In FL on vacation and at a auto shop one of the owners showed me this battery pack that would start a car and run your cell phone……
How can it do this?
http://www.amazon.com/PowerAll-PBJS12000R-Rosso-Portable-Starter/dp/B00D42AFS8
My guess is some lifepo4 cells in there. People have been using them as motorcycle batteries for a while too. Although I have also seen people jump start cars with all sorts of lithium based rc packs. Youtube it for some mild entertainment.
Not throwing mud on a Good Idea, but this is a little confusing to an old-school motorhead.
The Manual lists the max 12v capacity as 10A… That’s what we used to call a “fast charge” current level. It takes ~50A to crank an American V8, with excess capacity to allow for the fact you need to jump it in the first place meaning you have some serious problems with your electrical system anyway…
While the low-current applications are surely worth the price charged, I EDIT to stand corrected by FmC’s experience with one, which follows.
Knowledge is Power.
We had one of these at work - a rep brought it around, & we laughed at him at first.
I asked if I could try it, & hooked it up to a 4cyl diesel Hilux which was dead flat. It started it up no problem.
They are supposed to be rated for up to a 2L petrol motor, but we use it on everything - I have started a V8 jeep with it….
It’s good for multiple starts - we have probably done up to 10 starts in a day without charging & it still showed plenty left on the battery indicator.
The alligator clamps that come with it are mainly plastic, & broke after about a month - we chopped them off & attached some heavier-duty clamps to it.
What it doesn’t like, is to be loaded up for too long ie; repeatedly cranking a large motor which won’t start. Then it will smell & go “pop”…… like I said, we had one at work…
We are waiting on a new one to arrive - it is absolutely the real-deal, & we put ours through hell & back on a daily basis.
I would not hesitate to get one if anyone is interested.
- edit -
For anyone in AU, Repco has them on sale currently for $149
Looks like the clamps have been upgraded looking closer at the pictures.
I hope we get our busted one back, so I can check out what cells are in them…
I also would like to know what cells they are using.
If anyone else is interested, the price has dropped to $89.99. I went ahead and ordered one to replace the 5+ year old jumper pack that I have been keeping in the car. The old pack has actually helped on a couple of occasions, but due to the size and weight, it hasn’t been kept on a very good charging regiment since it has to be brought in the house and plugged into AC. Hopefully, this one will still have a usable charge when needed and actually work as advertised. I’ll be keeping an eye out for people wandering around parking lots with jumper cables in hand.
KuoH
My father has been using them for a long time and they have always worked great. They will last about 5 years before going bad. The one he has now is made by Peak, the people who make anti freeze.
I must be an old fogey. I like these, with lead acid AGM:
http://www.cloreautomotive.com/category.php?id=88
Up to 3400 peak amps/850 cranking amps
They work, if you need them often, great. If not, its a waste of time. I have a second car, and easy access to plenty of battery retailers if needed. I also have a good charger if its a case of something being left on to drain it overnight etc. I have mates with them, and they need to be put on charge more often than being ready when needed so Id prefer to just charge the battery a bit, my charger has a start function too anyway. Alternatively, Id just grab a cheap battery and leave it on the charger/maintainer and jump from that.
Apart from that, Id be wondering why the battery is flat and rectify it. Then again I dont live where it gets frigid cold either, maybe that makes a difference.
In addition to the new smaller lithium type, I also have the old style. Sears stopped making it, but it really works great. There is an updated version now. But the link below is the discontinued one I have, and have had it for years.
It doesn’t have any of the air pumps or other accessories most have that can break and go bad, it’s just an all out jump starter. Just wish the cables were longer, but aside from that, it’s great and can be left on the charger 24/7, so it’s always ready when needed.
it can’t, i mean it can run your phone, but it will never start your car by itself, it can boost a weak battery, but only if it’s still in good shape and is a little low. with compleatly dead battery it is useless, avarige strarters pull around 150-200 amps.
Hi folks,
As mentioned in another thread, I have the Antigravity Micro-Start XP-1. I’ve used it to start my friends boat engine, a 350 cu. in. V8. Both onboard batteries were completely flat due to the float switch for the bilge pump getting stuck in the “on” position. No voltage from the parallel wired batteries at all. I connected my XP-1, which was fully charged to the terminals of one of the batteries, and it started right up.
I believe this Micro-start is rated for 400a or 600a. So if some of these other brands can’t start a V8 gas engine, perhaps some of these other brands are being made cheaper. Also, most are shown to start a car with the actual vehicle battery removed, and the jump starter simply connected to the battery terminals.
Please note, this is simply my personal experience with the brand I purchased about 1 1/2 years ago. Other brands may not perform as well, or perhaps can perform better. What I don’t like is the large parasitic drain this brand unit has. I really need to try and open this thing up and see what’s inside of it.
Antigravity Micro-Start XP-1 that you are talking about, rated 200 boost 400 peak amps, (jump starting ability, not crank amps), and it is battery rating, i highly doubt circuits inside, let alone wires that it supplied with can handle 200 let alone 400 amp load.
have you seen how thick starter cable is? it is like that for a reason
Hi Alpg,
You are correct, thanks for double checking me. My memory was obviously faulty and I should have verified them before posting.
Specifications:
•200 Amp- 400 Peak Amp Jump Starting ability
•12000 mah total capacity
•14 ounces
•6″ long x 2.8″ wide x 1″tall
With all the interest in these type of power supplies / jump starters, I opened up my Micro-start and found 3x high power polymer cells each about 1/4 inch thick and I assume the voltage for each is rated at 3.7v. Using 3 different volt meters, the output on the jump leads were anywhere from 11.95v - 12.0v and the part number on the cells was, 130718-2.
If anyone is interested in a photo of what the inside looks like, I can try a post a few later.
I also have been interested in one of these small jump starters. Here is some info from Consumer Reports. I don’t subscribe to it, but some good info is available. The Bolt Power D28 looks pretty good and can be had for about $50.
Any comments?
Jerry
How about these things ?
Could you just run jumper leads from a regular power bank ?
I don’t know enough to judge. However I tend to think that the amperage would be too low on a normal power bank. Maybe someone more knowledgeable will chime in.
Jerry
This guy tests some portable jump starters. He goes into great detail. It’s a 2 parter. I must warn you guys, his videos are very long.
Thanks, I’ll take a look.
MERRY CHRISTMAS.
Jerry