Opti Tastic

[Mark_T]

You will also notice EVERYBODY praising Flightpower, have changed their tune and started preaching about Gens Ace; at least Opti pilots are remaining loyal, there must be a reason for this. It's not like they can't get discounts packs from other manufacturers.

I'm not sure that any manufacturer could ever claim to have my 'loyalty', what I buy reflects my own experience with a product and what I see around me at the club field. If that experience becomes poor then I move on.

For the record I've still not had a problem with my own FP packs or the small number of TP packs I own.

I have so far this year seen packs from virtually every source fail in one way or another, ranging from the mild (puffing) to the more spectacular (shorting out).

Only reason for mentioning Gens Ace more than once now is that they are the only packs I've tested that matched or exceeded their C rating, but note that this was only true for the 25C packs. Those marked for higher C ratings are quite probably perfectly good packs, but not noticeably better than the 25C packs. So if 25C is what you need then they are a good choice.

Problem is though, if you really do 'need' 35-40C I don't think there is really anything on the market that can deliver that day after day without accumulating damage over time.

My flying skills are never going to stress a pack so I'm expecting a good long life from the ones I own and if that doesn't happen I'll certainly say so. On the other-hand I also firmly believe that we have ESC and motors fully capable of drawing far more out of a pack than any currently available can actually handle without accumulating damage over time.

Throw in a bit of poor collective management and a little bad gear ratio selection and you have the potential for someone to easily destroy packs in less than 100 cycles and often a lot quicker.

If I was going to campaign for anything it would be for real C ratings that show the actual pack capability not the performance of a single cell under optimum conditions and for people to realize that the real C rating varies considerably with temperature so it becomes far far easier to damage a pack on a cold day than in the height of summer so you really do have to get very protective of these packs if you are going to fly year-round in the UK.

[Rob O]

No Paul i have to disagree with you there , the Sponsored Pilots were quick enough to comment at the beginning when everything was Rosy , its only now theres problems that they seem to have dissapeared . I have never to my knowledge slagged off a sponsored pilot , in fact i have the utmost respect for there skills etc . I just think they should at least come on here and give us there Honest appraisle of whats happening with theese packs , and i meen Opti in particular , maybe they can shed some light on why people are having problems , maybe tell us where we are going wrong , and there experiences etc . Cheers Rob

[sacko]

...but that is out of their control, as Stuart set out guidelines of what sponsored pilots can and can't say on the forum a few months ago.

You will not hear a Sponsored Pilot say how good Opti packs ate in comparison, because they aren't allowed to anymore; it's not because they ran off.

There is even a Sponsored Pilot forum which is mere mortals don have access to

...and the second one comes on here and says; "i use a PL8, stick to 20% discharge rule, and mine are fine", they will get shot down...

[Rob O]

Im not wanting anybody to come on here and tell me how great or rubbish they are for that matter . All i would like to know is why after all the hype about Optis being the new and great Panacea of Lipos they seem to be having a heck of a lot of packs going soft in a very short space of time . Thats all nothing more . I realise now that the Sponsored Pilots may have there hands tied to a certain extent , so surely it falls on Andy to come on here and give us some imformation , at the end of the day its surely in his own interest to try and build some customer confidence back into his product , not just replacement every time they go soft as that surely cant go on indefinately . Rob

[ChrisB]

I assume some are going soft etc for the same reason that Zippy and Turnigy can to name just a couple of other brands in as much as behind the sticker they are essentially the same technology.

Not that there's anything wrong with this technology mind.

[dani_r]

The issue here is that I suspect Opti are selling a hell of a lot of packs at the moment, and as was mentioned earlier the company will have a certain percentage of failures worked in to their figures. It's the Castle ICE thing all over again! They sold many more ESCs than anyone else and did have 'some' failures. But for maybe 50,000 speed controllers sold they likely had a few hundred failures (for example). But because more people are inclined to complain rather than recommend you hear more about it! It's like the saying; if you go to a restaurant and have a nice meal you may tell a couple of people, but if you have a bad meal you tell 10 people! It's the same with Opti, FP, CC or anything else. That's not saying there isn't an issue with some of the products (the manufacturers expect failures).

I'd really like to see the REAL figures of number of units sold, number of returns and number of failures both with the Opti packs and the CC units.

Where are the people who haven't had any problems with their packs?

[Downdraft]

Foregive me for saying this please fellow addicts but I feel as though my thread has been Hijacked and is being used to prosicute the very company that I personaly have had excellent service from and would'nt hesitate to use again.
I dont need to Gen's this Turnigy that and Tipple what ever, I'm more than pleased with my current result. If any of the opp's that seem to have puffed packs, dead cells or poor performance contact Opti in a polite manner as I did I'm sure they'll be only to pleased to help you as they have me.
If you wish to continue condeming the company and product I'm so pleased with please start a thread of your own to do so.

Sorry to sound off at those who genuinely were pleased for me and equally as impressed as I was but this is all just too much.
Take a chill pill why don't you?

[Stuart]

...but that is out of their control, as Stuart set out guidelines of what sponsored pilots can and can't say on the forum a few months ago.

You will not hear a Sponsored Pilot say how good Opti packs ate in comparison, because they aren't allowed to anymore; it's not because they ran off.

There is even a Sponsored Pilot forum which is mere mortals don have access to

...and the second one comes on here and says; "i use a PL8, stick to 20% discharge rule, and mine are fine", they will get shot down...

Thats NOT true Paul I think someone is not understanding the point.

This is the rules that the Sponsored Pilots have to work with.

