Baaaaaaaateries!!!!!

Heya guys!

Got a quick question. I need to get some batt's for my deuce and would like to get your recommendations.

Do you guys use 2 12V's or do you use one of those big truck batteries? Is there a 24V available? What's the best and most cost effective way to go?

if youre using 2 12V's then how are you guys hooking them up? Any pics?????

thanks!!!!

The stock battery setup uses two 12 volt batteries wired in series. You could get replacement 6TL batteries or just get some walmart batteries. I am using three batteries... Two in series for the 24 volt system and one for the 12 Volt. All cheap Walmart's.

Same here, I bought two of the largest "car batteries" that would fit and they have done very well. There may be some issues for fording where the 6TL's would be better, are they not submersible to a degree? -but I don't plan to ford.. Since the box is much larger than two car batteries, some plastic materials such as pieces of PVC pipe can be laid or placed in the box to keep them from sliding around.

Yea,what they said.I just used the small cheapest car batteries I could find.Used cut up 2x4s to space everything out so it didn't flop around.To hook them up you hook the positive up to battery one,then you have a jumper from battery ones negitive to Battery 2s positive,then hook the Ground wire to battery 2s ground.Key thing about Electricity.Series doubles voltage,Parallel doubles Amperage.Works for any battery.Those 2 D cell flash light use 2-1.5V to get 3 Volts to the bulb.The big 4 cell lights are 6 volts.A 7.2V Radio Control Battery(the classic Long oval shaped sticks) use 6 1.6V cells(basically C size batteries soldered together)

Thank's guys! I was curious as to what y'all were using so it looks like I'm going to wally world tommorrow to snag some Batts!.

batteries

If you are not in cold weather most any batteries will do. I buy mine from the local junkyard 10.00 ea.
If you use smaller batteries and have a metal battery box BE SURE to block them so they will not fall over, they could short and you will lose the battery at the very least.
Easy way to remember the hook up, there is only two wires coming from the truck one hot, one ground. The hot will go to the + on one battery the ground will go to the - on the other battery, dogbone goes in-between.
Always disconnect the ground first when working on the system, and it is the last to hookup when finished.
One last thing REMOVE any rings or jewelry before working around batteries.

RE: batteries

Negative on the car batteries. I bought U6TLs from my local Interstate sealer for just under $105 each. Maybe in LA you don't give a rat's behind, but the U6TLs have much more hot cranking amperage and CCA so they will last a lot longer and perform much better than Wally Worlds best batteries, which are still going to cost you at least $50 each for the bigger ones anyhow. Go to the Interstate battery web site and do a search for your local distributors, call each of them and ask for a quote. I got prices anywhere from the aforementioned $105 to $165. While you are at it, ask for prices on blems. They are perfectly fully functional batteries with some sort of imperfection on the outer case, They work fine, I could not find any locally, but other SS members have gotten them for as low as $40 each.

Forget the one ground and one positive connection as well. My truck came with a NATO slave adapter, a solargizer, and I haven't been able to figure what all else, but I had three connections to both the ground and +24V terminal. Just wire brush or crocus cloth all the terminals and connecting wires well, apply a light coating of plumbers silicone grease to everything, wrench it up tight, and forget about it for the next 6-10 years.

The U6TLs fit the battery case just fine, and you don't have to spend half of a day cutting wood, PVC pipe or whatever to get your el cheapo batteries to stay in place. Plus the el cheapo batteries are not going to last as long as the U6TLs, they are not designed to provide the cranking amperage that your multifuel engine requires. When was the last time you saw a semi tractor at Wally World getting a new set of batteries installed? Do you think there is a reason for that?

battery

If you don't know the main cables will look like welding leads, large black cables. The ground is the short cable bolted to the frame, the rest shouldn't be too hard to figure out.
My M816 had 4 batteries when it was in service now two car batteries will crank it just fine. I'm in Southeast Ga. so the weather is the big factor.
The military has it reasons for using what they use. Wayne

RE: battery

Hmmmm....So how many cold cranking amps is needed for the deuce? What do each U6TL rate at?

