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Old 01-21-2012, 02:08 AM   #1
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Default Question about Traxxas Lipos

Hey guys i have a Traxxas Slash and was thinking about purchasing some Traxxas lipo batteries to run in it as my factory NIMH battery is about stuffed. I have never used lipos before as i have always had greatrun times out of NIMH, but my question is will i be able to use my Traxxas wall charger to charge my lipo batteries without any problems, or will i have to purchase a new charger to do this, whichi dont really want to do, ive also read somewhere that i will need to get lipo sacks (or something like that) to store them whn not in use.

Thanks in advance
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Old 01-21-2012, 03:45 AM   #2
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Default Re: Question about Traxxas Lipos

You are going to need a new charger. Here are some suggestions as to what products to buy.

Charger:
Thunder AC6
Thunder AC6 Smart LiPo Balance Charger/Discharger w/ AC Adapter for 1-6 Lipo/ 1-15 Nimh + USB to PC Software

This is a great AC/DC charger with a built in power supply. It can charge lipo batteries as well as NiMH, NiCD and lead batteries.

As far as battery suggestions I run Gensace 2S 5000mah lipo batteries in my slash with great success.
GENS ACE 5000mAh 40C 7.4V Hardcase Lipo Battery Pack ROAR approval

Also check out valuehobby:
Welcome To ValueHobby

I run their geforce lipos in my crawler and I'm very satisfied with their performance.

Also make sure your ESC has a low voltage cutoff before you run lipos.
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Old 01-21-2012, 04:09 AM   #3
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Default Re: Question about Traxxas Lipos

what about storing lipos?? ive heard you need a lipo sack, is this correct??

Another quick question, why am i not able to charge lipos on my wall charger, im just curious to knbow why??

Last edited by Landcruiser 110; 01-21-2012 at 04:15 AM.
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Old 01-21-2012, 04:15 AM   #4
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Default Re: Question about Traxxas Lipos

Also will i have to add the plugs on those lipos??

And how do you turn on the Lipo shut off system on the XL-5??

Thank you very much for your help, i will be purchasing those items very soon
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Old 01-21-2012, 06:03 AM   #5
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Default Re: Question about Traxxas Lipos

Land Cruiser,

Youre getting into the world of Lipos and your going to have to do some research for your self first off. Any vids on youtube about Lipos will clear up any questions you may have about them. However he we go for the asked questions.

Storing Lipos.
This is the second most important down from charging. Lipos need to be stored in a dark place with a room tempature. The lipo bags you are referring to are Lipo fireproof bags, that you can store and charge the lipos in. These bags are used just in case they are damaged or charged wrong on which they can blow up into a ball of fire, the bag prevents the flames from spreading. I have had about 40 lipos and not one fire incident(Knock on wood). Basic common sense applies, do not store them in the heat of the sun, next to a heater or something of that nature they are explosive. Just think of a can of spray paint, if you wouldnt store it there neither would I store the lipos.

Charging Lipos
Basically to charge them you will need a LIPO charger. Lipo chargers have the ability to charge individual cells and give you the voltage, temperature and balance of those cells. YOU CANNOT use a regular wall or trickle charger to charge them, you will over charge cells and caused the batteries to EXPLODE.

Chargers
I hear people complaining about prices and difficulties of chargers but heres the truth. You will use this charger to charge all of your batteries, NICAD,NIMH,LIPO,LIFE,LEAD ACID,LITHIUM ION, basically any battery that exist. You can use most chargers to charge of AC or DC voltage, meaning you can charge it directly from your wall or car battery giving you the charging ability in the field. You can also use any plugs on the the chargers, which btw most of the come with, tamiya, deans,traxxas and the rest that are commonly used in the hobby. This is one thing I strongly reccommend you not cheap out on the charger, you will be using this everyday to charge your batts of all kinds. It is an investment.

LIPOS
I dont know how many types of lipos are out there today or how many brands but I can tell you it can be quite confusing! So heres the break down.

Lipos come in Cells
The most common are 2 and 3 cells.
You will the cells by the number followed by an S, like 2s or 3s
Next is MAH which is your millamps per hour. The basic rule of thumb is lets say you have a 3000mah battery, in a perfect world, depending on runtime, weather, and how your or what type of RC you are running it should last 30 minutes depending on how you run it obviously. Some other members can chime in on the exact details about the calculations. You also need to note that the cells are
1 cell 3.7
2 cell 7.2
3 cell 11.1 (these are getting pretty powerful and can turn any RC car into a beast with 11.1 volts of power, you can see any of these power examples on youtube)
You can keep going as well im not sure what they stop at buy most noramal RC use wont go over 3 cell. Lots of Racers will use a 4 cell or 2 2cells in their buggies. i use 2 3cells in my Savage flux so that makes it a 6 cell. But when you get up that hight things are gonna start to break but its fun!

