SMC back to making race shorty packs!

[DavidB1126]

@Greywolf74 , what do you think of these?

SMC is back to making race shorty packs!

https://www.smc-racing.com/index.php?route=product/product&path=67_220&product_id=818

With the new HCL-RS 7.6V 6400mah 120C 5mm bullet shorty race packs

SMC Racing:

HCL-RS 7.6V-6400mAh-120C LiHV 5mm Inboard Hardcase. ROAR for approved

Introducing the HCL-RS line of race packs (High Cycle Life - Race Series). These formulations are not the generic cells/packs you can get with different color stickers on them. These are recipes developed for us by an independent factory. While we have recently pushed mAh and C rates for applications like flight packs and speed run packs, the demands of racing are different. These new formulations hold better voltage, sag less under loads seen in off and on road racing by optimizing the IR and mAh per cubic centimeter of the cells. Scroll down the page to see a discharge graph.

$54.95

 

[bill_delong]

I have raced with SMC in the past and they performed extremely well, however I ran into inventory issues and couldn't reliably get them when I needed to place a re-order, so plan ahead if you want to run this brand long term!

 

[DavidB1126]

Yea my uncle used SMC in the past and I have too. He used the 4400 7.4v shorties for his mod buggy and I'm using his old 7200 7.4v stick packs in my slash. Both sets are old and puffed up. He needs new ones so I'm directing him to these, Pro match (he likes them too) or my personal favorite currently, CHNL.

 

[tntpoof]

I used SMC for 15+ years.. Never ran into any inventory problems.I always had 3 packs to backup what I needed.any real racer has the similar amount to fall back on

 

[Jerold]

SMC is solid from what I've seen.

 

[RustyUs]

That's good news. Now I hope they don't stop at shorty packs. I've been waiting/checking for years on inboard connector 2S full size "stick" packs.

 

[bill_delong]

I used SMC for 15+ years.. Never ran into any inventory problems.I always had 3 packs to backup what I needed.any real racer has the similar amount to fall back on

yup, this is the main reason why I stopped running SMC and the current brand I run has never once been out of stock when I need to replace my backup packs

 

[CrunchyM5k]

My last battery purchase was from SMC, I have not had a chance to run them much yet but I really like that SMC gives you a selection of connectors to chose from when you order batteries.

 

[MVRCA]

We run SMC on all of our go-fast machines. Excellent quality and top performance.

 

[Chubaka]

We run SMC on all of our go-fast machines. Excellent quality and top performance.

My light controller is on a SMC 2s, and all my cars run SMC 3s. Might try the 4s in my 450 soon. I have no complaints.

 

[Greywolf74]

@Greywolf74 , what do you think of these?

SMC is back to making race shorty packs!

https://www.smc-racing.com/index.php?route=product/product&path=67_220&product_id=818

With the new HCL-RS 7.6V 6400mah 120C 5mm bullet shorty race packs

View attachment 201875

SMC Racing:

HCL-RS 7.6V-6400mAh-120C LiHV 5mm Inboard Hardcase. ROAR for approved

Introducing the HCL-RS line of race packs (High Cycle Life - Race Series). These formulations are not the generic cells/packs you can get with different color stickers on them. These are recipes developed for us by an independent factory. While we have recently pushed mAh and C rates for applications like flight packs and speed run packs, the demands of racing are different. These new formulations hold better voltage, sag less under loads seen in off and on road racing by optimizing the IR and mAh per cubic centimeter of the cells. Scroll down the page to see a discharge graph.

View attachment 201876

$54.95

I've not tested those specifically but SMC's regular packs are pretty solid. That being said a lot of companies seem to have 1 or 2 solid lipos and the others that are junk.

 

[Grandfather]

All SMC lipo packs I have ever owned all puffed, while none of my other no-name brands ever did.

 

[RustyUs]

All SMC lipo packs I have ever owned all puffed, while none of my other no-name brands ever did.

It appears that in nearly every LiPo thread or post discussing or inquiring about good LiPo recommendations, someone invariably shares a negative experience they've had. Indeed, this seems to be a view across all brands, from the "top shelf" to the "bottom shelf" stuff and why I just buy what I want to buy.

 

[Greywolf74]

All SMC lipo packs I have ever owned all puffed, while none of my other no-name brands ever did.

I have a hard time believing "all" the SMC packs you ever owned were bad. I also have a hard time believing "none" of your other lipos ever went bad. I've had every brand under the sun, and I've gotten a bad one here and there in most of the brands I've ever used. I feel like you're exaggerating a bit here, especially in light of the fact that SMC is generally considered a solid battery by most people in the hobby, and they're definitely good performing batteries in the LiPo tests that I've done.

