Jump-N-Carry Jumpstarter

[offroad_nomad]

Since I don't have a dual battery set-up in the 4Runner, I've added the Jump-N-Carry 660 to my camping/treking gear. It's nice to have a jumpstarter should my or a buddy's battery die on the trail.

Clicky Here. (http://www.thetoolwarehouse.net/shop/KK-JNC660.html)

http://www.thetoolwarehouse.net/shop/media/KK-JNC660.jpg

[goodtimes]

A few years ago I was out in Anza Boreggo with some friends. At the end of the first day (of a 2 day trip), Bob had some trouble with his Yukon. The rear sway bar broke, and his alternator quit. We got him into town the next day (Sunday), where he and his wife got a hotel room and planned to spend the day in/around the pool drinking margarita's. Their plan was to get the truck into a repair shop the next morning (monday), and be on their way. At his urging, the rest of us continue on with the trip (after all, they are back in civilization, have a hotel room, and are waiting for the mechanic...all is well...they will meet up with us on the next trip). Well, Monday comes around and there is no alternator (that will fit) to be found in the sprawling metropolis that is Borrego Springs, CA. So, Bob being the adventurer that he is, gets a bright idea. He jump starts the Yukon with the battery pack deal, unhooks it, closes the hood, plugs it into the cigarette lighter and heads out across the desert.....alone with his wife...in a vehicle that doesn't have a charging system. 3 days later.....we finally hear from Bob. He made it from Boreggo Springs to Cherry Valley running the Yukon off of that battery pack, through the cigarette lighter! Talk about a useful tool to have.....

[The BN Guy]

I never would've thought of using a battery pack like that! Great idea!

Can also come in handy if you can't go nose to nose with the vehicles.

[Scott Brady]

I am a big fan of those units. They are much less expensive than a dual battery system, and nearly as useful

[Brian McVickers]

Any idea which one is best to buy?

I had one a few years ago that wouldn't seem to hold a charge very well so I sort of lost faith in them. I'm sure the tech has improved since then but I see them all over the place, several options to choose from.

Any recommendations?

[awalter]

Another story along the same line. Harry Lewellyn had a battery go out on him, I think in Baja. He removed the battery from one of these units, installed it in his Tacoma & ran it for another 3 months before replacing it with a normal battery.

Not sure if the quick-start battery failed after 3 months or he wanted the reliability of a normal battery.

I've also used one to power my Airstream trailer for 5 days while on a camping trip 10 miles south of El Golfo after the trailer battery failed.

[Scott Brady]

Any idea which one is best to buy?

I had one a few years ago that wouldn't seem to hold a charge very well so I sort of lost faith in them. I'm sure the tech has improved since then but I see them all over the place, several options to choose from.

Any recommendations?

There is a unit that hits Costco every couple months for 49.99, and it even has a little compressor (great for a back-up). The key to these is to drain them by about 50-60% and recharge them every 3-4 months.

And an important note on these things. Make sure they are secured in the cab. They weigh about 40 lbs and would do some serious damage to person and property in an accident.

[BajaTaco]

Before I had my aux. battery system, I used to carry a spare 12V automotive battery and maintenance charge it by plugging it into the cigarette lighter using a pair of alligator clips and and a cig-lighter adapter plug :Wow1: . It rode in the back of the truck, secured inside the cargo deck. Not pretty but it was cheap insurance.

[offroad_nomad]

The jumpstarter was also handy when I left one of my doors open after parking in my garage and unloading the groceries. I went out 3 days later to find the door open and a dead battery. Since I have an automatic, the shift locks up, preventing from putting it into neutral and rolling it out. Without the Jumpstarter, O would have had to find someone with 20+ foot long jumper cables to reach the front of my truck.

IIRC, we were camping and one of the guys strung up a bunch of nice Christmas lights and I believe he powered them with his Jumpstarter.

