Battery Size

What would be a good economical battery CCA for my 83 351. I seem to have lost my battery during the rebuild.-DUHHHHHH

I have 4 group 34 optimas in 2 boats been good to me over the years the trick is to leave a trickle or maintainer on them if possible . I have heard of people having good luck with the Duracell the Sams sells. Remember with marine style you get the additional terminals and different less warranty typically than automotive you do not. I have heard the interior construction is slightly different but have yet to bust one open and cover myself in battery acid.

Price seems to be a frequent concern on the forum and with that in mind the Wally battery is likely the cheapest. Me? I've never had very good luck with them and prefer to spend more on a better built, better warranted battery. I've had Optima's in the past and like JQ and Ross I've nothing but good luck using them. However, with the new engine and refurb last year I thought I'd go with a marine gel battery and originally was looking at Odyssey and Interstate. Both have great reviews and warranties and even were available in a size to fit the Nautique.   Ultimately though I chose a slightly less pricey version of the same - still a gel type dual purpose battery - that had equally good reviews and warranty, X2 Power Premium.    It is manufactured by Northstar and marketed under the X2 name. Thus far I am very impressed with it's power and it's been a reliable battery.

So for less than $60 more right now I can pick up from RockAuto an AC Delco professional series AGM group 65. Just waiting for my costco special auto battery to finally not load test. I might just go ahead and replace it, though. Don't want it to give our on the St. Johns River.

phatsat67 wrote: I rarely trickle charge and I get about 6 seasons out of my standard starting batteries. I've never saw the need to go dump a ton of money on a battery that will last the same amount of time anyways. Most frequently failed batteries we saw at the boat store were all Optima but who knows what the owners maintenance habits were.

I have NEVER in all the years using standard auto starting battery's needed to use a maintenance charger even over the 7 months of winter layup. Evidently per Ross, it's needed on the Optima's!

rosconole wrote: I have 4 group 34 optimas in 2 boats been good to me over the years the trick is to leave a trickle or maintainer on them .

So, you pay the extra for a bling battery and it fails??

Unlike some people I don't use 1960-70s technology (besides a carburetor), I currently have 8 optimas today, good availability, good warranty, Gives you some heads up when they are going away. I can say most people have or don't understand how to properly treat a spiral core battery to get the value out of it. I have seen it many times. It does help if you have a battery switch and/ or take the battery out in winter and put it on some sort of maintenance charge. Putting it on a block of wood and not on the floor is not the answer to keep any battery to live its useful life.
I don't have battery failures,Most failures come from cable or connection issues people overlook. I come prepared with plenty of power and gas.

What you using rope for KENO? tow rope when yours goes dead?

Doesn't matter if its a Sears, Interstate, Duralast, Whiskey Tango Foxtrot brand.. A battery switch and some sort of maintenance program will help

dead batteries and dead fish

KENO wrote: rosconole wrote: What you using rope for KENO? tow rope when yours goes dead? You're running a little low on wittiness today Roscoe. No entertainment points today for you

Idk Ken, lately if I see Roscoe responded to something I make some fresh popcorn and sit down for the entertainment.

I throw battery in lake.

I do not know about this particular site’s products, but under certain conditions, you can breathe life into poor performing traditional batteries by overcharging or equalizing (desulfurization)
“An equalizing charge is nothing more than a deliberate overcharge to remove sulfate crystals that build up on the plates over time. ... An equalizing charge also reverses acid stratification, a condition where acid concentration is greater at the bottom of the battery than at the top.Feb 23, 2016”
I had a 3 year Honda battery discharged by seat heaters twice in a month fail to cold start. Had it jumped twice and failed to start the next morning after fully charging over night with a “smart” charger after both jumps.
I bought a new battery that morning and changed it.
The old battery sat around for a year or two. I used it to crank over a 351w core I bought, etc. I’d charge it, but never trusted it enough to go back in a car.
This fall I borrowed my brother in laws west marine charger with an equalizing routine. I ran it at least three times (had a failure during round two) and had a higher resting charge after a few days than what I started with (fully charged with my little Guest smart charger). I put it back in the van and drove it around for a month of cold weather.
My use with a starting battery is not as common as equalizing a deep cycle that is discharged completely many times. You can damage batteries by equalizing them when they do not need it.

My best friend owns a battery a business. I know he’s very anti Optima (warranty issues) and anti Exide and runs Odyssey when it counts. He keeps me well supplied with batteries of any kind and desire of no charge, haha no charge. I’m typically not able to see how long a battery lasts under what condition thanks to him. I will say when I bought my 1993 SN it had an 8 year old Blue top 34 Optima in it. I let it be. I know the boat did a lot of sitting (like 5 years) prior to me buying it. That battery now is 11 years old, never a maintainer and only had a charger on it once a month ago when I was chasing an electrical issue.

Orlando76 wrote: My best friend owns a battery a business. I know he’s very anti Optima (warranty issues) and anti Exide and runs Odyssey when it counts.

Every single Exide battery I have owned has been a complete pile of crap. Tractors/boats/mowers all junk. Our new Forklift is running an Exide, we will see how that holds up.

They actually have a processing plant north of us here and they are a very large customer for my department. Tear up machinery like clockwork.