TornadoGuy

Well, I got the Velineon yesterday and installed it already. So today I decided to test it out. I am using a 6 cell 3600mah Associated Wolfpack battery. I know this is not going to be the fastest, but Traxxas still suggests the car should go 35mph plus with this setup. When I got the car out there and drove it I liked it. Although, after a test with the radar gun, my highest speed was only 30 mph. I want to achieve at least 45 mph. So anyway, here are some questions I have on trying to achieve this goal:

[ul][*] If I go for a better battery, what should it be? I would prefer to stay with NiMh. I am thinking I should go to a 7 cell, but I am wondering if I can use an 8 cell battery with the Velineon. I like the 8 cell because it is 9.6 volts, but yet still available in NiMh.
[*] If I am to upgrade to a 7 or 8 cell, what is a good battery? I am interested in the Associated Wolfpack 8 cell 3600mah hump pack. This seems it would fit my bill perfectly. What do you guys think? I have also seen a Venom 8 cell 5000mah hump pack for about the same price. Is this good enough for what I am doing?
[*] If I can get the 8 cell battery, how much would this improve my speed on average? In other words, how many mph will I gain on average?
[/ul]
[ul]Now, let’s say I walk away with either a 7 or 8 cell battery. I am wondering if the charger I have is enough to charge these batteries.

The charger is a Hobbico RC Action series 7.2 Volt 2-3 Hour Charger. The specs are: Input: AC 120V 60Hz 15W
Output: DC 9V 700mA
Is this good enough, or do I need a better charger? If so, what should I go with?
[*] Lastly, if I do get the 7 or 8 cell battery, how much faster will I go. Can I achieve 45mph plus with this setup?


Thanks for the help,


Joe

ozzie-crawl

Do your self a favour look at hobby king site buy a accucell 6 charger about $18 and a turnigy lipo
lot cheaper in the long run plus way more performance

samguan

HobbyKing Lipos are cheaper than NiMH and they will turn your car into a fast beast.

Dialed_In

Avoid Venom NiMH batteries. A higher mah battery is good though and should give a bit more power than a 3600mah battery.

Your charger only puts out 700mah which will charger larger batteries slowly. I would recommend the turnigy as others mentioned or the Thunder AC6 which will work with AC power. It can also charger other types of batteries like lipo and life. http://www.hobbypartz.com/thac6smbachw.html It's about the same price of the Turnigy by the time you pay shipping and a buy a power supply (the Turnigy is DC only).

If you can go lipo it would definitely give you a bit more power and less weight. If you want to stick with NiMH, these guy have decent batteries. http://www.promatchracing.com/

savagecommander

no doubt- shell out the extra cash and pick up a lipo charger and grab up some turnigy 3 cells for 45 bucks. youll hit 45 easy.

TornadoGuy

Okay, so I am looking at the Lipos on Hobby King. I am just confused on what to get. I mean there's 30c 25c 20c, what do I need? Also, how many cells do I need? What is a good mah rating?

Now, the Accucell battery charger can work with the battery I choose?

What else do I need with the combo?

Basically, I am just trying to achieve 45 mph.

Thanks again,


Joe

theunleet

TornadoGuy, here is exactly what you need to achieve 45+ MPH.

Firstly you will need a compatible charger for the Lithium Polymer (LIPO) Batteries. For about $22 you can get the Accucel-6 charger from HobbyKinghttp://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=7028

Next you need the powersupply so you can charge it at home, about $10,http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store...idProduct=6256

Next you need to find a Lipo battery of your choice, essentially the more cells, the more voltage, the more speed. Your Velineon system can handle up to 3-CELL Lipo, which is faster than 2-Cell. Now they have 20C, 25C, 30C, 40C, and more. Basically thats poweroutput in my own terms. With 40C or higher being the best, and 20C being the lowest, but since its lipo, 20C is still great to give you awesome power. So, what kind of battery are you looking for? Hardcase batteries or just the wrapped kind they have? Here are some Turnigy 5000mAh 20C 2-Cell Lipo batteries($20 max per battery). Pick up a few of these and a few 3-Cell's I will suggest next.http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store...dProduct=10098 . Ok now, here are some Turnigy 5000mAh 25C 3-Cell Batteries, normal wrapped kind.(Around $36 a battery)http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store...idProduct=9183 . You will want 1 or 2 of each battery I listed as the 3-Cell is VERY strong and the 2-Cell is much stronger than the NiMh batteries you have, but not too powerful if you dont want to do alot of speedruns.

All in all, $22 for the charger, $10 for the powersupply, $20 for a 2-Cell and $36 for a 3-Cell will come out to about.... $88 + shipping costs to where you live.

savagecommander

BAM- 45MPH.... and you dont even need plutonium. the hardcase batteries should fit into your ceter tray, but if you get the soft packs youll need to velcro them saddle style. you can get a 10ft roll for like $8 at ace. 2 cells for bashing, 3 cells for power. watch your gearing and temps.

theunleet

Now if you have the money, just go ahead and look for the 5000mAh 2S and 3S 40C variety, They are more expensive but they do pack a hell of a punch.

