Just bought one of these on clearance at WalMart last night. Deltran Battery Tester PN 026-0020 (old fashioned kind that uses a resistance coil to load the battery). Caveman simple,effective, and quick. Probably super reliable. Just cracked open the box this evening and went around the homestead checking out 6 batteries in the various cars, tractors, etc. Posting this here as i have been checking out about half a dozen local Wal-Marts and noticed that they have all significantly ramped up clearance all over their stores of what I perceive to be slower selling items. Several items in the battery jump starter, tester, etc area were on clearance. I recalled using this type of battery tester when i worked in an auto parts store. For $16.50 (half the regular price) I got to relive some old memories. Cheers!
Old School Car Battery Tester-Always wanted one of these
- Thread starter VolvoZ
- Start date
That's a killer deal!
Not sure why it's considered "old school".
Not sure why it's considered "old school".
I have a Schumacher one like this. They are great. Volts only tell part of the story.
100 load amps is not enough and questionable quality.
This is old school:
Uses a massive carbon pile as a load.
I have one in like new condition. I still use it and also have the Sun VAT 40, essentially the same:
Works great for alternators too.
Seems like anything with an analog meter is considered old school:
This is old school:
Uses a massive carbon pile as a load.
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I have one in like new condition. I still use it and also have the Sun VAT 40, essentially the same:
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Works great for alternators too.
Seems like anything with an analog meter is considered old school:
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As I recall they get quite hot…
They do heat up but you only use them for 30 seconds at a time and the "Toaster element" is safely deep inside.
Hang it on a hook when you're done-- don't throw it in a tool box with your linseed oil and rags.
I have one as well and it works great. Turns out my batteries really are good.
Hang it on a hook when you're done-- don't throw it in a tool box with your linseed oil and rags.
I have one as well and it works great. Turns out my batteries really are good.
I'm sure they still make old school antifreeze testers like this,
but like the old style battery tester, not very accurate.
but like the old style battery tester, not very accurate.
THIS is a vintage tester. I used these back in the 80’s and it was practically semi-vintage at that time. We had three or four at Sears.
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My car tells me when it's bad.
Exactly right about that Voltage reading only telling part of the story. The questionable Volvo branded battery i have sitting in the garage read “good” on the initial voltage until I pushed the “Test” button. Within two seconds, the sweep gage drops into the “weak” telling the true condition. Love this thing….except for the initial couple tests where the nasty manufacturing residue burned off of the heating coil.
Actually only 10 seconds maximum recommended testing duration. But 5 seconds of testing feels like an eternity and seems like plenty of time to run the test.
It does get toasty warm, but cools off quickly too.
I bought one of the Capacitance type testers after watching some Optima Battery videos that then suggested some Kent Bergsma (MercedesSource). Watch this one https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oi8sUE9XCgA
I look at what all the dealers use now when you come in for service as well as most parts stores.
Mine has worked well for my testing and found many bad or almost bad. I got the Solar BA-9.
I look at what all the dealers use now when you come in for service as well as most parts stores.
Mine has worked well for my testing and found many bad or almost bad. I got the Solar BA-9.
I have a similar unit bought at Harbor Freight years ago. Dead simple and very effective. Seeing how the battery voltage responds to a heavy load is an excellent and fast way to check a battery. Fancier machines are made, but this type always gets the job done for me
These are not like having your carbon pile resistors units. They will still let some batteries check. Good that are not really good.
My mechanic tested the battery during inspection last fall and said I may want to consider replacing it before winter. It's a Costco Interstate installed Dec 2019. I didn't opt to replace it. Came home and tested it with one of these and it said it was perfectly fine. Here we are near spring and no starting issues whatsoever.
