jeephead

what is the best way to care for nicad batterys?

are they like cellphone batteries (as in they need to be fully discharged before charging to increase their lifespan)?

aliens8mycow

exactly - you need to discharge them before you charge them again. nicd's are also a bit on the dangerous side compared to nimh. Why not go with the safer/easier nimh and enjoy longer runtimes?

jeephead

why are they dangerous? if it means longer runtimes...i'm all about it! what all is entailed in the conversion.

also, someone (maybe you) mentioned getting a "gem" motor....where can i get one, also, i think i'm going to need a new ESC to go with it.

thanks cow, your awesome!

aliens8mycow

nimh is just newer technology that's a lot more stable. nicd's contain more dangerous chemicals that are easily upset. If one vents or leaks, it's not good for ya...

no 'memory effect' either, so you don't have to discharge them religiously.

Some other bonuses of nimh:
* they hold their peak voltage (or close to it) for the life of the charge, then dump all at once. nicd's start at their peak, and continually drop voltage as you run them.
* up to 3700mah capacity. nicd's get up to around 2000mah, so you can get almost twice the fun with nimh.
* no conversion necessary - just make sure you have a nimh compatible peak charger to charge them with.
* that's another bonus in itself - a peak charger knows when the charge is done and shuts off or goes into trickle mode - no timer!
* I'm sure I'm forgetting something...

Here are some links:

speed gem motor:
17T speedgem extreme -- http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXJGX1&P=7
19T speedgem -- http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXDVC5&P=7

GP3300 batteries:
http://www.maxamps.com -- this guy sells 1.18 matched/zapped packs for cheap! They'll build 'em in whatever configuration you want too.

Other companies to check out for quality batteries and low prices:
team scream cell matching
ballistic batteries

jeephead

Awesome, but one more thing then i'll quit w/the newbie questions....for a little while anyway!

i browsed towwer hobbies, but i can't find a ESC.....where can i get one? whats the best to run w/ the 17 turn speed gem?

thunderw0lf

Here's a popular that quite afew people use and it's good down to a 12 turn motor so you shouldn't outgrow it for quite awhile.

[link]http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXAXT9&P=0[/link]



They list the speed controls under radio accessories, here's the full list:
[link]http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0097p?CATEGORY=MJ[/link]

aliens8mycow

I'd agree - the intellispeed is a good esc for the money. You might also look at the novak's.