General Forum Use..Sponsored Pilots
1. They agree to post constructive and polite threads/posts
2. They will NOT deliberately bait a person or store with a malicious intent.
3. No threats either in posts or via PM's - if a member tells us a member is being threatening we will ask for the full PM to be forwarded to a mod.
4.PM's are private and should not be posted online for public viewing without consent from the other associated member/s. Unless in covered in point 3 then forwarded to mods only.
5. No swearing in a personal attack manner, i.e. you're a F^% twit - off the cuff remarks in a joking manner are fine provided are masked with symbols. However, remember we have kids viewing and sometime we may take the view that its abit too rude/crude and will edit appropriately for moved to the over 18 section.
6. Can talk about the benefits and advantages of your sponsors products.
7. Help others with issues concerning your sponsors products.
8. Don't trash the competition, pick holes in other products, if you're going to post in a competitors thread keep it clean, civil and constructive.

You find these here

Forum Rules - RcHeliaddict

Alongside the rules for everyone else.

The issue of Sponsored pilots posting or not posting is down to them and them alone. I've said it a million times to them and was the very reason for having a private 'Sponsored Pilots' forum was for them to have an open debate on what if anything would help them to be more pro-active.

The upshot is that no matter in what game if its F1 or any sporting arena if your sponsored you will always be biased you have no choice but to support your brand/s. The issue is can you make a distinction between a post that is a plug for a brand versus one that's helping a member.

For me if your posting 75% of the time helping other members and imparting some knowledge and assitance then people will respect the 25% of plugging and supporting your brand. But if its reversed then you loss the battle and people will always see the constant plugging this is where you can't win and no matter what you say you will always be tarnished rightly or wrongly as saying the company line.

Until the perception is that they post to help ahead of brands this will never go away and I've lost count of how many times I can explain this.

So whilst someones told you something - they can say whatever they want too - provided they talk about there brands good or bad - but with honesty. To hit out at other brands that they don't support unless being constructive isn't allowed.

[Stuart]

I apologies to Sean for my reply - I just wanted to clarify that its very much an open house for Sponsored pilots.

[Tom Burgess]

Apologies for the rant in this thread but this is a perfect example of why I gave all my sponsorship back recently.

In my opinion the role of a sponsored pilot has been in most cases changed into one of purely promoting a product regardless of actually havig a valid opinion on the product in question. An example would be being told by someone who is flying literally no piro moves at all that "this" gyro is the best etc etc..

Being sponsored should definitely not be about flying ability on it's own, but my god there is a few people out there who can "talk a good flight"!

I for one was flying for what I consider one of the best heli retailers out there, they themselves were great and had nothing to do with my decision. I made that decision based purely on a want not to be part of the whole "sponsored pilot" scene because in my opinion it is a pretty shady place to be, again, nothing to do with Midlands.

Surely this is one of the only sports where the majority of sponsored participants have little clue about how to help anyone (I am talking only about recently here as I believe only 12 months ago a sponsored pilot was actually listened to)?? Maybe not, I dont know but I'm not sure it happens anywhere else.

I guess what I am getting at is make your own mind up and don't believe all the hype you are fed as increasingly it is coming from people who genuinely think they are famous lol

[cupracing]

True words Tom although if a newbie is starting out, guidance and advice about what to and what not to buy can lead to a more enjoyable experience. Lots of people have recommended me certain products since I first started and it has put me in the right direction. It's nice knowing I bought once and bought right

[dani_r]

True words Tom although if a newbie is starting out, guidance and advice about what to and what not to buy can lead to a more enjoyable experience. Lots of people have recommended me certain products since I first started and it has put me in the right direction. It's nice knowing I bought once and bought right

That's the general attitude I try to put across to anyone starting out. 'Yes' you could buy cheaper, but it's more often than not more detrimental to your learning/advancing than just buying the proper gear first time. There is plenty of information around on here as elsewhere, it's down to the individual to make their own choice, which also applies to the Optipower scenario above.

[Andy from Sandy]

By the various replies purchasing expensive packs buys you a warranty and not necessarily a good pack. If the pack is replaced under warranty the chances are it will be of the same quality as the one changed so the replacement could easily go the same way as the first.

In general I agree with the principle that good stuff costs more.

For me I contacted Andy privately about my concerns with my 2700 6S pack and did not get the same service as Downdraft. After some frustrating correspondence I started to post about my experiences. Since then I have been blanked by Andy.

I am glad you got a replacement Downdraft and I hope everyone with puffing packs claims on the warranty and gets their packs replaced also. Comparing prices it does appear that we have pretty much paid for the replacement pack when we bought the first anyway.

[Tom Burgess]

True words Tom although if a newbie is starting out, guidance and advice about what to and what not to buy can lead to a more enjoyable experience. Lots of people have recommended me certain products since I first started and it has put me in the right direction. It's nice knowing I bought once and bought right

I totally agree, my point is though, its increasingly difficult to differentiate between someone who knows what they are talking about and someone who doesn't. In the past a sponsored pilot was a good indication of someone helpful and knowing, now it increasingly means they are willing to bang on about a product regardless of its worth.

Obviously there is still the "real" sponsored pilots out there, they are fast being diluted though


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Stanley Speel]

I am pretty sure that my next Trex 600 lipo purchase will be OptiPowers. I have had some in the past in my 500 and they are great packs, and have also had great service from Andy when I needed it.

Also, if I know that they will be backed with a good warranty and will be replaced if they ever puff or go bad, then I really couldn't care less if they only last 50 flights as I'll know that I can send them in to be replaced if needed