Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Is it worth me looking at it and seeing if I can find a cheaper way?

--
*According to my calculations, the problem doesn't exist.

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On 7/3/2012 9:08 AM, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Out of curiosity - is your friend ex-BBC?

Is it worth me looking at it and seeing if I can find a cheaper way?

On 03/07/2012 14:08, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Is it worth me looking at it and seeing if I can find a cheaper way?

Traction batteries usually are expensive, so I would not expect you to
be able to make major savings, but it ought to be worth looking at
finding a cheaper supplier.

Colin Bignell

Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Is it worth me looking at it and seeing if I can find a cheaper way?

I have a lot of experience of this. The disability market marks things
up by 100 to 150%. For example I was quoted £320 by a disability outfit
for the batteries for a big scooter. The exact same batteries (same make
everything) were £160 from a battery firm.

My wife's buggy takes batteries that are £100 each from the disability
shops; £55 from battery firms.

Wherever you buy from, ask first if they have the form to fill in
certifying disability so there's no VAT.

You must get sealed lead acid batteries, and they must be deep discharge
types. Ordinary lead acid (burglar alarm ones, car ones etc) are not
suitable.

Bill

On 03/07/2012 14:08, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Is it worth me looking at it and seeing if I can find a cheaper way?

Worth having a look on rapidonline and/or a couple of dedicated lead
acid battery suppliers to see if they have anything suitable with the
right dimensions and rating. Deep discharge high current batteries tend
to be expensive but they get marked up a lot in this application.

The disability market is full of overcharging sharks and spivs
(much like banks). Still Diamonds it seems are not forever...

--
Regards,
Martin Brown

On 03/07/12 14:08, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Is it worth me looking at it and seeing if I can find a cheaper way?

I was once sold mobility scooter or wheelchair batteries as replacements
for a UPS, and they were cheaper than OE. Have you tried a battery
specialist? I used http://www.bjbannings.co.uk/batteries.php, but there
must be one near you.

In article ,
Bill Wright wrote:
Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Is it worth me looking at it and seeing if I can find a cheaper way?

I have a lot of experience of this. The disability market marks things
up by 100 to 150%. For example I was quoted £320 by a disability outfit
for the batteries for a big scooter. The exact same batteries (same make
everything) were £160 from a battery firm.

That's what I guessed. No morals when it comes to business.

My wife's buggy takes batteries that are £100 each from the disability
shops; £55 from battery firms.

Wherever you buy from, ask first if they have the form to fill in
certifying disability so there's no VAT.

You must get sealed lead acid batteries, and they must be deep discharge
types. Ordinary lead acid (burglar alarm ones, car ones etc) are not
suitable.

I guessed they might be SLA - but why? Do these things often get inverted?
Motorbikes seem to manage pretty well with modern semi-sealed wet types.

He also doesn't use it for long journeys. I explained if he re-charged it
often, he might get away with non deep cycle types. Although if I can find
the correct ones at a more reasonable price that will do fine.

--
*Do infants enjoy infancy as much as adults enjoy adultery?

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

In article ,
S Viemeister wrote:
On 7/3/2012 9:08 AM, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Out of curiosity - is your friend ex-BBC?

Not as far as I know. Pretty colourful past, though, so anything is
possible. ;-)

--
*Failure is not an option. It's bundled with your software.

Dave Plowman London SW
To e-mail, change noise into sound.

On 7/3/2012 11:47 AM, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
S Viemeister wrote:
On 7/3/2012 9:08 AM, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Out of curiosity - is your friend ex-BBC?

Not as far as I know. Pretty colourful past, though, so anything is
possible. ;-)

Well, when you've found a good source for the batteries, make sure you
post the info - I have a relative in London (ex BBC film editor) who
will be needing them.

In message , S Viemeister
writes
On 7/3/2012 11:47 AM, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
S Viemeister wrote:
On 7/3/2012 9:08 AM, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Out of curiosity - is your friend ex-BBC?

Not as far as I know. Pretty colourful past, though, so anything is
possible. ;-)

Well, when you've found a good source for the batteries, make sure you
post the info - I have a relative in London (ex BBC film editor) who
will be needing them.


The other day I was at some traffic lights when along on the pavement
came a man on a mobility scooter with a matching trailer. The trailer
was about the same size as the scooter, in matching maroon. Someone came
out of a shop, lifted the lid and put whatever he had bought in, and off
he went.

