Which one do you have ?

Factory spec 4200 or 4300 7.2, I think.

These are out of stock and I'm not sure when we will get more.

We're getting some of the 4670-2S2P but these have the same materials as the current 6500 and 7200s so the IR is higher. We will offer them as out of spec on special but even with the higher IR these will be lower in IR than the 4300s you have now.

Packs should show up on Tuesday.

IMO RCT is pretty racer-heavy. If you had the same presence on URC I think you'd get good traction; they're a savvy bunch but not as race-oriented, so your brand of no-nonsense "Here's the deal...." would go over well.

I just wanted to say that I have been running SMC batteries for years now. Started with Nimh and now running their Lipos. I have had great luck with their batteries! I have a "Lightning Volts" lipo I bought about 5 years ago and it is still running strong. I also have a 5200 mah C-Max lipo that I love, and I just picked up a 5600 mah Factory Spec pack. Could not beat the price. Thanks SMC for years of reliable power!

Hi. I have 2 Orion 6500 90c Li Po 7.4 volt packs. Just wanted to know what is the ideal amps to charge these at to get the best long term life out of the battery? At the moment Im charging at 4amps and my charger goes up to 6amps. Im not fussed if it takes longer to charge. Also, will I get better punch charging at higher amps?

How do the SMC's 6500 compare performace and quality wise to the Orion?

Thanks..

Should we be using a "Storage Charge" in between race weekends?

My charger has that but it only charges at 1amp max in that mode which I thought was bad.. charging at too low of a C.

Storage charge/discharge within a hour or two of running once your done for the day. 1a will take a while but it's ok.

For a 6500 mah pack, 6.5A or 1C.
Your charger knows your pack will safely take more than what you set it at so it is pushing to it's max (my guess) 6A which is what I'm guessing your charger is able to do.

No more punch at higher amps that I have seen. That's nimh tech.
Depending on the quality of your charger you may not actually fill your lipo to 100% charging higher than 1 or 2 C.

Maybe Danny has other input?

So you probably storage charge all your packs before you leave the track?

I've been waiting 1 or 2 days after the last run to put in a storage charge, then racing again a week later.

My charger is an AC/DC Swallow 6amp max. If i set it to 4 amps it charges at no more than 4 amps. Is there any negative effect charging at lower than 1c like 4 amps in my case?

No, when I get home... about 30 min drive. So about 1 hour after I actually stopped running. But not to he exact... just not a long time and certainly not a day or so.

I think I have seen Danny say not to charge below 1C in this thread or maybe I am confusing it with another read. I think that's within reason though, but 4 or 5 (probably 5) may be close enough to be good.
I think with the better lipo's now than even a few years ago, 1C is fine and the lipo will live a long happy life. You will probably not gain anything at less than 1C and you will wait longer.

Thing is, if Danny actually said you should be at 1C, no less... you need another charger So maybe you shouldn't read Danny's reply
Along the lines of chargers, I just started using a power lab6... omg it's sweet.

You can charge at 6 amps this will not hurt the pack. This is 1C.

You can go visit this thread I did about battery testing and see some interesting results.

http://www.hobbytalk.com/bbs1/showthread.php?t=362697

The way I see it storage charge is over rated. In my opinion storing Lipos for a long time risks damaging them. It takes a long time for a Lipo to self discharge. If you race frequently you can keep them stored with lower voltage. Storing them fully charged or with to much charge is bad. After your last run of the day if they are at 3.5 to 3.85v per cell and you race every week or couple of weeks you can leave them like this. If you plan to store them for a very long time you should cycle them every 8-10 weeks to be safe.