I exclusively use LIPOs. This is my current setup on a trampa/kaly hybrid with a bms. I also used them before on a split enclosure flexy deck. This current setup is 3s x 4 8ah each and I can take them on a plane (88wh each battery). I know it looks complicated but trust me, it is 1/10th the work of building a li-ion pack. the whole thing took me an hour while I was watching tennis at the same time. lol
Here is what I have learned. Keep the battery between 3.6v and 4.15v per cell and you won’t have any problems and they will last you a long time. 3.6-4.15 will get you ~80% of the battery capacity.
Lipos are punchy throughout the ride because the voltage stays above 3.6v. Li-ions suck once you get to 30-40%.
WH for WH, lipos give me 20% more range than li-ions. I never figured out why but I think it is because of the discharge curve. For li-ions you are going down to 2.9/3v while lipos stay above 3.6v, so for the second half of the battery, you are having to pull 10-20% more amps from a li-ion to get the same wattage as lipos.
There is some great info on the old forum by the user “evoheyax” and “namasaki”. Look at some of his posts and he confirmed what I knew intuitively but never understood it.
The only slight disadvantage lipos have is that they are not as energy dense but once you factor in the 20% extra range, even that is narrowed down.
regarding the c rating, just divide it by a third to be on the safe side. chinahobbyline is a good budget option and get descent reviews and i am happy with mine. look on the rc forums
Here is the best part though. If you look after them, they won’t puff and you can sell them on second hand. I have bought and sold 3 sets of lipos (after 30-50 charge cycles) and got 50-60% of the money back. They are much much cheaper in the long run IMO
Ask me anything else you want to know.