[Desertdude]

I have 4 different varietys of those battery jumper packs ( even a mini) - I can run a powerbook computer off one for about 12 hours watching dvds - I use one for a small set of bose speakers and an iPod for portable music system. You can never have too much portable power :campfire:

[seth_js]

I have 4 different varietys of those battery jumper packs ( even a mini) - I can run a powerbook computer off one for about 12 hours watching dvds - I use one for a small set of bose speakers and an iPod for portable music system. You can never have too much portable power :campfire:

I am looking for the smallest power pack I can find. It will only be used for emergency jumpstarts (no powering any electronics). Any one have any recommendations? Desertdude, what model is your "mini"?

[mountainpete]

Funny... I was just looking at this one that went on sale here in Canada:

http://www.canadiantire.ca/assortments/product_detail.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=84552444327 1701&FOLDER%3C%3EbrowsePath=2534374303517494&FOLDER%3C%3EbrowsePath=2534374303517530&FOLDER%3C%3EbrowsePath=1408474396670121&FOLDER%3C%3Efolder_id=1408474396670121&ASSORTMENT%3C%3East_id=1408474396670271&bmUID=1158341028728

[Desertdude]

I am looking for the smallest power pack I can find. It will only be used for emergency jumpstarts (no powering any electronics). Any one have any recommendations? Desertdude, what model is your "mini"?

I am not at home right now - but will be on Monday and can post back - IIRC I bought it at best by - it appears to be a mini motorcyle battery with a 12v outlet and a wall wart for charging

it was great for the iPod - phone and small speaker powering

[asteffes]

I am looking for the smallest power pack I can find. It will only be used for emergency jumpstarts (no powering any electronics). Any one have any recommendations? Desertdude, what model is your "mini"?

You could just buy a 17 amp-hour lead-acid battery from any of the UPS battery makers (Yuasa, Odyssey, etc.) That's all that's in these jumpstart packs.

[ducktapeguy]

I am looking for the smallest power pack I can find. It will only be used for emergency jumpstarts (no powering any electronics). Any one have any recommendations? Desertdude, what model is your "mini"?

The smallest one I have weighs maybe 10 lbs, and is about the size of a large book. It has a 10 Ah, 300 Cranking amp battery. It can be used as a jumpstarter, but depending on your car and the condition of your battery, it might not work very well. Also, you would have to make sure it's always fully charged since it will lose a little bit of charge everyday. I wouldn't trust it for anything larger than a small car, I mostly use it for runing a small electronics since it has 2 x 12V ports and a nice florescent lamp on it.

Just make sure you get one with some sort of internal battery cutoff switch. Most all the larger ones have one, but some of the smaller ones don't come with it. a direct short across the leads could cause some problems in your car

[Redback]

I swear by these units mine save me when i flattened both my main and auxillary batteries half way between Innaminka and Birdsville.
Mine is a Projecta 400CCA 17AH model and it started my TD5 no problem.
http://www.projecta.com.au/documents/item/182

[cruiseroutfit]

There is a similar unit out there that has a built in welder (wire feed). I've played with the wire feed part of it... its no Ready Welder or Premeir but it will stick two peices of metal together :cool:

I tried to find some pics... no avail.

[Redback]

There is a similar unit out there that has a built in welder (wire feed). I've played with the wire feed part of it... its no Ready Welder or Premeir but it will stick two peices of metal together :cool:

I tried to find some pics... no avail.

I've used one of these
http://www.piranhaoffroad.com.au/images/Accessories/WeldingKit.jpg
12 volt Welding Kit
High strength, high powered welding kit.
Can be used with a variety of battery combinations to get you out of a tight spot. Features include:
High Quality Construction
Easy clip clasps for battery terminals
Tough canvas bag

We recommend that practice welding at home, before attempting to weld out in the bush.

They work better with 3 batteries

Baz.

[cruiseroutfit]

...I tried to find some pics... no avail.

Found some more info, looks like it was made by Century:
http://www.4x4wire.com/reviews/century131/

However everything I found points to discontinued...

[Scott Brady]

Found some more info, looks like it was made by Century:
http://www.4x4wire.com/reviews/century131/

However everything I found points to discontinued...

That would be slick. I have seriously considered a welder for the truck.

I guess I can see the problem though, weight and the potential of exploding batteries :)