A few Hybrids and headaches

[Bicey]

So I went out Sunday morning.....got to the lake at 530am to find 15 boats lined up and waiting to launch. It was a bass tourney, so no biggie rigged my boat while I waited. Launched the boat and got my baits in the water and 10 mins later hybrid boated. I marked those fish and was going to go back through them with the electric on (stealth mode).

Well that didn't work cause the battery had no juice! charged it all week on trickle charger. So I decide to go back to the gas and motor won't turn over! Try my third battery on boat and nothing also. WTF. Good thing my 9.9 is also a pull start. I get back on the troll but it ruined me for the day.......my mind was on possible bad batteries.

I managed two more hybrids and a small catfish 20". I had to fish the day with only one fishfinder (I know poor Bicey). It made me realize how dependent I am on my electronics.....kinda sad lol. The fishing has slowed a bit at SR from talking to a few older fellas who fish during the week. Fish were mostly deep 15 - 25 ft.

Took all three of my batteries to my mechanic who tested all three.......they were all bad.......what are the friggin odds of that! One of them was only 4 months old and is warrantied.

Anyways.....tight lines fellas

[GetANet]

Damn, bud sounds like a rough day! Was the battery from walmart? I bought an group 24 as a back up and it sucks!!! Seems like drains down a lot quicker then it should !!! Sounds like the circus we had last week when we were pulling out huh???? At least NO SKUNK!!! You needed to have the two characters (Jigman13 & Me) with ya for some good laughs at least. Planning on hitting it with my daughter on sunday hope to see ya back on the water!!! I'm bringing a RPG for the ramp this week!!!!

[FASTEDDIE29]

You got a couple fish, no skunk is a good thing! Sucks about the batteries though. What is the name of that stuff you put in the batteries to prolong the life? Anybody know??? I go through 1 battery a year, finally spent money on an expensive battery and it hasn't failed yet, knock on wood!!! An angler I know put this battery saver stuff in his battery, it lasted and took a charge for 8 years.

[Bicey]

I'll be out there Sunday......don't you worry bout that! The newer battery was a Walmart 29dc, and I just got back from returning it with no receipt. Whata pain in the arse, but the battery is new. No more Walmart batteries for me......the other two were acdelco voyagers that were both about 6 yrs. Old. I can stomach those two going down.

Here's a pic of the first fish.

http://s1278.photobucket.com/user/jb...c1dfc.jpg.html

[Jigman13]

You toughed it out and put fish in the boat. Talk about the will to catch! lol. Sucks about the issues--luckily they're quick fixes.

I'm def down to get out there again soon. The temps this morning were awesome... Feels like fishing weather!

[Fish n Jeep]

Conventional lead-acid batteries are generally a "you get what you paid for" item. The more lead, the better, which means a heavier battery in the same group size will last longer than a lighter one. Walmart batteries are generally easier to carry than name brand ones for a reason.

I can't speak to AGM batteries since I have never owned one, but the Optima spiral cell batteries are pretty damn good if you can find a deal on them.

Oh, and depending on how your batteries were wired, an internal short in one battery can take out another battery if they are wired in parallel. And sometimes a battery gets so completely drained that it won't take a charge regardless of age.

[bigfishy]

I came to realization a few yrs back that when it comes to marine batteries, you get what you pay for...I was also just tired of it being a crap shoot with cheep batteries...Have had cheapo batt. last for many yrs without a problem and have had them last as little as one yr. and crap out, ( i guess from constant draw downs and recharges)....
About five yrs ago i bought an optima batt., one of the smaller ones because i wanted a lighter one being that i occasionally put it on my canoe....Anyway, i am super happy with it....The battery lasts a VERY long time on a single charge, has a gr8 handle so its comfortable to carry , has wingnut posts and clamp on posts and its made to deal with vibrations, which can shorten the life of ordinary marine batt..
Its about 5 yrs. old and shows zero signs of wear and tear,battery memory, or any problems of any kind....When i bought it i heard that they can last as long as 15 yrs or more which was a BIG selling point to me....As expensive as they are , they will save you money in the long run by lasting 2-4 times as long....

Recently my boating buddies invested in the cabelas brand AGM batteries...They bought the biggest ones that they carry....We have very rarely had one of those batteries get weak or go dead in a days fishing but if it does get weak or go dead we have an identical backup on the boat at all times....The only down side that i have seen so far on these big AGM's is the weight and i'm not fond of the handles....I highly recomend either brand, but by all means do your research first....

Go for the good batteries and your future headaches will become much less...Its very well worth it, even if you have to save up for a while....

[jimmythegreek]

good job on the fish bro, at least u beat the skunk! as for batteries.........tell me about it. I got 4 in my big boat and 4 in the little boat, I learned u get what u pay for long ago.......U either get teh cheap 1 year warranty batteries from walmart which are actually good AND have a higher rating capacity than the 2 year ones, or u go AGMs. What I do now is I run batteries plus marine AGMS for my starting/electronics batteries and use the wallys for the trolling motors. for 80 bucks for a 29 series they last a year for sure, alot of times I get 2 out of them. The trick is to have a GOOD charger, makes a world of difference, and charge ur batteries ASAP and the most 12 hours after use. Wallyworld wont exchange without receipt from what I know, glad u beat that rap, save the receipts or TAPE them to the batteries. Batteries Plus puts u in their computer, and their AGMs are teh same battery as a odyssey, best batteries in the game, and u get a 4 year warrany no receipt necessary. When runnin 36V and 24V systems u just gotta pay to play, it sucks but what can u do?

[Bicey]

Some good advice/info here.....just bought 2 optima agms.....we'll see how it goes. I had to cash in my scrap metal to buy them, and this why I keep scrap from jobs.

I have an automatic die hard charger 2 and 10amp rates. I usually charge them at the 2amp rate.....is that correct or should I charge at the 10amp rate.

What charger do you guys use?

[kcritch]

I have one of the Optima's and it has lasted three years so far and still strong. I can run 6 - 8 hours on a 55lb thrust trolling motor and at the end of the day the thing has plenty of juice left in it. A while back I had problems with my portable 2/10 AMP charger not getting a full charge or no charge. Tested the batteries and both were dead....one was pretty new...seemed odd that both would go at once. First time I tried to charge the new replacement batteries I got nothing so it was definitely the charger that killed my old batteries...something went wrong for sure.

So I bought an onboard continuous charger 2 bank 6 AMPs each. (I actually never installed it so just use it like a portable...HA!) Gives me a full charge in about 2 to 4 hours depending on how much I used the battery but the best thing is that it goes into maintenance mode and keeps them lively and at full charge all the time. Works great for the winter months for storage as I just keep them plugged. I got the Dual Pro Recreation 12 AMP 2 Bank on sale through Cabela's and it works great. I find it much better quality than a portable.