Lipo discharge
Basically the discharge is the C rating, youll see this on the battery looking something like this, 20c to about 45c are quite common. Buggies and some crawlers will try to use the highest rating so they have instant power when they get on the throttle. For example on my XR10 I use a

3s 1600mah 90c Turnigy Nano Tech

Lets break this down,
3s at 11.1 volts its instant crazy power, even giving the abilty to back flip some trucks instantly.view the below vid! This truck is running on 3s and one of the best savage flux vids ive ever seen. granted this is 6s! 2 3cell Batteries!

HPI - Savage Flux - The Movie - YouTube

1600mah gives me the run time of about 20 to 25 minutes of run time depending on how hard I run my crawler. The bigger the RC and more power the shorter the run time. This would run a traxxas summit for about 10 minutes max.

90c is my discharge rate and is what gives me instant power. It literally gives me the ability to jump rock to rock. Like the below vid on minute 3:37! Obviously gearing has a little to do with it a swell, so keep that in mind.

Turnigy is just the brand and Nano Tech is the type of battery.

Brands of Lipos
This can be the most confusing part because of so many choices, bad experiences and opinions. I can tell you I run mostly all Turnigys. Turnigys are excellent batteries for their price! They last long if they are taken care of and come in all different shapes and sizes. Lipos can be very costly, I highly recommend the Turnigys due to their price and batteries. You can find them at the below link as well as great chargers and other needed items for Lipo charging like the storage bags and Voltage meters.

HobbyKing R/C Hobby Store :

BEFORE TAKING IN ALL THIS INFO!

You need to first determine what Batts your ESC can handle, what the top voltage of your ESC is capable of. This will determine what batteries you need to buy. You should just hop on youtube to see your RC perform on different types of Lipo cells, motors and ESC's and figure out which route you want to go.

These are some of my opinions and facts and I hope I helped you in some way. Hope you get what you want, let me know if you have any questions.

LIK

Last edited by OFFROADRCKOREA; 02-24-2013 at 04:34 PM.
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Old 01-21-2012, 06:35 AM   #6
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Default Re: Question about Traxxas Lipos

Thank you so much, that was a fantastic write up, so a lipo sack isn't a necessity but it is there to be on the safe side correct?
Are lipo chargers easy to use? I've had complicated chargers in the past and I can never seem to get full run time out of my NIMH batteries

Does the turnigys come factory prewired with traxxas plugs??

If I am going to purchase a charger are they all balancing chargers?

Sorry for all the questions, but this probly the only thing about RC that I dint have a clue about, thank you very much for your time and help
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Old 01-21-2012, 07:58 AM   #7
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Default Re: Question about Traxxas Lipos

Although a lipo sack isnt a must it is cheap insurance when storing or transporting your batteries. Pick one up, they are only like $10!

Balance charging is actually rather easy. Every charger is a little different but there are only a couple settings. The main settings are pack voltage (2s, 3s, etc) this will let the charger know what voltage to charge the pack to and amperage this lets the charger know how fast to charge. It is important to note that most lipos are rated to charge at 1c or from empty to full in an hour. It usually takes a little longer to balance charge them so expect your pack to be full in 75min or so. Also you need to monitor them while they are charging, dont start it and then leave.

Turnigy batteries do not come wired with traxxas plugs, you can change them out for traxxas if you want but if you are buying a bunch of batteries then it would be cheaper/faster to swap the ESC plug to the style that is coming on the batteries.

Most lipo capable chargers are balance chargers but some require an external balance. Make sure that the one you get does indeed balance.
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Old 01-21-2012, 08:37 AM   #8
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Default Re: Question about Traxxas Lipos

Quote:
Originally Posted by Landcruiser 110 View Post
Also will i have to add the plugs on those lipos??

And how do you turn on the Lipo shut off system on the XL-5??

Thank you very much for your help, i will be purchasing those items very soon
First off, make sure your XL5 says "VLD" on it as some versions of that esc do not have a lipo cutoff feature.

If it does have VLD, then plug in your lipo and turn the esc on. The LED should be red. Hold down the power switch for 10sec. you will hear a beep and the light will turn green indicating that the esc is in lipo mode.
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Old 01-21-2012, 11:10 AM   #9
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Default Re: Question about Traxxas Lipos

Quote:
Originally Posted by Landcruiser 110 View Post
Thank you so much, that was a fantastic write up, so a lipo sack isn't a necessity but it is there to be on the safe side correct?
Are lipo chargers easy to use? I've had complicated chargers in the past and I can never seem to get full run time out of my NIMH batteries

Does the turnigys come factory prewired with traxxas plugs??

