What Battery to use?

[canrc]

Its been a little over a year since I got the car on the road so far I haven't put to many miles (about a 1,000) and both my Braille B3121 have decided to call it a day

I contacted Braille and i was given instructions on how to possibly bring them back but that didn't work either, both batteries won't hold a charge and unfortunately I lost my proof of purchase so no warranty. Also as a note I always had a C-Tek plugged in if I wasn't driving the car for more than two days but they still went.

So after a week of reading everything I could about what battery to go with and what would fit in the box I made for my Braille's I got the Exide AGM battery (the same as Odyssey from what I understand) 4 year exchange warranty and as usual not available here locally for me so I went over the border to Washington state. Hopefully this time I will have better luck!

[Flash68]

As stated previously Braille apparently rebadges DEKA batteries and jacks up the prices (and the specs). Cute.

2 recent reviews on amazon cite this:

http://www.amazon.com/Braille-Batter.../dp/B004DDI1VA

and apparently that battery is really this

http://www.tristatebattery.com/etx30...ery-p-982.html

I was considering this Braille until now. Need to research further.

[canrc]

Originally Posted by Flash68

As stated previously Braille apparently rebadges DEKA batteries and jacks up the prices (and the specs). Cute.

2 recent reviews on amazon cite this:

http://www.amazon.com/Braille-Batter.../dp/B004DDI1VA

and apparently that battery is really this

http://www.tristatebattery.com/etx30...ery-p-982.html

I was considering this Braille until now. Need to research further.

You are correct sir -- Deka, Big Crank, Duracell and Braille and more are manufactured by East Penn; I dropped into the East Penn location here locally and they told me the same.

The other batteries I found to be the same are:

Odyessey & Sears Platinum amungst others = Exide
Optima, Eveready and a bunch of OEM are = Johnson Controls

[Flash68]

Cool, Raj. Curious to see how the new Exide works out for you. Which model did you get?

[canrc]

I got the Exide Group 78 -- I hope this one holds up!

http://www.atbatt.com/product/25083.asp

[MattO]

I'm not en electrical engineer. I don't know alot about the chemical processes involved in these different batteries, I can only speak from an extensive experience thus far with many different types of batteries thanks to years spent in the car stereo scene.

Years ago, Optima's were a great choice of battery. They held a charge, they performed well, etc. but in recent years they have lost their way and become a name that I avoid recommending for all the reasons that have already been listed in this thread.

Seeing as Optima's weren't going to last for what I needed, I turned to a company called "Kinetik" and ran several of their power cells for years. In one truck I had a KHC1800 and two "Cap Killer" KHC600's. These were basically ultra high capacity AGM batteries with a shiny blue case and a reputation for being the best at the time. I also ran a KHC1800 in my GMC Canyon and was happy with it until it died a terrible death.

About 6 months ago I had one of the "Cap Killer" batteries in my Silverado go south and the KHC1800 under the hood followed very closely behind.

It was at this point that I contacted the team at XS Power ( 4xspower.com ) and talked to them about a new battery for my Canyon. I haven't been running the battery more than 2 months now, but thus far, I am VERY impressed with the performance. It uses the same AGM technology we are all familiar with, but packs the case tighter, making for higher energy capacity. In this truck I run a competition level stereo system that draws ALOT of current, and this battery couldn't care less. Additionally, Nathan and the team at XS power have been an absolute joy to deal with.

Yes, the XS Power D3400 that I run is expensive at $450, but you really can't beat the overall performance it delivers.

Just my $.02

[BBC71Nova]

The Diehard Platinum I think is another good option. They are basically the Odyssey AGM batteries with a different case and better price. If you wait till one of Sears' "friends and family" discount days you can get these Diehard batteries for a pretty good price. I think my last one was like 160ish.

The only thing I don't like about it is the weight compared to the Optima red top it replaced. That was an older Optima btw but it was awesome. Hearing all recent reports I decided to try something else this time around. Hated to do that since they support our "community" but...