Hobbyking Multistar High Capacity Lipo

danielrlee

10 kW
Joined
Mar 29, 2013
Messages
506
Location
Wiltshire, UK
A friend of mine just spotted these on the hobbyking website:

http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/store/__1387__85__Batteries_Accessories-MultiStar.html?utm_campaign=160714.UK&utm_content=2906338329&utm_medium=email&utm_source=EDM

From what I can see, they are about 40 percent smaller than regular lipo, at the expense of discharge rating. Anyone tried them yet?
 
Comparing 10C Multistar 4S 5200 to 20C Turnigy 4S 5000

capacity increased by 4%

volume 20% reduced

weight 25% less

charge current same 2C

continuous discharge current half 10C/20C

probably more voltage sag under load, higher cell resistance, slightly more heating and loss

XT90 vs 4mm tubular connectors

same JST-XH balancing leads

price higher by 6% not including shipping differences

based on published data which is often wrong
 
While I like XT60 connectors for some things, it sure makes it hard to put multiple packs in seres.
 
That's just what I've been looking for. I've noticed that the packs just get bigger and heavier the higher the C-rating has gone over the years. Too bad they are not available in 5s (yet).

HobbyKing should get into the e-bike market. Bigger batteries and low kv motors.
 
Anyone have any experience with these multistar batteries yet?

the 6S 10,000mAh one is tempting... sure its the same cost as two higher C value packs, but with this, I could fit 4 under my goped for a full 40mAh 6S pack...

The catch is, I dont trust the online specs until someone can verify them... and I dont have the money/tools to be the guinea pig
 
I won't ever go back to HXT banana plugs after using the XT60s. Night and day difference in reliability. Tight and dependable when plugging and unplugging. Front 20Ah triangle pack is all redone with them. Have to do the rear 20Ah pack yet. Xt60s already on the packs are a good selling point in my book.
 
I agree with borger73 I have xt60s on my main ebike scott random and they are soo much better than 4mm bullets and think I could easily come up with a solution to series connecting the lipos without taking the xt60s off the pack. Simply build a seriesed connector with the mating connectors.
 
ImageUploadedByTapatalk1407445635.305430.jpg
Here we go, good enough for 18s will 6s packs in series
 
I just picked up two of the 10000mah 6s to run a mac motor at 44v. Cant wait to see how it rides when I take the 50v 20ah amp20 pack off and put a 2.5kg lipo on :)

Will let you know how they perform but cant see 4c being a problem for 10c packs. I dont have much in the way of equipment but could get the voltage during load on a 40a infineon/10t mac on a heavy bike if it helps.

oops ignore the duplicate below dunno what happened there
 
I just picked up two of the 10000mah 6s to run a mac motor at 44v. Cant wait to see how it rides when I take the 50v 20ah amp20 pack off and put a 2.5kg lipo on :)

Will let you know how they perform but cant see 4c being a problem for 10c packs? I dont have much in the way of equipment but could get the voltage during load on a 40a infineon/10t mac on a heavy bike if it helps.
 
bionicdan said:
I just picked up two of the 10000mah 6s to run a mac motor at 44v. Cant wait to see how it rides when I take the 50v 20ah amp20 pack off and put a 2.5kg lipo on :)

Will let you know how they perform but cant see 4c being a problem for 10c packs? I dont have much in the way of equipment but could get the voltage during load on a 40a infineon/10t mac on a heavy bike if it helps.
Let us know how bad they sag at 25A and more, and if you get the rated capacity from them.
I have been eyeing these as well.
 
Ok il charge them with an overlander rc8 pro. Im not sure of its accuracy but I dont think its too far out. My gf once juiced my 20ah ping down to 2.8v a cell and it said it took 22ah's to put it back to full.

I thought a 5ah lipo was rated for 5ah at 200amps but at 30amps should provide more capacity due to less heating etc? I bet they have just tested the capacity at really small currents (for lipos) and said hey look at this huge capacity battery we made ha ha. Im sure theres also some science going on but it all feels a bit similar to the old lead acid ratings.

They should arrive next week and be on by the weekend weather permitting
 
Heres someones basic resistance readings. I found it amongst a thousand rc hobby boys who all have opinions on this battery but no real experience lol

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=2207137&page=8


IR readings 10AH4S Multistar 10C.
Continuous current without damage 141.4 amps.
voltage drop per cell [V]: 0.424 total voltage drop [V]: 1.697
Continuous C rating: 14.1C

t7014818-126-thumb-20140814_164914.jpg
 
Im not sure I would risk these new cells just yet. Mine arrived with 11 cells at 3.92v and 1 at 3.84.

Thats around 500ma of self discharge. Hobbyking said they should send me a new one but I couldnt take a clear enough picture and refused. They say I need to balance it and it will be fine. After having a ping battery that had a similar cell I know its always going to be a pain. Dammit, Il update soonish but it probably will work ok for 366 days till its out of warranty (do you even get warranty?).

Any thoughts?
 
