Re: 16 volt battery, anybody know how to test?
[Re: camastomcat]
#1590788
03/10/14 04:48 AM
03/10/14 04:48 AM
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Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 43,213
Bend,OR USA
Cab_Burge
I Win
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I Win
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 43,213
Bend,OR USA
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How old are they? How are you charging them, fast or slow? If they don't have much reserve capacity thier probally no good  I would try hooking up a small light bulb to one of them and so it illuminates and run the battery down so it reads below 12 or 13 volts and then try charging it up very slowly at 1 to 3 amps for 4 or 5 days  If that doesn't work you probally need another new battery. BTW are they lead acid batterys or some other newer higher technology like NiCad or AGM If there not lead acid plates don't try my method on your batterys  I don't know how to properly charge the newer style batterys, yet  
Last edited by Cab_Burge; 03/10/14 04:49 AM.
Mr.Cab Racing and winning with Mopars since 1964. (Old F--t, Huh)
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Re: 16 volt battery, anybody know how to test?
[Re: Cab_Burge]
#1590789
03/10/14 10:32 AM
03/10/14 10:32 AM
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Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 2,008
Sweet Home Alabama
MRMOPAR622
top fuel
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top fuel
Joined: Sep 2003
Posts: 2,008
Sweet Home Alabama
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I found this out the hard way,if you don't keep a Battery maintainer on the 16 volt battery at all times when not racing,they don't last more than one season at best.The people at Rock battery will tell you this as well.
"To Be The Man'You Have Got To Beat The Man"
"T/D and Pro-Bracket Racer"
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Re: 16 volt battery, anybody know how to test?
[Re: pittsburghracer]
#1590792
03/10/14 01:55 PM
03/10/14 01:55 PM
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Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 2,128
Salt Lake City
camastomcat
OP
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OP
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Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 2,128
Salt Lake City
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Quote:
I just couldn't get racing life out of a 16 volt battery and was always afraid it would leave me down at the wrong time so I switched back to a 12 volt battery. My Daytona ran 8.60's with the 16 volt and 8.60's with the 12 volt Sears platinum that came with a free replacement 5 year guarantee. 2 years later I started running an alternator again an I swear I will never run a race car without one again. Looking at the racepak graph is enough evidence for me. Sometimes we out-trick ourselves and make this sport harder than it has to be.
I really haven't had any problems with the 16V system for 7 years and like the way it turns the starter over with 16.3-1 compression. I would need to buy another alternator too, as I have a 16V one. This has been one of the few, but it has me thinking. Nobody really knows a lot about them.
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Re: 16 volt battery, anybody know how to test?
[Re: pittsburghracer]
#1590796
03/10/14 04:54 PM
03/10/14 04:54 PM
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Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 19,369
Las Vegas
Al_Alguire
I Live Here
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I Live Here
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 19,369
Las Vegas
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16 volt batteries work great, up until they don't  From my experience when they go they go quickly. Still would not run anything else in my car. Have had good luck with XS stuff over the years. But they do need to be maintained and charged. If not they live a very short life span. I run an alternator and use the charger between rounds to make sure. Also have it on a charger between races. It has a float mode and works great.
"I am not ashamed to confess I am ignorant of what I do not know."
"It's never wrong to do the right thing"
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Re: 16 volt battery, anybody know how to test?
[Re: camastomcat]
#1590797
03/10/14 07:43 PM
03/10/14 07:43 PM
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Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 4,207
New York
polyspheric
master
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master
Joined: Oct 2007
Posts: 4,207
New York
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I've heard bad things about 16 volt lead/acid batteries, but can't figure out what (except poor maintenance or quality control).
All lead/acid batteries are just a group of individual cells which produce 2.1 volts each (which is the Pb + H2SO4 equation).
Nominal 6 volt has 3 cells = 6.3 volts
Nominal 12 volt has 6 cells = 12.6 volts
Nominal 16 volt has 8 cells = 16.8 volts
If any of these tests lower than shown (the extra .1 per cell) when fully charged it's toast.
Important: other chemical types produce different voltage per cell!
Boffin Emeritus
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Re: 16 volt battery, anybody know how to test?
[Re: camastomcat]
#1590799
03/10/14 08:19 PM
03/10/14 08:19 PM
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Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 1,824
Wind Gap,Pa.
Sammy
top fuel
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top fuel
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 1,824
Wind Gap,Pa.
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Quote:
Mine were the Turbo Start.
If you had 2 in parallel and they weren't on a turbo start battery tender over the winter, they are probably shot.
When 1 goes, the other is right behind it, it you ran them together. 
If they are losing volts quick and cranking them I hard after a few starts, toss em.
You can also try using isolating 1 at a time and see which one is bad.
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Re: 16 volt battery, anybody know how to test?
[Re: camastomcat]
#1590801
03/10/14 09:16 PM
03/10/14 09:16 PM
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Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 1,824
Wind Gap,Pa.
Sammy
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top fuel
Joined: Dec 2012
Posts: 1,824
Wind Gap,Pa.
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Quote:
I actually never ran them together, but tried them both individually, and as soon as I hooked up the racepak, delay box, light dial board, digital 7, they went from 16.8 to 14.2.
I take it no alternator?
Run it till you get it to temperature, turn it off and restart it.
If it doesn't crank hard, they are toast.
Keep us posted. I've been down this road before with them.
Are you running the light weight turbo starts or regular ones?
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Re: 16 volt battery, anybody know how to test?
[Re: Sammy]
#1590802
03/10/14 09:18 PM
03/10/14 09:18 PM
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Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 19,369
Las Vegas
Al_Alguire
I Live Here
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I Live Here
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 19,369
Las Vegas
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They are likely toast. I had similar issues with the TurboStarts I used to run. One will definitely kill the other.
"I am not ashamed to confess I am ignorant of what I do not know."
"It's never wrong to do the right thing"
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Us Racers do tend to do that at times! 
