Portable Jump Starters

[chrisg3103]

I was looking a litte while ago as was fed up trying to jump start things that were parked the wrong way round! Rookie mistake, but if your going to leave something sitting make sure the bonnet is not facing the wall. And no spare batteries to jump off of.

Was a bit skeptical about a thing the size of a small paperback book jumping a diesel so looking about, this guy dose good reviews:

Unlikely to find the exact stuff he tests in the UK but shows the potential.

Ended up buying this

https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B083NVVXV2?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

jumped a 2l diesel from click click flat, and a kubota 2 cylinder with a lazy starter on one charge with spare.
Best bit is the USB charge, once you get the car going you can charge the jump starter back up from a phone charger in the car. I now keep it in the glove box and give it a check every month or so, not lost any charge yet. See how it fairs the cold in the winter

Only down side is cable length, can be a bit of a stretch

On a side note, folk on YouTube jumping cars from power tool batterys.
Couple of coins in the terminal slots, clip on standard jump leads, away you go. Could be handy if your in the middle of nowhere with no phone signal and happen to have tools in the car

 

[Ashley Burton]

@chrisg3103 Sounds the sort of thing I'm after!

 

[Reman]

I got a tiny unit from Hobbyking about 10 years back. It was the predecessor to this one.

It's been a ruddy good tool. Back when I had a Lexus IS200 it was invaluable as that car could go for a month or two without being used. The car had so much permanently live electronic junk in it that it could flatten the battery to the point where it wouldn't start in about 2 weeks. It stayed on a smart charger most of the time I had it, But the number of times I'd find that 3 or 4 weeks previously some bar steward had unplugged the extension lead to use the garage socket for something then forgot to plug my car back in was unreal.

These little Li-Po jump packs (Mines about the size of 3 large smartphones stacked up) can kick out some evil number of cranking amps. Mine would jump start the IS200's 2.0L straight 6 with ZERO help from the cars totally flat battery. It could easily do that 8 to 10 times between charges, AND it can stay in the boot for well over a year without self discharging into uselessness, unlike the few months you tend to get with older lead acid "Gel cell" based jump pack.

Li-Po cells DO loose capacity over time, So after 3 years they won't hold as much juice as they did when new, But I've had mine for well over that, And it had so much extra capacity when I got it that even if now only holds 50 or 60% of what it did, That's still well over what I'd need to start my car 4 or 5 times between charges.

 

[the snooper]

Got one at work, can't remember make though, it started 2, 3 ltr mercs one after the other no problem and states on it it's capable of 4000 amps

 

[the snooper]

Found it, a Noco will do upto 10ltr diesel bit pricey though at 270 ish

 

[James1979]

This is mine. A Kamashi Force K2. Was £35 from ahappydeal a few years back. Lives on charge in truck. Biggest thing it’s jumped without problems is a dead transit

 

[Wallace]

I have had a few of these things over the years.

None of them last too long in workshop use.

Have gone back to a 096 battery and a set of jump leads - leave battery on float charge.

I used to keep a reasonable battery on the go strapped to a small trolley I found, most of my neighbours cars were jumped with it at some point and of course my transport museum.

 

[Wallace]

This is the one we have at work, I have not read the instructions to see all the features. Reading the bumf on the last photo I see it has a multi voltage laptop port. This one works ok but I prefer the Noco my friend has due to the Micro USB charging, this has a dedicated power supply. I should check to see if it has a car charger in the case but as it is workshop based there has been no need. I have jump started 5 litre Ford V8’s from it and borrowed for plant, Transit’s etc.

EDIT: I checked the website and they no longer list this one as there seems to be a new range.

 

[armalites]

The Noco units look pretty good, one of my colleagues has one in his vehicle because he gets weird odd occasions where his car won't. He said it gets it going every time. I think his is a 70.

The 150 looks a serious bit of kit.

The one issue with the Noco units is the slow usb charging.

Just don't buy one of the cheap units, they are a waste of money. The battery cage at the local tip always has some in there.

