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Is 4600 battery legal for racing?

Roadburn

iTrader: (1)

I believe if ROAR has not made them legal they will very shortly. I think they did run 4600 in the Cleveland Nationals last month. You should really ask your local track unless you plan on hitting a big event then ask the event staff. At our local track ( Marshall's Hilltop Hobbies ), the owner is pretty informant with the racers. Of what he's been telling us, the matchers can no longer get 4200's easily. So starting our next season (roughly 4 weeks), 4600's will be legal to run at the track. Again, before you invest allot of money it's better to find out the ruling of where your going to race.

hobbipro

iTrader: (23)

I did some searching for EP4200's last week with no luck, everyone is geared for 4600's now. ROAR and other organizations more or less are being told 4600's are the cell this season. We're only talkin 400mah anyway, with improved reliability, dont see how any organization could say "no", they never have in the past hence the battery wars continue.

Dawn Sanchez

Currently, the ROAR battery approval list, http://www.roarracing.com/approvals/sbattery.php has the EP4600 listed as approved.

We are expecting shipments of other cells from MFG's for a one time only waive of the deadline on 4600 this week and next. IE: The new EnerG cell and IB4600 cell.

Apex

iTrader: (51)

Is it always the case that the latest cells out are approved? Wouldn't it be an overall benefit to racers to slow down the approval process so racers don't have to go out at get the latest and greatest to stay competitive or get that edge? I mean IB4200's were just approved as of 1/1/2007 and a year later 4600's are being approved. Can't we stay at a set milliamp for at least a couple years. These cars are too fast with 4200's already. I realize there a politics, multiple factors and variables that go into approving the latest cells out. Maybe I just don't understand the logic behind it all???

duckman996

iTrader: (14)

I believe the move to the 4600 is not for increased speed/power as much as these new batteries are more durable when compared to the 4200's that were approved last season. Another thing to consider is that no-one is holding a gun to anyones head saying that they need to run the latest packs - in some cases, drivers are benefiting from discounted prices on "old-new" stock giving them a chance to run 4200's this season for less then what they paid last year. Personally, I am glad that 4600's were released this year. They seem to be a much more stable cell.

JtDieter

Guys... Yes, we did run the 4600 in cleveland, and those packs are still good. A little history..Nimh cells have been fragile in the past, as we all learned. They dont like to be stored dead, they self destruct. So far the new generation cells, both EP and IB, are less affected, but still need some charge left in them for storage. At least as an insurance measure. I'm re checking cells today that sat (off the matcher) with no additional charge added, for over a week. So far, no issues with capacity loss. I'll keep adding info as I learn, especially if it help racers make their packs live.

Rick Hohwart

ROAR did have a yearly approval to combat the "cell of the month" but the "outlaw" races ignored it and pretty much let anything run. Basically, the racers made the decision to allow any new cell.

Matt M.

iTrader: (26)

what is an outlaw race??????is that like a club race?????i am confused.....

JtDieter

Outlaw is anything away from the main organization, in this case roar, coined in the past when the outlaw guys came in and stole the u.s.a.c. money when I was laying under sprint cars in the 70's. But , back to the subject, manufacturers usually stop making the approved cell when they find an improvement, usually performance, in this case, safety. We only gained a few seconds capacity, but I can let my 10 year old charge his own car again.

Ted Flack

I am pretty sure Rick is talking about races like the Snowbirds, Vegas, and Cleveland...you know, the big races.

Apex

iTrader: (51)

Without adding more capacity, how close are NIMH's (ie IB4600's) to reaching their full potential?

JtDieter

I know...just respecting the original organization.

Ted Flack

What a nice guy!

JtDieter

Apex. Every time I think it's over, they get more in those little cans. "Fuel cells" Like Bob Hosch at the whip used to say. We gained more with panasonics through internal contact materials, but we really didnt gain capacity, only voltage and flow.