interstate batteries U6TL lame warranty

[Ferroequinologist]

RE: 6tl

Your right, they don't know you from me!

I got my blems from the same place as Jwaller, even took one that wasn't charged all the way for a super deep discount (well, I paid about $50 for two 6tls) Those batts are great, I don't get to drive the truck much as it is in SC, but when I go it starts right up. Also, haven't had an alternator since Aberdeen, but the batts work great even with the headlights on for miles and miles and miles. I would have an alternator if MANGUS580 would ship me the one he's promised me since June...

 

[clinto]

RE: 6tl

I would have an alternator if MANGUS580 would ship me the one he's promised me since June..

He said he will ship it as soon as you get me the East Coast Convoy video you promised in June..

 

[Recovry4x4]

RE: 6tl

Don't hold your breath waiting on Mike, he's busy working on my video! LOL Feel the love?

 

[saddamsnightmare]

RE: 6tl

March 5th, 2008.

NO SQUAWKS YET WITH MY EAST PENN-DEKA 6TL Military - Ordnance Batteries, $150.00 ea, cheaper if they had shipped with the Acid in (Wet), but HAzmat is a pain, so I had em sent dry. They kick the truck like it's meant to be kicked.

Regards,

Kyle F. McGrogan

1963 Swiss Mercedes Benz S404.114 Unimog
1971 Kaiser Jeep M35A2 Wo/W "Saddam's Nightmare" Desert Storm and Vietnam Veteran Deuce tuck.

 

[Blood_of_Tyrants]

RE: 6tl

You can try a desulfating charger. That might do the job. $50 from Northern Tools.

 

[Sarge]

maintenance charger?

One advantage of being a crusty old fart is that you have experience with a lot of stuff. I have had both good and bad experiences with 6TL's. I have bought blems in the past and I have bought new 6TL's in the past. My personal experiance has been that the new 6TL's have out performed the blems by about a margin of 2 to 1. The worst treatment I have subjected my batteries to has been to leave them for several months without charging with the alternator or a battery charger. My blemish 6TL's have averaged 2-3 years, my new 6TL's have averaged 4-5 years. Every failure has been due to dead cells. One consistant good thing has been the solargizers. I truly believe that they extend the life of any battery, even one that is abused.
Last year I decided to take a different tack, I am now buying the biggest battery that autozone offers. About $89 a pop. Veteran's take note! Autozone offers you a 10% discount on almost anything. (Not oil) They fit snugly in a 6TL position, just with a couple of 2x4's to hold them tight. The Autozone warranty is 5 years totally free replacement with 3 more years pro-rated replacement on the end of the 5 years. That was a strong selling point for me. If they fail, I have free batteries for life. They spin the big motors quickly, suggesting plenty of CCA.
Only time will tell....
-Sarge

 

[Armada]

RE: maintenance charger?

I've had good luck with Interstate U6TL's. I have 4 years on a couple and they still perform well.
My M818 came with 4 Hawker batteries. Never heard of them before, but they were put in the truck at the time of depot overhaul. Who makes these and are they any good?

 

[Sarge]

24V battery maintenance charger

This is your quest!
What I am seeking is several 24V vehicle mounted battery maintenance chargers.
I would like to find something that will mount inside of the vehicle battery box (or close by) that trickles a maintenance charge into my 24V battery setup. I would like to park the vehicle and run an extension cord to it, plug it in and forget about it. I would like the maintenance charger to be smart enough to turn itself off when the batteries are fully charged. Oh, one more thing, I want it cheap because I need lots of them and I am a cheap person.
One great thing about Steel Soldiers is that one (or more) of you will know of the existence of such an item and will even be able to supply me with a link to a website selling same item. Why re-invent the wheel?
I am already using 24V solargizers, they are terrific, but they are not really chargers.
I cannot think of a way to use 12V chargers, too many batteries and too complicated. Unless one of you knows how to re-wire one for 24V?
The majority of my vehicles are 24V but some have 2 batteries, some have 4 batteries and one has 6!
Guys, thanks in advance, I know that at least one of you can save me hours of possibly fruitless searching.
-Sarge

