Jumper boxes

5

53_mercLuke

Member
Just curious if anyone has ever seen a 6 volt jumper box? I have looked everywhere and can't seem to find one, I am still running my 6 volt positive ground in my 53 Merc for now but do plan on upgrading. Until then I would like to find a way to jump my car if I run into troubles when going for cruises or at car shows.
 
You can use a 12 volt one for a emergency start by touching the neg lead to the starter wire side of your solenoid. Ground the pos lead.
 
I THINK that if the jumper box is only applied to the starter side of the solenoid, in other words effectively straight to the starter terminal, and the key is in the on position and the starter button not pressed, it will work and the 12v part is not shared with the rest of the car.

I also THINK (correct me if wrong) that in the above scenario, you could even connect the jumper the wrong way around and it would not make any difference. Not that you would do that on purpose but you might do it by mistake.

Again, it is a jump straight to the starter and not connected to the rest of the vehicle in any way.

The above scenario (connected the correct way around) is not ideal, though, because it still requires the vehicle's own battery to have enough juice to spark the ignition. Having said that, even if a bit low, at least it is not being dragged lower by the starter being used in the conventional way.

Mart.
 
While attending the Nick Alexander Woodie Sale in Monterey, CA back in 2009, I recall his crew using 12 volt batteries to jump-start some of the cars. The 12 volts were "applied to the starter side of the solenoid" as Mart said above....
 
Cool I really appreciate all the help and information. I think I may have jumped it wrong the other day, I just did a quick jump off the battery and now the car won't hold a charge. I tested the battery and it was good, recharged it and drove the car and went to park it in the garage before it got dark and nothing happened when I hit the start button, cleaned the ground cable up today and polorized the regulator and the same thing happened, ran the car let it sit for about 1 hour then it was dead again.
 
Maybe the "bat" points in the regulator are fused together, shorting back through the generator? Not sure if that could do it but you clearly have a short.
 
Mart said:
I THINK that if the jumper box is only applied to the starter side of the solenoid, in other words effectively straight to the starter terminal, and the key is in the on position and the starter button not pressed, it will work and the 12v part is not shared with the rest of the car.

I also THINK (correct me if wrong) that in the above scenario, you could even connect the jumper the wrong way around and it would not make any difference. Not that you would do that on purpose but you might do it by mistake.

Again, it is a jump straight to the starter and not connected to the rest of the vehicle in any way.

The above scenario (connected the correct way around) is not ideal, though, because it still requires the vehicle's own battery to have enough juice to spark the ignition. Having said that, even if a bit low, at least it is not being dragged lower by the starter being used in the conventional way.

Mart.
Click to expand...

This is absolutely correct. I did just this last Sunday. I clamped the + cable to ground and let the - clamp "snap" onto the starter cable to minimize arcing.
 
Would jumping the 6v battery with 12v battery hurt anything? Pos to pos , neg to neg. Until engine starts, then pull jumper cables?? Mike
 
It usually works, but make sure the lights and radio are turned off. Oh well, there aren't any AM stations left worth listening to anyway.:rolleyes:

That is why everyone recommend jumping to the starter side of the solenoid.
 
Mike in AZ said:
Would jumping the 6v battery with 12v battery hurt anything? Pos to pos , neg to neg. Until engine starts, then pull jumper cables?? Mike
Click to expand...

I'm not sure, I have been having issues with my car since I did that one time, and as soon as my car fired up the clamps came off. Tested the battery myself and at O'Reilly's and that tested good but won't hold a charge now so I have a short somewhere
 
If you have one of these jumper boxes could you tell me the output DC voltage and amperage on the wall recharging unit? I have a box without the wall charger and may have a 12V replacement charger but I am worried it is not high enough voltage and the output amperage may not be high enough.
 
If the charger you have puts out over 12 volts (in the 14-16 range) it should be OK. This is "open circuit voltage", with no load. I had a solar charger on an electric boat lift that put out around 22 volts (OCV) that worked just fine keeping the battery charged. The battery will self-regulate and absorb the excess voltage with a small charger. As to amperage, I think anything will work, it might just take a while longer. You can fill a 55 gallon drum with water using a teaspoon, it's just a matter of time.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top