Looking to get a jump pack. Are the Amazon Chinese packs worth the money? Are there alternatives that don't break the bank and are from a better known brand?
normally try doing my own research on this but we all know how google has gone lately. Between the fake reviews from Amazon, and youtubers getting paid to tout trash, finding REAL, HANDS ON reviews are impossible. Eff you google.
In reply to Vajingo :
Here is a lot of recent GRM chatter on jump packs
I bought this one after seeing that basically every shop I walked into had one in use. Seems to do what I need it to without issue, but lacks the frills of some other options.
So, I don't need all the gadgets they attach to these. Size would be what I want mostest.
John Welsh said:In reply to Vajingo :
Here is a lot of recent GRM chatter on jump packs
How did I miss this? Oh well. Thank you!
Are you going to use it for general use (jumping/12v accessories) or for heavy duty use (jumping diesel trucks/large equipment)?
The shop I worked for had a few of these. They would jump pretty much everything except diesel trucks. We usually kept at least 2 jump packs in the roadside assistance truck and would just connect 2 of them to the dead battery of diesels. They were beat to hell but still worked great.
On the other side, I was gifted a Schumacher SL1315. It's one of those Li battery pack things. It's only 800A though but I've used it 3 times to jump my Kia after the battery was completely flat. It's still at 80% charge. It's convienent but not very powerful.
In reply to stanger_mussle (Forum Supporter) :
Just general purpose. 12v car batts. But size does matter here. I don't want or need the ones that weigh 50lbs and have a ton Of accessories I'll never use.
Im just so skeptical of the Chinese ones on Amazon. I've seen the reviews: "it's great for the first month, then when you really need it, it's flat and doesn't hold a charge."
Here's my take as garnered from the two previous threads that can be found in the link I added above...
Keith suggested an Optima battery with cables. I too have taken to this idea. I have an Optima battery from a Prius (so not really strong but a real car battery). I put it and the cables in a blue Ikea bag. When I go to the salvage auctions I now take this as my back-up jumper kit. You have to own a battery charger that plugs in the wall too.
My first jumper pack for the auctions is my old JNC 4000 which seems to now be the JNC 660. A few years ago I replaced the 20 year old battery that wouldn't hold a charge. The internals look like this:
Super easy to change. At my local Interstate Battery store, I think I paid $60 for a slightly stronger battery that fit in the same space. In general, it is a motorcyle battery. But, it is still a lead battery so the unit is heavy but reliable.
Some years ago, I bought the Harbor Freight little Lithium battery jumper. Even when new it was poor at best. In general, it sucked. Others report that other brand lithiums are great. They may be. Mine was 3 years or more ago.
So, car battery (Prius Optima) or Motorcycle battery (JNC) or new lithium technology are the choices.
For me, lead batteries have not let me down. If it is a lead jumper then I would buy from Clore Automotive, the makers of JNC and Booster Pack. On my JNC (low end model 4000), I really do not like the way the cables store. They are always off. If doing it again, I would choose the Clore Booster Pack because I like the way the cables clamp into place. Or, I would choose JNC 770 for the longer cables and clamp to store cables.
I see Clore sells lithium now. I might consider one from them...maybe.
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