[Manntis]

I was a little worried about the current rating Of the thundersky cells I was planning to get, I have heard they over play their specs, but here are some encouraging real world numbers from our Aussie EV forums, I asked about pulling 5C:

Rod is the TS guru. I know he sells TS cells, but he's one of those mates who sells them because he knows they're good - not pushing crap on people for a quick buck. I've had the pleasure of talking with him at length on the phone (haven't been fortunate enough to visit Australia in person yet) and he comes across as a real stand-up bloke.

 

[Manntis]

parallel is, in theory, self-balancing but adding all those switchers would be complex.

 

[Manntis]

Would it really be?

I've already got a simple switching mechanism I made up with relays that can switch 3x 12v batteries between parallel and series for different speeds.

Yes, it would. With TS cells (or many LIon cells, for that matter) nominal voltage is <3.5V, so you need several dozen switches and a way to control them all. May as well use a BMS.

 

[Manntis]

The catch is that each TOP relay would have to be rated for max Voltage/Amp use plus you have to wire up all of those relays.

bingo Therein lies the problem