 

[gizip]

RE: 24V battery maintenance charger

go to www.batterystuff.com. they sell 24v. battery chargers that are small enough to fit in your battery compartment, fully automatic to shut off when approx. 28v are present, cost as little as $44
Wayne Walker

 

[BKubu]

I normally like everything on my trucks to be mil-spec. With that said, once in a while, I will use civvy batteries in a truck. I recommend that you go to Walmart for batteries. Walmart has a 3-year no-questions-asked battery warranty. Use your batteries for 2-1/2 years and exchange them for new. Personally, I've never done this, but a friend tells me it works. Good luck.

 

[2027Deuce]

RE: 24V battery maintenance charger

I have had god luck with Excide. When I bought my semi tractor it had four diff. batteries in it and always needed charged to start up. All the batteries were rated diff. as well, I just figured that wasn't good as a smaller battery would be feeding off the larger and so on, I'm not sure of this because my brain is wired AC I think if its wired at all, so I went and got four new Excide each 9 or 950 CCA and have not had any problems since. Even on the cold mornings that cummings spins right over and away we go....

 

[Sarge]

Thank You!

Wayne (gizip),
Thank you for the link, that is exactly what I was searching for.
I have already contacted the company to ask for clarification on a couple of their chargers.
$44 is not too expensive for what they are offering.
-Sarge

 

[emmado22]

Armada,


Hawkers are AWESOME, better way than the 6TL family of batts...

http://www.milbatteries.com/hawker/index.html

 

[Armada]

I checked out the link Mark, those are the ones! That's great news. They sure have a high reserve capacity. And maintenance free too. They are heavier than the 6tl's so they must be built stouter. Hate to think how much they go for, or are they even available to the public?

 

[Rattlehead]

I wonder how many people have their batteries just flopping around in the box, with the only thing restraining them being the battery cables themselves. If you go with aftermarket batteries that don't fit the hold down, at least block them up with wood and use some sort of strap to hold them to the floor. They get beat up enough in these rough riding trucks, they don't need that secondary impact from going airborne and slamming back down repeatedly.

Keep them on a three stage charger whenever parked. Especially true in the winter when they sit more and can possibly freeze.

If you have the mil batteries, be sure to check them regularly to see if they need water (distilled water!!!!!).

 

[emmado22]

Armada,

Check out this TM.. The new batteries dont "mix" with the old ways of thinking with lead acid batteries.... New technology = new methods..
The biggest "change to thinking" is:


Battery State of Charge Characteristics:
The HAWKER ARMASAFE Plus battery’s approximate State of Charge (SOC)
can be determined by measuring its Open Circuit Voltage. (OCV) For a “rested”
battery (a battery that hasn’t been charged or discharged for at least 8 hours)
OCV and SOC are related as follows:
> 12.9 Volts OCV: 95% - 100% state of charge (SOC)
12.7 Volts OCV: about 80% SOC
12.5 Volts OCV: about 60% SOC
12.3 Volts OCV: about 50% SOC
12.1 Volts OCV: about 35% SOC
11.9 Volts OCV: about 20% SOC
11.7 Volts OCV: about 10% SOC
11.5 Volts OCV: about 5% SOC
< 11.4 Volts OCV: 0% SOC


http://www.cerdec.army.mil/directorates/docs/c2d/TB9_6140_252_13.pdf

 

[Armada]

Thanks for the TM, Mark. Great info! Those batteries are in a class all to themself.

 

[emmado22]

Armada,

Your a lucky guy there, with $1,200 worth of new batteries in that truck..... One day I hope to have them in my trucks....

 

[marksgarage2]

I have been a interstate battery dealer for 25 plus years. I wiil no longer sell them.

 

[gimpyrobb]

Rattlehead I agree with what you said about the batterys flopping around in the box. A bigger concern is what happens when the + grounds to any metal. I have had a wrench tap the + once and almost melted a terminal off. It does not take long to make a new battery hold down to fit the "off" brand batterys.