

Interesting. Can I ask why you run them that way?

[Johnnysplits]

Originally Posted by Redovermind

I've mounted battery's all over my truck to find the sweet spot. This seems to work best

Where did you get those green links?

[TacoCrawler]

Originally Posted by Johnnysplits

Interesting. Can I ask why you run them that way?

equal ballast, lower COG, 2100's weigh less/smaller
3s 2100mah Venom Lipo's are only $ 17.00
Hobby People 3s 2200mah Lipo's are only $ 15.
I have a hard case 2s 5000mah LiPo I'll never install again.
Sucks because I paid too much for that lead anchor.

a single 2100 mah usually lasts longer then I do (I'm old)
Besides... it's not really too difficult to change battery connections.

Any G6's I've attended... a single 2100 battery usually gets it done.
If it don't... I just plug in the alternate.



^ old picture... forward battery plate is gone.
Eventually I will make plates that mount the LiPo's to the slider mounts...
or mount directly off the frame similar to boat sides.

[Johnnysplits]

Sorry, I should have been more specific. I was wondering why you don't just run the two batteries in parallel. However I will be using this dual battery setup when I get around to building my scx10!

[TacoCrawler]

Originally Posted by Johnnysplits

Sorry, I should have been more specific. I was wondering why you don't just run the two batteries in parallel. However I will be using this dual battery setup when I get around to building my scx10!

oh LoL...

in short...

prefer my batteries to be non specific to any particular set up
so that I can use them independently on other projects.

[Johnnysplits]

Ok cool

[6sharky9]

Sprung weight which means the weight is carried by the springs is not a good thing..unsprung weight meaning the weights is below the springs say on an axle is not such a bad thing.

Nimh batteries typically weigh a lot more than a lipo battery of same capacity so adding another to the truck will definitely make it top heavy... if you ran one in the front and one in the back it will add more weight giving you more traction but its not such a good idea..Your truck will tip side to side easier mounted up high like the factory mounting locations provide.

Mounting them on the sliders like others are showing you is definitely a better choice for mounting batteries..However I don't recommend two full size batteries lipo or not...If you want more power you should invest in a lipo battery but I would recommend what is called a saddle pack battery...Its 2 smaller batteries (1 cell) combined to make one battery(2 cell) that mounts side by side like they show you in the pics but weighs a considerable amount less..So instead of the weight of 2 full size 2-cell batteries you get the weight of just one but evenly distributed to each side of the truck...this is just an option for you should you decide to go with a lipo battery and its highly recommended but not necessary...You have the option to run a saddle pack in a NiMh as well..so either way its an option

[BuhBoombuh]

+1

Saddle pack setup 1 on each side is the best as far as running a pack on each slider

[SCX10 JK]

Im' running a JK with 2 5000mah nimh mounted the same way that Redovermind shows in the pic in post#3. This works good has pretty good handling on trails. I also wired mine together with a y connector so that I dont have to take body off during long trail runs to switch the batteries. Took a run this sat about 3.5 miles took 4 hrs and still had battery left when i got back to the car. As far as weight with weighted tires and a few other things my rig weighs in right at 7.9lbs with 2 batts not too bad imo.

[7echo]

Can you guys post a link to the type of saddle packs you run?

Thanks.

[TacoCrawler]

Originally Posted by 7echo

Can you guys post a link to the type of saddle packs you run?

Thanks.

ummm... what voltage, mah ?
gonna be pricey for true saddle paks.
Likely only a 2s design...
Not sure that a saddle pak could be made from a 3s !?
Prolly only 2s and then maybe 4s ? :dunno:

I use individual paks...
but you could "Y" harness 'dem if you wished to combine.

I only run 3s batteries... 'cause 2s batteries are boring.

I first bought Venom LiPo's thinking they were low cost...
@ $ 17. each at my LHS.

But there's cheaper if you shop on line

I later found the HP's LiPo's cost less...
and are rated slightly higher.
Meh... I can't tell the performance difference between a 20C or 30C

Hobby People 3s 2200mah 30C LiPo

There are less costly LiPo's out there if ya google 'dem.
Just google the specification wanted... and you'll find the lowest cost.

[6sharky9]

I just picked up a GensAce 4800mah 25c 2S saddle pack for $40 shipped..comes with the the wire leads all soldered up with a deans connector. Plug and play