[Cliff R]

My 40 something year old Schumacher is still going strong. I also have two large roll around units. One is from NAPA, the other is so old it has not markings left on it, both work fine. The NAPA unit was free, the main breaker took a dump and the owner tossed it out. The part was long discontinued so I went another direction with that deal and Googled up a high amp automatic resetting breaker for it. I had it straight wired for a while but didn't have a warm-n-fuzzy with that set-up so fixed it correctly.

As far as smaller chargers go NONE of them I've tried in the past 20 years or so are worth two squirts of duck poop. Had one from TSC, another from Rural King, and they all bit the dust a little to quickly for my liking. I think it's the aluminum windings vs copper that send them to an early grave. The "heavy" units I have like the Schumacher can take long term use w/o toasting the windings in them. The light weight cheaper units just don't make the grade, at least from what I've seen here......

[burd]

$259? You can toss your battery and get a new one for that much.

[Formulabruce]

Many newer chargers, along with poor components, are " potted" electronics, and cook themselves. The desire to " not hurt" car electronics has caused the basic car charger to turn into a highly regulated deal.

[Old Goat Racer]

50 + years. It's a keeper

[Cliff R]

You know what happens when you start talking good about something.........it will take a dump in short order!.........

[grandam1979]

I have been using a Battery tender for the last 4-5 years works great and of course I have the 50 year old charger but it just sits most of the time anymore the tenders hard to beat.

[vertigto]

Originally Posted by grandam1979

I have been using a Battery tender for the last 4-5 years works great and of course I have the 50 year old charger but it just sits most of the time anymore the tenders hard to beat.

Same here...why not?

[Stuart]

My experience with Battery Tenders wasn't so good - I got one, put it on my car, and it boiled out the battery and killed it. I haven't used it since. It was a genuine Battery Tender, not some knockoff. My experience may be the exception to the rule, but I don't have any interest in trying another one.

[The Champ]

I've got 10+ years of using relatively inexpensive Schumacher battery tenders. Very happy with the results over the years. They just eliminate a problem starting the toy cars after their winter's nap.

[SRR]

Both of mine are old school for sure, I got this one from the Goodwill for $20.00 like new. I put the smaller one on a 2 hour per night timer. The roll around is more than 20 years old. I've replaced the timer in it.

[1965gp]

I have battery tenders on most of my cars and they do solve the very annoying problem of a dead battery, still, I do use mine frequently on some of the other cars.

I’m willing to spend $259 if it will save some batteries. A battery is damn near $200 now so it doesn’t seem that bad. Hell the Schumacher one that died was $200.

[ta6point6]

I have used the Stanley trickle charger from Walmart for about 5 years now 22.00. The Trans Am has an cheapy Walmart battery that cost 30 and is going on 6 years now. The camping van also has the Stanley unit but is not plugged in full time like Trans Am. I just plug van in randomly throughout winter when I remember. The van also has a cutoff switch on positive battery cable to prevent parasitic draw. I like the small size of the Stanley as I just have the plug sticking out of a coinvent spot under grill to plug it in and let it do its thing. I also have a Harbor Freight on wifes car since she does not drive that often and battery was going dead in the winter. The HB has been on vehicle for about 5 years now.

[Ram Air IV Jack]

Originally Posted by grandam1979

I have been using a Battery tender for the last 4-5 years works great and of course I have the 50 year old charger but it just sits most of the time anymore the tenders hard to beat.

The Battery Tender brand in my opinion is the best on the market. Yes, they are made overseas, but the warrantee is solid, and the product is well made. They cost a bit more than other battery tender type chargers but are worth it. Excellent feedback on Amazon too.