jump starter pack

[John *.?-!.* cub owner]

I bought an EverStart 500 amp booster pack about 6 or 7 years ago, and did replace the battery in it a little over a year ago. When I opened it up i discovered a little 35 amp hour sealed lead acid battery inside and still have not figured out how they claim it to be a 500 amp booster. I seldom use it for jumping anything, but it makes a real handy portable supply for powering inverters for Christmas lights in parades, small 12 volt air compressor, etc. Our local WalMart had some on sale so I thought I would add a second one for the parades, but when I looked I got a real shock. It was a supposedly 750 amp jumper pack made by Schumacker, which is an old trusted maker, but that thing was a piece of junk. It had an 8 amp hour battery in it, and when I did a little test by connecting it to a cub with the ignition off to see how long it would crank it, it only turned it over about 4 times where my old 500 amp one will turn it 12 or more times. Just how dumb do these companies think we are. This appears to be blatant false advertising, I doubt it would deliver 750 amps if you shorted the leads together.

[Yogie]

I bought an EverStart 500 amp booster pack about 6 or 7 years ago, and did replace the battery in it a little over a year ago. When I opened it up i discovered a little 35 amp hour sealed lead acid battery inside and still have not figured out how they claim it to be a 500 amp booster. I seldom use it for jumping anything, but it makes a real handy portable supply for powering inverters for Christmas lights in parades, small 12 volt air compressor, etc. Our local WalMart had some on sale so I thought I would add a second one for the parades, but when I looked I got a real shock. It was a supposedly 750 amp jumper pack made by Schumacker, which is an old trusted maker, but that thing was a piece of junk. It had an 8 amp hour battery in it, and when I did a little test by connecting it to a cub with the ignition off to see how long it would crank it, it only turned it over about 4 times where my old 500 amp one will turn it 12 or more times. Just how dumb do these companies think we are. This appears to be blatant false advertising, I doubt it would deliver 750 amps if you shorted the leads together.

John, back during the Christmas parade we spoke of using a booster pack for running mini lights. My new Advance Auto power pack lasted long enough for me to run about 3 strands of lights and that was it. Ka Put....
I just went with the power inverter off my cub battery with the head lights off and everything went well...
I see now each time I need it I have to plug it in before hand to warm it up. It's good for running the timing light on a cub, that's about all...
I should take it back ( defect ) and trade for a better one, but I thought I had bought the best.

[Gary Dotson]

I love booster paks, but I too have had mixed results with them. I bought a Clarke booster, at a Clarke tool auction, and it was one of the best tools I had ever acquired. At the next auction, I decided to get another. It failed me within a couple months. This Summer, my original was getting very weak, so I bought 2 batteries and replaced them in both units. Go figure, I got 2 bad batteries! Neither will hold a charge, if not plugged in and don't have very good output, even when fully charged. Mine have 20 A/H batteries.

[Buzzard Wing]

They do have a lifespan.... the last one I got tripped me up when I went to use it for 12v lights in the camper. Turns out the 'jumper cables' will only kick in if it senses a voltage level.... in other words will only work when connected to a battery. I rigged it to work off the lighter plug, but took me a while to figure it out.

So it would not work as a 'battery' for a 12v Cub without a battery installed.

[John *.?-!.* cub owner]

They do have a lifespan.... the last one I got tripped me up when I went to use it for 12v lights in the camper. Turns out the 'jumper cables' will only kick in if it senses a voltage level.... in other words will only work when connected to a battery. I rigged it to work off the lighter plug, but took me a while to figure it out.

So it would not work as a 'battery' for a 12v Cub without a battery installed.

BW, my old one is like that, it has a relay in it that will not pull in unless it sees some voltage, but it apparently only takes 3 or 4 volts. If your has an outlet like a cigarette lighter in it, make a cable to connect the camper to that. It does not require any external voltage before it will operate. To get it to kick in to start a batteryless cub, get a cigarette lighter type plug to use in the power jack, and put a couple leads on it to connect to the jumper clamps.

[John(videodoc)]

The one i bought from Rural King didnt work out of the box. Unfortanley, i didnt try it for like 6 months, and had lost the receipt. SO i took pleasure in burning it. I was going to ask where would be a good place to buy one.

[John *.?-!.* cub owner]

The one i bought from Rural King didnt work out of the box. Unfortanley, i didnt try it for like 6 months, and had lost the receipt. SO i took pleasure in burning it. I was going to ask where would be a good place to buy one.

I cannot tell you where to find one that I think is really good, but the best I have seen lately is a Solar ESF2500 sold by NAPA. They are on sale at NAPA cut from $189 to $129. It does not have the cranking power of my OLD Ever Start 500, but is the best current one I have seen. Most of the used car lots in this area have that model and have been happy with them. One thing to remember, if like me you have a bad back, you have to trade off power for less weight. Another option would be to get a small car battery with a carrier, some jumper cables, and a trickle charger. Not as neat looking or convenient, but functional. One advantage of the booster packs is their battery can be tipped over without leaking.

[Buzzard Wing]

Thanks John, I did use the lighter port to run the lights in the camper. I had one a while back with an AC inverter... when it died, I pulled off the inverter and ran a wire and put a fused lighter plug on it and now I have an inverter.

[Denny Clayton]

I use this one to boost my 6v Cubs and power the 12v winch on my trailer. Works great. $99 at NAPA and $102 at Amazon w/free shipping. Works great.

http://www.amazon.com/Schumacher-PSJ181 ... 09&sr=1-79

[Belmam]

Sorry for bumping...Just my thoughts...
I think the best combination is a Ctek trickle charger and a decent booster pack

Wire the Ctek quick connector permanently to the battery at the posts and plug it in when parked at home. The Ctek will keep your battery safe and sound even over the coldest of winters, the kit comes with two lead sets, one for permanent connection, and another with clips, so you can remove the battery and use the clips over the winter. If you have a battery disconnect switch (a good idea) connect the Ctek so that it will still charge if the battery has been isolated.

The booster pack will help when you've left the lights or such on.

If you find that you end up using the booster without having left something on, or that the Ctek isn't keeping the battery fully charged you have an electrical fault, and that needs investigation.


We have a battery load tester, a hygrometer, a high current booster/charger, a normal charger like this https://wheelstips.com/best-jump-starter These mostly sit unused collecting dust in the corner of the shop, our normal battery diagnostic test is to leave a suspect battery on the Ctek recover cycle overnight and look at the LEDs the next morning. In 4 years the Ctek has always been correct about battery health.

As much as I like traditional tools and methods, I am a fan of the Ctek.

As a time served electrician I am more than capable of testing an electrical system/battery with a Voltmeter, an Ammeter, a dummy load, a timer and a bit of math.