What is the point of having a garage full of toys if you can’t play with any one of them at any time? Here is a great tip for you. Keep them batteries charged. Now I know some of your toys may be projects still being built, but if you got the battery for it, help it last longer by keeping it maintained.
We have seen battery chargers from a variety of brands with a variety of features. We use them all the time and when we saw these from the trusted Shell Oil brand, we had to give them a test.
I learned recently that it takes 20 minutes of continuous riding to recharge my Harley battery just from the draw in starting it. Not usually a problem when I go on a ride, but if I am running around town, I can suddenly be stranded looking for a jump. The Shell brand of chargers are perfect to keep the battery fresh. We use the SBC100 which is essentially a trickle-charger keeping the battery maintained with a 1A charge. The SBC100 plugs directly into a household socket and the long lead cord reaches around to the bike.
For my ’56 Fairlane, the Optima red-top is sitting in the trunk. To crank up the Ford 390GT the starter gets its juice from a cable that has to be nearly 8’ long. Some of the cranking amps get lost in all that cable. This is going to take a bit more of a charge to keep that battery fresh. We use the SBC400 with it’s 4A charging/maintaining capabilities. The SBC400 can also be dialed down to 1A if you prefer a trickle charge. The SBC400 has a 2-prong grounded plug on a 6’ cord and the unit can be mounted on the wall or placed on a shelf or floor with another 6’ cord going to the battery.
Both chargers come with smart clamps, and eyelet terminals. They are portable and all-weather. Perfect for very cold weather. They both have smart technology that protects against short-circuit, reverse polarity, over-temperature, defective battery, over-charging, over-voltage and over-current. Each can detect then charge/maintain 6V and 12V batteries, and batteries made with lead-acid, Lithium-ion, AGM and gel.
Our rides are ready to jump on the Blacktop at a moments notice. Is yours? Get Your Chargers HERE:
Shell 1amp Charger and Maintainer is sold under license by Camelion North America Inc.
Shell 4amp Charger and Maintainer is sold under license by Camelion North America Inc.