It's my understanding that 6TL/U6TL batteries are very durable - The plates are thick and well supported so the batteries can take a beating and survive. Normal el-cheapo batteries will not stand up to the vibration and jarring of off-road usage, and you can get shorted cells... Not something you want to happen on a battlefield, and one reason why Optima batteries are so popular with off roaders, and the military these days... Optimas a're very durable, too.

Interstate here has 6TL's just under 90$.

Re: RE: batteries

houdel said:

Negative on the car batteries....but the U6TLs have much more hot cranking amperage and CCA so they will last a lot longer and perform much better than Wally Worlds best batteries

Click to expand...

Well, what are the specs on the 6TL batteries?
My originals have long sense been recycled, but I seem to recall only 650 CCA. Typical, good, automotive batteries, such as the ones I have, are 800 CCA. Two 800 CCA batteries wired in series for 24 Volts should yield a potential of 19,200 Watts of starting power. Two 6TLs would yield 15,600 watts starting power. This is all at 32*F.

For starting the truck, automotive batteries have more then enough power. Now from a long term drain situation, or a durability standpoint, 6TLs are superior. Unless you are driving off road faster then you should, or you feel you should be running a power inverter with the engine off, normal batteries work fine for the typical deuce owner.

RE: Re: RE: batteries

I've used group 31s and had good luck with them in everything from M37s to a 5 ton. Once the spacers are made and coated with a good grade of enamel so as to keep them from absorbing moisture, you don't have to remake them with every battery change. 31s have 1,000 CCA and are about 70.00 ea. Out here, 6TLs and 6TLFPs have been hard to find with Iraq taking most consumables.
Am gonna try Optimas in the baby HEMTT. Will report my findings.

RE: Re: RE: batteries

I am headed up to Ft. Riley, in a week or so to pick up my two Wire Rope Kits. Lawrence KS is on the way and while there I am going to pick up at least a couple of 6TL Blems at the factory, $40 each I hope. If anyone near by needs a set let me know, my Honda Wagon(28 mpg) will have some room left but not much, GL is saying the Wire Rope Kits are 200lbs each in some pretty big wooden lockers, but I should still have room for a couple more 6TLs.
James G.

PS: At that same auction they had half a dozen ammo trailers, they went for $120-160, it was hard to resist.

RE: Re: RE: batteries

I had the specs on 6TL's but can't find them now, When I bought my latest Duece I did some price comparision's between 'civi' batts and 6TLs based on cold cranking amps (CCA) and reserve capacity, Optima's and marine batteries are a good match,both are about $80 to $90 in my area, I bought the 6TL's for $125 Ea and I don't have to cut wood or PVC. I'm not saying that cheap car batt's won't work, my own practice is to get the best batt for the application, between my 4 MV's 2 civi's,1 comp truck,1 farm truck,my employers 6civi's, and various equip, I want them to start when needed.

JDToumanian said:

It's my understanding that 6TL/U6TL batteries are very durable - The plates are thick and well supported so the batteries can take a beating and survive. Normal el-cheapo batteries will not stand up to the vibration and jarring of off-road usage, and you can get shorted cells... Not something you want to happen on a battlefield, and one reason why Optima batteries are so popular with off roaders, and the military these days... Optimas a're very durable, too.

Click to expand...

What he said!

I've done this rant before, but I'll try to keep it short this time. It is 20F outside and snowing and blowing like crazy, but I went out and checked the specs on my U6TLs. They are rated 875 amps at 32F, 750 amps at 0F.

There are many different types of batteries - starting batteries, deep cycle batteries, etc. Our concern here is of course starting batteries, which are designed to deliver a relatively large amount of current for a relatively short period of time. Now you can get 875CCA from a huge battery like the 6TL, MAYBE 800CCA from a much smaller car battery as bottleworks states. Group 31 civvy batteries are probably as close as you can get to a real military battery. H*ll, you could probably get by with a pair of big lawn tractor batteries. All deliver 12 volts, so why are they so different? The difference is in the internal construction of the batteries themselves, the service they are expected to provide, and the operating life they are expected to provide.

The 6TL battery has much thicker plates and support grids than the smaller civvy battery (or lawn tractor battery, for that matter) . All have the same NUMBER of plates, but the 6TL plates are much stronger, thicker and spaced further apart. When you use the battery to crank your engine, a chemical reaction occurs inside the battery to produce the current you are drawing.

