What is your RC LiPo of choice in 2021

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RC LiPo companies come and go (rip SPC) and RC LiPo batteries are constantly changing and improving.

So to stay current, we are doing an annual thread and what to know what you thank are the best RC LiPo batteries. Tell us which LiPo batteries have offered you the best performance, lifespan and price.

If you see a LiPo battery already mentioned, be sure to up vote that reply!
1611703993154.png


If you're looking for suggestions on a lipo charger, be sure to read Recommend me a battery charger. If you're unsure about how to store a LiPo battery, then check out How to store a LiPo battery.

Get previous years recommendations in the original What's your "budget" LiPo of choice? thread.

That said, what are the best RC LiPo batteries for 2021?
 
I mostly have Powerhobby batteries which I can say have had great luck with but I had a brand new PH 4s soft pack after only a couple runs in my Maxx ( gone now ) start to puff , and a 4s hard pack start getting out of balance between cells early and started to puff during use , then the other day finally split open and puff real hard so stopped using it . After all the talk I've read about Zeee and Hoovo for their price I picked up some . Charged them up and ran in my K8S HW Max5 / 100kv . Gotta say , when I drove it on the Zeee ( before the Hoovo ) I was lie " this truck feels slower than it did on the PH batts . Then when I put in the Hoovo it came alive !!!! Blown away by the difference , and these batts are both brand new !!! If you watch my video , you can clearly see how much more punch and speed from the Hoovo . I honestly wasn't expecting this . I am gonna run Hoovo now and see the outcome of how long they last / perform .

IMG_5040.JPG
 
Can your charger measure the IR of the batteries? Since you have two of each it would be curious to see if there's a consistent and significant difference between the vendors.
 
SMC 2s, 3s, 4s, 6s….. true spec and graphene…. Been using them since SPC days…. In my crawlers first, then my bashers…. Never had a problem… I recommend them to everyone I have run with… also have powerhobby and Traxxas batteries…. Prefer the SMC all day, everyday…
 
Could anyone throw some recommendations my way? I'm struggling to find batteries in England as my usual supplier (Hobbyking) has presumably stopped carrying Turnigy Graphenes in the UK warehouse.
I'm aiming for 6S soft packs that can handle decent power draw (~400A), ideally 7Ah or higher, I intend to slap two of them in my DBXL-E 2.0.
Cheers.
 
Twitchfast said:
Could anyone throw some recommendations my way? I'm struggling to find batteries in England as my usual supplier (Hobbyking) has presumably stopped carrying Turnigy Graphenes in the UK warehouse.
I'm aiming for 6S soft packs that can handle decent power draw (~400A), ideally 7Ah or higher, I intend to slap two of them in my DBXL-E 2.0.
Cheers.
Click to expand...

Socokin 6S Lipo Battery 22.2V 100C 7200mAh​


or look for hoovo / powerhobby / smc.
 
WoodiE said:
RC LiPo companies come and go (rip SPC) and RC LiPo batteries are constantly changing and improving.

So to stay current, we are doing an annual thread and what to know what you thank are the best RC LiPo batteries. Tell us which LiPo batteries have offered you the best performance, lifespan and price.

If you see a LiPo battery already mentioned, be sure to up vote that reply!
View attachment 122593

If you're looking for suggestions on a lipo charger, be sure to read Recommend me a battery charger. If you're unsure about how to store a LiPo battery, then check out How to store a LiPo battery.

Get previous years recommendations in the original What's your "budget" LiPo of choice? thread.

That said, what are the best RC LiPo batteries for 2021?
Click to expand...
I use SMC, ZEE, and Power Hobby. The SMCs are the best but they're pricey. The others never let me down and hold a charge well. No complaints so far. And I've had them for over a year.
 
Edo7-11 said:
I use SMC, ZEE, and Power Hobby. The SMCs are the best but they're pricey. The others never let me down and hold a charge well. No complaints so far. And I've had them for over a year.
Click to expand...
If you think SMC are pricy check out Maxamps 😂
 
With the last sale they were cheaper than Zeee, sorry not in the UK.
No question they are superior. They do not like humidity though.
 
I run mostly Zeee batteries when I can get them with the connectors I need for my vehicles. I do have a few Hoovo and Traxxas batteries that I purchased for the Traxxas vehicles that I chose not to replace the connectors on the ESCs. And I recently purchased two Spektrum batteries so I could use the Smart functions of the Spektrum DX3 radio system on my Losi Baja Rey.
 
Every new lipo I charge and discharge at least 4 times (mostly more) before I use them. The lipos need that and last a lot longer. Takes about 2 evenings.

1. Charge
2. Discharge with 5-12 ampere depending on size of battery
3. Charge at 0,5C
Repeat, go up to 1C over the 4 Cycles. Increase discharge ampere with each cycle.

Using a normal charger to discharge - good luck at 1 amp! Get a proper discharger like the SKYRC BD250 or one form ISDT.

Putting a new lipo in a car and go bashing. Not good.

At 10 degrees Celcius (50 deg fahrenheit) your C-Rating is half. A 40C Lipo is a 20C lipo now. Now take in to account what the real C-Rate on a lipo is. A 5000mAH 40C lipo that is really a 30C Lipo at 10 degrees:

  • 200 AMP is really 150Amp max continous discharge. Then 10 degrees Celcius halves that number to 75 Amp continous discharge. Go full throttle on a 6S to 8S car and you are even well out of the range of the short burst C-Rate.
  • Now what if your 40-80C Lipo is really a 20-40C Lipo when it comes to real numbers?

Charging and discharging at the beginning does change the chemistry in the lipo from "long storage mode" to "use mode". It also seems to me they can handle it a lot better when you go under the 20% minimum by mistake.

The only Lipo I know that labels the lipos lower than they are is SLS in Germany. You can actually go bashing with a 20C/40C 5000mAH in an XMaxx and they last. Because by test they are a real 30C+/60C. I have acutally run them several times by mistake to shut off ESC and they are still going after 2 years.

Just for fun, check out the charge rate on this SLS lipo for rc hotliner aeroplanes:

20211204_200129.jpg


You can charge an 80% discharged lipo in 4,8 minutes to 95% full. So charging at 4-6 C is the way to go here.
 
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