Emergency Battery 12oz.

[Steve Y]

Steve
Looks like there are several types of this battery, presumably starting power. Confirming you were using the XP-3? There seems to be an XP=5 and XP-10

Rick

I got and tried the XP-3. Plus getting the Wire Kit from Anti Gravity. The XP-1 is the same power (200CCA-
400CCA), but is slightly larger and has additional plugs (9V & 12V) as well as the 2A USB all the models share.
The XP-10 is larger and more power plus double the cost. The XP-5 is very small, lower power and has
less CCA than the XP-1 and XP-3 and the high power XP-10.
Note my XP-3 Did come with a nice soft case, 12V cig. & 110V wall chargers, universal 4 wire plugs
that has New Apple 8 pin, mini & regular USB & old style Apple plug all in one.

[J2cub]

I have one of these in my bag of tools. I have not had to use it yet but I am sure I will. I have jumped my plane or hand propped it on occasion. This is a really nice option, and light weight. I will report back once I use it for the first time.

[Rtones]

I haven't read up on the specifics of this battery pack, but I was reading through the thread and I wanted to put a word of caution out there.

I'm quite familiar with using lithium battery packs in hobbies (specifically remote controlled aircraft). Lithium cells like to be kept at a voltage between 3.3V - 4.2V. Likely this device has 3 of these cells in series creating a 12V lithium battery pack that ranges between 9.9V-12.6V.

Here comes the word of caution. Lithium batteries should not be overcharged or have their cell voltages drop too low. Beyond their 3.3-4.2V range they will begin to heat up and can catch on fire. There have been many remote control hobbyists who have had house fires because of this. Now in a consumer product like this I'd expect their is a regulating circuit that doesn't allow the device to charge past it's limit or drop below a minimum voltage and hence makes it a relatively safe product compared to unregulated lithium batteries used in the hobby world. But keep in mind that a severe impact that damages the cells can cause lithium batteries to catch fire.

The bottom line is this: If you are going to carry one of these around in the airplane with you, please inspect it periodically and maintain a proper charge. I would also keep it where it could be disposed of rapidly in flight. Personally I also wouldn't store it in the airplane. It would be a sad day to have my airplane catch on fire from this.

Anyways, there are my words of warning. I do think it's a great idea implemented with precautions.

[paulk]

Their site claims that the battery is Lithium Ion, not Lithium Polymer as used in R/C aircraft.

Paul

[Rtones]

I missed that while quickly reading. Good catch. Thank you for clarifying. I had horror stories of lithium polymer battery fires flashing through my head while reading and jumped to a conclusion.

Even though consumer product lithium ion batteries are safer than hobby grade lithium polymer, they do contain flammable gasses under pressure, so caution is warranted. Boeing went through this with the 787.

I still think it's a great idea and I would carry one in the winter months. Just with a little extra precaution and I wouldn't store it in the plane in a hard to access location.

Their site claims that the battery is Lithium Ion, not Lithium Polymer as used in R/C aircraft.

Paul

[seastar]

I bought one of these and ordered the harness as well.
The thing I like least about my CC is the starting performance.
My plane is an older one, #124, and still has the small battery box.
I don't trust lithium batteries under my a$$ and don't want to be charging/equalizing them all the time.
I worry about being stranded out somewhere.
I hope this thing works, it's very small and light.
You could throw it out the window if it starts smoking.
I will let you know when I get the harness.
Bill

[Rich]

Ok, I am convinced. Where is the best place to order this?

[Steve Y]

Ok, I am convinced. Where is the best place to order this?

Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Antigravity-Ba...ity+microstart

[stede52]

We used one on a rotax 100hp dead battery at the Hood River, Or fly-in this weekend and it cranked it over better then the original battery.

[seastar]

Here's a follow up. I bought one of these things and the harness. The harness is too short to reach out under the seat in the front so I modified it so it would. You need the connector for the emergency battery in front of the seat so you can reach it to connect and then remove the emergency battery after starting. You should not leave the emergency battery on line while the engine is running for very long. It Should not be charged by a high capacity alternator.
Its easy to route the wires alongside the ELT out the front of the seat.
Bottom line. This device is amazing. It started my airplane with an installed battery that would not turn over the engine. (I installed an old X2 battery that had been sitting for a year and was down to 11.9 Volts)
The engine started easily four times and the emergency battery was still going strong.
I recharged the emergency battery in flight from the cigar lighter socket using the supplied charger.
Starting problem solved.
Bill