What is your RC LiPo of choice in 2021

[WoodiE]

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!

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?

 

[Greengaunja]

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

Can I ask why? No doubts about it being standard procedure as this is what ive since learned. My first lipo purchases were a pair of HRB 3s 5000MaH 80c(october 2020). These were charged up and used right out of the box. Yes, one DID start to bulge after maybe 1 and a half months(was replaced under warranty). But both are considered my "premium" batteries because between my YouMe(3s) Zee(4s) HRB(4s) and gensacearespammers(3s)(all are pairs) the 3s HRBs still slightly exceed the listed specs for mah and discharge. Of all batteries, the 3s HRBs were the only ones not "primed" before use.

 

[Fireyfalcon6]

I have recently bought Tindling hard cased 3s lipo batteries. They were really cheep and so far they are working just fine.

 

[RC-Dude]

Manufacturers add reaction-inhibitors to the lipos so they are safer for transport and storage before they are sold to the end customer. The result is a higher inner resistance of the lipo preventing the higher C-Rates. By soft charging and discharging those reaction inhibitors are broken down. The electrolite with the added reaction-inhibitors age slower during the transport times and time in shelf before sold.

If you use the lipo right away at a high discharge the inner resistance is too high. Not as much current can be drawn from a lipo with the high inner resistance due to reaction-inhibitors.

The down side of hard case lipos is that you can not see if they have puffed. I'd be happy if manufacturers would add a window on the side of the case.

 

[Greengaunja]

Manufacturers add reaction-inhibitors to the lipos so they are safer for transport and storage before they are sold to the end customer. The result is a higher inner resistance of the lipo preventing the higher C-Rates. By soft charging and discharging those reaction inhibitors are broken down. The electrolite with the added reaction-inhibitors age slower during the transport times and time in shelf before sold.

If you use the lipo right away at a high discharge the inner resistance is too high. Not as much current can be drawn from a lipo with the high inner resistance due to reaction-inhibitors.

The down side of hard case lipos is that you can not see if they have puffed. I'd be happy if manufacturers would add a window on the side of the case.

Thanks for that info. Falls in line but with better explanation than the "batteries will last longer" I usually get when asking that question. Not sure if some hardcases are better or stronger or designed to show the start of bulging but with the hardcased HRB i noticed right away. Makes me think of just how bad was it to show itself then?

 

[slick2500]

Thanks for that info. Falls in line but with better explanation than the "batteries will last longer" I usually get when asking that question. Not sure if some hardcases are better or stronger or designed to show the start of bulging but with the hardcased HRB i noticed right away. Makes me think of just how bad was it to show itself then?

All of the hardcase lipos I have had you could definitely tell they were swelling.

 

[Senton_Prime]

Hardcase for the W!! ..

 

[Adiabatic]

Manufacturers add reaction-inhibitors to the lipos so they are safer for transport and storage before they are sold to the end customer.

Do you have a source on this?

 

[RC-Dude]

Yes, but German . But that info was also pretty limited. Found another info where a seller of lipos inquired at different manufacturers about the swelling of lipos. What does happen is that some lipos swell during use and that hydrogen gas is released inside the lipo. When it cools of that hydrogen gas is reabsorbed by the cell. But that stretches the shrink tubing of the lipo. It looks like a defect but is none. The voltage is the right indicator here.

The problem is when the gas is not reabsorbed. It stretches the shrinking tube of the single cells. Hydrogen is pretty burnable. When the shrinking tubes burst - poisonous. And humiditiy makes it even more dangerous when burst as water and lithium tend to make fire (not the barbeque type).

Always store at ca. 3,8 Volt. A spontanous fire is pretty unlikely as there is not enough energy. And store in a safe box. Check out some videos what happens with burning lipos in an ammunition box without a hole. They actually blow off the lid. I store in Extover granules and Lipo box.

What I would like to know if there is any downside to bashing with lipos in the battery tray upright instead of flat? Like cells next to each other instead of on top of each other. Kind of feels wrong to use them upright as the cell gets the full impact on the side (instead of the whole cell) when you bash hard.

When a batterey size is 163x49x46mm but the tray in the 6s series is only 48mm wide.

 

[Adiabatic]

I'm curious because I read a few papers that went into detail on LiPo construction, failure modes and incidents and don't remember seeing anything about reaction inhibitors added at the factory.

What I would like to know if there is any downside to bashing with lipos in the battery tray upright instead of flat? Like cells next to each other instead of on top of each other. Kind of feels wrong to use them upright as the cell gets the full impact on the side (instead of the whole cell) when you bash hard.

