Battery terminal issue
Posted by Hondanny@reddit | projectcar | View on Reddit | 17 comments
Hey all! I've run into an issue with my car. Other day I noticed the battery terminal was sitting very loose on the battery post even when tightened all the way and as I was trying to fix that all the wires going to that terminal came right out. They are held in with a set screw but the screw doesn't hold them well at all one small tug takes them right back out plus the threads are stripped. I think all the extra wires going to the battery are for the aftermarket alarm system (electrical work is not my strong suit lol)
I'm wondering if I used some of those copper terminals (Photo # 3) and crimped them to the loose wires and installed them on the battery terminal with the stud I found in photo # 4 would be a good fix however I'm not sure how I would mount that smaller wire all the way on the right side of my current battery terminal as it would need a smaller copper terminal.
Is there a better way of going about this?
McGee4531@reddit
I put quick release terminals on all of my cars. The ones that look like bike seat adjusters. They're great to have.
illbeyourdrunkle@reddit
That's agood way to do it, but keep in mind you'll need a special crimping tool to get them on there. Can probably rent it from part store. Hand held crimper tools WILL NOT DO IT
Eagle-Enthusiast@reddit
You can buy a hammer crimper on Amazon for ~10. Made every one of my main battery/startwr cables that way and it still works fine. Nothing to break.
Hondanny@reddit (OP)
I'll definitely check out Amazon thank you!
Eagle-Enthusiast@reddit
Just beat the crap out of it and then try really hard to yank the cable out of the new crimped end. If it doesn’t budge then you’re good.
Stitch_K@reddit
Harbor freight has a hydraulic crimper for \~$70. I just bought it and worked great for making a new starter cable.
Hondanny@reddit (OP)
I was just checking out the moroso site for their distribution terminals. Would it be a bad idea to have 2 or 3 lugs stacked under 1 bolt? I've got 3 thick wire that would need to be transferred over and the Moroso seems to only have 1 large slot
Stitch_K@reddit
You would likely still be able to use the other locations on the distribution block. Just use the correct sized crimp terminals for the bolts. Since you could still have a 6AWG wire (starter sized gage wire) with a 5/16 hole on the crimped terminal to fit on the distribution block. The spot I have the starter cable on in my picture is 3/8 sized, the spot next to it 5/16 IIRC.
The side spots that my relay box and fusible link wiring is on is the smallest hole but supporting two 8-10 gauge wires
Hondanny@reddit (OP)
Yeah I've been meaning to buy a hydraulic crimper for a while anyway I guess nows the time lol
Fake_Majak@reddit
If you really need to replace the whole thing, generally copper cable lugs are okay, but I wouldn't use those thin ones that are on the picture.
I would get a terminal for the battery post that is similar to the one you already have, and clamp the cables directly to that.
The cable lugs would probably work fine, and would probably be able to withstand the amperage going thru them in theory, but given that I don't know what kinds of electric systems you have (aftermarket speakers, amplifiers, etc), and what amount of ventillation are the battery terminals getting, I would say that you go with the more robust and certainly safer solution, as that one certainly has more room between the rated and the maximum amperage in practice.
If you find out why the original terminal won't clamp correctly, and manage to fix it, then I would just simply take out the set screw, and put in a new one if the threads are stripped on the screw itself. If the threads are stripped on the terminal, I would just drill a really slightly bigger hole than it has now, and tap some threads in, then put in another set screw
Hondanny@reddit (OP)
You made a very good point thank you! I was hoping to replace the whole terminal anyway as it doesn't even clamp very nicely onto the battery post anyway. I had to shim it with part of a paperclip to get it to stay. Threads are unfortunately stripped on the terminal itself but thankfully I have a tap and die set on hand if I decide to keep the current setup but I'd rather ditch the set screws all together they don't seem very sturdy
Fake_Majak@reddit
If you already planned to, I would certainly buy a new one that is properly rated.
Idk if I understand it right, but please don't put a paperclip between the terminal and battery post. Since it has a very little contact and conductive area, it can melt if you're unlucky, and even cause a fire in the worst case.
But I suppose you need it to work currently, so if you really need to use it before getting a new terminal, I would ditch the paperclip, and bend some metal sheet around the post very tightly, then clamp the terminal on that. It's still not very good, but at least that would have a better contact area, and probably wouldn't heat up that much
MuhThugga@reddit
This is what I did.
bestguessautotech@reddit
That type of battery terminal you currently have never seems to work well. Your plan is a decent one if you have the capability to crimp those large copper lugs properly.
It is never great to have multiple lugs under one bolt, if you can find a terminal with multiple spots, that would be preferred or use a power distribution block with one large wire attached to the battery. Even if you don’t use multiple attachment points, I think it would be better than what you have.
Hondanny@reddit (OP)
Yeah I knew this setup was a lil janky from the beginning but I bought the car like this. Didn't have any issues until now. I'll definitely look into a power distribution block thank you!
foster_4_2@reddit
If just run a single fat wire to a distribution block and split from there. Can just be 6-12". Something like this that all the wires then feed from. You can fuse them from there. Something like this random one I found
Hondanny@reddit (OP)
I should mention the white and black wires were both crammed under the same screw