Making Battery Cables?
- Thread starter Bob S
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Two
and better yet to get them off the battery posts onto a PDP (distribution post - like a Power Post) so only one wire hits the battery terminal.
and better yet to get them off the battery posts onto a PDP (distribution post - like a Power Post) so only one wire hits the battery terminal.
Definitely use two properly sized lugs. The crimp connection is far more likely to fail if you're putting two wires into a larger crimp terminal.
What is the application
Are you terminating the ground at the battery or what.
Stu is correct, use the correct size cable to take the circuit to a buss and then take power from there in all the various size wires.
Are you terminating the ground at the battery or what.
Stu is correct, use the correct size cable to take the circuit to a buss and then take power from there in all the various size wires.
Cheap crimper
I can smell the smoke from mainesail all the way to New Orleans before I even write this. (Couldn't resist maine, and hope you don't take offense.) But I am one of the more frugal on this board, and you can read that as cheeeeeep, and actually kind of proud of it. For those who want to make up a good crimp connection on a battery cable, and don't want to spend the big bucks for a really good crimper, and don't like the results from a cheap crimper here is a solution. Split a nut with a hacksaw, that is somewhat smaller than the size of the lug. Put the split nut around the lug, and stick it in a vise. Tighten accordingly. This will make an excellent crimp connection, without the need for a high dollar tool, that will probably get lost before you ever need it again.
I can smell the smoke from mainesail all the way to New Orleans before I even write this. (Couldn't resist maine, and hope you don't take offense.) But I am one of the more frugal on this board, and you can read that as cheeeeeep, and actually kind of proud of it. For those who want to make up a good crimp connection on a battery cable, and don't want to spend the big bucks for a really good crimper, and don't like the results from a cheap crimper here is a solution. Split a nut with a hacksaw, that is somewhat smaller than the size of the lug. Put the split nut around the lug, and stick it in a vise. Tighten accordingly. This will make an excellent crimp connection, without the need for a high dollar tool, that will probably get lost before you ever need it again.
This one has my vote of the ingenious award. Good suggestion!
I've always taken the lazy approach and just gone to the local alternator guy which every town seems to have. They always have every conceivable form of crimper and are usually happy to make up the cables from their spare parts but I like your idea more.
You need a fuse close to your battery. Depending on circuit breaker draw expectations. 100 amps is a usual starting point, but certainly fused less than the capacity of the #2 wire. If you are just running to the switch, you wouldn't need the power post.
Bob,
If you know your lengths and stud sizes needed genuinedealz.com has about the best prices for marine battery cables/crimping/heat shrinking on the planet..
That's a hefty alternator cable. Do you really need two 18's since the batteries are in parallel- but I'll assume you mean one pos and one neg? As long as a parallel cable and switch were on one + battery post, and a parallel and alternator were on the + post of the other battery, I think you'd be okay w/o other posts. That sounds like a normal setup- like on my new Benny. You do take your starter and house load from the switch. Itermediate post add another possible loose and/or corrosion place. Any more than this and you'd want a post as Stu suggested. Did the directions say to run the monitor wires right off the battery?
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