Puffed Cells ?

[sjslhill]

Just wait until this kicks in soon

http://prba.org/laws_and_regulations/un_wg_meeting_on_lithium_batteries_-_april_2009/Default.ashx

I look for LiPoly to be banned. There is zero chance that they are going to pass this for John Doe when they look at it. In fact, they are going to freal out with they drive a nail through a 5S 5000mah pack woohoo

[knpc]

I don't know why you're so anti lipo. There is a risk with them as there is with many other things. If you don't feel safe using them then don't, its called personal responsibility. I assume your boats run on a wind up motor made entirely of nerf because lipos may go up in flames, esc's can explode at any time and a motor spinning at 30,000 rpm can't be safe.

[sailr]

Nickel metal hydride batteries will explode also. I guess sjslhill is going to have to continue to be content either with his squirrel on a treadmill power or his volatile NiMh. His choice. He's the one losing out.

Lipos, if handled and used properly are safe if you don't insist on buying the cheapest ones you can find. In lipo batteries, go for quality. It costs a little more but in the long run it's cheaper!

[Henrik04]

I'm beginning to become a little frustrated with my Elites as well. My first set of 2S 35C 5000's puffed a cell on one pack ; Mike at CBP replaced it, thankfully. Now the other original one recently came in much hotter than the other series-connected one [ a SV-27 motored UL-1 that shouldn't draw that much current.] The shrink puffed some, but it settled back down when cooled. I doubt if it has much life left, however after maybe 25-30 runs. Same thing with a pair of 4S 30C 5300's I run singly in my UL-1 powered tunnel. Also - between those two and my 4 4S 35C 5000's I've had several tap wires become disconnected/unsoldered. My conclusion is that Elites just don't hold up over time. FWIW, I'm now using some Zippy/Flightpower 30C 4S 5000's [ les than $ 200 for the pair delivered in 5 days from HK] in the tunnel, and they totally rock, but only a handful of runs so far. The real test will come in a month or so when I try them at 4S2P in a Neu powered hydro I'm building.
I'm not sure about disposal, hopefully someone smarter than me will chime in.

+1 for the Zippy/Flightmax 30C 5S 5000 & 30C 5S 5800

They are pretty good for the price.

I am still to try the 5S 40C 5000.

I never go below 20% capacity (5A * 0.2 = 1A) So for a 5000 (5A) Lipo your charger (always balanced) should place no more than 4A.

I charge two 5S in parallel and set the iCharger at 6A effectively balance charging each pack at 3A.

Safer and a bit slower but that's ok.

Please let us know how your Zippy Flightmax doing..

[properchopper]

Please let us know how your Zippy Flightmax doing..

The Zippys are still doing well and have good punch right off the charger -( I charge at 1C.) I don't push them very hard, singly by themselves in Spec [UL-1 motor] boats. I have 4 Turnigy 4S 30C 5000's and they're doing fine as well ; one pair 4S2P in a Neu powered hydro and they don't break a sweat. Just ordered some 4S 3600's for a 4S2P Spec offshore mono. Can't beat the price. OTOH I did just get some Hyperion G3's for a high amp draw P-Offshore [4-min] rig.

[detox]

Just ordered some 4S 3600's for a 4S2P Spec offshore mono. Can't beat the price.

Just received my Turnigy 4s 3600mah 30c packs. I will be using them in my 4s2p 580L powered Phil Thomas SS21 and my Whiplash 20. Packs actually measure 33mm thick. Thats 4mm thicker than advertised by Hobbycity.

....

[properchopper]

Just received my Turnigy 4s 3600mah 30c packs. I will be using them in my 4s2p 580L powered Phil Thomas SS21 and my Whiplash 20. Packs actually measure 33mm thick. Thats 4mm thicker than advertised by Hobbycity.

....

If you compare the weight on the multiple pack display page to the detail page there are two different weights given as well. ???

BTW, I'd love to have either hydro & you have both - Lucky dog !!

[ It'd be cool for you to do a side-by-side test/comparison]

[detox]

I have not started building the Whiplash, but this Spring I will do a side by side comparison. The smaller size of 3600 Turnigy is perfect size for these hulls (4s2p). I can use them in the UL-1 also.

[Henrik04]

My Elite cells puffed today. They have been puffed a small amount since one of there first runs, but they never changed size until today. I assume these cells are Done. What should I do with them for disposal.
I ran my Poly RC cells on the run before with no setup changes and they came in fine at 125deg, which leads me to believe the Elites just couldn't handle the amp draw I was asking out of them. They had around 40-50 cycles on them.

I really hope you are talking about 125 Fahrenheit degrees..
For the rest of us, that's is near Celsius 51.66 degrees which is ok but quite on the top for a lithium polymer chemistry.

[TRUCKPULL]

I really hope you are talking about 125 Fahrenheit degrees..
For the rest of us, that's is near Celsius 51.66 degrees which is ok but quite on the top for a lithium polymer chemistry.

Why do you say that 125 F is near the top for a lithium polymer chemistry?
I pre-warm my cells to 120 F before I put them in the boat.

140 F is suppose to be the safe MAX.

Larry

[BILL OXIDEAN]

puffed cells suck

[sailr]

If we're not getting our lipos up to 140F, they ain't puttin out!

[BILL OXIDEAN]

Lipos never fail, they last for hundreds of cycles

Yes, I know, you need Hyperion G3's they will last for 10 season!

r/c boat racing kills batteries.

And that's what it boils down to..
They lose their peak sooner than people think ESPECIALLY in boats.

I've run through packs like water. I need new packs for every major event, I don't even use month old cells because I see a noticeable difference in performance after even as few as 15 cycles then sitting for the rest of the month, a new pack will blast like the difference between night and day in my opinion.

I'm not saying its at all nesecary to do it the way I do especially not for club racing.
My point is that lipo performance tuckers out quicker than one might think.

High quality cells definitely maintain their punch much longer than some of the lower quality packs I've run.

[Simon.O.]

It has been said already that a good FE boat will kill a pack eventually.
I have rooted many a Nimh cell and a few lipos too in the quest for speed.

To get it all in perspective I have now setup a pair of side-by-side 6 round cell packs to run in my big tug. This is 7.2=7.2 (parallel) These have been run in my BL boats.
I get a good 20-30 min of manouvering time before they dump.

In my crawler an old set of GP3300's gets me near an hour of run time.

None of these Nimh cells will make any of my Brushless FE boats go.

Turnigy Lipo packs make all of my FE boats fun.
Yes I do have Polyquest and Flightpower and Zippy too. When they are all dead I will replace them with Turnigy untill something that has better bang for buck comes along.

To the OP.
A permanantly puffed pack is rooted !!
Dispose of it in the correct manner and get a new pack.

[BILL OXIDEAN]

It has been said already that a good FE boat will kill a pack eventually.
I have rooted many a Nimh cell and a few lipos too in the quest for speed.

To get it all in perspective I have now setup a pair of side-by-side 6 round cell packs to run in my big tug. This is 7.2=7.2 (parallel) These have been run in my BL boats.
I get a good 20-30 min of manouvering time before they dump.

In my crawler an old set of GP3300's gets me near an hour of run time.

None of these Nimh cells will make any of my Brushless FE boats go.

Turnigy Lipo packs make all of my FE boats fun.
Yes I do have Polyquest and Flightpower and Zippy too. When they are all dead I will replace them with Turnigy untill something that has better bang for buck comes along.

To the OP.
A permanantly puffed pack is rooted !!
Dispose of it in the correct manner and get a new pack.

Great point, they must be using second pick of top notch cells