THURSDAY TESTIMONIALS: LRP 2900mAh LCG shorty LiPo pack

0 July 30, 2015, 12:25 a.m.

By Aaron Waldron
LiveRC.com

Whether it's wheel nuts, wings, tools, tracks, trinkets and/or anything in between, the LiveRC staff gives their testimonial and mini-review of each every Thursday morning!

Though he’s only been racing for a few years, Joey Abicca’s natural talent and dedication have propelled near the top of the San Diego racing scene - especially in the 2WD buggy classes. He was a 17.5-class racer for much of his career before making the move to modified, and the 20-year-old almost instantly became a threat to win on any given night.

A couple of weeks ago, LRP America’s Shaun Ireland and JD Mora stopped by SDRC Raceway to check out the Wednesday night scene, and brought with them one of their new 2900mAh LCG shorty packs - they also offer LCG stick and saddle packs for other vehicles. Shaun explained that, while the lower capacity doesn’t cause a problem with run-time during normal qualifying or main events, it may lack the punch that stock racers are looking for - and that it was best suited for the modified class.

Joey was an easy choice, then, for the right person to test the new LCG pack.

LRP 2900mAh Shorty LCG 2S LiPo
#430229, $70
www.lrp-americastore.com

The big story with the LCG pack is how small it is. At 93 x 47 x 18.5mm, this battery is 3mm shorter in length and 6.6mm (or 26.3%) shorter in height than LRP’s standard 4500mAh shorty pack. At just 142 grams, it’s also 33% lighter, too. The cells in the LCG pack are made with LRP’s HDS-2 Advanced High Density Stacking technology, which is not only safer and more robust but also boasts increased voltage and lower internal resistance. The LCG pack can be charged at up to 3C (or 8.7 amps) and is rated to handle a 55C constant discharge rate and 110C burst. LRP includes a set of their gold-coated Works Team connectors to fit the 4mm power ports and 2mm balancing port.

“I was worried about run time,” said Joey, “but the battery had plenty of punch for five-minute races and felt consistent for ten-minute practice runs.” Having originally tried the pack by simply installing it and hitting the track, Joey noted that the lighter weight made his car more responsive - even slightly twitchy. “My car felt lighter and reacted faster,” said Joey, who then experimented with adding ballast to his buggy to make up for the battery. “With the added weight, the car felt like it had a normal battery in it, but it gave me the option of moving the additional weight to change its balance without making the car heavier,” said Joey. As for negatives, noticed one immediately after trying to install the LCG pack into his B5M. “On many cars, you’ll probably have to modify the battery strap in some way - like adding foam - in order to hold the pack tightly,” said Joey. He also noted that the battery reached a higher temperature than his normal-sized shorty packs after the same amount of run time, but noted that it didn’t affect its performance.

Pros:

Lots of punch
Plenty of run time for normal 5-7 minute races
Allows for tuning of weight balance

Cons:

May require modification to fit
Can get hotter in normal conditions than larger capacity packs

Final Word:

Like the “shorty” pack size, it was only a matter of time before LiPo battery brands began experimenting with different case dimensions to provide additional benefits. While it may be hard to quantify the handling differences influenced by a lightweight LiPo battery that’s sits lower in the chassis, there’s no arguing that the battery’s size and (lack of) mass opens up tuning options that hardcore racers can exploit to further dial in their cars.