Stech WernerWhen I was reading this forum post on choosing a LiPo battery, it did dawn onto me that this is something that requires some attention as there are many questions regarding the best choice for a LiPo battery. In this sense, it will be good to do a little explanation of what exactly is a LiPo battery and why choosing the best LiPo battery for your RC car will impact on your RC car’s performance.
Contents
What Is A LiPo Battery
Essentially, a LiPo (Lithium Polymer) battery is a newer type of battery that is slowly replacing many of the mainstream types of batteries. These days, you can find LiPo battery in almost any device that you see, from the drones to the RC racing cars. They are usually preferred in radio controlled vehicles as compared to using the older NiMH batteries as the former is much superior in terms of output performance.
Of course, though they are technologically superior, there are still some limitations to it. Here is a quick listing of the pros and cons of using LiPo battery in your RC vehicle.
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As you can probably see, the high performance of the battery does have a setback, which will be the price as well as its ability to catch fire easily. But at least for the latter, if you do take due diligence in protecting your own equipment and maintaining the battery itself, it wouldn’t post that much of a problem for you.
If you wish to read a comprehensive guide on the LiPo battery and the components, you can read them here. They have done up a very guide and lengthy guide on what exactly is a LiPo battery and the various components of it.
How To Choose Best LiPo Battery For Racing Cars
As from seen above, if we negate away from the problems that the LiPo battery has in terms of its ability to catch fire easily, it is pretty evident that they are extremely good for racing events due to its high capacity as well as high discharge rate. This is not including its low weight too, which is something worth considering when you wish to have an RC car that has a lower weight since the weight of the car does affect the speed of the racing RC car itself.
But with so many of these LiPo batteries that are made available in the market these days, how do you exactly go about choosing the best one for you, or how do you even determine which LiPo battery works best in your given scenario. With that, let us take a closer look at the individual components of the LiPo battery that will be important for consideration when choosing the best LiPo battery for racing cars.
Weight
The weight of the battery will be important here, as you would want a good balance between power and the weight of the battery. A heavier battery will always have an impact on the performance of the entire racing car itself.
Size
The size of the battery does play a significant role, given that the size must be fitting for your RC car. If it is too bulky, the performance of the racing car will be affected too.
Capacity
The capacity of the battery can be treated as the amount of charge that is being stored in the battery. Hence, the larger the capacity, the better it is as it will mean that there is a larger pool of stored energy that can be potentially channeled to the RC racing car itself. To find out the capacity of the LiPo battery, you should look at the number of cells in the battery itself. The higher the cell number, the higher the charge of the battery.
Voltage
Voltage and capacity do work hand in hand. There are various voltages to choose from, but each of them does have a direct link to the number of cells in the battery itself. For example, a single cell LiPo battery has a voltage of 3.7 V while a 3 cell LiPo battery will have a voltage of 11.1 V. Needless to say, try to aim for the 11.1 V battery.
Discharge Rate
The discharge rate is termed as the rate of discharging power to the motor from the LiPo battery. A higher discharge rate will always be desired, but you will need to factor in the maximum rpm of the motor.
Type Of Casing
There are usually two types of casing when it comes to LiPo batteries. You have the soft-sided casing, which is good for low impact activities, as well as the hard-sided casing which is important for consideration when it comes to racing events, whereby stresses to the vehicle is to be expected.
What To Note When You First Purchase Your LiPo Battery
When you first purchase the battery, you might want to consider certain procedures that are important. These procedures will determine if you have a safe or dangerous time in using the battery itself. You can read more of the guide here.
