Need Li-Po suggestions

[Mayze]

Hey guys,

I just made the switch to lipo (CHA-CHING!). I am running a Tekin FX-R, so I can run 3s, and up to 11.1v. My question to you all is, what battery should I be looking to buy? I want to run my steering servo offset, with the battery beside it. I already bought a Parkzone 11.1V, 1300mAh battery(PKZ1033). It is the right size for what I want, but I would like something with more mAh. I want anything that is at least 9.6v. Any suggestions would be great. Price is definitely an issue. Thanks

[xirtic]

Originally Posted by Mayze

Hey guys,

I just made the switch to lipo (CHA-CHING!). I am running a Tekin FX-R, so I can run 3s, and up to 11.1v. My question to you all is, what battery should I be looking to buy? I want to run my steering servo offset, with the battery beside it. I already bought a Parkzone 11.1V, 1300mAh battery(PKZ1033). It is the right size for what I want, but I would like something with more mAh. I want anything that is at least 9.6v. Any suggestions would be great. Price is definitely an issue. Thanks

I run a HobbyCity 1450mah 3 cell 30C-40C....and it is a tight fit on the axle. It is really tough to find a Lipo that is going to fit up there above 1500mah. For that mounting location, you are about at max mah.....if you are looking for some punch, go for a pack with a higher C rating.

[Mayze]

Will I get more punch going for a higher C rating than I will going for higher voltage rating?

[xirtic]

LIPO 3 CELL = 11.1 volts

The 3 cell lipos that we all deal with are all 11.1 volts. This is a constant. (At full charge it will be greater than 11.1v....but for this conversation, it is 11.1v)

MAH translates roughly to run-time. A 1500mah will last longer than a 1300mah. How much longer or total run-time is dictated by what you are running in terms of ESC, Motor, Servos, ect.

C RATING helps to describe how much total amperage the battery will supply. An exampe of this would be a 1500mah battery that is rated for 20c continous and 25c burst. 1500mah x 2.0 = 30amps continous or 1500mah x 2.5 = 37.5 amps. If your total amperage need exceeds the ammount that can be supplied by the battery....you will not get maximum performance. A higher C Rating in the same MAH pack will give you higher amperage available. This is simply shown by the continous vs burst amperage that our example pack can supply. IF your system needs 40amps....and your battery can only supply 30 amps...performance will suffer...and the pack will get warm/hot. Increasing MAH can also result in higher amp ratings.....but for a front axle mount pack, the size changes quite a lot over the 1500mah size. So increasing C RATING will give you the amps needed.


I hope that this helps.

[YSL]

Originally Posted by xirtic

LIPO 3 CELL = 11.1 volts

The 3 cell lipos that we all deal with are all 11.1 volts. This is a constant. (At full charge it will be greater than 11.1v....but for this conversation, it is 11.1v)

MAH translates roughly to run-time. A 1500mah will last longer than a 1300mah. How much longer or total run-time is dictated by what you are running in terms of ESC, Motor, Servos, ect.

C RATING helps to describe how much total amperage the battery will supply. An exampe of this would be a 1500mah battery that is rated for 20c continous and 25c burst. 1500mah x 2.0 = 30amps continous or 1500mah x 2.5 = 37.5 amps. If your total amperage need exceeds the ammount that can be supplied by the battery....you will not get maximum performance. A higher C Rating in the same MAH pack will give you higher amperage available. This is simply shown by the continous vs burst amperage that our example pack can supply. IF your system needs 40amps....and your battery can only supply 30 amps...performance will suffer...and the pack will get warm/hot. Increasing MAH can also result in higher amp ratings.....but for a front axle mount pack, the size changes quite a lot over the 1500mah size. So increasing C RATING will give you the amps needed.


I hope that this helps.

thanks. this is a great info for newbies, me included.
btw, any link that we can refer to for additional information on the Lipo subject? interesting stuff.

cheers

[dezfan]

I'm a Zippy fan!

Awesome performance, fantastic price, great longevity, unfortunately their marketing isn't as good some other lipo manufactures.

[Mayze]

God I love getting feedback from people with actual knowledge, and the ability to describe it in an understandable way. Thank you so much Xirtic. Very helpful! Cheers.

[xirtic]

Originally Posted by Mayze

God I love getting feedback from people with actual knowledge, and the ability to describe it in an understandable way. Thank you so much Xirtic. Very helpful! Cheers.

One thing that I forgot to mention was physical size. I have found that 70mm length of an axle mounted pack is about the limit. The pack that I currently run is 70mm long, 35mm wide, 24mm thick....and it just fits. I ran a similar sized pack when I had an axial rig that had the battery and servo on the front axle. There are many packs in this similar MAH rating that are longer and thinner, and will not fit cleanly in this mounting situation. Please watch those physical dimensions.

[JasonS9]

I had the same question, I made a list of packs that I think would work, Though I have no experiance with any of them. maybe someone could shed a little light

Maxamps 1100mah 25C-50C 34x69x19

Losi 1350mah 20C-35C

Thunder power 1320mah 13C-20C 34x65x19

CKRC 1500mah

Holmes Hobbies 1300mah 25C-35C 35x71x21

X-Caliber 1300mah 25C-35C 35x86x21 (On Holmes Hobbies web site)

FlightPower EONLite 1350mAh 20C 35X75X23

Zippy 1300mah 20C-30C 33x85x22

Other Zippy packs

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/store/uh_listCategoriesAndProducts.asp?idCategory=235&curPage=1&v=&sortlist=

[xirtic]

FIRST - Figure out the amperage that you will need to power what you are running. (Servos, ESC, Motor(s), lights, winch, ect)

SECOND - Apply the math explained above to the packs that you are looking at in your list. If the battery cannot provide the power that you need, it is off of your list.

THIRD - Look at where you want to mount the pack, and the pack size that will fit that space. Packs that are not going to fit get crossed off of the list.

I am betting that you will be left with just a few packs left to choose from.

[phunkodelic]

Wow this is an awsome thread. xirtic, thanks for imparting wisdom on those of us who are newbies like me. Its folks like you that make hobbies like this thrive.