I thought what a great idea.
--
Bill

On Tue, 03 Jul 2012 14:08:10 +0100, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:

Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Why am I not surprised?

Is it worth me looking at it and seeing if I can find a cheaper way?

Have a look at:

http://www.vps-ups.co.uk

They are mainly UPS sellers but do have a "Golf Batteries" section. I've
bought the last couple of set of UPS batteries from them at good prices
and quick delivery.

--
Cheers
Dave.

In article ,
Bill writes:
The other day I was at some traffic lights when along on the pavement
came a man on a mobility scooter with a matching trailer. The trailer
was about the same size as the scooter, in matching maroon. Someone came
out of a shop, lifted the lid and put whatever he had bought in, and off
he went.

I thought what a great idea.

I thought the story was going to end with the trailer being the
50 mile extension battery pack...

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

In article ,
"Dave Plowman (News)" writes:
He also doesn't use it for long journeys. I explained if he re-charged it
often, he might get away with non deep cycle types. Although if I can find
the correct ones at a more reasonable price that will do fine.

I replaced the non deep cycle type in a jumpstart/compressor unit
with a deep cycle one when the original finally died.

The deep cycle one was slightly cheaper and slightly lower capacity
for the same physical size. Came from CPC (IIRC, make was Camden).
Still going strong, but too new to comment on longevity.

What capacity and how many does it use?

--
Andrew Gabriel
[email address is not usable -- followup in the newsgroup]

Dave Plowman (News) wrote:

You must get sealed lead acid batteries, and they must be deep discharge
types. Ordinary lead acid (burglar alarm ones, car ones etc) are not
suitable.

I guessed they might be SLA - but why? Do these things often get inverted?
Motorbikes seem to manage pretty well with modern semi-sealed wet types.
For all I know they'd be OK, but all the manufacturers used sealed so
I've just followed that.


He also doesn't use it for long journeys. I explained if he re-charged it
often, he might get away with non deep cycle types. Although if I can find
the correct ones at a more reasonable price that will do fine.
No, honestly, I shouldn't use ordinary ones. They don't last five
minutes even if you try to keep them charged up. The thing is, once the
battery capacity starts to drop the person is likely to be stranded. A
car battery will still start the car and seem to be quite OK when it's
well shagged, but these batteries need to be in pretty good nick or they
are a nuisance. The range just drops and drops over months rather than
years if you use car-type batteries.
When you think about it, an ordinary battery doesn't really do much
work. In a car it gets a big discharge very briefly then it gets charged
for the rest of the time. A UPS battery does **** all except once or
twice in its life. Batteries for scooters really do have a hard time
compared to that.
I have found that the life of these batteries can be extended
significantly by the use of intelligent chargers, such as those used on
yachts etc. I was sceptical but did a real comparison test over years
and found it to be true.
Incidentally I used to recommend Elecsol but the UK distributors have
acted in a way which I feel is rather shady over the last deal I did
with them.

Bill

Dave Liquorice wrote:
On Tue, 03 Jul 2012 14:08:10 +0100, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:

Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Why am I not surprised?

Is it worth me looking at it and seeing if I can find a cheaper way?

Have a look at:

http://www.vps-ups.co.uk

They are mainly UPS sellers but do have a "Golf Batteries" section. I've
bought the last couple of set of UPS batteries from them at good prices
and quick delivery.

If you can find some that fit, the 'leisure' batteries meant for
motorhomes can be very good value. Don't go to a caravan shop though,
they mark up nearly as much as the disability shops. Use a battery
specialist.

Bill

On 03/07/2012 19:27, Bill Wright wrote:


If you can find some that fit, the 'leisure' batteries meant for
motorhomes can be very good value. Don't go to a caravan shop though,
they mark up nearly as much as the disability shops. Use a battery
specialist.

Bill

I've had a couple of decent leisure batteries (used for lighting and
electric fences at a stable) from eBay suppliers.

On Tue, 03 Jul 2012 12:02:31 -0400, S Viemeister
wrote:

On 7/3/2012 11:47 AM, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
S Viemeister wrote:
On 7/3/2012 9:08 AM, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Out of curiosity - is your friend ex-BBC?

