Jumper cables

[Geo-TH,In]

I always keep a pair of jumper cables in truck. The other day a guy needed to borrow them. The insulation on the cables are old and brittle. When I straightened them out the insulation cracked in many places.
The champs are like new.
What would you do, repair or buy new?
George

 

[Patsdeere]

Repair but use big welding cable. New ones with their salt are more expensive than I think their worth.

 

[jeffcat]

If you want to play you can go to your local welding supply joint and buy 2 or 4 ot cable. Extra fine stranded for easy flexibility. Use sections of heat shrink tubing to keep it all neat. Trick is all of that cable is black. If you want to get super fancy go take a walk through a car junk yard. Check for an older Ford crown Victoria or such that had the battery in the trunk next to the spare. Great big RED cable that if you pull the rear seat and work you way forward to the firewall you will get a big heavy beauty of a cable around 15 feet long. Take ya about 15 minutes and a couple of sockets and a screw driver. I made a set of cables like that with big old HIPPO clips and they work fantastic. Starting a cold tractor, you hit the starter and the cables actually TWITCH! It is like using high tension power lines they can transfer so much amperage. WAY COOL!

 

[old]

If you have some old garden hose around take one end off each and slip the garden hose on and put the ends back on cheap easy and will fit the problem

 

[Dean]

Good, heavy gage welding cable is expensive.

A couple of years ago, I bought a set of 0 jumper cables from NT on sale for $100 (regular price $200).

The cables are made from cooper clad aluminum and are quite flexible even when cold. The clamps appear to be well made. Plastic storage case included.

15' long, IIRC.

I doubt if I could have made a good set for $100.

Dean

 

[Michael Soldan]

Two jumper cables walk into a bar and sit down on some bar stools. The bartender walks over and looks at them for a moment and says "OK I,ll serve you but you better not try to start something in here!"

 

[RedMF40]

(quoted from post at 15:57:04 12/20/19) Two jumper cables walk into a bar and sit down on some bar stools. The bartender walks over and looks at them for a moment and says "OK I,ll serve you but you better not try to start something in here!"

Hahahaha!

 

[SkipperII]

If they are good heavy duty clamps, go get some welder cable, and put your clamps on it, best jumpers you will ever have.

 

[Charles in Aus.]

I'm with OLD , garden hose works very well . My old tractor jump leads are made from welding cable , it really is the best , that's why I ran them through 1/2'' hose once they started to go hard and crack .
Use a foot of large bore heat shrink of the right colour at each end to keep everything neat and save you from getting the polarity wrong .

 

[jeffcat]

Here is a shot from Ebay. These are the heavy Hippo clips.

 

[guido]

Hello Geo,

How about some wrap?

Guido.

 

[Jim.ME]

Many welding supply houses now have welding cable with different color insulation besides black. Also there are vendors on eBay,
Amazon, and other places with cable with different colors available.

 

[msfarmall1]

George,
If you are possibly looking to purchasing a new set of Booster Cables, I would like to suggest that you contact Mississippi Industries for the Blind; 601-693-5525 in Meridian, MS. They have been producing Booster Cables for the U.S. Military since approximately 1982. American General, which is the company that has supplied the Humvee to the U.S. Military has also purchased these Booster Cables from Mississippi Industries to restock the Humvees. The cables are also available commercially in 12, 16, or 25 foot lengths.

The cables are No. 1 AWG with solid copper clamps that have a 600 amp rating. The clamps are crimped and soldered to the cable and the clamp/cable must sustain a 500 lb. wight test to insure the clamp is securely attached to the cable.
Mississippi Industries is a non-profit agency with little or no state funding so any purchases made with them helps to provide continued employment for the blind and legally-blind. I am sure your business would be much appreciated.
I read the YT forums daily and retired from Mississippi Industries in 2018 so your question presented an opportunity for me to help support the work that they do.
Thanks so much,

 

[Geo-TH,In]

Old,
Garden hose is redneck, I like it.

I'm not sure what guage the wire is. After the plastic coating cracked I'm not sure if the wire isn't 10g. Doesn't look like 8g.

I'll have to measure it.

