Originally Posted by kufman

I have always run softcase lipos and have never had a problem due to the softcase. Both lipo fires I have witnessed were due to over charging and actually both were hard case lipos. Losi left me with a bad taste in my mouth with their first hardcase lipo. My friend had one and and after a couple runs we could hear the cells clunking around inside the case. Eventually, one of the balance tap wires broke so we decided to open it up and fix it. When we got inside we discovered that there was no padding of any kind around the cells and there was no strain relief for any of the wires. At least with softcase lipos I use velcro and other padding to protect it from the battery tray. That Losi hard case had nothing! So what if you hold the hard case securely down to the battery tray, the cells are still flopping around inside a hard plastic case!

For these reasons and the reasons mentioned by Edumakated, I don't see hard cases being any better than soft cases. In fact, due to not being able to inspect the cells, I feel that hard cases are more dangerous. I can tell if a pack is starting to die just by the feel of the cells after a run. Long before they puff up big enough to crack a case, they will feel soft and squishy.