| Author | Message | ||
     James (Jimmyg) Senior Member Username: Jimmyg Post Number: 282 Registered: 10-2002 |
I'm looking for a single battery to act as a starting and winching deal. I looked at optima yellow top and saw this XLT Stowaway Marine Dual purpose battery and the champion XLT. Both use the "Advanced Exide Orbital Technology". Anyone have a thing to say about these batteries? | ||
| Erik G. Burrows (Erik) Member Username: Erik Post Number: 211 Registered: 04-2002 |
I have two of the Exide Orbitals used in parallel, which have served me well for over a year. | ||
| Perrone Ford (Perroneford) Member Username: Perroneford Post Number: 104 Registered: 02-2003 |
My Exide Orbital (RIP) was absolutely perfect in it's 2+ years of service. I am now intalling 2 Hawker Odyssey batteries. I've heard nothing but good about the Optima Yellow top though so I don't think that's a bad choice either. -P | ||
| Rans (Rans) Senior Member Username: Rans Post Number: 532 Registered: 08-2002 |
I'm curious, are the Optima and the Exide batteries roughly the same in technology? How about in quality? Price? | ||
| Erik G. Burrows (Erik) Member Username: Erik Post Number: 215 Registered: 04-2002 |
That probably depends on who you ask. Price and amp/hour rating is very comperable. I'm sure their technology is different, but probably just different enough not to infringe on each other's patents. I bought Orbitals because they are more available, and I've had good experiences with Exide products. | ||
| Joe M. (Little_joe) Member Username: Little_joe Post Number: 112 Registered: 11-2002 |
FWIW, an acquaintance of mine was an engineer for the company that made Exides, when I asked him about Exide Orbital vs Optima this is what I got (unedited): "Exide acquired the copycat technology when they purchased CEAC, a large Spanish battery company who claims they pioneered the beercan battery. The Orbitals are made in Manzanares Spain and shipped into the US, which means they actually are getting less expensive due to the dollar/euro being out of whack. I think the Optima is made in either Colorado or Canada (all I remember is the letter "C" and snow...) so it's probably good ole' overpriced union labor driving up the cost. The technology is basically the same between the Orbital and the Optima. The Exide internal design is a little beefier around the terminal straps that supplies both the top and side terminals. The Optimas apparently have (though I've personally never heard of it) a weakness that under high shock/vibration will crack the strap and you'll be left w/ a dead terminal. I think the Optima has a better absorptive glass mat (AGM) which holds the gelled acid more uniformly. The mat's made in NC by a company called Holligsworth & Vose (using equipment that I helped build :D ) The Spaniards use a crappy AGM made by several different French companies - so that tells me it ain't worth shit right there! If the gel is not uniform, it will not achieve a full charge rate and de-rate the discharge cycle of the battery. In a wise business move, JCI, Exide's main competitor, purchased Optima soon after Exide's purchase of CEAC. I've heard that JCI has implemented some "manufacturing efficiencies" that may have degraded the quality of the Optimas as well. I know the CCA of the Red was derated about a year ago. joe | ||
| Rans (Rans) Senior Member Username: Rans Post Number: 533 Registered: 08-2002 |
Thanks for that....up until the last paragraph I was going to abandon my consideration of buying the Exide because the optima sounded better, now I'm just confused again....LOL |
