We should compare apple with apples here! The pack in question from Batteries America does not use Sanyo cells. They are some 'Private Label' cell. Now they may be good quality cells, but how would we know?

The 1650mAh pack at Radical RC does use Sanyo cells.

Also the Batteries America website is horrible.......it loads a huge long page with all of their products on it and you have to scroll slowly through it looking to see what they have.

I am not knocking or praising either company, I just think we should do a fair comparison.

Most of Futaba's equipment is made to be used with 4 cell alkaline packs this is the same voltage as a 5 cell NiCad pack (6 volts). As far as increased wear, if your servos have to generate their specified torque to move then you need larger servos. If you need 40ozin to move a control then you will be using almost 100% of a standard servo at 4.8 volts but only about 80% of the available torque with a 6 volt pack. While I usually loose this argument, if both are generating 40ozin then due to the conservation of energy the input power has to be about the same plus losses in the wires and servo amplifiers. Like I said, I usually loose this argument!

I really don't think you want to run a 6V battery down to 4.8V, unless you want to pick up some balsa pieces! That would be bringing the voltage down to under 1V per cell. You might fly down to 5.5 volts safely, but personally I would be looking to recharge around 5.7-5.8 volts. Let's hear some more on this.

As far as a 4.8V pack goes, you should be able to safely bring it down a little below 4.8V. My Hobbico 4.8V ESV scale hits the red at 4.6 volts. I don't have a 6V ESV, but it would be interesting to know where the red zone begins on this scale. Of course, those ESV readings will only be accurate if the load it imposes accurately reflects the load of your plane's electronics.

Wade