It's always good to keep your eyes open.

JimM68 · 06-19-2010, 09:25 PM

and never trust the people who do work for you to keep thiers open.

I spotted this potential show stopper last month, when I was watching a "professional" put a pair of new trojan 6 volta couch batteries in.

Glad I did, cause the guy who changed the batteries never said a word.

The first 2 pics show the positive cable terminal, torn nearly in half.
If it had let go completely I would have had no battery power to the coach (tho the converter would have supplied 12 volts when plugged in)
Worse, if it had failed and grounded out, it coulda burned the house down.

JimM68 · 06-19-2010, 09:27 PM

I was surprised and pleased when I cut the bad terminal off and stripped the wire back, the copper looked like new.

JimM68 · 06-19-2010, 09:29 PM

I didn't have a proper crimping tool for a terminal that big, so I did the best I could with a visegrip. I put that screw in there so it would crush the center of the terminal down on the cable.

JimM68 · 06-19-2010, 09:34 PM

I guess I didn't take a picture... but since the terminal I bought at Ace Hardware was a bit big, I didn't trust the crimp alone. I used a propane torch to heat the terminal enough that solder would flow, and completely filled the inside of the terminal with solder. As the copper was perfectly clean, I got a very good connection.

After it cooled, I wrapped it with some tape and hooked her back up.

There's a lot of systems in our RV's, and they are often less than perfect. With our penchant for traveling far from our support systems, it's good to be a little handy, and better to spot deterioration before it leaves you stranded. The guy I bought the batteries from must have seen this, and he should have discussed it with me instead of completely blowing it off.

Ray,IN · 06-21-2010, 05:44 PM

Great explanation, and pictures to match! I've marveled for years at the sheer number of people I know that replace a battery (ies) in any vehicle and never inspect the cables. An example: once my cousin phoned me to ask why his antique 1953 Ferguson tractor starter would turn so slowly, starting the engine was a question every time. When I went and checked things out It still had the original battery cables! I installed new #2 battery cables (specs call for #0, but weren't available), and it was his turn to marvel at something. He said the starter never had turned the engine so quickly since purchasing it in 1982.

Don (W5IT) · 06-23-2010, 06:41 AM

Yep, battery cables are seldom looked at closely.

And Ray, your letting on about how old you are.....

Ray,IN · 06-24-2010, 12:09 AM

Hello Don! Long time no hear from you. Ya, you're right. I remember being with Dad when he bought a new 1952 Harry Ferguson TO20.
Today, the better choice for making replacement 6VDC cables is to buy welding cable instead of the large-strand battery cable. It is much easier to work.