I may look around and see if I don't have something heavier or you'll like this, run wires in parallel. Want to send me some 10g?
Lol.
George

 

[old]

All that old 10 gauge I have is here and there in in pieces all over the place any more. What I had years ago go used and reused and then left where ever it may have laid. But I have also use simple 12 gauge wire as a jump cable sort of or is it more of a way the charge a battery while working on other things. Doesn't take a heavy wire top charge a battery if you have the time to sit and wait say 15 or so minutes

 

[John T]

"I'm not sure if the wire isn't 10g."

If that's indeed the case I wouldn't bother with repairing them, 10 Gauge is too light in my opinion for quality high current capacity true "jumper cables"

The absolute best I ever had were heavy gauge fine stranded copper welding cable with 200 amp clamps, now those were "jumper cables"

John T

 

[old]

Ah but if one has some time they can waste even a simple couple of coat hanger wires will charge a battery fro ma car to car etc. BTDT when I had nothing other then a couple of old coat hangers on hand. I have also used 12 gauge wire to charge a battery from a car to car etc. Yes one has to sit back and wait say 15 or so minutes or more but it does the job BTDT many times over the year due to having no other choice.

 

[John T]

Ah sure a coat hanger or light 12 Gauge wire can work to charge one battery from another at LOW CURRENT and charge rates as you correctly indicate (We agree), but George is asking about JUMPER CABLES typically for high current transmission. Jumper cables ARE NOT the same as using light gauge wire and low current to slowly "charge" one battery. If one is near dead and you try to use a coat hanger or 12 gauge wire TO START THE CAR WITH A NEAR DEAD BATTERY, IT AINT GONNA HAPPEN LOL

"Jumper Cables" are NOT the same as using a coat hanger to provide a low current "charge" to another car, but you already know that...??.

We agree you are right "I have also used 12 gauge wire to charge a battery from a car to car etc. Yes one has to sit back and wait say 15 or so minutes or more"


Best wishes and Merry Christmas Rich, take care and God Bless

John T

 

[Geo-TH,In]

JonhT,
Bubba only uses one cable, the positive. He pushes on the car with his bumper to make negative connection.
lol.
You have observed just how posts go sideways and they don't answer question.
geo

 

[John T]

Hey Neighbor George, I've also seen that done lol

Indeed postings often go sideways as you indicated. You asked about whether to repair "jumper cables" and when you indicated they may only be 10 Gauge my advice was NOT to fool with repairing them. So often here people have an answer they just want to post unfortunately its often NOT to the question that was asked lol. I've been here like 30 years and often observed that and probably have been guilty myself lol. No one here is perfect but most try their level best to help out and that's a great thing, God Bless them all.

Merry Christmas

John T

 

[MarkB_MI]

Jumper cables less than 4 gauge aren't worth having. A lot of cheap cables have extra-thick insulation to camouflage their thin conductors.

 

[M-MAN]

Don't know why you're asking since we all know you are extra frugal. You're gonna repair them! Lol

I would just buy a new set. Good cables wouldn't have the insulation busting up no more than they are exposed to the elements. Mine are heavy thin strand copper and 30 years old. No insulation cracks and still almost as plyable as they were 30 years ago.

 

[old]

I am talking car to car type of things but yes with the lighter gauge wire it takes time. Not sure how many amps are going into the dead battery fro ma car that is running and charging the dead one but I have done it many times in the past because that was all I had to work with

 

[Dusty MI]

Often times even with decent cables waiting a minute or so after hooking up cables will help a lot.

Dusty

 

[David G]

Good cables do not get brittle, I have a set of 50 year old NAPA cables, probably 0 gauge with heavy formed clamps.

Buy a good set.

 

[Dean]

Took a closer look at my set.

They are 1 Ga, 25' in length, have very HD solid copper clamps, and are rated at 900 A.

Also looked in the latest NT catalogue only to find that they are no longer listed. Apparently, they could not sell them profitably at the $200 price so closed them out at $100.

Dean

 

[kcm.MN]

(quoted from post at 12:58:46 12/22/19) Took a closer look at my set.

They are 1 Ga, 25' in length, have very HD solid copper clamps, and are rated at 900 A.

Also looked in the latest NT catalogue only to find that they are no longer listed. Apparently, they could not sell them profitably at the $200 price so closed them out at $100.

Dean

The set I posted to earlier is also 25', i gauge but rated for 800 amps. I paid under $40. They're still under $45.