 

[Grandfather]

Believe what you like, but it is true and all the SMC packs I ever had all puffed. Needless to say, I stopped buying that brand for obvious reasons. Your experiences may differ, so good for you.

 

[MVRCA]

I think everyone is going to have a unique experience with Lipos, especially in that we most likely charge, use, and discharge in different ways. There are so many variables to consider. For us, we do keep a battery log for each battery in the suite ( well over 100 lipos to date with 43 in service ), and we have killed off SMC batteries as we have with other batteries. We run them hard and it's not uncommon to run through a dozen batteries in a single go-fast testing day. It's just that SMC last far longer, provide far more power, and often times are lighter than anything in their class. They just be a bit spendy.

All of our batteries have puffed to some level near the end of their life cycle. We've also lost cells on a few; it's just the price of using Lipos. They all have a life cycle.

That said, most batteries are garbage and give up the ghost way too fast. 50 to 60 cycles in and they are already losing one cell or not holding any capacity. Spektrum are heavy, low powered, but surprisingly robust. I still have some 3s that refuse to die, even though they are like having a boat anchor attached to the truck.

If I have to go fast or win a race, it's 100% SMC every platform, every time.
If I have to test and collect data, again it's SMC.
If I'm our crawling, it's never SMC! They don't make them small enough and 350 mAh 3s batteries are cheap. Weirdly, none of our crawler batteries have died off; guess crawling is like a slow discharge.

Anyhow, I'm not surprised we all have different expereinces.

 

[Greywolf74]

I think everyone is going to have a unique experience with Lipos, especially in that we most likely charge, use, and discharge in different ways. There are so many variables to consider. For us, we do keep a battery log for each battery in the suite ( well over 100 lipos to date with 43 in service ), and we have killed off SMC batteries as we have with other batteries. We run them hard and it's not uncommon to run through a dozen batteries in a single go-fast testing day. It's just that SMC last far longer, provide far more power, and often times are lighter than anything in their class. They just be a bit spendy.

All of our batteries have puffed to some level near the end of their life cycle. We've also lost cells on a few; it's just the price of using Lipos. They all have a life cycle.

That said, most batteries are garbage and give up the ghost way too fast. 50 to 60 cycles in and they are already losing one cell or not holding any capacity. Spektrum are heavy, low powered, but surprisingly robust. I still have some 3s that refuse to die, even though they are like having a boat anchor attached to the truck.

If I have to go fast or win a race, it's 100% SMC every platform, every time.
If I have to test and collect data, again it's SMC.
If I'm our crawling, it's never SMC! They don't make them small enough and 350 mAh 3s batteries are cheap. Weirdly, none of our crawler batteries have died off; guess crawling is like a slow discharge.

Anyhow, I'm not surprised we all have different expereinces.

What you're describing is much more in line with my LiPo experiences, too. You get lipos that go bad from all brands. The bigger worry is how good are they while they're in service, imho. When people start making statements in absolutes like "all of them did this", or "none of them did that", those statements are generally exaggerated or simply not true. I'm not directing that statement at anyone in particular, It's simply an observation about life I find to generally be true but not necessarily always.

 

[RustyUs]

I think everyone is going to have a unique experience with Lipos, especially in that we most likely charge, use, and discharge in different ways. There are so many variables to consider. For us, we do keep a battery log for each battery in the suite ( well over 100 lipos to date with 43 in service ), and we have killed off SMC batteries as we have with other batteries. We run them hard and it's not uncommon to run through a dozen batteries in a single go-fast testing day. It's just that SMC last far longer, provide far more power, and often times are lighter than anything in their class. They just be a bit spendy.

All of our batteries have puffed to some level near the end of their life cycle. We've also lost cells on a few; it's just the price of using Lipos. They all have a life cycle.

That said, most batteries are garbage and give up the ghost way too fast. 50 to 60 cycles in and they are already losing one cell or not holding any capacity. Spektrum are heavy, low powered, but surprisingly robust. I still have some 3s that refuse to die, even though they are like having a boat anchor attached to the truck.

If I have to go fast or win a race, it's 100% SMC every platform, every time.
If I have to test and collect data, again it's SMC.
If I'm our crawling, it's never SMC! They don't make them small enough and 350 mAh 3s batteries are cheap. Weirdly, none of our crawler batteries have died off; guess crawling is like a slow discharge.

Anyhow, I'm not surprised we all have different expereinces.

What's in bold above... so true.