"Remove Before Flight" tool for battery maintainers

[gerryvz]

Recently I purchased a few of the Battery Tender Jr. battery maintainers, as they were on sale at Amazon.com for $23 apiece — down from their normal price of $40. I got them for the cars I don't drive quite as much, and my motorcycle. The purpose is to keep the batteries in the vehicles continually charged, so that the cold weather (and any car-related drain) doesn't sap them. This is particularly more pronounced here in Texas, during our long, dreary cold season (December through February). A decent, charged battery can be measurably sapped in a matter of 10-14 days if it's below 60 degrees Fahrenheit of the Texas winter.

One cool feature of the Battery Tender products is a small "plug-in" pigtail with ring clamps that you attach to both battery terminals. I leave the end of the pigtail hanging loose in the corner of the trunk. I can then plug in the Battery Tender in a matter of seconds.

The issue with the trunk-mounted batteries of my E500 and 560SL is that (because I back my cars into the garage) there is a danger [particularly among the more absent-minded of us] of forgetting about the charger being connected, and pulling it out of the wall when you take off, still attached to the pigtail.

To combat this, I invented a small "red flag" device consisting of a carefully bent length of coat hanger, and a small, keychain-sized "REMOVE BEFORE FLIGHT" flag that attaches to the coat hanger. The bent coat hanger is placed on the steering wheel as a reminder when one gets into the car, to remove the charger from the trunk.

Hope someone finds this useful. Excuse the cell phone photos....

Cheers,
Gerry


Couple of cockpit views of the E500. Dirty interior, I know, I know.....



A view of the pigtail inside the E500 trunk.



And a couple of views on the 560SL -- cockpit and the lead from the charger going into the SL's trunk.

 

[Glen]

That's cool. I use Yuasa smart chargers, same pigtails as yours. I just leave the trunk lid up as my reminder though, lol.

 

[gerryvz]

I just leave the trunk lid up as my reminder though, lol.

I guess I could do that, at least on the E500, because I have my "DerFuror LadyKiller" gray contact switch installed in the trunk to switch off the trunk light. My biggest problem is that with all of the critters (large and small) here in Texas, I'd have some major colonies of God-knows-what nesting in there in a matter of days ... not to mention my own two cats.

 

[ccc]

I've been pondering how to install an easy no fuss on-off light switch for the trunk for this very reason.
Sooo, what is Derfuror Ladygray" switch or other ideas. Is there a single light with a switch included that fits in the same space?
Must i resort to my handiman skills and create a non-benz solution?

Chris

 

[Glen]

Chris,
Read through this thread:
http://500eboard.com/forums/showthread.php?1380-HOW-TO-Trunk-Light-Control-Tip

Glen

 

[Glen]

And this one:
http://www.500eboard.com/forums/sho...itches-with-settable-switches&highlight=furor

 

[J-Sauce]

Gerry, good idea with the warning placard, but this thread is useless without further details. Please answer the following to help anyone who intends to duplicate this project:

-Estimated level of difficulty
-Estimated time of completion
-What did you use to bend the coat hanger?
-What kind of coat was the hanger originally designed for?
-Can the words be substituted for German text theoretically?
Most importantly...
-Does this work on women? I'd think we'd need to bedazzle it if we share vehicles with lady-types.

 

[DerFuror]

Re: Pigtails n' such

...One cool feature of the Battery Tender products is a small "plug-in" pigtail with ring clamps that you attach to both battery terminals.

The pigtails are an excellent convenience feature. I have them on all my cars for hassle-free charging ability. BTW, that's a screamin' good price for the Jr. It is a pretty tough unit also. I had to run one over twice with the full weight of a 500E rear wheel to kill it.

...my "DerFuror LadyKiller" gray contact switch installed in the trunk...

…another excellent convenience feature, but not without its own previously discussed latent inherent risks; make sure you are in certifiably good cardio condition before installing these babies. You’re gonna need the stamina!

 

[gerryvz]

Gerry, good idea with the warning placard, but this thread is useless without further details. Please answer the following to help anyone who intends to duplicate this project:

-Estimated level of difficulty
-Estimated time of completion
-What did you use to bend the coat hanger?
-What kind of coat was the hanger originally designed for?
-Can the words be substituted for German text theoretically?

Geez, does this thread's title start with "HOW-TO:"? I think not.....

Estimated level of difficulty is a 3 on a 1-5 scale -- mainly due to ensuring that you have asymmetrical bends in the coat hanger wire.

Knipex (German-made) needle-nose pliers were used to cut and bend the coat hanger. Unfortunately, American brands like MAC, Snap-On and Craftsman do not provide the quality of bends that Knipex and Stahiwille pliers do.

The hanger was originally used with an English-made Charles Tyrwhitt spread-collared dress shirt, which I personally purchased in their headquarters store on Jermyn Street in London.

Most importantly...
-Does this work on women? I'd think we'd need to bedazzle it if we share vehicles with lady-types.

Are you kidding me? Aircraft-style items on a Mercedes? That's the automotive equivalent of a Versace gown or dangling a pair of $1,000 Christian Louboutin high heels in front of your favorite hottie.

Remember the rule of thumb: anything (Nitrous, superchargers, Jimbo-branded vented wiper plates, REMOVE BEFORE FLIGHT banners) that makes a girl think the car goes faster is good! All chicks know that airplanes are FAST ! This isn't some "bolt-on go-fast" part like a Honda Civic fart-can or an aluminum "Fast & Furious" rear decklid spoiler....

Think about it ... you're a chick who loves to drive fast, walking through a parking lot by a nice shiny Benz, and you happen to glance into the window and see a big red "REMOVE BEFORE FLIGHT" banner on the steering wheel. You think that's not going to provide instant attraction?

I think you need to try it, seeing as just the gray door-switches scored you some major poonerper your other post. Indeed, I hope your cardiovascular system is up to snuff if you were to install one of these banners on your rig....