Saddle Pack Lipo Blues

[Killajb 1682]

I'm having trouble finding an appropriately-sized saddle pack lipo set.  Granted, they seem more difficult to come by at all.  It seems that saddle pack lipo's (two 1s square shaped lipo batteries used in series and sold as a set) are a thing of the past.

 

Maybe  I'm just having  bad luck as of late.  I found one on ebay: Gens Ace 5700mAh 7.4V 60C 2S then paid for the item.  However.. the estimated time of arrival has passed and no delivery yet.  I contacted the seller and was given a kind reply that they would look into the matter.  I have a tracking # but info hasn't been updated in  a few weeks.  Maybe a slight issue shipping from USA to Japan.  

 

Then, I saw a used one being sold on Yahoo Auction.  The condition was listed as "unknown" but there was a buy-it-now price of around $50, so I took a chance since I'm not sure my ebay order will arrive.  The batteries arrived and one has low voltage and cannot be charged.  Yeah, I took the chance but it sure is a bummer.

 

Does anyone else have this problem?  It seems like this would only apply to those who have an affinity for high-end 4wd cars from the late 90's to 2010 or so...  which I do.    Just wish there was another way to sort this out.   Suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[Siclick33 215]

Yes, I have also had this problem and haven't managed to find a solution.

I have a Schumacher Cat SX3 that I'm just about to sell because I can't get saddle packs any more. You can get NiMH packs made up if you just want to run it but, unfortunately, LiPo saddle packs appear to be long gone.

It's a shame as I'd love to run my Cat SX3 but it's been well used and abused so is no good as a shelf queen; if it can't be run it will need to go. 

[Howards 808]

55 minutes ago, Killajb said:

I'm having trouble finding an appropriately-sized saddle pack lipo set

Which chassis? The best bet is probably some kind of shorty lipo conversion.

[Gebbly 845]

I've used Overlander for a custom battery pack in the fast. They provided excellent customer service and the battery was high quality and reasonable price. You can specidy the type of cells and the battery layout. Perhaps they can help?

https://www.overlander.co.uk/form/LiPo-custom-pack

[Killajb 1682]

1 hour ago, Gebbly said:

I've used Overlander for a custom battery pack in the fast. They provided excellent customer service and the battery was high quality and reasonable price. You can specidy the type of cells and the battery layout. Perhaps they can help?

https://www.overlander.co.uk/form/LiPo-custom-pack

Sweet!  I will certainly have a look and see what they can offer.  Thank you very much

[Siclick33 215]

3 minutes ago, Killajb said:

Sweet!  I will certainly have a look and see what they can offer.  Thank you very much

They only make packs from 'standard' single cell LiPos. There isn't anything in the list in the posted link that is small enough to make an equivalent saddle pack and probably nothing that you couldn't source just by searching around for a suitable sized pre-made pack. They could make a NiMh pack that might fit though!

Even Shorty LiPos are quite a bit longer than saddle packs (maybe they should be called 'not very shortys'? )

I think the only options you have are:

1. Try to find a sadlle LiPo.
2. Use a NiMh
3. Modify your car to fit something that it wasn't designed for.

As I say, I have been trying to find a way around this problem for a couple of years without success. 

[Killajb 1682]

2 minutes ago, Siclick33 said:

They only make packs from 'standard' single cell LiPos. There isn't anything in the list in the posted link that is small enough to make an equivalent saddle pack and probably nothing that you couldn't source just by searching around for a suitable sized pre-made pack. They could make a NiMh pack that might fit though!

Even Shorty LiPos are quite a bit longer than saddle packs (maybe they should be called 'not very shortys'? )

I think the only options you have are:

1. Try to find a sadlle LiPo.
2. Use a NiMh
3. Modify your car to fit something that it wasn't designed for.

As I say, I have been trying to find a way around this problem for a couple of years without success. 

Oof!  Your comment posted just as I was reading the website and realizing the same thing.  Sorry to hear that you are stuck in the same boat.  I don't want to modify my car, nor will I use NiMh, so the search shalll continue..  

[OldSchoolRC1 1124]

Would 2 smaller 2S packs in parallel solve the issue? A quick search around shows quite a few 2S packs at 65mm or under. Wasn't sure about running 2 lipos in parallel for various reasons, but after doing some searching it's apparently ok. 

[Murmel 63]

I had the same problem searching for saddle lipos for my xray xb4 2014.

I found some on AliExpress last year. They are good quality:

https://a.aliexpress.com/_EvCWB2U

 

 

 

[Killajb 1682]

Very much appreciated @Murmel!  Ordered and now awaiting..  @OldSchoolRC1, if all else fails I might consider going the parallel 2s route, however I'm a bit leery of setting things ablaze so it would be a last resort at best.

[OldSchoolRC1 1124]

On 2/16/2025 at 12:29 AM, Killajb said:

 @OldSchoolRC1, if all else fails I might consider going the parallel 2s route, however I'm a bit leery of setting things ablaze so it would be a last resort at best.

I thought that too, but my flying guys tell me it's pretty common to do it. 

[alvinlwh 7687]

On 2/16/2025 at 1:29 PM, Killajb said:

parallel 2s route, however I'm a bit leery of setting things ablaze so it would be a last resort at best.

There are parallel harness for sale so I assume that is nothing unusual about that setup. 

[Siclick33 215]

On 2/17/2025 at 12:53 PM, OldSchoolRC1 said:

I thought that too, but my flying guys tell me it's pretty common to do it. 

Model aircraft/heli batteries are sold as serial/parallel packs (e.g. 2s2p or 2s3p). I would go further than saying it was common and suggest it is the norm. There is absolutely nothing wrong with running packs in parallel. The only thing I can think of to watch out for, if you are connecting 2 separate packs in parallel, is for them to be of the same capacity (and voltage).

[Eric Bloodsmith 25]

On 2/19/2025 at 3:59 AM, alvinlwh said:

There are parallel harness for sale so I assume that is nothing unusual about that setup. 

I've run my mini erevo in a parallel 2s setup for years now and I've had no problems with it. Traxxas sold the accessory themselves, but if you've got a soldering iron and wire I see no reason not to. Definitely make sure both cells have the same capacity.