|
-
POSTING RULES

-
Donate yearly (please).
-
Advertise in here!
-
Today's Posts
|
Insert Pics
|

06-19-2013, 02:02 PM
|
 |
|
|
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Newport, TN
Posts: 7,496
|
|
If they give you any trouble call Odyssey direct. They were very responsive. They even have a Facebook page and they monitor it.
They had absolutely no issues with the battery being used on an experimental aircraft. They were aware that Van's actually designed it into some of the models.
It is marketed as a Motorsports battery. My airplane has a motor and it is a sport plane so that makes it OK to me!
By the way, you might want to try the rejuvenation procedure before sending it in. Most likely this will fix it!
|

06-19-2013, 04:21 PM
|
 |
|
|
Join Date: Aug 2005
Location: Dallas/Ft Worth, TX
Posts: 5,686
|
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bill.Peyton
I too have the PP alt. using the Vertical Power system. I used a #20 gauge wire to from the VPX to the field to cause a voltage drop which increases the output voltage of the alt. That way I maintain at least a 14.5 volt output. The higher voltage will not bother any of the avionics.
|
The field terminal of the PP alternator is strickly an enable/disable input, varying the voltage on it will have no effect on alternator voltage output.
Most externally regulated alternators have a 'sense' input which does control voltage output.
__________________
Walt Aronow, DFW, TX (52F)
EXP Aircraft Services LLC
Specializing in RV Condition Inspections, Maintenance, Avionics Upgrades
Dynamic Prop Balancing, Pitot-Static Altmeter/Transponder Certification
FAA Certified Repair Station, AP/IA/FCC GROL, EAA Technical Counselor
Authorized Garmin G3X Dealer/Installer
RV7A built 2004, 1700+ hrs, New Titan IO-370, Bendix Mags
Website: ExpAircraft.com, Email: walt@expaircraft.com, Cell: 972-746-5154
|

06-19-2013, 04:23 PM
|
|
|
|
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: MERRITT ISLAND, FL
Posts: 360
|
|
Maybe it was my fault...
Quote:
Originally Posted by Brantel
By the way, you might want to try the rejuvenation procedure before sending it in. Most likely this will fix it!
|
I'm going to do just that Brian. I talked with Bill Bainbridge (of B&C) a few minutes ago about this issue. Even though I didn't buy my batt from him he, as is typical of him, spent time with me. Here's a summary of what he said:
He has sold "thousands of Odyssey batts" and thinks they are nearly perfect.
He performs a load test on them before shipping and has never seen a bad one.
He asked me about the connections saying that the ring terminal to batt terminal is critical as I told him that I may have had the charger ring terminals positioned between the #2 wire ring terminal and the batt. That, he replied, is not good. He also added that stainless machine screws/bolts screwed into the tapped receptacle are lousy conductors.
Don
__________________
Don Stiver
RV8 "Little Pill" N6371S, Merritt Island, Fl.
BPE IO-390, Dual P-mag, MT 3-blade, AFP system
Steen Skybolt: Sold
|

06-19-2013, 06:26 PM
|
|
|
|
Join Date: Oct 2005
Location: Melbourne, Australia
Posts: 1,868
|
|
Oversized lightening holes in battery jacket
Quote:
Originally Posted by Brantel
So what killed these batteries that are suppose to have a long life cycle?
|
Brian, An Odyssey battery distributor once told me that lack of metal jacket support can cause the Odyssey PC680 to fail prematurely. He suggested that many RV builders are cutting such large "lightening holes" in their battery cases that the battery lacks sufficient metal wall support. He said that when the battery heats up under rapid recharge in the high heat aircraft firewall forward environment the plastic walls can get soft and move outwards fractionally if they are not adequately supported, which can damage the battery internals.
The Vans RV firewall forward kit comes with a battery holder that is actually just a stock Odyssey PC680 metal jacket. The distributor says that metal jacket is an integral and necessary component of the battery for high heat environments but that RV builders are often modifying them by cutting out most of the front wall. I thought his comments were interesting and that I would pass them on. I have never seen this discussed on VansAirforce before.
Is it possible in this particular instance that too much metal has been removed from the PC680 jacket in an attempt to "lighten" it. Just a possibility and certainly food for thought for other builders keen on taking out the last gram of weight from their aircraft.
__________________
You’re only as good as your last landing 
Bob Barrow
RV7A
Last edited by Captain Avgas : 06-19-2013 at 06:29 PM.
|