TornadoGuy

Thanks a lot for all the help. That is just what I needed to get started. Just have a few more questions.


Okay, so the hard case should fit right in, but the soft can not?

How do these batteries connect in the Rustler? In other words, where do the plugs on the batteries connect to on the car itself?

How long would these batteries take to charge?


That's about it for now. This Lipo thing is very new to me so I need all the help I can get.


Thanks again,

Joe

TIGER76

Sounds more like your battery letting you down i use a 8cell on a vxl pede and its good for 50mph+ (with gearing) if your not ready for lipos yet nimh still have good power

ps ive had goodluck with EP and IB cells

TornadoGuy

Well, I think decided on two batteries. Right Here: [link=http://hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=10098]Turnigy Lipo[/link] and [link=http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/uh_viewItem.asp?idProduct=11598&Product_Name=Turnigy_4000mAh_2S_30C_hardcase_pack]Turnigy Lipo 2[/link]

These seem good enough for what I have to do. One sacrifices 1000mah, but gives me an extra 10c. So, which one is the better way to go? Since one of them is only 1mm bigger height wise, they will both fit.

Is there a more powerful battery that will still fit the Ruslter?

I just wish they had a 5000mah 3s 40c hard pack that would fit in the Traxxas Rustlers battery tray.

Joe

samguan

The Turnigy 5000mAh 3S will fit with tiny modifications if you have a dremel.

From review:

"Had to dremel out the middle wall under the ESC and cut a slot near the battery hold down clip for the wires to come out, and now its a good fit. You can lightly sand the tray sides if the fit is too snug, but you do not need to buy any parts to make these fit."

I'm using it in my HPI Blitz and it took couple minutes to dremel down the area where the wires exit and it fits perfectly!

This battery will give you too much power and speed. You can definitely go beyond 50MPH+.


The Accucel charger will charge LiPo/LiFe up to 6S and NiMH/NiCd up to 15S. Most of the time you will be charging at 1C which means for a 4000mah battery. You can charge it at 4AMP which will take about 1.5HR to fully charge it. You can use this charger to charge your older NiMHs too.

I use mine to charge AA Ni-MHs for my radio, just buy a battery holder from Radio Shack and connect to the charger and start charging. I charge Glow Plug Igniter, my NiMHs and my lipos. It's a really good charger.

samguan

A Slash 4x4 running the Turnigy 3S

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WTOW0mupNN8[/youtube]

redfisher1974

how does the cold plastic hold up?

TornadoGuy

Thanks for the help guys. I think for now though I will get one of the two batteries I linked above. I just want to ease in to the Lipo thing. I also want to try to get a battery that will fit right in the car without any modifications.

The only thing I can't decide on is whether I should sacrifice 1000 mah for an extra 10c. What do you guys think? 5000mah with 20c or 4000mah with 30c?


Joe

Slo-V Flyer

The C rating and the capacity together tell you your lipo's discharge amp rating. 5000 mah x 20 C = 100 amps (100,000 ma) of current discharge continuous (possibly).

4000 x 30C = 120 amps.

I'd say get a 5000 mah 25C and call it a day. I have one of those and you get the benefit of runtime of 5000 mah and at 25C I know I have some extra cushion as far is the motor pulling 125 amps for whatever reason.

I'd also invest in a point and click temperature gauge. HK does have some infrared car key FOB sized ones from what I hear $20+. This is a vital tool for r/c anyway. You always want to check the temps in a new setup every 3-5 minutes or couple of speed passes.

Motor and ESC temp should be kept below 160-170*F (usually an esc is better kept below 150*F).

A Nimh should not be allowed to get over 130*F for more than a few minutes if possible.

A LIPO should never be allowed to exceed 120-125*F. At 140*F your cells will puff up and you are likely to permanently waste your battery. Good news is a CORRECT battery (like the ones linked above) rated to handle the current draw of your motor, won't usually get over 90-100*F under normal running.

Nitro-Tom

SInce this is an "Active thread" and this is not off topic (Really) I will post here.

Just purchased a week ago for my kid a new Slash 4x4 with this motor and ESC (Ultimate) and stock NiMH 7 cell battery. Now, on the 4th run, the car will not move and the motor just "Coggs" and make a minor sound.

If you push the car a tiny bit, just give it a bump, it goes perfect and will run fine, brakes fine, but once it stops the brushless motor cannot go again without a push?

Any ideas whats wrong?

Thanks in advance.....

Slo-V Flyer

I'd check the battery and make sure it's properly holding a charge. Check all the wiring to and from the ESC, and receiver. Also if you can try another battery to make sure it's not the issue, that would help diagnose the problem. Aside from that I'm not sure what would cause the motor to work after you give it a push in this case. Call Traxxas and see if they have any idea what's causing it and if they will replace it under warranty.