This chemical reaction causes heat in the plates, a lot of heat. This heat is enough to slightly warp the plates. The more times you crank the engine and especially the longer you crank it more heat is produced and the plates warp more and more. Over enough time the plates can warp to the point they will short out and the battery is toast.

The second cause of battery failure is sulphation. If you have ever pulled the caps off an old, dead battery, you can see the plates are covered with a grey powdery substance. During the normal discharge/recharge cycle, most of this sulphate flakes off and falls to the bottom of the battery case and stays there. Some of the sulphate however remains attached to the battery plate, increasing the plate's electrical resistance and causing a gradual decrease in battery voltage.

Over time this sulphate collects on the bottom of the battery until enough builds up to short the plates and again the battery is toast. The 6TLs have a larger sump in the bottom of the case to handle more sulphate buildup.

BTW, I have read of a product called EDTA which can be added to the battery electrolyte to dissolve and reverse the effect of the sulphate. If anyone cares, I'll try to find the link to the article. The authors claimed they did an excellent job of rejuvenating a near dead HD deep cycle battery. It can also be added to fresh batteries to retard the sulphation process.

OK, now to the point. Car batteries will work, especially in warmer climates where you do not need to to a lot of cranking to start your engine. Most civvy cars are traded in before the batteries fail, so life expectancy is not a big issue there. But civvy batteries are physically weaker than the 6TLs and will fail sooner. Up here in the cold north, I need all the cranking life I can get. The 6TLs are designed for a very long service life and to provide extreme amounts of cranking power over their service life.

So the choice is yours - buy a cheap set of car batteries and use them, or get a get of 6TLs and use them. My bet is that if you keep your truck long enough, the 6TLs will be cheaper in the long run.

I had two Car Quest batteries, 1100 CCA, in my shop van when it arrived. They lasted for 6 yrs before they died. It had pieces of 2x4s for spacers which worked well. Now I have some slightly used 6TLs that are doing well even for take outs. The use of a solargizer seems to help as well.

I have heard the prices for the the 6TLs have increased dramatically but haven't been to the Interstate place here in San Jose for sometime. Was at the NAPA parts the other day for a few items. I walked back to the battery section and found a big note across one patricular battery that said "SOLD, Camp Roberts MATES"

Seems the guy there (in Paso Robles, CA) said MATES ordered a bunch of them for vehicles. NAPA part # 7237, 925 CCA, 13"L, 9 5/16" H, 6.5" W......$80 something. I talked to a mech out at MATES who side they do use those batteries but they have started getting in some of the newer ones that are maint free like the Optimas but are the same size as the 6TLs, AGMs ????

FWIW I use the $29 Walmart specials or rebhilt group 31s. Batts in the tractor are 4 years old. I agree the 6TLS are a substantial but here in S Fla they are over $125. Until I can get 6TLS cheaper, I'll be using these throw-aways. With that said, anyone going to Aberdeen that has access to the blems at a fair price?

Group 31 batteries are the next best thing to a 6TL, but still not as rugged. When you need to replace them, go to the Interstate battery web site and print out a list of every available Interstate dealer in your area. Call every one and ask for a price. I got quotes from $105 to $165, could not find any blems though. Now I just need to find a source for DTMA to add to my batteries. From what I have read, it will extend battery life by a factor of two to three times, as long as your battery has caps so you can get the stuff in there. It takes about one teaspoon per cell and almost eliminates the damaged caused by sulphation. There was a guy selling the stuff on Epay, but I haven't seen his add for quite a while. BTW, EDTA can also be consumed by humans, called "Chelation Therapy", is supposed to combat anti oxidants in the body, prolong health and life etc. Don't know if it helps any with EDD though.

6TL

I concure with Houdel. In the cold climates, the extra cranking and durability for vibration is a big plus. Also, I am in a remote area and not too many MV guys around so the peace of mind on quality, reliable, batteries beats out the cheapies. In my experiance, the heavy duty batteries will start to give an indication they are begining to go. Seems the cheapies just are gone one day, and there you sit. My in tank pump gave out one day and it took some long cranking to get the monster started just to move it. Glad I had good batteries that day.