Where to buy reasonably priced LiFePo Battery Packs

[smithinparis]

I'm running 2 sets of 36V 8 Ah NiCd packs that I bought from ebikes.ca, and I'd like to add on another pack - and well, another NiCd pack will get a little cumbersome having to take them off the bike to recharge at work.
I know I could go with NiMH from ebikes, but I'd like to go the extra step and buy a LiFePo pack, but there seems to be a whole lot of controversy over where to buy these packs, and it seems that most people seem to be spending their time building there own packs.
While I love DYI, I really don't have the time or patience to deal with cell balancing and custom BMSs. I bought my packs from ebikes.ca because Justin and his crew do a great job of selling properly QC'd packs for a reasonable price of a few hundred dollars.
If I wanted to buy a good quality ebike LiFePo pack (maybe 48V 10Ah), basically off the shelf from a reputable supplier who understands the current demands of ebikes - where might I go? I've seen http://www.falconev.com, but I don't really know much about them.
I'd be really greatful to hear any thoughts on this!

 

[Drunkskunk]

Ping.

 

[Russell]

The new LiFePO4's from hightekbikes appear to be the best deal right now, only slightly higher cost than a Ping but they come shrink-wrapped rather than duct-taped and they appear to have Anderson connectors already installed plus free shipping to ES members.

Ping 36V/10Ah $289+$69 shipping = $358

Hightek 36V/10AH $379


-R

 

[Russell]

Note that Doctorbass posted a link to this site yesterday;

http://www.bmsbattery.com/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=1

however the prices look too good to be true ($219 + S/H for 36V/10AH) and the website is incomplete :?

Caveat emptor.

-R

 

[dogman dan]

I am a big fan of Ping, see my ping review thread for more. 2450 miles now, and still no measurable loss of capacity. I bought my current motor from Terry at High Tech Bikes, and found him to be a very good vendor, so one of his batteries that are similar in perfomance to ping would be a good choice too. BTW, as of a half hour ago, pings website is still shut down, and Terry can ship you a battery tomorrow, from a US address. If you need 16 ah of capacity, just get a 20 ah battery. Using 75% of it's capacity in daily use will just make it last longer. I find I just ride more if I have the range though. At 48v, the 20 ah battery is still only 20 pounds but the size of it can limit placement on the bike. Ping can do funny shapes for you, like two pieces for panniers.

 

[smithinparis]

Thanks for the pointers!