Ron

Having tired of my Optima going dead I purchased an Odyssey PC1200 from Tony at West Coast Batteries, http://www.odysseybatteries.com/

I also purchased the strap to install it. From the photo below you can see I glued 3 mm rubber to inside of the strap. You can buy the rubber at the hardware store and cut strips the size you need. I think it makes the battery fit more snugly without having to overtighten the strap which deforms the top a little. I also bent the part of the strap a little that fits into the lip behind the battery, I think you can see that in the photo. It seems odd to bend the strap away from the lip it goes into but by doing so it makes the piece at the end of the strap go further into the lip.

Also the bolt I used has thread that is 30 mm long. Under the strap I put a nylon spacer.

Sure hope I have less problems with this Odyssey than I've had with the Optima. I know Jim Morton and TonyN also went this route.
https://rennlist.com/forums/showthre...hlight=odyssey

Ron

I hope so.

Texas993

I was going to get an Optima this weekend. Not anymore. Maybe I will go with Joel Reiser's advice and get a Diehard and a trickle charger. Although I generally drive my car every weekend.

Now I am totally confused.

Jim Morton

As a sort of continuation of this and the other Odyssey thread, I also found that the technology behind the Odessey and Optima is basically the same, the execution of the two batteries is different. However the companies work out the ratings, the Odyssey is physically smaller than the Optima for a similar range of Amp-Hr rating. Also, I think that the QC of the Optima has suffered since their acquisition. As I have not had to return or test Odyssey's warranty, I cannot comment on there side of warrnty service. I can say that my Odyssey has survived serveral accidental discharge / recharges with no signs of stress.

FWIW, I was completely sold on Optimas a few years back when they first came on the market. I used one in my DayCrusier speedboat for many years. Something changed as the ones purchased over the last two years have not proven as durable as even plain old wetcell batteries.

Maybe the Optimas are spill proof, but my last three Optimas purcahsed have not survived being accidently dis-charged then recharged. This has happened either on the first or second occurance with several model Optimas. When attempting to seek customer support from Optima, the "hoops" seem overly tedious for a supplier of auto batteries to ask of a regular consumer. The idea of leaving my more expensive "fancy" battery with an apprived Optima dealer for an overnight re-charge and test seems unnecessary for such an over the counter item as a battery brought in dead, under warranty. The two times I went along with the overnight test, I still had issues with the battery and it was replaced only after the auto parts store decided to honor the warranty without Optima's agreement. The Auto Parts store ended up honoring the battery with the agreement that I not to buy any more Optimas from them. I can understand the store's position. I hope this helps anyone who is curious about all this.

If you have an Optima and like it...that's great. This is simply my $0.02 on the subject of Optima vs. Odyssey. Also, FWIW, I now use plain old deep cycle Costco specials in my Daycrusier...

Regards

amfp

Die Hard's have been great for me over the years, I just replace them every three years. Trickle charge works well when car is not in use. I also use battery mat in case there is any acid leakage, but do check the battery monthly. Last year, bought a $39.99 700 cranking amp int'l mod 48 battery for my Volvo, seems to work just fine too.

Jastx

Are those experiencing Optima problems using a battery maintainer or not? Do you think that would have solved the problem? I like the dry cell idea and can get an Optima at Costco for $100. They'll also take returns for any reason.

Ray Calvo

Interesting. Got my Optima a year ago this month. Have drained it down to 0 volts once and it was able to be recharged to what feels like normal operation. I use a battery maintainer over the winter. So far no problems. Time will tell.

Ron

I had used a .5 amp Guest trickle charger with a voltage output of 13.2 volts. I have to admit I did not always hook it up to the car for one reason or another.

Jim Morton

As a bermuda shorts and sandals kind of guy (CA resident), I use a battery maintainer whenever I know the beastie is not going out for a while. The problem is those un-decided times when it ends up sitting for 3 weeks eventhough I thought I was going to be driving it. It's these times when the battery seems to get drawn down. Amp draw at idle is within spec, but considering all of the memories and flashing LED's, I can see how these things last 3 - 4 weeks without being started.

I am trying to be much better about using the battery maintainer as it is only lazyness to not take the 1 minute to hook it up. Probably using the battery maintainer, I would not have had any of the above mentioned problems.

The daycruiser boat seems to be a bit different as it is stored outside and not near 110V power. Here too, the batteries should probably get pulled and setup on a maintenance rack with a battery maintainer. The problem is that they are down in the bilge and a royal pain to remove. I guess it's a matter of preventative maintenance vs. maintenance at failure. Boats, powered garden equipment, RV's...they all fall into this category... ;^)