I imagine it's worse because the sides of the cell are the most vulnerable parts, and an impact there can crush the edges of the anode and cathode plates together and create a short leading to thermal runaway.

Hardcase for the W!! ..

I only use hard case. Soft case seems better suited to R/C applications that don't involve regular hard landings, crashes, flying rocks and other debris you typically encounter during an off-road bash session.

 

[Monster Dork]

I've been happy with my 6s 5000 60C Hoovo batts, so I just bought a new pair of 6s 6000 100C Hoovos to make my bash blast. They are reinforced soft packs, which makes them puncture resistant. No swelling from any of them. I was tired of Hobbyking being out of stock on their price-jacked graphenes (ran lots of them with quadcopters, decent batts but not long lasting) so I went with Hoovo. After a year, I'm pleased with them.

 

[Edo7-11]

I've been happy with my 6s 5000 60C Hoovo batts, so I just bought a new pair of 6s 6000 100C Hoovos to make my bash blast. They are reinforced soft packs, which makes them puncture resistant. No swelling from any of them. I was tired of Hobbyking being out of stock on their price-jacked graphenes (ran lots of them with quadcopters, decent batts but not long lasting) so I went with Hoovo. After a year, I'm pleased with them.

I never tried them. I'll have to give them a try. SMC is still my best.

 

[Monster Dork]

I never tried them. I'll have to give them a try. SMC is still my best.

They are Amazon specials, 2 for $100 or so with Amazon's in-listing coupon. I often store them fully charged and otherwise treat them poorly compared to aviation packs, but my first year with them made me happy enough to upgrade to the 100C/6k mAh version.

 

[jkflow]

Initial cycling is definitely recommended. There is an impact to IR, but it's not a dramatic change unless there is already something seriously wrong with the cell manufacturing.The best supported theory is the initial degradation of the SEI layer that protects the anodes. A write-up is below, this might be a translation of the german version mentioned above. Search for 'SEI layer' further in the article, warning that this is not a trivial write-up.

Never heard or read about additional chemicals being added to improve storing, but the SEI layer essentially does the same, but it's more a byproduct than intentional. A 'gentle' break in is preferred as IR generates heat and high heat does more damage than the low 'break-in' sessions.
You would need a Chemical Engineer to decipher all the details.

I typically only give my lipos 'light duty' for the first 5 cycles, but I do not do the slow break-in, just don't have the patience. When I did do this may years back I didn't notice much of a change, maybe 10-20% of IR. For bashing, this is not even noticeable.


http://www.theampeer.org/lipo-intro/lipo-intro.html

 

[Greengaunja]

What I would like to know if there is any downside to bashing with lipos in the battery tray upright instead of flat?

Do you mean stacked vs side by side?
Side by side lowers the center of gravity. For bashing, many want a high center of gravity for areodynamics.


One downside of softcase Lipos stacked:

*truthfully, the smack into the curb at full throttle and the consequent flip into the tree combined with the low, kinda sharp HR battery mount rails might have likely yielded the same result with a hardcase.

The way i drive the above theory would have been tested before summer 2022, but Ive since added a fair bit of CF to the HR battery mount.

 

[grihn]

Zeee mostly because they're inexpensive and have never given me trouble. I've started buy Spekrum smart batteries since the daughter is learning the hobby. The auto-discharge to storage voltage is a good feature to have when eager kids are old enough to understand that you have to take the battery off the charger when the alarm goes off, but too young to understand that you can't just charge the battery when dad's at work and then not say anything.

 

[AddictedtoRCs]

Zeee, Hoovo, CNHL

 

[6sKratonV1]

Max Amps

I currently use power hobby but I am looking to buy a smaller 8s battery pack. Since power hobby doesn't make the right size would you recommend max amps? Are they worth the extra price?

 

[LibertyMKiii]

I continue to run Zeee batteries in all of my bashers and even punished them pretty severely in an 42" RC boat. (3 mins run time from full to below storage)
They keep on running, balance well, are very light, and best of all ultra cheap on Amazon.

For speed runners Turnigy Panther or Heavy Duty 60c, CNHL 70c G+ series, and SMC

 

[slick2500]

I currently use power hobby but I am looking to buy a smaller 8s battery pack. Since power hobby doesn't make the right size would you recommend max amps? Are they worth the extra price?

Max Amps has the most overpriced overrated batteries on the planet I would avoid them unless you have money burning a hole in your pocket.

 

[jkflow]

@6sKratonV1 MaxAmps is maximum ripoff. Avoid at all cost. Any other chinesium is more reliable and provides more power, exception seems to be GoldBat.
Zeee (Amazon), CNHL are good for bashing.
SMC is probably top shelf.