I've been in the r/c airplanes and helis part of the hobby after i dropped cars a few years ago due to the high costs to be competitive.
Comm lathes, bags of brushes, Matched packs that costs arms and legs, a new motor every 1-2 races, etc, you get the idea.
Brushless has been a standard in flying for quite a long while now and it's clear on the advantages and running costs. Lipos also...
Anyway, it no longer takes an hour plus to charge lipos packs.
With new technologies in the battery chemistry and charging control patterns, I now charge my packs in less than half an hour. It's not a matter of how many packs i have to fly, rather how much time do i have to use up all my packs.
Sooner than later, this technology will spill over to cars and everyone will soon realise the advantages.