Specing battery for controller

I posted this on reddit but i think I will get more responses here:

I am specing out my cells now. I am between a 20amp and 10amp discharge 18650 cell in a 14s4p pack. The 10amp discharge cells have a little more capacity though.

the 10 amp cells should give me 40amps at 52v of discharge available (not sure about burst rate though)

the kit that I am getting is a 1200w 48v motor. Theoretically, the amp draw should not go above 23 amps (52v at 1200 watts). I am not sure how this plays out for burst though. Will the speed controller prevent any draw above 23 amps or is it possible to get much stronger drains than that.

Should 40 amps of discharge be sufficient for this application with out risking damaging the battery?

The motor controller is supposed to limit the current at the specified power level, so either battery should work. I would lean toward the ones with the higher discharge rating even though they have less capacity. Cells will deteriorate over time so having a higher rating might make them last longer.

so I am planning on using these:

https://www.imrbatteries.com/panasonic-ncr18650pf-2900mah-10a-flat-top-battery/

They are listed as 10amp continous. Do you think that these would work well for this kit in a 4p configuration?

https://www.ebikeling.com/shop/electric-bicycle-48v-10001200w-700c-direct-drive-kit-front-opt1

they can work but you will kill them in under 300 cycles. you need 6p or more if you want any reasonable lifespan.

Thanks for all the help. I ended up getting the 20amp rated cells instead (25Rs). I asked in a couple of different places and the general concencus was that the 10amp cells would work but its cutting it close. I would rather have a safer build with slightly less capacity.

undercharge them at 4.1v or 4.05v. that maximizes cycles. you can get well over a 1000 if you keep it at 4.05 tops.

flippy said:

undercharge them at 4.1v or 4.05v. that maximizes cycles. you can get well over a 1000 if you keep it at 4.05 tops.

Click to expand...

Not fully discharging them every cycle will improve cycle life even more.