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Which battery weight is ideal for the Leader 120? We have tested the most common 2S and 3S lipo to find the ideal battery weight for the Leader 120, which allows you to fly as long, but also as agile as possible. Of course, the flight time depends on your personal flying style. In our tests, we flew quite fast and with good use of the throttle stick. In every flight and with every battery we performed many loops, flips, and punches. The flight times we received can thus be significantly extended if you fly in a relaxed and smooth manner. If you don’t accelerate too much, you could easily add 1-2 minutes to the flight times for each result in the following table:

Results

2S batteries for the Leader 120 should preferably not weigh more than 50g. The more capacity (mAh) you get below this weight, the better. According to our test, the discharge rate (C-rate) has less influence on the Leader’s flight behavior. 3S batteries are allowed to carry a little more weight, as they provide more motor power due to the higher voltage rating. Nevertheless, our test shows that the limit is reached at about 55g. Above that, you feel the additional weight on your sticks. Everything underneath flies great. The ideal 3S battery for the Leader 120 has a maximum of 55g on the scale, but with as much mAh as possible to ensure a good flight time.

By the way, we also found that a Lipo can be too light of weight instead of too heavy. When flying the 2S 450mAh battery (only 29g) the Leader was so lightweight that it literally sucked itself into the air and didn’t want to come down again. This makes some maneuvers quite difficult because you can’t use the racer’s weight if you want to quickly lose some altitude. With a too light battery, it’s hard to do this – you literally feel like you’re standing in the air.

The ideal candidates are, therefore:

best 2s lipo

Reach for the Tattu 2S 800mAh. This one comes with ideal weight and allows an acceptable flight time. If you only want to spend half the money, you’ll even get 50 mAh more capacity (but also a few grams more weight) by choosing the HobbyKing Nano-Tech 2S 850mAh. It offers “only” 25C, but there is no earth-shattering difference between the Nano-Tech 850 and the Tattu 800. Both are great 2S lipos for the Leader (and most other mini quads as well). With a Nano-Tech 850, we have even set a flight time record with the Leader: more than 8 minutes! However, this is only possible if you fly very relaxed and without any full throttle. Then it turns out that you can get a lot out of 850mAh.

Best 3S Lipo

Among the tested 3S batteries, the Tattu 650mAh 3S is the best choice. It is lightweight enough to fly beautifully agile but also offers enough capacity for at least 4.5 minutes of flight time. With a relaxed flight maybe 1-2 minutes more.
The 850mAh Tattu doesn’t deliver a good result, because Tattu 850mah 3s is a little bit heavier on the scales.
The two best 2S lipo come with JST plugs. So if you plan to fly 2S only with the Leader, you don’t have to change the battery plug, because the Leader is already equipped with a JST plug. The 3S Tattu comes with an XT30 connector. So if you want to fly 3S, you have to replace the Leader’s plug with an XT30 or a DIY adapter plug.

Those who prefer to fly more comfortably and are looking for longer flight times should choose 2S 800mAh lipo, such as the Nano-Tech from HobbyKing. With the 3S 650mAh, the Leader 120 flies really wild and can be punched neatly. Power, speed, and weight are very impressive here, but with shorter flight times compared to the 2S 800mAh.