Dakota Lithium battery box.

[Darth-Baiter]

My old Nocqua batteries are dying. They didn’t last that long.  1.5 years maybe.  They both only charge fully to 12v. I’m over it. 
 

thinking of going with the DL box.  Can I wire my fish finder to and old cigarette lighter plug and simply plug it in?  Or use those two prong locations?  
 

 

[casts_by_fly]

The black and red knobs on the right are for bare wire connections. Not how I would rig a solution, but it would work if that’s how you’re set up. 

[AlabamaSpothunter]

@MN Fisher  that's a great idea, the smarter folks here shot down my alligator clamp idea lol, this once sounds like it's got a better chance, I'm pulling for ya ?

[Darth-Baiter]

7 minutes ago, casts_by_fly said:

The black and red knobs on the right are for bare wire connections. Not how I would rig a solution, but it would work if that’s how you’re set up. 

So go bare wire to an Anderson clip permanently placed in those two plugs?

8 minutes ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

@MN Fisher  that's a great idea, the smarter folks here shot down my alligator clamp idea lol, this once sounds like it's got a better chance, I'm pulling for ya ?

I’m not a savage.  Alligator clips?  

[AlabamaSpothunter]

2 minutes ago, Darth-Baiter said:

So go bare wire to an Anderson clip permanently placed in those two plugs?

I’m not a savage.  Alligator clips?  

I was a primitive caveman when I first joined in regard to batteries and electronics in August, I'm currently at the neanderthal stage ?

[MN Fisher]

24 minutes ago, AlabamaSpothunter said:

I was a primitive caveman when I first joined in regard to batteries and electronics in August, I'm currently at the neanderthal stage ?

It's not that far of a jump to Cro Magnon.

[casts_by_fly]

25 minutes ago, Darth-Baiter said:

So go bare wire to an Anderson clip permanently placed in those two plugs?

I’m not a savage.  Alligator clips?  

more or less. Make sure you have an inline fuse on the positive. 
 

any reason why you want that battery pack and not just a plain battery?  

[Darth-Baiter]

3 hours ago, casts_by_fly said:

more or less. Make sure you have an inline fuse on the positive. 
 

any reason why you want that battery pack and not just a plain battery?  

Backup for blackouts I suppose. 
 

if I buy just the DL battery I don’t need a box?

[Woody B]

What are you powering with it?  I'm guessing you're wanting something portable for a Yak to power a single sonar unit?   I would guess a 10 amp hour battery may be undersized.   A lithium battery isn't going to last as long if you're running it all the way down every time.  (same for any battery)   I have an Ionic lithium for my trolling motor....can't comment on Dakota.  However, instead of buying the box I'd get a bigger battery.  Ionic has a 20 amp hour for $219.  Dakota probably has something similar.   Using a power/cigarette outlet plug?  I suppose it "should" work in theory but probably not as good in real life.  I use an android tablet for maps.   I charge it/keep in charged with a power outlet usb charger.  It's gets hot at times.   Heat means there's resistance there.   

 

The Ionic has threaded M6 terminals.  I'd just use a couple studs and wind nuts for an easy to remove connection.   

[casts_by_fly]

11 hours ago, Darth-Baiter said:

Backup for blackouts I suppose. 
 

if I buy just the DL battery I don’t need a box?

 

If you're just talking about wiring a basic fish finder, I would get a basic lithium 15 AH or so, a set of spade connectors, and wire it that way.  Put the battery in a dry hatch and run the wiring through a through-hull fitting if you need to.  The spade connectors will let you disconnect the battery and pull it out if you have to.  My 30 Ah sits inside the hull under my seat.  Its velcroed to the hull and hasn't moved an inch in 2 years unless I pull it out.  I pull it once a year to inspect, clean, and lube the terminals with electric grease.

 

The dakota box is $229 from dakota for a 10 Ah battery and some lights inside a box.  If you need the lights and extra connections, then so be it.  But a 15 or 20 Ah Amped is $105-$139 plus $10 in hardware to set it up.  You'll have more capacity at half the price.

[Bankc]

Those black and red post terminals up top that you're considering attaching bare wire to look like they'll also accept a banana plug on the top.  I see those types of connectors on hifi speakers all of the time.  That might be a more convenient solution for you. 

[Chris at Tech]

Or grab one of the cheaper batts on Amazon…

 

I admit I’m new to the lithium world but I have a hard time spending more money on the “name brands”

[casts_by_fly]

35 minutes ago, Chris at Tech said:

Or grab one of the cheaper batts on Amazon…

 

I admit I’m new to the lithium world but I have a hard time spending more money on the “name brands”

 

the main difference is usually the BMS, followed by the internal wiring.  Not all big brands have a good one and not all cheapies have a bad one.  A couple reviewers have torn them apart to compare internal build quality.

[Darth-Baiter]

might be all a moot point.  i just blew 150% of my fun money for the year, and it is only January.  

at this point i will be yelling at my buds.."how deep are we?!" 

[Chris at Tech]

On 1/11/2023 at 2:57 PM, casts_by_fly said:

 

the main difference is usually the BMS, followed by the internal wiring.  Not all big brands have a good one and not all cheapies have a bad one.  A couple reviewers have torn them apart to compare internal build quality.

Agree, I think there’s enough info out there to find cheaper batteries that’ll do the job just fine.

[TnRiver46]

On 1/11/2023 at 3:04 PM, Darth-Baiter said:

might be all a moot point.  i just blew 150% of my fun money for the year, and it is only January.  

at this point i will be yelling at my buds.."how deep are we?!" 

Jigging spoon will give you a good idea of depth for about $1.59

[Bankc]

On 1/11/2023 at 2:04 PM, Darth-Baiter said:

might be all a moot point.  i just blew 150% of my fun money for the year, and it is only January.  

at this point i will be yelling at my buds.."how deep are we?!" 

Yeah, if it's just for the sonar, I wouldn't mess with a lithium.  I run my sonar off a 7ah SLA battery.  And while my sonar is supposed to draw 1 amp, in reality, it doesn't draw anywhere near that because I've routinely ran that sonar for 8 hours, non-stop.  And since it's such a small battery, the weight savings aren't worth the price.  

Now if it's for a trolling motor, that's a different story.  I saved 50lbs by going to a lithium battery.  

[Alex from GA]

I'm with Tn, get a 7 ah security system backup battery for $20 @ Amazon and go fishing.  

[casts_by_fly]

On 1/13/2023 at 5:28 PM, Bankc said:

Yeah, if it's just for the sonar, I wouldn't mess with a lithium.  I run my sonar off a 7ah SLA battery.  And while my sonar is supposed to draw 1 amp, in reality, it doesn't draw anywhere near that because I've routinely ran that sonar for 8 hours, non-stop.  And since it's such a small battery, the weight savings aren't worth the price.  

Now if it's for a trolling motor, that's a different story.  I saved 50lbs by going to a lithium battery.  

 

17 hours ago, Alex from GA said:

I'm with Tn, get a 7 ah security system backup battery for $20 @ Amazon and go fishing.  

 

 

Depends on the head unit.  I started with a 10 AH lead acid on my Helix 7.  I have the screen on max brightness during the day and almost every time I get to a lake I turn on depth mapping to record a depth chart so that over time I've got my own built up maps.  I would burn through the 10 AH in about 3-4 hours.  I know the spec for a Helix 7 is just under an amp and it should have been fine, but the voltage was dropping too low for the unit to carry on.

 

If we're talking about a Piranha unit that is drawing 2 tenths of nothing then that's a different story and I'd just go with lead acid.