I'm also watching this for those 16000ma packs. 2 of them and only 1 serial connection makes for a big, simple battery. I might even use those old Astroflight ST60 connectors :| (deadpan face)
otherDoc
 
Question: This will be my first LiPo experience (but I've done a lot of studying). I'm unfamiliar with XT90 connectors. How would we connect these to, say, and EM3EV/Infineon controller/kit? What type of battery connectors do those kits use (I think it's Anderson Power Pole, but not sure)? What best parts at HobbyKing can I MOST EASILY rig up the XT90 connectors to my future controller? Care to post some links? Since most connectors are in HK's "West" warehouse, I mostly just went and bought the cells, so still need to order more connectors separately. I saw some handy-dandy looking serial connection helpers. Seems very preferable to accident-prone 4mm bullets. I also want to be able to hook these up to a 36-48V cheapie eBike which takes SLA (same kind of harness connector BatteryMinderPlus uses: 2-wire pull-type single connector which exposes 1 conductor--not sure what it's called?).


docnjoj, Beware the 16Ah packs, they are actually parallel/serial packs using many small cells. However, they are about tied in cost per Watt-Hour with the famous/cheapest Turnigy "Hard Case" 5Ah 4S packs, and provide the overall largest watt-hour packs you can buy from HobbyKing. Personally, I don't need parallel complexifying my world. It's complex enough. The price premium did hurt, though.

I wonder if the cells these are made from are the same as the bare 10Ah LiPo cells that BMSBattery sells for 15 bucks a pop:
http://www.bmsbattery.com/battery-cell/640-high-c-rate-10ah-lifepo4-cells.html
http://www.bmsbattery.com/lifepo4-cell/314-lifepo4-7070260-polymer-cell.html
(Note the first URL says "lifepo4" in the address, but it's polymer. But they do sell identical-looking rectangular cells in LiFePO4 too.)
I also considered these neat-looking LiFePO4 cylindrical cells with integrated screws,
http://www.bmsbattery.com/lifepo4-cell/392-headway-40152s-lifepo4-battery-cell.html
but in the end decided with all the work I've done on research, I didn't want to now have to figure out how to fabricate a complete battery pack from scratch on my first build. The Multistar seemed like a breakthrough--had the capacity and size I wanted, in a more easily (and safely) modular format, respectable cells (touch wood), in a price same as buying bare cells, but already in a pack! 3 packs of the 6s gives you beyond the sweet spot of 500-ish Wh, and luxurious voltage. Being able to remove a pack and use for 48V applications is versatile.


I think bigger LiPo packs will become a trend as apparently HobbyKing lets you purchase one LiPo battery per order, or you have to make multiple LiPo purchases in separate orders. The problem is THEY DON'T TELL YOU this when you have 2 or more in your shopping cart and try to check out and get an error:
Unable to ship this parcel to your country due to size/weight.
Your order is either too large, or too heavy for shipment to your country.
Please see the table below to understand what's permitted by your countries postal system.

...which makes no sense, for multiple reasons.
So, bottom line, you can order as big of a LiPo as you want, with as many cells in it, as long as it's all sold as ONE battery. So, it is more economical to order larger battery packs.


TIA for links to how to connect these to Cel-Man/Infineon controllers.

BTW, this is my first post. I've lurked so intensely, so much info here I didn't need to ask questions till now. Special thanks to wesnewell, neptronix, dogman, d8veh, spinningmagnets, 1boris, scorpion, dnmun, and all y'all.


I almost didn't include this, I made this for myself, but it may or may not be of help to someone. It's a simple text comparison of multiple Multistar cells. This is on assumption of 20Wh/mile (not sure how accurate), and wanting a 48V and/or a 72V pack, and wanting at least around 500 watt-hours.

MULTISTAR

10Ah x 3.8V x 6s = 228Wh x 3 = 684Wh (7.9Lbs /34mi)
$98 x 3 = $294
43c/Wh
1200g
24.6V/2x=49.2V/3x=74V
Configuration: 6S1P / 22.2V / 6Cell

6.6Ah x 3.8V x 6s = 150Wh x 3 = 451Wh (5.2Lbs /22mi)
$68 x 3 = $204
45c/Wh
794g
24.6V/2x=49.2V/3x=74V
Configuration: 6S1P / 22.2V / 4Cell

16Ah X 3.8V X 6s = 365Wh x 3 = 1095Wh (12.7Lbs /55mi)
$123 x 3 = $369
34c/Wh
1920g
24.6V/2x=49.2V/3x=74V
Configuration: **6S2P** / 22.2V / 6Cell

16Ah x 3.8v x 4s = 243Wh x 3 = 730Wh
$86 x 3 = $258/$344
35c/Wh
1290g
16.4V/2x=32.8V/3x=49.2V/4x=66V/5x=82V
Configuration: **4S2P** / 14.8V / 4Cell
 
You charge this big packs (16ah) with any lipo charger? It is slow to charge? With any alloy charger is possible?
 
So apparently the 5.2Ah version uses an XT60 connector, and larger sizes use XT90.

If anyone has any info or HobbyKing links to help me connect XT90's to EM3EV and similar controllers (not in my possession yet), I'd appreciate it.
 
You will have to buy some bare XT90 connectors from Hobbyking and make up your own adapter, or just cut the connectors off the motor and solder on XT90 connectors. The Anderson connectors will wear out faster than the XT90's anyways.
 
Thanks teslanv.
I'm now regretting not spending the extra 7 bucks to get them shipped FedEx instead of USPS.
Does hobbyking pack them well? LiPo sounds very fragile with no hard case. And these are designed for copters, maximally lightweight.
18650's a few years ago (when still airmailed) started shipping in plastic cases, although 18650's are still more robust than LiPo's. Somehow I don't expect HK to ship them in a plastic case. USPS bangs up my packages badly. FedEx Ground arrives least damaged, no matter where I've lived. Now I'm worried...
 
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