AGM batteries...

[h2oskiier30]

It's getting close to new cranking battery time. I know that most here have high opinions of Cabela's AGM batteries.

Has anyone tried BassPro's AGM batteries? They get great reviews on BassPro's website, but that could be biased. I have a BassPro 40 miles from the house, is why I ask. No Cabela's anywhere close. Just thinking about saving some shipping dollars.

 

[h2oskiier30]

Nevermind...looking at BassPro's website, it doesn't appear that they offer an AGM battery with over 580 CCA's.

 

[Bobalouie]

I just bought a Cabela's AGM based off of reviews on this site, and couldnt be happier. I dont have a cabelas close either, and I had it shipped. I cant remember if it was free shipping or it cost something, but if it did cost something it was pretty reasonable. Cheaper and much better than the Optima Red Top I was using for a cranking batt before.

 

[jas638]

Buy an odessey . They are great. Thats what i have. Little pricey but worth it ,jmo. Held full charge all winter without putting on charger. I can pm you the model number.

 

[allimax]

I had the Cabelas AMG's in my last boat for 5 seasons and was very happy with them. I was going to replace them this year but the person that bought my rig is still fishing with them. Glass mat batteries have some advantages but it's best to have a charging system that will recognize them when hooked up or at least able to set for this type of battery to get the most life out of them. Keep in mind guys there are only a handful of companies out there that produce batteries. Interstate Batteries (the orbital glass mat/odessey) is a good choice, most of there group #'s are made for them by Johnson Controls. I'm 95% sure the Cabela's AMG's are from Deka Batteries. Deka is made in PA and has the most advanced facility of anyone. I really, really like the Deka. Two years ago you couldn’t give me a Napa battery (made by Exide at that time) but they switched to Deka as there supplier. You may price through them or serch a Deka Dealer in your area. Stay away from the W/Mart "Never Starts".
Check em out.:at the bar
http://www.dekabatteries.com/assets/base/0181.pdf

 

[GotMyAlly]

Interesting. I had terrible luck with deka wet cells. I probably wouldn't have bought the cabelas agms if I thought they were made by deka, but so far I've been really happy with the cabelas batts.

 

[champ198]

Do you guys have weight issues with the AGM batts? It's time for a new starter batt and I have the Deka wet cell (meets the Merc Opti batt requirements). Want to stay as light as possible but have the required CCA and MCA and good reserve.

 

[Allyfishing]

there is a good post on BBC about batteries (as well as other very good info). Here is a copy of the info on batteries.

This data was provided by Mercury Marine's R&D Department. The batteries listed are ALL AGM (Advanced Glass Mat) batteries, and were required to have a rating of at least 1000 MCA, 800 CCA, 180ah, or meet the 135-RC 25 Capacity Rating. Batteries were tested to ensure that they "met" their advertised capacities also.

All of the batteries listed are heavy- and they are not cheap. However... if you want something you can depend on... a wise investment!

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
(Testing and information courtesy of Mercury Marine Research & Development)

-Odyssey PC1500, PC1700, PC2150 and PC2250.
-Optima Group 31
-West Marine Sea Volt Group 31 AGM (Edited due to change in capacity of Grp 27).
-Cabela's Advanced Angler ** Group 24 and 27 (See notes below- did not meet advertised Capacity Ratings).
-Trolling Thunder TT1175 and TT1370.
-Excide Megacycle (Mercury Brand) MC-31 and XMC-31.
-Sears Die Hard Platinum 34M (PM-2) and 31M (PM-1).
-Deka Sea Mate 8A27M and 8A31DTM.

** During initial testing, these batteries do not meet their advertised cranking ratings.

 

[JOEALLY]

I've been running a 2 battery setup using 2 cabela's group 27 agm and so far (only a couple of months) they've been great.

 

[jas638]

i agree,stay away from wal-mart batteries!!!!

 

[allimax]

CCA's is real important for a cranking battery. I've seen some real small batteries claiming 1000 cca's and they will make it but only for a real short period. They have very little reserve capacity and since most cars start so fast now days they don't need much reserve. On the other hand a battery used for your troller needs lots of reserve capacity and cca's isn't as important. We want to stay on the water as long as possible, for me sometimes 2-3 days before I have to pull the boat and run it back to the house to charge them overnight. (No electric at my slip) The only way to get reserve capacity is large size and weight. I had two group 34's in the last boat for the troller. Now days we have a lot of electronics we run when fishing plus the ECM and all the sensors for the outboard. This makes the starting battery CCA's much more important for the outboard to keep the ECM happy & healthy. I think for most guys a group 24 with enough cca's is fine. Whatever battery you buy look for the date code to make sure it's fresh too if you're able. Most have a round sticker on them with it generally on the side. Example: A9 = January of 2009, E2 = May 2012.
Oh, and GotMyAlly, deep cycle wet cell batteries sulphate and go bad pretty quick. I could only get maybe 2 years out of a wet cell even charging them once a month or so duren the winter to keep them up. I did have a friend of mine get 7 years out of 2 Interstate wet cells in his Ranger and had one of my customers go 11 years with an Interstate in his one car. Rare but possible. AGM batteries have about a one year (sitting there not being used or charged) shelf life giving them a huge advantage. Rememimber though, AMG's last longest if you use a battery charger designed for them.
Craig, glad you & the wife are OK. Mine would have beat me in the head!

 

[GotMyAlly]

My last boat came with 1 group 24 deka 1000 MCA cranking batt and 2 group 27 trolling batts, all wet cells. The cranking batt lasted a year before it didn't have enough juice to satisfy the ECU on my optimax. I got about a year and a half out of one of the trolling batts, and the other was on the way out when I replaced them both at the same time.

 

[dragmerc]

do you have an onboard charger and leave it plugged in all the time?

 

[GotMyAlly]

I have an onboard charger, but don't leave it plugged in all the time. I plug it in when I get home from the lake and leave it on the charger for 24 hours or so, then it's unplugged. I'll usually plug it in the night before I go to the lake again to top if off.

I had pretty good service out of my bass pro brand wet cells and even a pair of walmart batteries doing exactly what I described above. Usually got 3 seasons out of em and plenty of run time while I was on the water. But the deka wet cells just didn't do it for me. I also had a couple pairs of optimas and thought they equally sucked.

I'm not sure who makes the bass pro brand batteries but if their AGMs are made by the same company that makes their wet cells, I'd have confidence in them. I also had a bass pro sealed cranking battery that went 5 years and was still going strong when I sold that boat.

I've got a cabelas AGM cranker now. Had one in my old boat too. From my experience so far, that's what I'll replace my wet cell trollin batts with when they die (new boat came with interstates).

 

[jas638]

i topped my oddessey off when i first got it and have not charged it since.that was almost two seasons ago. i also don't run many accessories ,but i think that is still dam good.

 

[dragmerc]

i have disconnect switches on all batteries. i charge only long enough to show full charge, then turn off. i only use group 29/31 batteries and usually get at least 4 years service. i've had good luck with blemished deka or interstate but i test them before purchase to show cranking amps. after seeing how bad some new batteries are, i won't buy any without testing first.