06-19-2013, 06:49 PM
|
 |
|
|
Join Date: Sep 2009
Location: St. Louis, MO
Posts: 1,788
|
|
Walt,
I have to disagree with you.
The field of any alternator is what is used to regulate the output. The field line on the PP alternator is used for two things, one is to energize the field and the second is to sense the "output" voltage. If the voltage drop across the field wire running from the power source to the alternator is such that at the alternator end of the wire, it is less than the actual bus voltage, then the internal regulator will continue to increase the field current until the output of the alternator drives the voltage at the field terminal to whatever the regulator has been programmed. In the case of the PP alternator, it is 14.2 volts. So until 14.2 volts appears on the field terminal, the internal alternator regulator will continue to drive the field until the voltage is 14.2v.
With an externally regulated alternator, the sense line is different than the field line in that the sense line is connected to the bus and the field current is varied through the regulator. This is not to say that you can't trick an externally regulated alternator that does not have an adjustable output, to output a higher voltage by simply dropping the voltage to the sense line.
__________________
Bill Peyton
RV-10 - 1125 hrs
N37CP
First Flight Oct 2012
Aviation Partners, LLC
|

06-19-2013, 10:30 PM
|
|
|
|
Join Date: Feb 2007
Location: San Diego, CA
Posts: 1,670
|
|
Foir Apache56: See this thread.
http://www.vansairforce.com/communit...ad.php?t=90977
Starting issues caused by faulty starter solenoid.
__________________
Pete Hunt, [San Diego] VAF #1069
RV-6, RV-6A, T-6G
ATP, CFII, A&P
2020 Donation+, Gladly Sent
|

06-20-2013, 05:47 AM
|
 |
|
|
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Newport, TN
Posts: 7,496
|
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by PCHunt
|
I thought the same thing at first but he said he switched batteries and it worked like a charm.
|

06-20-2013, 05:48 AM
|
 |
|
|
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Newport, TN
Posts: 7,496
|
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by Captain Avgas
Brian, An Odyssey battery distributor once told me that lack of metal jacket support can cause the Odyssey PC680 to fail prematurely. He suggested that many RV builders are cutting such large "lightening holes" in their battery cases that the battery lacks sufficient metal wall support. He said that when the battery heats up under rapid recharge in the high heat aircraft firewall forward environment the plastic walls can get soft and move outwards fractionally if they are not adequately supported, which can damage the battery internals.
The Vans RV firewall forward kit comes with a battery holder that is actually just a stock Odyssey PC680 metal jacket. The distributor says that metal jacket is an integral and necessary component of the battery for high heat environments but that RV builders are often modifying them by cutting out most of the front wall. I thought his comments were interesting and that I would pass them on. I have never seen this discussed on VansAirforce before.
Is it possible in this particular instance that too much metal has been removed from the PC680 jacket in an attempt to "lighten" it. Just a possibility and certainly food for thought for other builders keen on taking out the last gram of weight from their aircraft.
|
Bob,
I have seen no evidence of this with my batteries. I have seen some posted here that have swelled up but most of those have been abused in some manner. Mine look and slide in and out of the case just as if they were new.
|

06-20-2013, 11:19 AM
|
|
|
|
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: MERRITT ISLAND, FL
Posts: 360
|
|
PC680 CCA????
RE: My earlier post.
I "read the battery fine print" today and was surprised to see that my Battery Mart March 2013 PC680 had a CCA OF 170 and if I recall a PHCA of 580 while my old PC680 had a label showing 220 CCA and PHCA of 680.
Somewhere I recall reading that we need (for our 4 cyl engines) a CCA of at least 220. I am guessing that this may be part of my problem.
I charged the "new" battery last night, cleaned the terminals and it performed as it should. But now I'm gun shy with the 170 vice 220 CCA issue.
Don
__________________
Don Stiver
RV8 "Little Pill" N6371S, Merritt Island, Fl.
BPE IO-390, Dual P-mag, MT 3-blade, AFP system
Steen Skybolt: Sold
|

06-20-2013, 11:50 AM
|
 |
|
|
Join Date: Mar 2006
Location: Newport, TN
Posts: 7,496
|
|
Quote:
Originally Posted by APACHE 56
RE: My earlier post.
I "read the battery fine print" today and was surprised to see that my Battery Mart March 2013 PC680 had a CCA OF 170 and if I recall a PHCA of 580 while my old PC680 had a label showing 220 CCA and PHCA of 680.
Somewhere I recall reading that we need (for our 4 cyl engines) a CCA of at least 220. I am guessing that this may be part of my problem.
I charged the "new" battery last night, cleaned the terminals and it performed as it should. But now I'm gun shy with the 170 vice 220 CCA issue.
Don
|
When I contacted Odyssey about this change to 170CCA vs the original rating of 220CCA, here is what they said:
"Why were the CCA, PHCA, MCA, HCA etc. ratings changed to much lower values on the PC680? The production of the product hasn?t changed in many years except to make design improvements but the original published specs were based on calculations derived from other TPPL technology products and once the testing was done it was determined that the published stats would be minimum required ratings for each rating and not the average.
Kathy Mitchell
ODYSSEY Sales/Support Representative"
Bottom line is that it is the same battery it always was, they just reduced its rating after they actually tested it. The prior rating was an estimate.
|
Posting Rules
|
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts
HTML code is Off
|
|
|
All times are GMT -6. The time now is 12:39 AM.
|