If I am going to purchase a charger are they all balancing chargers?


Sorry for all the questions, but this probly the only thing about RC that I dint have a clue about, thank you very much for your time and help

Hey Brother,
So a lipo sack isn't a necessity but it is there to be on the safe side correct?

Lipo bags are not a necessity no, but like the guy above me said they are a cheap investment for maybe an off day, just in case, o shit insurance if you will, but to be honest I rarely use one to charge if I'm sitting around the battery, know it has good cell balance and its not damaged. NOW on the other hand, if I know battery cell is a little quirky, I got a little puff on one of the cells, I DEFINITELY charge it in a sack, Hobby King has them for quite cheap. The sacks (haha I said sacks) come in 2 different sizes, go ahead and get the big size, ull need it. Id get a couple as well, youll want a spare hanging around, you really don't want to charge and store in the same sack and its just nice to have an extra. I also store all my batts inside a old military ammo can and seal it up when they are not in use. Overall Lipos aren't that dangerous and most the horror stories you'll read(which are alot) will be because of USER error and not the battery itself! Keep that in mind. SO no its not a necessity but for peace of mind 10 dollars isn't that bad and you can pick them up on ebay for less than that. They are all made at the same factory at china so I say they are all the same, don't worry about brand.

Are lipo chargers easy to use? I've had complicated chargers in the past and I can never seem to get full run time out of my NIMH batteries

Most Lipo chargers are all made in the same factory in China for the internals. Ive had several and played with more than I care to remember and they all use the same type of programming and menus to get the job done, and yes, they are quite easy to operate. Basically, choose your TYPE of battery, Choose your S(which is your cell remember) so in my above battery case which would be 3s 11.1 volts. Choose your Amperage, and this can get a little tricky. You basically never want to pump in more amps than a battery can pump out. Now I know this is not going to be techincal so none of you battery power gurus tear me a new one here but this is what you need to know. If we were to have a battery that is capable of 5000MAH then I could charge that battery at 5 amps. If I were to say have the above battery at 1600 I would charge that battery at what amperage? Bing bing bing 1.6 amps. You see 1000 mah would be ok to charge the lipo 1 amp, 2000mah at 2 amps, 300mah would be .3 amps, remember this and youll be fine. Now a NIMH you can charge at a higher amp then the MAH, but they are a much safer battery so if I want to get the job done fast I would charge a 1000mah at like 1.5, I use the rule to only go up .5 amps just as a safety issue and to not shorten the batt life to much. To address your NIMH comment about them not lasting, its quite common. NIMH batts like to be discharged completely and then recharged, also some trickle chargers(wall chargers) need like 12 hourse to get those puppies charges cause they do just what their name implies and trickle charge like .3 amps haha. Anyway if they are not discharged all the way and then charged all the way it shortens the life of the batts, They dont have alot of power to begin with so you see the decrease in performance alot faster in NIMH.

Does the turnigys come factory prewired with traxxas plugs??

No, however when you check out they have a drop down menu to have the traxxas plugs installed! JACKPOT!!!! Most all local hobby shops will do it for you also! I wouldn't change the plug on the ESC really, the most common batt ends out there today would be DEANS and TRAXXAS. Traxxas connectors have more power honestly but not enough for you to notice the difference unless your like racing professionally or something like that, plus the traxxas connector I find to be a little bitchy, especially during cold weather, they dont like to flex to fit at all, they are sometimes a bitch to take off and they are a little more difficult to solder when start doing it yourself. Plus im guessing most the people you are rolling with prob use deans so its easier to borrow batts when out in the field. If you dont want to swap you can always have connectors made for conversion from dean to traxxas and so on. I have a set for deans to traxxas and traxxas to deans in my RC bag just in case, you never know.

If I am going to purchase a charger are they all balancing chargers?

No they are not, and its a good idea to get a charger and balancer, however most all of them on the market today are both, balancers and chargers.
Most of the chargers will say in the description if they balance or not. Def get the balancer, again no cheaping OUT!! Balancing is critically to the life of the battery. It makes sure the cells are balanced and 1 cell doesnt have to work harder than the other to compensate for power. If it finds itself doing this the cells will get very unbalanced and even if you have a auto lipo cutoff, manually or built in to your ESC, its not smart enough to detect Ooo the cells low and not the batt and will run your battery way down past 3 volts damaging your cell permanently and thus destroying your battery! I balance my cells every charge, however its not really necessary but will prolong the life of your battery. Most people balance around 3 to 5 uses. Balance charging takes a bit more time to charge but again give me the peace of mind in the field and while charging. At minimum I would balance every 3 cycles.


