Extra Space in the Battery Tray - how to fill?

[Saville]

So I would like to install an Odyssey P925 AGM to replace my Gill G-25 flooded battery as I fly acro.

Naturally, nothing is ever simple:

First problem is that while the battery fits well in the fore and aft direction, it does not fit in the side-by-side direction. Here is a photo of one side:



And here is a photo of the other side:



All told there's a total of about 7/8ths of an inch which has to be evenly split on both sides. So I need some way to fill that space in so the battery doesn't slip from one side to the other. Any ideas would be helpful.


Here is a photo of the battery tray with no battery in it:



You can see the long bolts that are used for the battery hold down. They are a little too short. So I will need longer ones. Can't tell what they are made of - what are usually used in this application?

Thanks!

[Robin8er]

I'm unfamiliar with the tray, but it looks like the edges are just angle aluminum riveted in place. Why not just drill out the rivets and move them over?

If im wrong you could also just remove the existing metal on the left and right (not sure what the term it, but the things that prevents the battery from shifting) and get some aluminum angle from the hardware store and rivet it in the correct place.

[AlexPeterson]

You could just glue some wood strips in there.

It appears that the terminal studs are going to be very close to whatever bulkhead panel covers this area. Maybe it's just the way the picture turned out.

Any bolt or threaded rod will work, just be sure to use nuts with the nylon lock rings.

[Saville]

Originally Posted by AlexPeterson

You could just glue some wood strips in there.

It appears that the terminal studs are going to be very close to whatever bulkhead panel covers this area. Maybe it's just the way the picture turned out.

Any bolt or threaded rod will work, just be sure to use nuts with the nylon lock rings.

Yeah the terminals might hit the bulkhead door and short out. The bulkhead door has a rubber backing on the inside but it's not in the correct position. So part of this process is to solve that as well. It may be that the simplest solution is a new battery tray, and rotate the battery 90 degrees so that the terminals point to one side.

Or rotate the battery 180 degrees so the terminals point to the back.

Or use shorter terminal lugs and more rubber on the bulkhead door.

[flyboy1963]

Greg, I swapped for the same battery.
you could add a small chunk of aluminum angle at the bottom, a few wraps of tape so it doesn't dig into the battery case, and screw into it thru the existing angle...several ways to tackle this.

the WAAAAAAIIIT! is because the engine heat caused the lid of the 925 to curl, and several of the vents popped off! no acid lost, thankfully, and the battery is still cranking a couple years later....but you DO have to restrain that lid! I added a big square chunk of aluminum sheet, wedged in place by the rod of my batt hold down brace. It doesn't need to exert any pressure, just keep the lid flat in the heat!

good luck, you'll like how that 925 cranks in the cold!

[Saville]

Originally Posted by flyboy1963

Greg, I swapped for the same battery.
you could add a small chunk of aluminum angle at the bottom, a few wraps of tape so it doesn't dig into the battery case, and screw into it thru the existing angle...several ways to tackle this.

the WAAAAAAIIIT! is because the engine heat caused the lid of the 925 to curl, and several of the vents popped off! no acid lost, thankfully, and the battery is still cranking a couple years later....but you DO have to restrain that lid! I added a big square chunk of aluminum sheet, wedged in place by the rod of my batt hold down brace. It doesn't need to exert any pressure, just keep the lid flat in the heat!

good luck, you'll like how that 925 cranks in the cold!

My battery is located behind the aft baggage section so engine heat is not much of an issue.

However as this photo shows:



The lugs would get shorted out by the baggage compartment door.

The battery came with hex headed bolts which have the smaller diameter shank which threads into the battery body. In the picture below, the hex bolts are on the left and the lug extenders I bought are on the right. The hex head has been unscrewed - it can be tightened down snugly. In the middle are the two pieces for comparison. The lug extenders have the smaller diameter shank to go into the battery but the larger diameter shank to handle the battery cable lug.



What I'm wondering is if using the hex bolt on the left, along with a flat washer and lock washer will work. The hole in the cable lug is larger than the hex bolt diameter, but I wouldn't think that would be much of a problem.

If I can use the hex bolt and if I line the baggage door with more rubber, then the problem of the battery being shorted out is alleviated.

But I want to know if that's a safe, good, electrical connection.