Portable Jump Starter

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BigTerp

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Anyone have any experience with these? I just rewired my MotorGuide 12/24 volt trolling motor from 12V to 24V to get more power (that is DESPERATELY needed). In doing so I will be pulling power from my starting battery instead of just the trolling motor battery. I did not want the expense, and more importantly, extra weight and lose of storage space of getting a third battery. I know it's not the best for battery longevity running a 24V motor this way, but I'm OK with that. What I'm not OK with is running the starting battery dead and being stranded. So I ordered one of these from Amazon yesterday. I got the 8000mAh one. Reviews have people starting 4.8L V8s and Tundras with it, so it should be more than enough to jump my 1994 50/35 Johnson jet if need be. It'll live in my wife's car who recently took a job that involves a 1-1/2 hour drive one way, just in case she needs it, and get thrown in the boat when needed.

https://www.amazon.com/DBPOWER-8000mAh-Portable-Starter-Battery/dp/B013UJ2JDS/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1459870346&sr=8-5&keywords=portable+jump+starter
 
I have not dealt with those small ones but I have dealt with the the larger "Jump Boxes". We have the one I have in this link at work and it does an excellent job starting anything we have including class 8 trucks and big diesels. It will also handle the 24 volt systems. I do see ads for some that claim you can jump start vehicles by plugging into the cigarette lighter socket but I am skeptical of that claim. I do know some vehicles have diodes in the wiring which will not let power run back to the battery in the vehicle from the cigarette lighter. Also it seems to me that if you have enough power to start your vehicle through the cigarette lighter socket it would fry the wires with the amperage needed to start the vehicle. I would not try that myself.

https://www.napaonline.com/napa/en/p/SORJNC1224#
 
RiverBottomOutdoors said:
Battery technology is getting crazy.

Agreed!! After rigging my trolling motor the way I did, I was really concerned about running the starting battery dead. Came across the jump starter I linked and figured a iPhone sized jump starter at $40 would never work, but the reviews speak for themselves. I want to run the battery dead on my trucks 5.4L V8 just to test it out!!
 
Almost 500 reviews and getting a 4.6 out of 5 is pretty impressive. Watched the video too and wow. Makes me think I don't need an on board charger just this to save my ***!!!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
We all have them at the shop. They make jump starting a dead machine a breeze, as long as we can get to the battery. Some of the bigger diesels crank a little slow but they'll start.

Any way you can put a recoil start on your motor, if for no other reason, but for peace of mind?
 
lovedr79 said:
wrap enough rope around it it will bite.

I'll definitely give this a try. Would be good insurance to have a manual way to get it started if need be. Would you wrap the rope around the teeth of the flywheel, or around the smooth grove above the teeth?
 
I just bought a larger (18,000 size) unit similar to what the OP posted.

https://www.amazon.com/18000mAh-Portable-Emergency-Starter-Charging/dp/B015O7AK62?ie=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00

I haven't had to use it yet. I hope I NEVER have to use it, too.

We shall see.

Oh, I also bought one of these volt-meters for $5.00. I stick it into my cigarette lighter and I can check my on-going voltage at a glance. I pull it right back out as I don't want it drawing power when I don't need it richg99

https://www.amazon.com/Zeltauto-Cigarette-Lighter-Digital-Voltmeter/dp/B00VL9JZ0K?ie=UTF8&psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00


41ViIeW%2BuRL._SX425_.jpg
 
Well, the jump starter just paid for itself. For some unknown reason, my truck battery was dead this morning. My wife had already left for work so I thought I was screwed. But remembered I had the jump starter in the boat from fishing over the weekend. Hooked it up and it started the 5.4L V8 on my F-150 without a problem. Stopped at the gas station on the way to work, and it wouldn't turn over again. Threw the jump starter on the battery and she started right back up. Took all of 45 seconds each time. Still had 75% power after those two jumps. Its with me at work charging on my computer right now since it looks like I have a dead battery and will need it again later today. The nice thing is that it takes the same charger type as a cell phone (MicroUSB) and can use USB or a regular cell phone charger to charge. Going to buy another to keep in both my wife's and I's vehicles.
 
I wonder how far you could get on one hooked to the trolling motor ? I've often thought about an emergency backup for when my battery suddenly dies on an electric only lake. Has anyone ever tried it ?
 
I have a BIL that works at a local marina. He has a similar one and uses it regularly to jump dead batteries at the marina. He won't go out for a test run without it. It's extremely portable and convenient.

They make great christmas gifts!
 
I received some unfortunate news, by way of an email from the seller about the two $33.00 Amazon starters that I bought yesterday. Email portion is below.

They should NOT be used with any auto engine over 2.5 L.

Now, I imagine that the disclosure is lawyer-speak to keep them from being sued. I've decided to return the two $33.00 devices, and buy two more of the $100.00 items.

I sure don't want to put my wife, or anyone who might stop to help her, in harm's way by using a smaller unit.

I just re-read the advertisement and it did clearly state the info about the 2.5 l engines. Guess I will wind up paying the re-shipping costs. Live and learn.

Just FYI....richg99

***********************************************************

"Thanks for purchasing DBPOWER Jump Starter with us, we sincerely hope this product will bring your life more comfort and convenience.

The package has been on the way to you. I'm sending you the Using Caution of the jump starter to make sure you can use it safely and properly. We sincerely hope you have an excellent buying experience from us.

-CAUTION: All Misusing may cause damage to the jump starter (and your other equipment), or create sparking hazard.

-WARNING: ELECTRICAL SHOCK HAZARD
1. Don't jump start any engine that exceed 2.5L gas."
 
Interesting. It's also now listed on the description on Amazon about using it on 2.4L size and smaller engines. That wasn't in the description when I bought mine a few months ago. Wonder if someone had one blowup or something?

I plan to get another one to keep in both my truck and my wifes car. Might just keep this one for the boat and get 2 larger ones for the vehicles. This one still jumped my truck (5.4L V8) 4 or 5 times on Friday. My battery was so dead I couldn't start my truck after stopping to get gas. Got it tested and it was only putting out 250 cranking amps. New battery and I'm now good to go. But this thing saved me some major headaches.
 

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