Sorry for all the questions, but this probly the only thing about RC that I dint have a clue about, thank you very much for your time and help

No worries brother, we all gotta start somewhere. And honestly the battery game is a little overwhelming I remember my transistion over and I didnt have near the choices you have today. Heres a list of things to remember about Lipos to make it a bit easier for you.

Balance Charger needed
Cells cant go below 3 volts or they will be damaged.
A cell will balance full at 4.2 volts(So a healthy cell will be at 4.2 volts)
If your ESC has not Auto Lipo cutoff, then you should purchase an alarm or Cutoff safety. Again you want to figure out what your ESC is capable of first!

Here is my charger and features for your comparison while shopping.

Racing Hybrid AC/DC Balance Charger/Discharger

I love this thing!

However most will operate the same ways. If you want to save a few dollars you can purchased used, they go alot cheaper than retail sometimes at half price. I would probably look on RCTECH for the charger they go like water over there and have about 5 listed a day for sale. Not many go on here in the classifieds. Got any more ?s you can send me a PM and we can talk it out.

LIK

Last edited by OFFROADRCKOREA; 01-21-2012 at 11:19 AM.
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Old 01-21-2012, 12:41 PM   #10
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Landcruiser 110 View Post
so a lipo sack isn't a necessity but it is there to be on the safe side correct?

Are lipo chargers easy to use? I've had complicated chargers in the past and I can never seem to get full run time out of my NIMH batteries
Sooo, you yourself have called your skills into suspicion, and still think a $10 (or less) sack is an option? (cringe) I realize shipping to AUS might put a damper on things, so perhaps search locally to see what's available. Kinda hard for me to justify paying Tower $10 for shipping on a $14 bag, when the LHS has the Losi bags for $15.

I've also never had a catastrophic failure, but I personally think the bags are more important during charging than during storage. Still, I store mine in the bags just the same. Just remember to make sure nothing's plugged in to them (ie balancers, LVA's, or 'voltage checkers'), store them at 40-60% charge (3.85 volts per cell, ideally), and they should be fine.


But above and beyond that, typically around here if you attend pretty much any indoor crawling facility, and even many organized comps whether indoor or outdoor, you'll be escorted to an exit if you don't have an approved charging bag. Might not be a bad idea to have one on hand in case the rules say you need it.
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Old 01-21-2012, 12:45 PM   #11
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Default Re: Question about Traxxas Lipos

Just fyi the xl-5 will not work with lipo's unless you wire in a low voltage cutoff
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Old 01-21-2012, 05:12 PM   #12
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Default Re: Question about Traxxas Lipos

Thanks for all the replies guys, I think I have it sorted now, but scaler freak my ESC says that it has lipo cut off, I just have to change the setting
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Old 01-21-2012, 09:23 PM   #13
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Default Re: Question about Traxxas Lipos

Huh is it the brushless esc? Or do the standard brushed xl-5 come with lvc now?
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Old 01-21-2012, 11:17 PM   #14
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XL-5's have been coming with LVD for a while now.
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Old 01-22-2012, 06:17 AM   #15
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Default Re: Question about Traxxas Lipos

Quote:
Originally Posted by ScaleFreak93 View Post
Just fyi the xl-5 will not work with lipo's unless you wire in a low voltage cutoff
^^^^ This is false.... Most new XL-5's come with LVC or LVD. I have one on my sons Stampede and works perfect even though 2s LiPo on his 2wd Stampede is just retarded.

2s LiPo on the XL-5 work great. Good luck
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Old 01-22-2012, 07:13 AM   #16
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Default Re: Question about Traxxas Lipos

FYI: A fellow racer of mine had a lipo go up in flames that was in a Losi lipo bag. Luckily, he found it before it destroyed his pit trailer. Apparently not all lipo bags are truly functional.



Linky for XL-5:
Traxxas XL-5 with LVD
Haven't seen one in the wild, but they do exist.

Last edited by AbstractZen; 01-22-2012 at 07:17 AM.
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Old 01-22-2012, 09:35 AM   #17
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Default Re: Question about Traxxas Lipos

Lipos are great, I've been running them for a while now. But don't toss your NiMHs just yet. When you get a decent LiPo charger, see if it has a 'cycling' function. (I use an Electrifly Triton) Cycling a battery brings it from full charge to empty back to full charge, etc.....and supposedly 'conditions' the cells. I've brought back many NiMHs I thought were dead by cycling the battery about 5 times. It just takes a while if you keep the amp settings low.
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Old 01-23-2012, 05:32 PM   #18
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Default Re: Question about Traxxas Lipos

Well thanks guys, I haven't touched or even looked at traxxas in awhile lol I may just have to pick up one of the new xl-5's
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