ORIGINAL: stek79
Thank you Keith.
So, based on various people (including top pilots) experience the dual pack & switch is a really good solution, with both redundancy and more current, as Keith noted.
It is interesting the fact that regulators are not needed, actually: in case of a "bad" short, even that setup will not be able to land the plane... or at least, land an unburned plane!
Did I forgot one situation in which regulators can be useful, with respect to reliability of radio system?
Very good summary. With an upcoming gas project I may now consider dual packs. The extra amps are beneficial and I'm hesitant to use high Amp 6V packs.
Why not big mAh 6V packs, you might ask?
From the experience of a friend, his high Amp 5cell pack (in this case 3300mAh) full charge yielded almost 7volts, enough to make the receiver and servos jitter. Yes, I know that the voltage will drop as current is used but that seems to be wasting mAh you wanted in the first place. Additionaly, with regulators costing upwards of $80 locally they are more expensive than the batteries. Looking at alternative regulators there are some simple designs out there but none will really handle loads over 1Amp.
From my perspective, the benefits of twin battery packs becomes clear. You don't end up over volting, you get the extra mAh, don't need an expensive regulator, and get the bonus of some redundancy. Sounds good to me.
OK, 5 cell (6V) battery packs may belong in another thread but dual batteries sounds like a safe way to more power and inherent redundancy.