OT- Jump Start Box recommendations

The two Diesel pickups I have owned already had two batteries. Why do you need another? Using the block heaters helps a lot.

Paul

Do you really need a packaged jump starter with a sealed battery to use around the house? A trickle-charged old battery in a boat box with a handle ought to be enough unless it could tip over in a vehicle, which is the advantage of the jump start packs.

What's that Lassie? You say that RogerN fell down the old rec.crafts.metalworking mine and will die if we don't mount a rescue by Sun, 10 Jan 2010 09:56:43 -0600:

You could buy a good high output AGM battery and add your own cables and clamps.

I have one from harbor freight that has a 24Ah battery in it. Some times it's on sale for about $60.

I've used 2 of the HF jump boxes for about 4 years now. Both still going strong. They will start my diesel Rabbit and turbo-diesel Jetta, as well as my 70 F250 no problem.

on sale for $39 JR Dweller in the cellar

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A mildly stupid question, but how do you jump start cars with screw terminals, where screws are not easily accessible.

i

I just want to buy a jump pack that is just a jump pack- Don't need the work light, don't need the air compressor, don't need the universal 3-6-9V adapter system...

22AH is a standard size, and if the cells are designed for high current output for jump-starts the 600A claim could be legit.

Battery tenders would be the better idea, or solar trickle chargers. Your batteries will live a lot longer if they are kept fully charged at all times instead of slowly run to dead and left there, till you try to use the item and put it on the overnight charger.

For the pickup truck, see if there's a space you can clear out under the hood for an auxiliary battery and a diode charge isolator. You'll have a lot better luck jumping the truck with a Group 24DC 90Ah Marine Starting/ Deep Cycle battery mounted under the hood, than a 22Ah jump pack. And it's always there...

And the DC battery is far better to run the winch and the television for the tailgate party. Starting duty batteries do NOT like to be deep cycled, they die in under a dozen deep excursions.

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Yeah, but those gel cells are dead in 4-5 years(or less), charged or not, used or not. Most aren't rated for that service, either, refugees from emergency lights or UPSes. I'd rather run a heavy 110 drop cord out and use a starter/charger unit.

As far as the other poster with the Buick terminals, you verrry carefully hook up the hot screw with the red lead and ground the black to the engine block somewhere. Doesn't make for a lot of contact on the jumper cable clamp, let it charge for 4-5 mins. before trying to start. If you don't have room, you get to pull the battery, haul it in, screw in a couple of bolts and charge it inside. The b-in-law's Silverado is that way, everything crammed in around the terminals, No Room. Takes an hour to get the sucker out. The starter also died with no warning, locked up solid. I'm not a GM fan.

Stan

Might have got a lemon. I went to HF and got one with the 22 amp battery. One day my Blazer was dead, but the HF box wouldn't start it. The box was a couple days old, and I'd done the required over night on charge plug. So, it "shoulda" worked.

My winchester with 17 amp battery started the Blazer right up.

Later I got one at Napa Auto Parts for about $100 which didn't say how many amp hour. But, it's worked fine the several times I've used it. I sense the battery will last longer than the HF units.

There is normally an access point made available for the Positive side so cables can be attached, sometimes enclosed in a red plastic box under the hood.

On Sun, 10 Jan 2010 21:45:38 -0600, the infamous Ignoramus27261 scrawled the following:

With jumpstart terminal adapters, of course, Ig. They're about 5" long, IIRC.

cheaper elsewhere

If you get a pair, I strongly recommend heatshrinking one with at least 2 layers of tubing. You don't want your hot terminal grounding out in those tight spots!

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What's that Lassie? You say that Stormin Mormon fell down the old rec.crafts.metalworking mine and will die if we don't mount a rescue by Mon, 11 Jan 2010 17:58:40 -0500:

I got the largest one HF sells, 24 Ah I think. And the first thing I did is open it up and check the connections. Not good. I replaced the cheap clamps with a pair that I had around, and replaced the lugs and internal cables at the battery and the heavy switch. I still wouldn't believe the claims in the catalog(650/1200amp).

And I charge it with a good charger, I don't trust the built in charger.

Actually, I did have a set of cables from the last jump pack. It did occur to me to overhaul it, and do as you describe. But, I also figured that the internal battery was probably as poor quality as the rest of the kit. So, it made more sense at that moment to go buy one from Napa. So far, I've been pleased with the Napa jump box.

Please make sure Lassie has a barrel of hot chocolate for me, with extra milk and sugar.

Their 17 AH unit (38391) is on sale for $29.95 this weekend (16th.,

17th. & 18th.) The regular price is $59.99

Here is the owner's manual:

BTW, has anyone signed up for their 'Inside Track Club' at one of the stores? $29.99 for a year of extra discounts, one hour pre-access to their sidewalk sales before it's open to the general public, 12 coupon books mailed to you through the year, and 52 emails of weekly specials.

Me too, but my inconsiderate friends insist on having dead batteries where the nearest outlet is at least a quarter mile away

You want to kill Lassie?

Of course, it's possible to run a gasoline powered generator, and plug in such a booster / charger. But the same people who have dead batteries away from civilization, either leave the generator home, or don't own one.

Ideally, you put the hot chocolate IN the barrel, and it's still hot when Lassie arrives. Note the chocolate is "for me". I drink the hot chocolate, feed Lassie some meat snacks, and then she leads me back to civilization. We stop frequently along the way to mark trees. Her, cause she's territorial. And wants to find her way back to civilization. Me, cause I'm over 40 and just drank a barrel of hot chocolate.

You can't drink 55 gallons in one day. :)

I'll die happy, surrounded by women with a chocolate rush. I could do worse.