Close call with the battery!

Ayers1

Ayers1

Well-known member
I had an incident with the battery in my 31 this past week. I drove it to the A club meeting hit a couple of bumps along the way. When I got in the parking lot I went over a speed bump and the car died. No power to anything. Pulled the battery cover off and found the ground strap had melted loose from the clamp. I got it towed home, pulled the floorboards and found the battery had come loose from the corner hold downs that was on it and gotten against the brake rod. There it started welding itself to the rod! Luckily the ground strap gave out before any real damage was done. It now has the full square hold down to keep it in place!

Just a warning for anyone that has the corner hold downs. Keep an eye on them!
 

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Ayers1 said:
I had an incident with the battery in my 31 this past week. I drove it to the A club meeting hit a couple of bumps along the way. When I got in the parking lot I went over a speed bump and the car died. No power to anything. Pulled the battery cover off and found the ground strap had melted loose from the clamp. I got it towed home, pulled the floorboards and found the battery had come loose from the corner hold downs that was on it and gotten against the brake rod. There it started welding itself to the rod! Luckily the ground strap gave out before any real damage was done. It now has the full square hold down to keep it in place!

Just a warning for anyone that has the corner hold downs. Keep an eye on them!
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Same thing happened to one of our club members recently, same issue with the hold downs. I never thought of a battery cable being a fusible link before.
 
I fabbed a battery hold down like Bob Bidonde showed in of his slides. Sorry don't have a picture but it crosses the center of the battery, away from the battery posts. Also I slipped a rubber hose over my brake rod.

Maybe Bob will chime in?
 
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I like this aftermarket hold down that works for either battery .
 

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Kurt in NJ said:
I like this aftermarket hold down that works for either battery .
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I prefer this one for the Optima battery. Yours has metal on the top of the battery near the post which could contact the terminals. The metal on this one is confined to the side of the battery near the posts.
 

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This is what I put back on it. You wouldn't think the batteries would have shrunk as much as they did!
I never thought about putting a hose on the rod. That's a good idea!
 

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My grandpa was a one room school house teacher, the schools were on muddy country roads, he always drove model A’s because they got him to school rain or snow. He was trading in a worn out A for another one when he drove it into the garage and it dropped the battery from under the car !
 
Big hammer said:
My grandpa was a one room school house teacher, the schools were on muddy country roads, he always drove model A’s because they got him to school rain or snow. He was trading in a worn out A for another one when he drove it into the garage and it dropped the battery from under the car !
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He must have had the quick change version!
 
Years ago the aftermarket group 1 battery hold down frames were made of a rugged, red plastic material. I still have a couple. They work nicely the corner style hold downs. I also put a garden hose over the battery cable and the brake rod for extra insurance.
For Optima batteries I use the same one that ModelA29 mentions. That is a very nice and secure hold down.
 
@yblockhead- I keep a battery tender on my cars if they are going to sit for a while. I put a 20" lead on the battery and the connection comes out beside the starter. This way I just raise the hood, plug it in, and set the hood back down. This was the negative wire that was connected to the battery until it became connected to the brake rod.
 
Yeah, that needs to happen. Not that it would have made a difference in this instance but it may in the future. Thanks,
 
Kurt, your hold-down looks way too close to the post.

The best and easiest to work with is Bob's center hold-down.

Model A, where did you get your bracket for the Optima?
 
The size of the battery case is important so it fits into the battery bracket with room to move around. Here is a chart for your reference.
 

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When I found my old pickup, it had an aftermarket firewall mounted battery box. Probably from Pep Boys or Western Auto. I decided to leave it stay, as much as I dislike the non-original looks, but I've never had a short circuit problem no problems changing the battery or servicing it, but please don't think I'm advocating for you all to move the battery! My old truck is strictly a driver as it is mostly un-restored.
 
old31 said:
Kurt, your hold-down looks way too close to the post.

The best and easiest to work with is Bob's center hold-down.

Model A, where did you get your bracket for the Optima?
Click to expand...


been using bracket from BERTS www.modelastore.com for Optima for many years no shorts or other problems!

A-5166-OP
Battery Hold down for 6 volt optima Battery
Product Code: A05166OP
Availability: In Stock



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