RC Cars: Battery recommendations?
Discussion
Recently bought a Vanessa's Lunchbox RC Car off Ebay (as a result of recommendations on here - thanks again!) and then went to local model shop for new batteries.
I bought a couple of "Venom 3000mAh" sticks. These seem to last about 35mins each.
I've since heard that Venom are not well regarded and that if I swap to Orion or Panasonic sticks, these will last longer and possibly even make the car go faster (for similar capacity).
Is this true? Has anyone got any experience of different makes of RC Car batteries?
Shentodj
I bought a couple of "Venom 3000mAh" sticks. These seem to last about 35mins each.
I've since heard that Venom are not well regarded and that if I swap to Orion or Panasonic sticks, these will last longer and possibly even make the car go faster (for similar capacity).
Is this true? Has anyone got any experience of different makes of RC Car batteries?
Shentodj
Cells will make one of the biggest differences to the power of your car, but its all relative to budget and the other electronics you have in the car.
I, and most other RC users, typically use Lipo packs now, they offer far better efficiency and power than any traditional cells. The other good thing with Lipos is that you can recharge, and recharge and recharge and there is no performance drop, they also last a long time (if looked after).
The downside to Lipos are that they cannot be fully discharged, if you do, they are ruined. By discharged, i mean run down until the car starts to slow. If you do not charge them immediately at this point, they will be ruined and even dangerous if you try to recharge them at a later time. I would also point out that the first time you run them, time how long they take to get to a relatively flat state, then make sure you never go beyond this time again, this will concerve the cells and make sure they stay good for longer.
If you want to run standard cells, some good but cheap ones are made by Demon Power products:
[urlhttp://demonpowerproducts.co.uk/product_info.php?cPath=46_47&products_id=4452/url]
With Nimh's, never recharge until they have cooled down and also keep an eye on them as they can have a tendancy to go bang if over charged
I, and most other RC users, typically use Lipo packs now, they offer far better efficiency and power than any traditional cells. The other good thing with Lipos is that you can recharge, and recharge and recharge and there is no performance drop, they also last a long time (if looked after).
The downside to Lipos are that they cannot be fully discharged, if you do, they are ruined. By discharged, i mean run down until the car starts to slow. If you do not charge them immediately at this point, they will be ruined and even dangerous if you try to recharge them at a later time. I would also point out that the first time you run them, time how long they take to get to a relatively flat state, then make sure you never go beyond this time again, this will concerve the cells and make sure they stay good for longer.
If you want to run standard cells, some good but cheap ones are made by Demon Power products:
[urlhttp://demonpowerproducts.co.uk/product_info.php?cPath=46_47&products_id=4452/url]
With Nimh's, never recharge until they have cooled down and also keep an eye on them as they can have a tendancy to go bang if over charged
I think someone's been bitten by the upgrading bug... 
Venom's are grand for bashing, I used them in my drifter and crawler, though the racers tend to knock them. They're the best of the budget batteries, though the competition spec cells will be better. Essentially, with NiMH you get what you pay for.
Compared to what you would spend on "good" NiMH batteries, you'll get a much better improvement upgrading to LiPos for more or less the same money.
You'll probably need to upgrade your charger and invest in a cut-off as well, assuming your ESC and charger aren't LiPo compatible?
What speed controller and motor are you using? There's probably no need to upgrade these, (it's a basher, not a racer) unless they're seriously inefficent. They're not still using the mechanical speed controller in Lunchboxes, are they?
There's probably a brushless setup for Stock Class racing you could use...
Venom's are grand for bashing, I used them in my drifter and crawler, though the racers tend to knock them. They're the best of the budget batteries, though the competition spec cells will be better. Essentially, with NiMH you get what you pay for.
Compared to what you would spend on "good" NiMH batteries, you'll get a much better improvement upgrading to LiPos for more or less the same money.
You'll probably need to upgrade your charger and invest in a cut-off as well, assuming your ESC and charger aren't LiPo compatible?
What speed controller and motor are you using? There's probably no need to upgrade these, (it's a basher, not a racer) unless they're seriously inefficent. They're not still using the mechanical speed controller in Lunchboxes, are they?
There's probably a brushless setup for Stock Class racing you could use...
Edited by vdubbin on Tuesday 17th November 15:22
vdubbin said:
I think someone's been bitten by the upgrading bug...
Venom's are grand for bashing, I used them in my drifter and crawler, though the racers tend to knock them. They're the best of the budget batteries, though the competition spec cells will be better. Essentially, with NiMH you get what you pay for.
Compared to what you would spend on "good" NiMH batteries, you'll get a much better improvement upgrading to LiPos for more or less the same money.
You'll probably need to upgrade your charger and invest in a cut-off as well, assuming your ESC and charger aren't LiPo compatible?
What speed controller and motor are you using? There's probably no need to upgrade these, (it's a basher, not a racer) unless they're seriously inefficent. They're not still using the mechanical speed controller in Lunchboxes, are they?
There's probably a brushless setup for Stock Class racing you could use...
Its also a question of whether Lipos will fit in that car or notVenom's are grand for bashing, I used them in my drifter and crawler, though the racers tend to knock them. They're the best of the budget batteries, though the competition spec cells will be better. Essentially, with NiMH you get what you pay for.
Compared to what you would spend on "good" NiMH batteries, you'll get a much better improvement upgrading to LiPos for more or less the same money.
You'll probably need to upgrade your charger and invest in a cut-off as well, assuming your ESC and charger aren't LiPo compatible?
What speed controller and motor are you using? There's probably no need to upgrade these, (it's a basher, not a racer) unless they're seriously inefficent. They're not still using the mechanical speed controller in Lunchboxes, are they?
There's probably a brushless setup for Stock Class racing you could use...
Edited by vdubbin on Tuesday 17th November 15:22
If you decide to stick with NiMH and you don't want to blow the bank, I have been very happy with Vapextech packs from www.component-shop.co.uk The 4600 size last for ages in my buggy, which has a quickish brushless motor.
If you are still using the standard Tamiya battery connectors, they are only really good for a stock motor. A lot of resistance and they can even get hot enough to melt. If you have a more powerful motor change to another sort. I use Deans type but there a several options that are less of a hassle to solder. Again, it doesn't cost much to swap.
Do you have a good delta peak charger? If not, they are not that expensive and will ensure you get the max amount of charge into your packs. I went from an old timed fast charger to a computerised peak charger and the difference was staggering. I reckon I wasn't even getting two thirds charge in my packs before.
Finally, join tamiyaclub.com for loads help. They love Lunchboxes on there.
If you are still using the standard Tamiya battery connectors, they are only really good for a stock motor. A lot of resistance and they can even get hot enough to melt. If you have a more powerful motor change to another sort. I use Deans type but there a several options that are less of a hassle to solder. Again, it doesn't cost much to swap.
Do you have a good delta peak charger? If not, they are not that expensive and will ensure you get the max amount of charge into your packs. I went from an old timed fast charger to a computerised peak charger and the difference was staggering. I reckon I wasn't even getting two thirds charge in my packs before.
Finally, join tamiyaclub.com for loads help. They love Lunchboxes on there.
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