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Battery Packs have become a critical part of the
competitive R/C race world. It is important to you know
what you're looking for according to the type of racing
that you do. On-road racing tends to rely more heavily
on battery performance than off-road racing.
Choosing Your Cells
All cells are sold with test results in the form of
numbers attached to battery packs indicating how well
each pack will perform. There are many numbers listed
but the main two numbers to look for are discharge
time and average voltage, which should always
be a high number. For example, 370 discharge time &
1.15 voltage are considered average numbers to look for
when purchasing a 3000 mAH battery.
Supplies
While you're shopping for batteries, consider
everything you'll need to assemble your brand new
battery pack.
- Battery Gig
- Battery Bars
- Flux Core Solder
- Soldering Iron
- Goop (optional)
- Pliers
Assemble Your Pack
I like to begin assembly by attaching all the cells
to one another. This is achieved by using a small amount
of Goop in between each cell. This procedure will ensure
strength of construction by holding pack together under
extreme conditions. After allowing time to dry, the
battery pack is ready for battery bar attachment. Place
the Gooped pack into the battery gig, heat up the
soldering iron, and melt a small puddle of solder on
both ends of each cell. Next, place one bar at a time
over two frozen puddles of solder previously melted onto
the cells. Using pliers, hold battery bar firmly in
position while heating each end, sinking it into melted
solder so that bar is completely touching the cell's
surface, ensuring a clean and solid connection (see
photo below). Continue this process until all of the
battery cells are connected in series. The final step in
the assembly process is soldering on hard solder
connectors using two battery bars, one for positive and
one for negative.
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