Not as far as I know. Pretty colourful past, though, so anything is
possible. ;-)

Well, when you've found a good source for the batteries, make sure you
post the info - I have a relative in London (ex BBC film editor) who
will be needing them.

I presume it's a standard lead-acid battery.
When I had a BMW R100RS bike the asking price for a replacement
battery was some 60-odd quid (a lot at the time!). I got an identical
(Yuasa?) battery from a local auto electrical firm for half this,
although it had to be ordered in specially (a couple of days).

--
Frank Erskine

On Tue, 03 Jul 2012 17:35:46 +0100 (BST), "Dave Liquorice"
wrote:

On Tue, 03 Jul 2012 14:08:10 +0100, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:

Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Why am I not surprised?

Is it worth me looking at it and seeing if I can find a cheaper way?

Have a look at:

http://www.vps-ups.co.uk

They are mainly UPS sellers but do have a "Golf Batteries" section. I've
bought the last couple of set of UPS batteries from them at good prices
and quick delivery.

"Golf Batteries" sounds like a "hole" lot of "balls" to me, but I
suppose it's "par for the course".

:-)

--
Frank Erskine

On 04/07/2012 00:05, Frank Erskine wrote:
On Tue, 03 Jul 2012 12:02:31 -0400, S Viemeister
wrote:

On 7/3/2012 11:47 AM, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
In article ,
S Viemeister wrote:
On 7/3/2012 9:08 AM, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Out of curiosity - is your friend ex-BBC?

Not as far as I know. Pretty colourful past, though, so anything is
possible. ;-)

Well, when you've found a good source for the batteries, make sure you
post the info - I have a relative in London (ex BBC film editor) who
will be needing them.

I presume it's a standard lead-acid battery.

Nope, they will be a traction battery - also lead/acid, but a different
kettle of fish.

When I had a BMW R100RS bike the asking price for a replacement
battery was some 60-odd quid (a lot at the time!). I got an identical
(Yuasa?) battery from a local auto electrical firm for half this,
although it had to be ordered in specially (a couple of days).



--
Dave - The Medway Handyman www.medwayhandyman.co.uk

On Tuesday, July 3, 2012 5:35:46 PM UTC+1, Dave Liquorice wrote:
On Tue, 03 Jul 2012 14:08:10 +0100, Dave Plowman (News) wrote:

Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Why am I not surprised?

Is it worth me looking at it and seeing if I can find a cheaper way?

Have a look at:

http://www.vps-ups.co.uk

They are mainly UPS sellers but do have a "Golf Batteries" section. I've
bought the last couple of set of UPS batteries from them at good prices
and quick delivery.

--
Cheers
Dave.

Can vouch for Value Power Systems (http://www.vps-ups.co.uk/) too. Have purchased quite a few sets of batteries for use in various UPS units from them. Decent prices for decent quality batteries. Delivery has been quick for in-stock items too!

If you can identify the current batteries (make / model) and contact them they will probably be able to supply something suitable.

Nick

On Tue, 03 Jul 2012 14:08:10 +0100, "Dave Plowman (News)"
wrote:

Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Is it worth me looking at it and seeing if I can find a cheaper way?

Most certainly.
It's likely SLA, so have a look at www.component-shop.co.uk

Grimly Curmudgeon wrote:
On Tue, 03 Jul 2012 14:08:10 +0100, "Dave Plowman (News)"
wrote:

Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Is it worth me looking at it and seeing if I can find a cheaper way?

Most certainly.
It's likely SLA, so have a look at www.component-shop.co.uk

They seem to have a lot of cheap stuff; the sort of thing they sell on
the market.

Bill

On 03/07/2012 14:56, Bill Wright wrote:
Dave Plowman (News) wrote:
Have a mate with one of these - and he's been quoted some ridiculous
figure for new batteries.

Is it worth me looking at it and seeing if I can find a cheaper way?

I have a lot of experience of this. The disability market marks things
up by 100 to 150%. For example I was quoted £320 by a disability outfit
for the batteries for a big scooter. The exact same batteries (same make
everything) were £160 from a battery firm.

My wife's buggy takes batteries that are £100 each from the disability
shops; £55 from battery firms.

Wherever you buy from, ask first if they have the form to fill in
certifying disability so there's no VAT.

Unless they are in the catalogue as specifically for a disability
scooter or wheelchair VAT is payable.


Peter Crosland