[Charles in SC]

I am asking about the kind you see on Pipers and Cessnas that can be used to jump start the plane. If you installed one of these are you glad you did or if you did not, do you wish you had done so? Any thoughts or comments are welcome.
Thanks in advance!

 

[N941WR]

I bought a battery tender which has a small connector with ring terminals that go on the battery and a Molex connector that is secured by the oil door. When going on trips, I toss the charger in my tool bag. No need for the weight or complexity of an ugly wart of a power plug on the exterior of the plane.

 

[JDanno]

I've installed or helped install two of these. Also I fabbed up a jumper to the external plug that allows me to jump it with an external battery or a battery charger. Works really good for sitting in the hanger running the setup on the radios while connected to the charger. Other wise it's a PITA to jump off the battery. It's a great thing to install and is very easy to do so.

 

[Ironflight]

A lot depends on your climate - it can be very nice to have in a cold climate if you are having a tough time getting fuel to light off and the battery is cold. In a warm climate, probably not as much. I use my airplanes in varying climates, and would rather have jump capability and not need it than need it and not have it. I grew up where it was bitter cold and hangars weren't alwasy available - in that case, a jump can sometimes be priceless.

These can be installed without "an ugly wart on the outside of your plane" (sorry Bill) with a little ingenuity.

Right now, we have three planes - one with external jump capability, one with an internal cable connection for jumping, and one with just a hidden charger/maintenance plug. So we cover the gamut.

 

[bobnoffs]

exterior plug

fwiw,
the plug used on pipers can be bought MUCH cheaper at a semi trailer [kentucky, freuhauf] parts store than as an aviation part.it is used on the trailer to power winches, overhead cranes etc. and since some pipers were wired with aluminum cable to the battery you needed it.

 

[n981ms]

We have one

It is on the belly and although a wart for sure it is not very noticeable. Wished we had something like on the Kitfox on occasion. I guess I need to get off my duff and put one in.

IMHO: I would put in some sort of relatively easy access to jump start. Just in case. You will only need it once to be glad you did.

 

[BillL]

<SNIP>
Right now, we have three planes - one with external jump capability, one with an internal cable connection for jumping, and one with just a hidden charger/maintenance plug. So we cover the gamut.

No disrespect, but it is either you learned something as time went by, you are running an experiment, or just couldn't decide. Kinda humorous - it is where I am -can't decide. I think maybe minimal flying lead (battery tender) for me. Modify if needed later. I gotta finish this thing!! Back to work.

 

[Jesse]

For the RV-10 a ground power plug is a must-have IMHO. With a short plug/dongle, you can pull a car up behind the wing and use jumper cables to jump the plane. That has come in handy many times before we got the VP-200 installed. It is also great for hooking up a battery tender/minder when sitting in the hangar.

 

[Jasonm]

Pictures?

I'm following this thread close as I'm at the point of deciding to install one or not. Does anyone have any pictures of their install?

Thanks
Jason

 

[Rupester]

For most of us, it was only a matter time before we get to the hangar and find the battery dead. It's a "when" situation, not an "if". When it happens you will definitely want an easy way to hook up a full-blown charger, not just a maintainer of trickle charger. Easy charging access to the battery quickly becomes a necessity, not an option.

 

[woxofswa]

I got stuck in a previous aircraft once in Monument Valley when a friend left the master on while we ate dinner. A kindly native gave us a jump from his truck and we were out of there right at sunset. With the hotel sold out we might have spent the night in the aircraft. I vowed then to always have a plug and carry cables in any future aircraft.

I put a Piper plug in the 10. Very easy to do per the Aero 'lectric plan. It was especially nice during avionics install for testing with an old spare battery. I didn't buy the ship's battery until the day of first flight.