Paul's how NOT to convert a Metro

[Christ]

[vpoppv]

Ok, so I went out and bought a couple of those car battery to marine battery posts that Christ pictured above for $2.69/pair at the farm supply store. That and I had to get my 2 free bags of popcorn. And.......
Well, batteries just plain confuse me. I have a stack of old batteries on my back porch. 6 of those Trojan T-105s that came with the golf cart-dead as doornails. And then I have 6 old car starting batteries. One of them is out of my van: one of those top of the line Wal-Mart 35,000 cold cranking giga-amp dealies. It starts the van just fine, but the van tends to sit a lot without being used. Something about 14 mpg just never quite appeals to me so I never drive it. Anyway, the only two that had enough startup voltage to turn on the charger was the van battery and some old (2006) battery than I took out a LONG time ago because it wouldn't hold a good charge. Anyway, so those two were charging, and the "bad" one showed "ready" on the charger first! The van one is STILL charging. So, I stuck that in the EV and took it for a 2nd spin of the day (never bothered charging the others) and OMG!! I can't believe the difference!!! It accelerates SOOO much better!!! And, when I got back, that battery still showed over 12 volts!! And all the others barely noticed the trip either! With the way it is working now, I can only wonder what a set of 6 GOOD batteries would be like!!!

Oh, and I got my 7 Harbor Freight multimeters today!! They rock!

Can an EV GET any better??? I love my car!

[MPaulHolmes]

7 Harbor freight multimeters??!!! You really broke the bank! Did that come up to $14? They are awesome! But after a year or so, if you leave them on all night several times on accident, you will have to get a new 9v battery, or throw down another $1.99 for a new volt meter/9v battery combo.

I just had a thought!

Take out the 7 HF batteries from the multimeters, put them in series, and drive your car with them! it would be 63v!!! Slightly better than the 60v you had before.

[vpoppv]

Originally Posted by MPaulHolmes

I just had a thought!

Take out the 7 HF batteries from the multimeters, put them in series, and drive your car with them! it would be 63v!!! Slightly better than the 60v you had before.

It's eery, you must be clairvoyant! I was having that exact though! But I was going to scrounge around my garage for 9v batteries, just to keep with my motif!

[MPaulHolmes]

I"m not clairvoyant, but I am Claire Huxtable trapped in a man's body... hahahahahaha That made no sense whatsoever.

[TheSGC]

Speaking about batteries, I just found out there is a Battery Recycle company about 20 minutes from me! Although I just replaced my pack under warranty, I might go down and check out what they have.

If they are cheap enough I might stock up and a ton just to play with.

[vpoppv]

Originally Posted by TheSGC

Speaking about batteries, I just found out there is a Battery Recycle company about 20 minutes from me! Although I just replaced my pack under warranty, I might go down and check out what they have.

If they are cheap enough I might stock up and a ton just to play with.

I found some in Oklahoma City, but that's an hour and a half drive for me. I'd REALLY like to know a place that pays decent money for cores, since I have so many...

[Christ]

Glad to know I could be of some help!

I bought about 200 of those terminals back when Central Tractor sold their store to Tractor Supply Company. They sold their inventory at insanely low prices, and I bought over $1000 of maintenance items that week.

Regarding the 9V batteries.. I've never had to buy another meter because the battery died. I actually collect old "dead" batteries, because they're seldom ever actually dead. When an electronics device takes more than one cell, often, one cell will die, leaving the others fine, and still well off in the charge department. Also, rechargeable batteries are often comprised of smaller individual cells, like those in cordless phones. They're just 3 AAA cells wired in series to make 3.6VDC. (Lithium and Nickel cells are usually 1.2VDC). If you collect those, test them to find the good cells, you almost never run out of batteries, unless you use portable electronics all the time. I keep the rechargeable ones to replace batteries when the dry-cell alkaline ones finally die.

Also, I love to take batteries apart. Some 9VDC batteries actually contain 6 AAAA cells. The 12V camera batteries actually contain several button cell batteries, and if it looks like a pair of AA's, it is.

I'm currently looking for enough batteries to make a pair of 6VDC cells that are 1" x 3.5" x 3.5" so I can put a pair of 6VDC cells under the seat on my TwinStar! I figured on finding a series of Ni-MH battery cells and welding tabs to them until I got a decent 6VDC pack, then making 2 packs, which I could wire in series when I get around to doing the 12VDC upgrade on the bike.

[vpoppv]

I got some more batteries from the boat place. I decided that the Group 27 batteries would be a better match for the Corolla, and I wanted the smaller Group 24 Marine batteries for the Geo. Here they are:



Also, I decided that I couldn't trust the resistance readings I was getting from my old cheapo analog multimeter, and I don't understand what the Harbor Freight one is telling me, so I broke down and bought a Curtis PB-6. Well, actually, the part INSIDE a PB-6 that everyone is buying at Radio Shack for $2.99..... So that way I can check and see if my TPS is working right....

[vpoppv]

I just sold my starter motor so that knocks another $10 off the conversion price. I wish I wasn't so impatient because I paid $300 for my controller and an Alltrax 7245 sold for $210 with shipping on eBay last week. I could have knocked almost $100 off my conversion cost! I am pretty sure I can get about $100 for the Metro head. I could have been in the $300 range for a conversion. Maybe after the Corolla conversion, I can convert another one of my Geos with just one goal in mind: CHEAP!!