Trakpower vs Maxamps with FMA charger
 

A few years ago I bought the FMA Scorpion lipo cells and charger.Now that I'm in the market for more cells I'm finding there are limited batteries that are compatible with this charger,FlightPowers Trakpower 4900 (with the FMA adapter) and Maxamps with special plug installed by Maxamps.I dont mind either one but I would like y'alls opinion on one or the other,pros,cons and otherwise all welcome.I am looking to stay in the 4900-5000mah range.THANKS.

Trakpower packs are the best money can buy. If you have the money definitely go for them. You won't be disappointed.

The price is so good on Maxamps stuff it's hard to pass up.

The flightpower/trackpowers are tempting though. I have never had one of them.

At only $20 more for a Trakpower pack over a Maxamps 5000mAh 2S pack, to me, it's a no brainer. The Trakpower pack will walk all over the Maxamps 5000 in terms of holding voltage under load. As a byproduct, you get a pack you'll feel more comfortable beating the heck out of since it's in a hard case.

You mention "in terms of holding voltage under load" is this an issue with the Maxamps cells? Or just there 5000s in general? Are there brands that "hold" better than others?

I wouldn't say it's an issue, just that the Flightpower cells are probably rated a bit more conservatively than the Maxamps. This is more of a concern with Maxamps 4000-5000's typically used in 10th scale or 8th scale conversions. The 6000's and 8000's will do a better job of holding the voltage higher under a large load, but with that you get added weight and cost. IMO, it's all up to how much performance you're willing to pay for.

Actually the 5000s are much better than the 6000s. The 6000s are actually 3000 cells in parrallel and the 8000s are actually 4000s in parrallel and usually, the bigger the cells, the better. I have a 4s 5000 mah pack from max amps and it does not hit the 12.5 volt cutoff of the novak smart stop until there is absolutely nothing left in the pack. When I tried this pack with my 8xl, i couldn't see how it would even be possible to have more punch than it did.

My plans are to go with 2 3s packs or 1 6s pack.The 3s packs would cause fit problems but the single 6s would be perfect.Does that large of a cell pack affect the packs performance?

If you run one 6s pack, you will likely have some big weight and balance problems. If you can get a way to fit two 3s packs... one on each side, that would be the ideal set up. Balance left and right should be pretty good if not perfect as well.

The larger cell pack will actually benefit performance, as long as the ESC can handle it. Get a fairly low KV motor with the 6s set up, and you should receive a very efficient system. :yes:

Actually my theory was a 6s on one side with XL motor and heatsink,receiver pack and ESC on the opposite side to balance the weight.My thinking was 1 1/2 lbs max.Having never owned a pack than size is my thinking close?

Even that will be off in terms of weight. With my 4s 8000 pack, the balance is still a little more on the battery side and I have the rest of the electronics on the other side, except for the ESC, which is in the center. I can tell pretty easily while holding it, but while jumping, it flies perfectly straight. You may to try the car out, and then decide if you want to redo the lay out.

Good luck! :smile:

How much is a trackpower 4900? I thought they were around 140?

Maxamps prices have gone up... but with their 10% discount it's still under $90

From what I have seen, a maxamps 5000 will be more than enough for 90% of the cars it will be strapped into. Some extreme setups will do better or may require more than a 20c pack... but very few.

the gold trackpower 4900's are $120

For the small price difference between the trakpower and maxamps packs, I'd go with the trakpowers.

Although I do like the maxamps packs for the bang for the buck that you get, I'd stick with the "better" packs for such a small price differential. The maxamps packs just get to be more appealing at their price when you start talking about 4S and 5S packs. For 2S packs, it's a no brainer.

As I said, I do like the maxamps packs for the price, but I have had my share of problems with them. Stuff like cells puffing when I'm not pushing them that hard and packs containing defective cells. I just got in another pack that was a 5S 5Ah pack and the first cell in the pack won't charge up to 4.2v. The balancer is running through the whole charge cycle.

did you try charging it separately? there is the slight chance that your balancer isn't working correctly. TBH, I don't even use a balancer. I just make sure they are even at the discharge and charge the pack to 4.1 volts per cell avg. It's better for the cells, but even so, the voltage has never been more thean .01v apart, charged or discharged after the initial balancing.