I was having trouble starting the car, this happened twice in the last few months. I did some testing with a volt meter and it was obviously the battery as it was not holding a charge. Better to be the battery and not the alternator. At least with the battery I can swap out with relative ease.
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| Missing the 'loop' part of the latch |
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I am going with a smaller, lighter battery that still packs a punch. Before I install the new battery, I need to make sure smaller battery will be secure in the battery compartment. There is a strap to keep the battery from moving, but I am missing half of the latch/hook system.
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| Sketches of the new latch |
So, I will have to make one. First, some sketches, a simple design. I have no idea what the original one looks like, and I was unable to find images of one on the internet. I did not look very hard. This should be simple enough. I took some measurements off the existing 'hook' and used that as my guide.
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| Laying out the lines in Illustrator |
Next step it so to layout the lines in Illustrator in preparation for the laser cutter. I need something a little stronger than styrene, so we are going with Delrin, again.
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| Delrin battery strap latch |
The slot on top is for the hook, while the two slots on the bottom allow the strap to be adjustable. The advantage of having access to a laser cutter, other fun tools, and co-workers willing to help out. Meanwhile, I ordered a replacement battery and it should be here in a few days.
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| Odyssey PC925L Battery |
Here is my little battery. So cute. I did a quick volt check and installed it in the car. The old battery is about 40 pounds, while the new battery weighs in at 24 pounds.
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| Strap is too long |
Since the battery is smaller, the strap is too long. Looks like I will have to come up with a strap shortening device.
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| Battery strap shortening thing |
There are many similar/better strap or seat belt shortening clips out there. Of course, I realize this after I had my clip made. Most of these seat belt clips only shorten the belt about three inches, I needed my strap about eight inches shorter. Although, I could have borrowed and modified the design to shorten the strap to the appropriate length.
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| Delrin strap shortening clip and strap latch |
Clip and strap works, batter is locked down. Oh, and the new battery works, too. I should be able to get a few years from this battery. One less thing I have to worry about...until the next thing goes wrong with the car.