I use an Optima yellow top 5.5, the best bit about them is you can't spill them and it means you can prop them in a engine bay with no issues. It's got an Anderson connector so can also run the winch on the trailer.

 

[welder_dave]

We have the Noco GB150 at work. Probably gets used 10 times a day or so. (Garage with sales yard) As long as i keep on top of charging its awesome. Never been beaten. Even used it to start the 24V lorry. 5 mins on battery 1. Then clip onto battery 2 and start up. I was surprised that actually worked to be honest.

I'm going to buy another one soon, one for workshop and one for sales. Got fed up dragging the big booster pack around.

 

[Ashley Burton]

As @armalites has mentioned I get the impression the lower model Noco units aren't that good

 

[armalites]

As @armalites has mentioned I get the impression the lower model Noco units aren't that good

When I said don't buy a cheap unit I meant one of the generic units you see in places like Aldi etc. They just have standard sealed lead acid batteries in them not much bigger than you'd see in a house alarm.

I think all the Noco are pretty good given how small they are. There's loads of unsponsored videos on Youtube where people are genuinely surprised what they will do.

Boost packs are one of those things where you do get what you pay for. The big issue for a casual user is you need so rarely you don't keep on top of charging. If you are using a boost pack regularly then it's always in you mind.

I'd like a GB150 just for it's size but the reality is I could buy 2 Optima yellow top 4.2 for that money. I bought my 5.5 yellow tops second hand, they were swapped as a service item on a road sweeper. My battery tester doesn't know what do with them, one them always shows over 100% when tested. I've got vehicles that the battery was dead 5-10 years a go and the yellow top will overcome that and still start them.

 

[armalites]

We have the Noco GB150 at work. Probably gets used 10 times a day or so. (Garage with sales yard) As long as i keep on top of charging its awesome. Never been beaten. Even used it to start the 24V lorry. 5 mins on battery 1. Then clip onto battery 2 and start up. I was surprised that actually worked to be honest.

I'm going to buy another one soon, one for workshop and one for sales. Got fed up dragging the big booster pack around.

Do you charge yours with USB or 12v socket? The charging time seems to be the only draw back, I love the idea of just grabbing off the shelf instead of humping 25kg of battery around

 

[Ashley Burton]

@armalites I worked for a supplier which had quite a few GB70's I believe they were come back faulty from many customers. Not sure if it was a bad batch, But makes me doubt the quality

 

[armalites]

I do have a funny Noco story, was in Halfords with my lad and having a look at them. One of the staff said "I know all about those Noco boosters if there any questions you've got" , I replied "do you have any GB150 ?" he replied "Didn't know they did a GB150". My lad thought it was hilarious.

 

[Ashley Burton]

I do have a funny Noco story, was in Halfords with my lad and having a look at them. One of the staff said "I know all about those Noco boosters if there any questions you've got" , I replied "do you have any GB150 ?" he replied "Didn't know they did a GB150". My lad thought it was hilarious.

I think that's the problem

 

[welder_dave]

I just charge ours of a 2A usb adaptor. To be honest didn't know it could be charged any other way. Never read the instructions of course.....

 

[welder_dave]

Oh, and I've got an old GB40 in the van. It will start most petrol stuff as long as its trying to turn over first. Not had much luck lately on diesel stuff. It is old tho. Probably 5 years at a guess. Makes a cracking USB charger when i go camping.

 

[Gritineye]

Stuff I learned while looking into these things.

Lithium batteries hold less charge as they age. just like my Macbooks one does.

Charging these from USB never gets them fully charged like a wall adapter does.

The batteries last longer when stored with 75% charge, storing them at 100% shortens their life. Mine came with 75% charge which sorta confirms this.

They rely on complex electronics and don't like water. The one I had claimed to be waterproof but the instructions said don't use in damp conditions!

None of which applies to jump leads, however old they are..

 

[Ashley Burton]

@Gritineye What model do you have?